Upper School Advanced Curriculum

This course is a semester-long, focused exploration of advanced data structures in C++, spanning array lists, vectors, linked lists, stacks, queues, binary trees, heaps, dictionaries and lookup tables.

This semester-long course delves into machine learning, automation algorithms, artificial intelligence (AI) and predictive analytics using Python’s data analysis and visualization libraries.

This course is a semester-long, focused exploration of advanced data structures in Java, spanning array lists, vectors, linked lists, stacks, queues, binary trees, heaps, dictionaries and lookup tables.

Students in ADV English 11: American Literature & Rhetoric will do everything detailed in the English 11 description and undertake an additional focus on rhetoric, the art of using language effectively to persuade and influence others.

The five novels in this course resist being categorized within a single nation’s borders. They also share a preoccupation with whether it is possible to find a shared humanity — i.e., to create some form of justice — that transcends the boundaries of geography and identity both within and among modern nation-states.

This course introduces students to art and literature from and about the Middle Ages. The semester’s work begins with medieval literature (in translation!), asking students to identify and articulate literary tropes in stories about King Arthur and Camelot.

Is the search for meaning elusive, futile, or fun? Is your reality constructed from simulacra that are copies of copies of long lost originals? Do you live in a hyperreality? To define and assess late 20th-century literary innovation, Postmodernism examines postmodern theory, including Lyotard, Hassan, Derrida, Baudrillard, and Jameson.

This is not a course about a solitary genius who lived and wrote 400 years ago in England, but rather a living, breathing body of literature that is in current production, adaptation and public discourse all over the world.

Why are we reluctant to talk about class in America? How do money and class shape, guide, and limit our lives? Love and Money frames the discussion of class structure in America with an examination of Thorstein Veblen’s The Theory of the Leisure Class; then, students apply Veblen’s ideas to Edith Wharton’s The House of Mirth.

ADV English 12: Women’s Literature applies several theoretical lenses (e.g., feminist theory, queer theory, formalism, old historicism, Marxism) to the study of literature written by and about people who identify as women.

This course will examine the power of race as a social construct — not rooted in biological reality — that has affected American life as much as any other human force or entity.

This class focuses on pivotal moments in American history through the end of the Civil War. It engages with a diverse range of historical voices and scholarly perspectives.

This class focuses on pivotal moments in American history from the end of the Civil War to the present. It engages with a diverse range of historical voices and scholarly perspectives.

Traditional approaches to history have often relied on events and texts that prioritize the lives and accomplishments of men. How can we change our approaches to history, the evidence that we use, and the questions that we ask to uncover the stories of women and people of marginalized genders? What can we learn about how race and class intersect with gender at different times and in different parts of the world? Where can we turn when our documents and texts don’t tell us the whole story?

In many ways, Durham represents the adaptability of the American South and a model of urban reinvention. And yet, Durham’s success is complicated. How have changes in areas like housing policy, the service industry, policing, education, immigration, technology and the arts created opportunities as well as limitations for various groups?

Almost everyone on the planet lives in a nation, yet that form of social organization is a relatively recent and never inevitable development in human history. What are the historical origins of nations? What are the benefits and limitations of living in a nation? Why are so many people willing to kill and die for their nations?

While the Cold War was an intense political rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, its effects on the entire world were profound. This course looks closely at conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, and Cambodia that deeply affected international politics as well as the lives of millions of ordinary people after World War II.

This course will introduce students to the technological innovations of the ancient world. By examining developments in areas like medicine, engineering, agriculture and food production, students will explore ancient approaches to innovation, problem-solving and societal advancement.

The United States Constitution has been described as the most democratic document ever. Yet we are still struggling with profound questions some 230 years after it was originally ratified.

What are revolutions and what drives them? Are all revolutions essentially about tensions between economic classes? When are they about trying to create a better world and when are they simply excuses for violence? Are they just about one group trying to gain power over others? Why are some revolutions successful while others falter?

This course focuses on global art history — primarily from 1800 to the present — through the lens of philosophy and aesthetic theory. Aesthetic theory poses the fundamental question: Does the value of an artwork come from the form of the object itself, from the appreciation of the viewer, from the object’s function or from other sources?

Psychology is a young and ever-evolving science. This course will cover a variety of psychology’s fundamental concepts and theories while also considering how our understanding changes with emerging data and recognition of individual differences; cultural, biological and social influences; and our perceptual biases.

In Advanced Thesis, students cultivate the skills and discipline necessary to conduct academic, independent research of choice in order to produce and defend a scholarly academic paper.

ADV Research is a fast-paced course that explores the complexities of real-world topics and issues by analyzing divergent perspectives. The goal is to provide students with the tools to evaluate information accurately and make compelling, evidence-based arguments.

This course will provide students with the requisite foundation in research skills and community engagement. Students will learn the principles of service learning and design thinking as they deepen their critical consciousness about our local and global communities and partner with community leaders and organizations.

This course will provide a structure for students to build and implement the projects they began in ADV Community-Based Research. Projects will be grounded in research, problem-solving, creative thinking, scholarship, and real-world application.

How can we identify actions that will truly improve sustainability? Why are communities of color disproportionately affected by climate change? Can student research propel institutional change? In this inquiry-based course, students expand their foundational knowledge of key aspects of climate change, environmental justice and biodiversity loss.

This course will cover single-variable differential calculus. Students will develop understanding and skills associated with limits and continuity, as well as techniques and applications of differentiation.

The ADV Calculus 2 course is designed to build upon the foundations of single-variable differential calculus and provide students with the opportunity to build an in-depth understanding of integral calculus.

The ADV Calculus 3 course is designed to build upon the foundations of single-variable calculus taught in ADV Calculus 1 and ADV Calculus 2 and provide students with the opportunity to build an in-depth understanding of multivariable calculus.

The ADV Calculus 4 course is designed to build upon the foundation in multivariable calculus set in ADV Calculus 3. Students will learn the theory of vector-based calculus and how it is used to analyze multivariable functions in novel ways not explored in ADV Calculus 3.

Students will learn how to combine inferential and computational thinking to explore, analyze and draw useful conclusions from large and diverse real-world data sets. Students will explore data to identify patterns, make predictions and check the degree of certainty of their predictions by using statistical inference.

This advanced course is designed for highly motivated students who are interested in creatively applying mathematics to complex, challenging and authentic real-world problems. Students will work collaboratively through the mathematical modeling process to study globally relevant, multi-faceted phenomena.

Building on the first courses in biology and chemistry, students in this Advanced course will explore more complex content and experimental practices used by biologists. The Advanced Biology course will approach biological concepts through inquiry-based learning, using a combination of research and project-based learning, case studies, and laboratory experiments.

This Advanced course is an in-depth exploration of topics and experimental techniques introduced in a standard first-year college chemistry curriculum. ADV Chemistry includes a more sophisticated treatment of many of the topics studied in Honors Chemistry, as well as additional topics such as thermodynamics, quantitative kinetics, and acid/base chemistry.

In this Advanced course, students will gain an understanding of advanced topics in physics built from a calculus-based study of electricity and magnetism. These foundational concepts will be strengthened through real-world applications such as renewable energy and sustainable transportation in a way that supports DA’s strategic goals in sustainability.

In this Advanced course, students will gain an understanding of advanced topics in physics built from a calculus-based study of mechanics. Topics addressed will include statics, dynamics, energy, momentum, and rotation.

How does a shark bite heal? What does it mean to receive a diagnosis? How do we decide who gets an organ for transplant? In this course, students will become confident reading about, discussing, and questioning medical topics. The course also presents students with a more nuanced, global, and realistic view of the field than they get from TV shows and other media.

This Advanced course offers students an opportunity to delve into the fascinating world of biotechnology — emphasizing its applications, ethical considerations, and impact on society.

Advanced Studies in Chinese I caters to students with a robust proficiency at the Intermediate High level in Speaking, Listening, Reading, and Writing, coupled with a keen interest in delving into critical issues such as the U.S.-China relationship and social justice through the lens of Chinese language and culture.

Advanced Studies in Chinese II aims to further enhance students’ proficiency in Speaking, Listening, Reading, and Writing at an advanced level. This course also nurtures critical thinking skills, alongside a keen interest in exploring pressing issues such as climate change and economic development, all while examining China’s role in Asia and the world.

What does La Francophonie mean? This course explores the French-speaking world both through fiction, poetry, film and journalistic texts, and video. This class develops French proficiency from the Intermediate Mid to the Intermediate High levels, touching on the Advanced Low level, according to ACTFL proficiency guidelines.

This course will explore the theme of social discontent in the short stories and poems of the late 19th century and first part of the 20th century (the Belle Époque), notably by authors of the realist and naturalist movements.

In this course, students investigate the history and culture of classical Rome through analysis of complex Latin texts. The course particularly emphasizes the literature of the Imperial period as a continuation of the earlier exploration of Republican-era literature.

Latin literature has a long and complex history beyond the height of the Roman Empire. In this course, students explore the history of Latin literature beyond the classical period, learning both how the language developed and changed over time, and the ways in which the Latin language was adapted to new contexts.

Reshaping Communities: Education, Health and Tech is an Advanced Spanish class that explores contemporary societal changes by integrating linguistic proficiency with a focused study of education, health, and technology.

Global Challenges is an Advanced Spanish class that explores contemporary societal issues through linguistic proficiency and critical analysis. Students will engage with the complexities of discrimination, feminism, and immigration, gaining insights into socio-political dynamics and cultural implications. Designed at the Advanced Mid level, the course aligns with ACTFL proficiency guidelines, providing students with the language skills to navigate and contribute to meaningful discussions on these pressing global challenges.

This Advanced course explores the Siglo de Oro, or Golden Age, of Spanish literature — the 16th and 17th centuries — with an emphasis on Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quijote de la Mancha. Don Quijote — a medieval knight in his imagination, a Renaissance man in his actions and a Baroque character par excellence — is our lens into the evolution of thought, language, and literature in the Spanish-speaking world from the Middle Ages to the discovery of the New World.

This Advanced course explores the Latin American Boom from the 20th century, when Latin American writers took the world of Spanish letters by storm with an explosion of talent that was universally recognized. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez — considered by many to be the best novel ever written in Spanish or in any language — will be at the focus of our study, along with other Boom authors and women authors whose contributions to the Boom have been more recently recognized. This course develops Spanish proficiency from the Advanced Low to the Advanced Mid levels, according to ACTFL proficiency guidelines. 

This Advanced Spanish course delves into the profound impact of influential Hispanic artists on language, music, and cultural landscapes. Focused on Shakira as a central figure, the course explores her cultural contributions, analyzes works of other iconic artists, dissects lyrics to explore themes, and engages in sociocultural exploration.