Interdisciplinary Courses

Interdisciplinary Courses

Recognizing the importance of the interconnectedness among academic departments, Marist offers a number of courses that call upon the content and skills from more than one discipline. These courses build critical thinking skills by requiring students to synthesize and evaluate information and often demand that students apply knowledge in useful and creative ways. These courses model the fact that real world problems don’t exist in isolation but rather are an expression of the complex, global society in which we live. 

Courses

List of 19 items.

  • Speech and Debate 7 (HU101: Grades 7)

    This one-term course is designed for 7th grade students demonstrating a beginning level of interest in argumentation, public speaking, and academic research. This course is designed to teach fundamental skills and offer students a chance to compete in online debate competitions on weekday afternoons and/or weekends. Students will focus on developing research and critical thinking skills through nationally assigned debate topics. Students will also participate in competitive speech events learning fundamental skills to think on their feet. Participation in competitive debate tournaments will be required in Term 1 and optional for the rest of the season.
  • Speech and Debate I (HU175 Grades 8-10)

    This one-term course is offered to students interested in learning how to be a competitive member of the debate team. This course will include learning about current events, crafting research into arguments, and working as a team in a competitive setting against other schools. Students will be required to participate in weekend debate competitions with online opportunities. Students who are interested in debating competitively should take this course.
  • Speech and Debate II (HU275: Grades 9-12)

    This one-term course is offered to students who are members of the Speech and Debate program. This course will be specialized to their specific event and teach students a more advanced perspective of that event. Regardless of the event the student selects, the course will primarily focus around cultivating advanced research skills students learned in the first year of speech and debate. Students are expected to give multiple speeches in this course based on several scenarios that simulate competitive environments. The course requires students to participate in weekend debate competitions, help with weeknight afternoon debate competitions and participate in asynchronous speech activities.

    Prerequisite: Speech & Debate I and/or debate coach approval.
  • Speech and Debate III (HU375: Grades 10-12)

    This one-term course is offered to students who are members of the Speech and Debate program. This course is intended for advanced members of the speech and debate program to continue development in their event. The course will primarily focus around cultivating advanced research skills students as it pertains to critical thinking and strategy development. Students are expected to give multiple speeches in this course based on several scenarios that simulate competitive environments. The course requires students to participate in weekend debate competitions, help with weeknight afternoon debate competitions and participate in asynchronous speech activities.

    Prerequisite: Speech & Debate II and/or debate coach approval.
  • Speech and Debate IV (HU475: Grades 11-12)

    This one-term course is offered to students who are members of the Speech and Debate program. This course is intended for advanced members of the speech and debate program to continue development in their event. The course will primarily focus around cultivating advanced research skills students as it pertains to critical thinking and strategy development. Students are expected to give multiple speeches in this course based on several scenarios that simulate competitive environments. The course will teach students different fundamental leadership skills that are expected of the senior most members of the speech and debate program. The course requires students to participate in weekend debate competitions, help with weeknight afternoon debate competitions and participate in asynchronous speech activities.

    Prerequisite: Speech & Debate III and/or debate coach approval.
  • Archaeology (HU 460: Grades 9-12)

    What is archaeology? How has it evolved? How does it differ from, yet depend upon, the other sciences? What questions do archaeologists ask? What are their methods? Combining discussion and hands-on learning with an in-depth research project, this course explores archaeology’s discoveries, mysteries, and controversies since its beginnings in the Renaissance, as well as the revolutionary scientific and theoretical advances of the past few decades. Topics vary annually with the interests of the students. The course culminates in a model panel conference emulating the ways in which the experts share and interrogate their work.
  • Drivers Education (DE341-343: Minimum Age 15)

    This one-term, three-credit course consists of 30 hours of classroom and 6 hours of private, in-car training and is designed to teach traffic rules, regulations, and defensive driving techniques. Under “Joshua’s Law” in the state of Georgia, any person, 16 years of age or older, who applies for a driver’s license, will be required to show proof of completion of a driver education program. This program meets these requirements. A substantial fee is required (cost to be announced annually). Drivers Education is a pass/fail course and is not used to compute GHSA eligibility or the Marist GPA.
  • Environmental Studies: Sustainable Organic Agriculture (HU211: Grades 9-12)

    This interdisciplinary one-term course will focus on organic gardening and the environmental, political, and ethical issues related to food.  Using various texts students will examine the local and global effects of food production, distribution, and consumption. A significant portion of the course will focus on planning and working Marist’s organic garden and on studying soil chemistry, plant genetics, and environmentally sustainable agriculture. The class will visit local organic farms and members of Community Supported Agriculture. One of the class requirements will be to use produce raised in the Marist Garden to help support local food banks.

     
  • Podcasts and Critical Thinking (HU480: Grades 10-12)

    This one-term elective course is designed to teach the importance of critical thinking and research. Students will address conspiratorial and controversial thought through research, then develop the skills necessary to communicate facts gathered using podcasting streams. Students will leave the class with an improved set of writing, research, and public speaking skills; those drawn to podcasting will be enabled to develop their own podcasts.
  • Introduction to Archival Research (HU530: Grades: 11-12)

    This one-term course will offer an introduction to working in an archive. Activities will include cataloging, scanning photographs, digitizing records, creating profiles of members of the Marist community, designing exhibits, maintaining a website, conducting research on Marist history, and recording oral interviews. The course will include field trips to local archives. This course allows the student the opportunity to experience being a historian by working directly with primary sources. In addition, the students will be contributing to the organization and preservation of Marist historical documents so that materials can be accessed by the school community as well as outside researchers.
    Prerequisite: AP US History (SS911) or AP Art History (FA902). Permission of the instructor is required.
  • Strategies and Skills for Success 1 (SK142: Grades 7-8 and SK143: Grades 9-10)

    Strategies and Skills for Success is a one-term course offered to students who desire to improve upon their organizational and study habits while learning strategies to help enable their learning. The intention of the course is to help students develop skills in self-reflection, self-evaluation, and self-monitoring in order to become independent learners. Students will learn strategies for test taking, time management and prioritization, study methods, reading strategies, long-term project planning, memory strategies, and more. This course focuses on strategies that help students to adapt to the increasing academic demands while using the IDEAL problem-solving model to navigate the obstacles getting in the way of their academic success.

    This course is a pass/fail course which is not computed into the Marist GPA.
  • Strategies and Skills for Success 2 (SK241: Grades 8-12)

    This course is offered to students who seek extra support in study strategy implementation after taking Strategies and Skills for Success 1 (SK142 or SK143). Skills and Strategies for Success 2 offers students further support in applying strategies and accessing resources learned in Skills and Strategies for Success 1. Students use class time to independently manage their academics with the support of a learning specialist and, in some classes, a content-area support teacher.

    Students are encouraged to ask questions, seek support, and self-monitor for grades/work completion. The focus for Skills and Strategies for Success 2 is for students to be able to apply the IDEAL problem-solving model to problem-solve issues that may be impacting their academic success, self-reflect regarding strengths and challenges, and take ownership of their learning.

    Students may take this course for more than one term. Grades 8, 9 and 10 must have completed Strategies and Skills for Success 1 (SK142 or SK143).    






  • Leadership (HU420: Grade 10)

    This one-term course will analyze what leadership is in our community while looking at the varying styles of leadership. The students will be preparing to take the lessons and content of the course and apply it to their Marist experience and our community in their junior and senior years.
  • Leadership and Society (HU441: Grades 11-12)

    This one-term course will probe the meaning and content of leadership through readings from literature; readings and research in the field of leadership; analysis of case studies; discussions with visiting business, non-profit, political, religious, and student leaders; the writing of brief analyses; and participation in a larger group project examining particular aspects of leadership.

    Permission of the instructor is required.
  • Student Assistantships (Early Learning Center Assistant (HU450), Instructional Technology Assistant (HU 445), Math (MA605), MCLD (FD520), and Science (SC473): Grades 11-12)

    These one-term opportunities provide work experiences for students interested in these fields beyond Marist.

    Permission of department chair or director is required.
  • Independent Study (IR111: Grade 11-12)

    In unusual circumstances, students may be permitted to take an Independent Study course. Five credit hours may be awarded for Independent Study in a given term. Students who wish to do Independent Study work should contact the department head or the faculty member directly. Because of the time demands, teachers may be unable to sponsor an Independent Study. Students may not take more than five hours of Independent Study in one term, and an Independent Study contract between student and teacher must be completed and submitted for the approval of the Academic Dean by the end of Term 3 the year prior. Students will request a Study Hall as a placeholder for the submitted application for the requested Independent Study. Students may not take an Independent Study concurrently with Study Hall.

    Permission of the supervising teacher and the Academic Dean is required.
  • Advanced Placement African American Studies (HU901: Grade 11-12 pilot)

    AP African American Studies is an interdisciplinary, college-level, yearlong course that examines the diversity of African American experiences through direct encounters with authentic and varied sources. Students explore key topics that extend from early African kingdoms to the ongoing challenges and achievements of the contemporary moment. Given the interdisciplinary character of African American studies, students in the course will develop skills across multiple fields, with an emphasis on developing historical, literary, visual, and data analysis skills. This course foregrounds a study of the diversity of Black communities in the United States within the broader context of Africa and the African diaspora.

    Permission of the instructor required.
  • Advanced Placement Psychology (HU905: Grade 11-12)

    AP Psychology is an introductory college-level, yearlong psychology course. Students cultivate their understanding of the systematic and scientific study of human behavior and mental processes through inquiry-based investigations as they explore concepts like the biological bases of behavior, sensation and perception, learning and cognition, motivation, developmental psychology, testing and individual differences, treatment of abnormal behavior, and social psychology.

    Permission of the instructor required.
  • Advanced Placement Seminar (HU902: Grade 11-12)

    AP Seminar is a foundational course that engages students in cross-curricular conversations that explore the complexities of academic and real-world topics and issues by analyzing divergent perspectives. Students learn to investigate a problem or issue, analyze arguments, compare different perspectives, synthesize information from multiple sources, and work alone and in a group to communicate their ideas.

    Permission of the instructor is required.

Marist School

3790 Ashford Dunwoody Road, NE
Atlanta, GA 30319-1899
(770) 457-7201
An Independent Catholic School of the Marist Fathers and Brothers