Science
Vision
Thinking Community of Curious Learners and Innovators
Mission
- To provide students with a good foundation in scientific inquiry and process skills
- To stretch students’ critical and analytical capability in acquiring strong scientific literacy through reflective and innovative teaching
Lower Secondary Science
Students are taught to appreciate the big ideas in Science and then articulate it to Biology, Chemistry and Physics with increasing complexity and elaboration. The curriculum serves as a means for furthering students’ intellectual growth, especially in the area of critical and analytical thinking to solve daily challenges. It aims to build basic scientific literacy and cultivate a curiosity about their surroundings.
Biology
Students are provided with knowledge ranging from the level of organisms down to the minute world of molecules. The curriculum has less emphasis on factual materials, but a much greater emphasis on the understanding and application of scientific concepts and principles. This approach has been adopted in recognition of the need for students to develop skills that will be of long-term value in an increasingly technological world. Hence, Biology is a vehicle for developing thinking skills, set against the context of the study of life.
Chemistry
Students are taught for a coherent understanding of energy, matter, and their interrelationships. The theories and concepts presented are foundational to chemistry. Awareness is also brought to the finite life of the world’s resources and hence the need for recycling and conservation; economic considerations in the chemical industry, such as the availability and cost of raw materials and energy; the social, environmental, health and safety issues relating to the chemical industry. The level of abstraction is increased progressively, with students being increasingly asked to think of chemistry in terms of “particles”, “atoms” and “electrons”.
Physics
It focuses on investigating natural phenomena and then applying patterns, models including mathematical ones, principles, theories and laws to explain the physical behaviour of the universe. The theories and concepts presented in this physics syllabus belong to a branch of physics commonly referred as classical physics. Modern physics, developed to explain the quantum properties at the atomic and sub-atomic level, is built on knowledge of these classical theories and concepts. Hence, it aims on acquiring deep understanding of a substantive body of science knowledge, skill development in investigations, scientific thinking and creative problem-solving.
Curriculum Design
The department has adopted a Curriculum-Pedagogy-Assessment model towards realising the vision.
By the end of the 4-5 years journey, a student should be able to:
- think critically in science-related research and technology and writings
- able to draw on scientific process skills to tackle problems of a scientific nature
- able to communicate scientific ideas with ease and clarity
- possesses scientific attitudes and habits of mind