Course Catalog

Social Justice

As we seek to cultivate culturally aware global citizens, social justice is a fundamental component of our mission and curriculum. In fact, CSW is proud to be the first independent school in the country to include a social justice requirement among our graduation requirements.

During their time at CSW, students must take classes that reflect the diverse viewpoints, complexity, and richness of the multicultural world we live in. Over 80 approved courses, spanning all departments, challenge students to explore multiple perspectives, examine models of change, and learn how to engage in meaningful and purposeful action.

  • American Immigrant Literature

    (11/12 literature) What does it mean to be an immigrant in the U.S.? What do individuals experience when they move from one country and settle in another? What do these immigrants gain in the process, and what do they lose? How do they deal with being “the other?” How do immigrants connect or disconnect with their American- born children? Students explore all these questions and more by analyzing short fiction, films, and an excerpt from The Namesake, by acclaimed Pulitzer Prize winning author Jhumpa Lahiri. Throughout the mod, students read and respond to text on a nightly basis, gaining a better understanding of how difficult assimilation can often be for immigrants in their new abode. Students come ‘up close and personal’ with immigrant issues by interviewing an immigrant of their choice and writing up their interview in a People magazine manner. The course culminates with a final project which ties all the readings together thematically in a creative and artistic way, addressing the essential question: what is the immigrant experience?

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Bible

    (9) The Bible as Literature course provides a brief introduction to the richness of the ancient texts that make up the Hebrew and Christian Bibles.  Many consider the Bible as one of the great world texts, and the stories continue to influence how we think of the world, each other, and ourselves.  Students will explore the Book of Genesis, much of the Book of Exodus, the Book of Job, and selections from the Gospel According to Matthew.  Together we will study major themes and consider the array of literary devices within these texts. 

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Big Book: Moby-Dick

     (11/12 literature)“Call me Ishmael!” Take to the high seas with this “in-depth” exploration of Herman Melville’s 1851 great American novel Moby Dick: Or, the Whale. Melville’s epic novel is narrated by Ishmael, a sailor who joins a whaling voyage aboard the Nantucket-based whaling ship the Pequod. Unbeknownst to Ishmael and the rest of the crew, the Pequod’s mysterious captain Ahab has a maniacal and singular objective: to seek vengeance against the elusive ‘white whale’ called Moby Dick. Moby Dick remains groundbreaking for its unique narrative voice, synthesis of styles, and accurate portrait of life aboard a whaling ship in the mid-19th century. Students will practice close-reading and analysis, informed by substantial historical context. Students will also consider twenty-first century implications of Melville’s text, asking questions such as, “what does Moby Dick have to say about climate change and environmentalism? About race? About queer relationships? About the origins and trials of American democracy?” In addition to reading the novel and supplementary sources, students will travel to key sites associated with Melville’s novel, including the New Bedford Whaling Museum. Students will also be invited to participate in an annual 24-hour Moby Dick Readathon. 
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement. 

  • Caribbean Dance Movement

    This course is an introduction to the popular dances performed throughout the Caribbean. The focus of the class is to understand the indigenous people who dance the rhythms of the New World islands, including Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Trinidad, and Puerto Rico. We begin with an anthropological approach to the dances using the research footage conducted by the late dance anthropologist Katherine Dunham. Students will learn both traditional/ceremonial and social dances of the countries mentioned above. Students will dance the Yanvalou from Haiti, and the Bomba of Puerto Rico, and the most popular movements such as the Rumba, Salsa, and the Bachata that come from the clave rhythm.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement. 

  • China

    (11/12) Using both primary and secondary sources, students explore a five-thousand-year-old history beginning at the last four dynasties and ending in modern-day China. This course is an intense study of China as it emerges on to the world stage. A nation with a long history of dynasties that becomes a communist nation, that encounters internal struggles, and whose people exhibit a resiliency that ultimately creates the China we see today. Students read historical and contemporary material of both Chinese and Western authors, developing a perspective on the emergence of China as a power to contend with. It offers space for the discussion on human rights as they are interpreted by the West and by China. Additionally, students examine the interaction between China and the West and how that has shaped this nation today. 
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.


     

  • Clay, Fire, Water, and Emptiness

    (12) This course was previously called “Raku." In this ceramics course, we will employ a firing process during which pieces are removed from the kiln while red hot, and then placed directly into materials, such as leaves or paper, to be reduced in an air‑free atmosphere. Finally, the pots are cooled instantly in cold water. This process produces some exciting glaze effects. Students have the opportunity to fire their own pieces. This course explores a non-western aesthetic and the concepts of emptiness and simplicity. It serve as an end-of-year reflective experience.
     
    While this course employs a similar technique to “Raku,” we acknowledge this is an exploited term used by many people without a full understanding of the religious, spiritual, and political origins of Raku. The name has been updated accordingly.


    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Critiquing Music

    This course will equip the student with the skills to listen to, understand, and critique music. Through comparison we will explore specific compositions and discuss abstract and concrete musical themes as they relate to music. This course is open to all students.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Cultural Studies in Dance

    In this class we will explore the relationship of “culture” and “dance” and the ways the study of one informs our understanding of the other. We will take a non-comprehensive survey of dance in varied geographic and cultural contexts ranging from East Asia through the Americas. Our readings, viewings, and discussions will examine culture and history have shaped movement qualities  all over the world. As a complement to these larger scale considerations we will use movement explorations to reflect on our individual relationships to place, history and community.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement. 

  • Decolonizing Women: Shattering Oppression

    (11/12)Decolonizing Women: Shattering Oppression examines the colonization of women in disparate societies around the globe. Whether by imperialist forces, colonial occupation, war, patriarchy, dictatorship, or political movements among others, women have encountered a super-imposed culture that has warranted adaptations and transformations. This in turn has given rise to internal and external resistance.  This course seeks to examine the origins and nature of these movements across the globe that have been generated by women for women. Incorporating their specific national, cultural, and traditional histories, this course will enable our students to learn about the impact colonization has had, and in some cases continues to have, on the development of women’s rights in regions far removed from their own. They will be able to make comparisons between their own (native) women’s movements, whether national or regional and establish underlying connections between the movements on the whole. This course will also focus on the question of location; how does the location of a women’s movement influence its success? What relevance do culturally specific laws, common law, and traditional societies have on the emergence of women’s rights and movements from within their communities? 
     
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Documentary Photo Project

    In Documentary Photography, students explore the genre of documentary photography through presentations of historical and contemporary documentary photographers, class discussions and critiques and field trips. Students will work on a documentary project of their choosing centered around a social or personal issue. 

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Ethics of Science

    (11/12 Completion of BioChemistry and BioConnections or permission from the department) In Ethics of Science, students will study, discuss, and analyze current ethical issues in science, such as stem cell research, human cloning, testing on human and animal subjects, genetic modification of agricultural crops and animals, military research, regulation of research, and ownership of intellectual property. Students will be expected to develop an understanding of the rationales behind multiple positions by reading background materials; discussing and debating issues in class; researching, writing, and presenting independent topics; watching relevant videos; and hearing speakers.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Food, Justice, Power

    (9th)Food, Justice, and Power (FJP) is a foundational history course for all incoming ninth graders. 
    Food, and access to food, have a close relationship to (social) justice and to the establishing and exercising of power. Together, these three forces create a triangle of advantage. With a concentration on food, justice, and power, the course exposes the student to the discipline of History and to the skills that enable the student to fully appreciate this study. These skills are subsequently reinforced in each department at CSW and the early exposure to them for our incoming ninth-grade class, therefore, allows for a growing familiarity and expertise with their use. Food, Justice, and Power also introduce the student to CSW, our shared vocabulary, and the communal mission that makes this school. It does this through the establishment of group guidelines, engaging in group discussions and hands-on activities, among others, in order to enhance both the skill-based and community-based aspects of this course. 
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement. 

  • French 3B - Intermediate-Advanced

    During this two-module course, we read the original version of Le Petit Prince written by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and watch extracts of different film adaptations. French songs from the musical of Le Petit Prince by Richard Cocchante are used to reinforce the understanding of the text. For some chapters, where the little prince is visiting other planets, students work in teams to lead activities and act out a scene. In this famous novel, Saint-Exupéry makes observations about life and human nature. One example is when a fox that the young prince meets in the desert says "On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux." ("One sees clearly only with the heart. What is essential is invisible to the eye."). Students will reflect on their own lives and give examples to illustrate their thoughts. As a final project, students write an essay where they imagine that the little prince travels to a new planet, meets its inhabitants, and learns from them during his visit. During this course, we also review and develop different grammar points, learn songs, watch videos, and listen to podcasts. French 3B is the equivalent to the module abroad in France if the student decides to take that path. However, those who take the module abroad course are required to take at least one upper-level elective the following year.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • From Venus to Guerrilla Girls: Women Redefining Self Through Art

    (Prerequisite: Art experience at CSW recommended)

    (11/12) In this course students will become familiar with art made by women (women’s art history), the multitude of subject matters of women’s art, the systematic and political influences that affected women’s ability to make art and the subject matter of their art, and historical changes that allowed for an emergence of women’s art on a larger scale. Art projects will examine issues, materials, and art forms that relate to the women’s art movement and women’s art in general.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement. 

  • Global Dissent

    (9/10. This course was renamed from Dissent to Global Dissent for the 2020-2021 calendar year. Students who already completed the "Dissent" should not enroll in this course. ) Dissent, with a U.S. or global focus, has been taught at CSW for well over two decades. Global dissent looks at those perspectives that help give rise to change. We look at the origins of dissent, the definition of dissent, the definition of activism, and the many forms activism can take. Addressing both violent and non-violent movements, the course delves deeper into the motivation for protest, the question of protecting individual rights, and the question of minority rights that are lost in the process of majority rule. Students also examine leadership and movements it can encourage. The course begins with a wide lens followed by an individualized focus on specific examples of dissent, activism, leadership, and protest. 

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Holocaust & Human Behavior

    (9/10th) The Holocaust is the most thoroughly documented example of human behavior in an extreme, man‑made situation. The study of this event can teach students the meaning of human dignity, morality, law and citizenship. We investigate the roles and responsibilities of the individual within a given society, and students struggle with issues and dilemmas which defy simple solutions. Why did it happen? What should they have done? What would I have done? The universal questions of morality and the lessons to be learned from a history of totalitarianism, racism and dehumanization are not unique to the Holocaust. Comparisons and parallels are made to past and contemporary issues, events, and choices. 
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Human Rights in Motion


    (11/12) Human rights are the fundamental rights of every man, woman, and child. They are so basic we assume we know what they are, where they come from, and what we can do with them. And yet, they are in constant motion; subject to interpretation by whoever wields power over other human beings, our fundamental human rights today are changeable, much as they have been in the past.
     
    This course seeks to begin at the beginning, the establishment of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1950, and proceed from there to examine where we are today in respect to the acknowledgment and empowerment of human rights. It looks at the choices nations, leaders, and citizens have and the choices they make that either respect or impede in the individual’s ability to enjoy their freedoms and opportunities. Students will be required to work independently and in groups, producing historical examinations and in-depth analyses of situations today where these fundamental human rights (may) have been violated.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement. 

  • Inventing Africa: Colonialism and Self-Determination

    (11/12) This course introduces students to the political and economic conditions that have evolved in Africa since the late 19th century. Students considered how actors—both internal and external to African nations—shaped these conditions. We engage these issues through a thematic case study of various African nations. In addition, students perform research on a wide range of topics pertinent to African countries. Course topics include the European colonization and exploitation of Africa, national independence movements, apartheid, African popular culture, and contemporary crises facing African countries such as poverty, political corruption, civil war, and AIDS.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

    Prior to the 2022-2023 school year, this class was titled "Modern Africa." 

  • Jailhouse Nation: U.S. History of Crime, Punishment, and Mass Incarceration

    (11/12) Jailhouse Nation explores America’s long and troubled history with crime, punishment, and prisons. By first examining how both crime and thus the “criminal” are socially and historically constructed, students will consider the role of violence and systematic punishment in Puritan New England, the slave South, and later, the modern United States. The institution of slavery will provide an important framework to help students understand how new modes of punishment (namely, incarceration in jails and prisons) emerged alongside the abolition of slavery. Furthermore, we will examine the role of post-emancipation prison regimes in shaping popular (mis)understandings of “race” and the idea of “black criminality.” Lastly, we will discuss the rise of the carceral state in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, noting long historical parallels and the roles of contemporary political and economic forces driving the prison boom. Throughout the course we will consider the distinct experiences of punishment for men, women, children, African Americans, whites, Latinos, sexual minorities and non-citizens in order to tease out the specific relationships between race, class, gender and punishment at various moments in American history. Within our broader exploration of state-based punishment policies, we will also consider community resistance to policing and incarceration and the rise of so-called prison abolitionists.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Japan: Post-war to the Akihabara Generation

    (11/12) The Akihabara district of Tokyo, Japan houses the world’s largest collection of everything that is associated with anime and the otaku culture and industry. It provides us with the goal and opportunity to examine Japan’s emersion from World War II into a thriving economic revival, democratic politics, and a new social order. With a particular focus on the creation of Otaku culture, we follow Japanese history through the 20th and into the 21st century, its cultural expansion and impact on not only the neighboring countries but the Western world as well. Post-war Japan has navigated its way through challenging encounters with its past, this course looks at those encounters and examines what role the otaku culture plays in the definition of 21st century Japan. 

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Jazz Ensemble

    (Prerequisite: 2 years of private lessons or permission of department) 
    Students learn to perform jazz standards in a group setting. Emphasis is on establishing a repertoire, building skills in improvisation, and performance. Students are expected to sign up for two consecutive mods of this course.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.
     

  • Latin America: Rebels and Revolutionaries

    (11/12) Latin American countries have consistently been pressed to implement economic, social and political arrangements that favor the U.S.  This course will examine efforts by some Latin Americans to develop alternative visions for their countries.  What were these alternatives? Why did some believe they were necessary? In what ways, and why, have these alternatives succeeded or failed? We will examine these questions by studying cases that include the Mexican Revolution, the Cuban Revolution(s), Rigoberta Menchu in Guatemala, and recent experiments such as Lula da Silva’s Partido dos Trabalhadores in Brazil, the Bolivarian Revolution lead by Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, and others.  We will also explore the connection between history and memory through the case-study of Che Guevara.   
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • LGBTQ+ Literature

    (11/12 literature) This course approaches American literature with an emphasis on the ways in which non-heterosexual and non-cisgender identities and experiences have been represented in post-Stonewall (post-1969) writing. Despite the actual lived range and combination of gender identity, sexual orientation, and sexual practice, mainstream heterosexuality attempts to confine sexuality to a rigid duality where observation of a person’s secondary sex characteristics are supposed to infer hir (gender neutral pronoun) gender identity and sexual practice. In this context, the term “queer” is invoked to describe any possible combination of gender identity, sexual orientation, and sexual practice that challenges the norm presented by heterosexuality. By reading essays and literature by self-identified queer writers, we will challenge and redefine the concepts of sex, gender, masculinity, femininity, diversity, oppression, and empowerment. By the end of this mod, we will have developed a greater awareness of issues concerning gender and sexual identity.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Major Author: Toni Morrison

    (11/12 literature) Toni Morrison ranks as one of the most important American authors in history. She writes of a country in which her people have been forced to live, but never fully accepted. Her novels demonstrate that African‑Americans have fundamentally shaped the United States, as well as vice versa. Passion, violence, music, love, and pain permeate everything she writes. We will consider a range of Morrison’s works, possibly including Song of Solomon, Sula, and Beloved, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize.


    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.     

  • Memsahibs and Madams: Colonial India’s path to the 21st C.

    (11/12) From the early days of the East India Company to India (EIC) in the 21st century, the clash between East and West has enveloped much of the subcontinent. Memsahibs, British women in India, and Madams, an honorific for women in India, became synonymous with colonized and independent India, respectively. The course uses the lens of [these] women to examine how the EIC acquired, ruled, and handed over India to the British government and how India fought back to regain its independence and enter the 21st century. Colonial India becomes an in-depth examination of the slow but steady establishment of values introduced by the memsahibs. And with independence, Indian women (madams) become the lens through which we see the political, societal, and educational struggle for redefining Indian values.  

    This course awards credit toward the Social Justice requirement. 

  • Modern Middle East

    (11/12. This course was renamed for the 2020-2021 calendar year from "Middle East" to "Modern Middle East." Students who previously completed the course should not take this class.) This class begins with the fall of the Ottoman empire and concludes with post-Arab Spring. We will first examine the map and the birth of the nation-state.  We always keep religion and natural resources in our lens. We will also take significant time researching the State of Israel and possible peace plans with Palestinians.  The Middle East has been in a “Cold War since 1979, and the class can better understand many of the issues when the role of Saudi Arabia and Iran play in the shifting seats of power. At the end, students present a self-directed research project that they have been working on independently over the 6 weeks of the mod.
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Neotropics of Latin America (Off Campus)

    (Prerequisites: Completion of Spanish 3A and permission of the department. This course can be equivalent to Spanish 3B. If students take this course instead of 3B, an elective course will be required to take upon return of the course.)
     
    Offered every other year, this trip is a cooperative effort between the Language and Science departments. Students travel to the neotropics of Latin America for a program of immersion in tropical ecosystems and in Spanish language and culture. In the science component, students travel to various tropical ecosystems and conduct field experiments and projects. The challenges of economic development, conservation and sustainable agriculture are examined in an interdisciplinary manner. The language program consists of homestays with local families, organized field trips, and everyday conversational Spanish. Students maintain both science and Spanish journals as they travel. The program starts with an intensive pre‑orientation week at CSW prior to departure. There is an extra charge for this course, which grants two science credits, one history, one foreign language credit, and one athletic D-Block credit.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement. 

  • Neotropics of Latin America (Off campus)

    (Prerequisites: Completion of Spanish 3A and permission of the department. This course can be equivalent to Spanish 3B. If students take this course instead of 3B, an elective course will be required to take upon return of the course.)
     
    Offered every other year, this trip is a cooperative effort between the Language and Science departments. Students travel to the neotropics of Latin America for a program of immersion in tropical ecosystems and in Spanish language and culture. In the science component, students travel to various tropical ecosystems and conduct field experiments and projects. The challenges of economic development, conservation and sustainable agriculture are examined in an interdisciplinary manner. The language program consists of homestays with local families, organized field trips, and everyday conversational Spanish. Students maintain both science and Spanish journals as they travel. The program starts with an intensive pre‑orientation week at CSW prior to departure. There is an extra charge for this course, which grants two lab science credits, one foreign language credit, one athletic credit, and one D-block credit.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement. 

  • Off Campus to China and Taiwan

    (Prerequisites: Completion of Mandarin 3A or permission of the department. This course can satisfy the level 3B graduation requirement. If a student completes this course instead of Mandarin 3B as a 10th or 11th grader, it is expected that they will continue in the Mandarin program's upper level electives in the subsequent year(s) )
    In this course, students travel to China and Taiwan to strengthen their Mandarin Chinese as well as learn about the history, geography, culture, life, arts, and people in the two different Chinese societies. Students will learn to better understand and appreciate American perspective and culture through the discovery of China's and Taiwan’s.  Students will attend classes and stay in homestays in China and Taiwan. Students will keep personal journals, contribute to a group a blog, and complete a personally designed research project.

    Enrollment is with department permission only.

    There is an additional charge for the course, which offers two blocks of language credit, one block of history credit, and one D‑block credit.

     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.



  • Off Campus to France

    (Prerequisites: Completion of French 3A and permission of the department. It can be equivalent to French 3B. If students take this course instead of 3B, an elective course will be required to take upon return of the course.)

    Students will travel to France for four weeks for a program of total immersion in French language, history, and culture. During the first week prior to departure, the group will have an intensive orientation on the culture, art, history, and architecture of France, during which they will spend time working on their project presentations. They will finish the first week with presentations of their findings. The following four weeks will be spent in Montpellier, France. The students will take a French course and explore the area and the important sites surrounding them. During the last three days of the trip, they will tour Paris and Versailles During their stay in France, they will live with host families carefully selected in order to accommodate them accordingly. While traveling, students will keep a journal and fulfill other requirements adapted to their language and/or art background. Upon their return, students will prepare mandatory projects, including a research paper on their on-site findings, to earn full credit. This course, offered in module 5, is open to twelve students of advanced French. Enrollment is with department permission only. There is an extra charge for the course, which offers 2 blocks of language credit, 1 block of history credit, and 1 D-block credit.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Race in the U.S.: Black America

    (9/10th)What does it mean to be a citizen of the United States? What does it mean to be allowed to be a citizen of the United States? The history of who does and does not become a citizen begins with the establishment of a racial divide at the very foundation of the colonies that would evolve into a nation ostensibly founded on democratic principles. This course examines the colonization and creation of a race-based society, bending and eliminating evidence of previous indigenous societies and establishing groups on the basis of a caste system. The course takes a thematic approach and uses a curated selection of materials and documentation to address the racial history of citizenship and non-citizenship of the United States.  
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.


    Prior to the 2021-2022 school year, this course was titled "US History: Race in America"

  • Rocking the Schoolhouse: US History of Education

    (11/12) This class will examine the history of American Education.  From the one-room schoolhouse to Race to the Top, students will leave with a deep understanding of how America educates its k-12 students.  Rocking the Schoolhouse does not look at a broken system, rather the students analyze why the system is purposely designed to educate some, and leave many behind.  Public schools today are as racially segregated as they were in 1954. The class presents a thesis: “The US Public Education System is the greatest Civil Rights issue of the 21st Century.”  From this thesis, arguments and evidence will be presented and students will be asked to analyze the data and take their own stand.  The racial opportunity gap has been identified, and little has been done to remedy this built-in aspect of public education. The final project challenges the student to identify a need in public education, and design a school that will remedy the problem.

    This course awards credit toward the Social Justice requirement.

  • Social and Political Theater

    (10/11/12)Students study important social and political literature of the theatre that addresses social justice issues, including experiences of war, personal and political freedom, assumptions, stereotypes, and responsibility. Readings may include the works of well‑known playwrights and contemporary playwrights as well some lesser known artists. Classes will include an exploration of how we use the world of theatre to analyze text and character, bringing text to life, and open discussions and reflections about how we can use theatre to bring important topics to light. We will explore our own relationship to themes we discover in the work we read and write as well as the possible meaning to society as a whole. This course will include reading, writing and theatre exercises to explore themes and topics.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • South Asian Literature

    This course will focus on different genres, contexts, time periods, and even languages (although all readings will be in English/translation) that fall under the broad category of ‘South Asian Literature.’ In one year, we might focus on the events surrounding the Partition of 1947 and how it inspired a generation of writers in Urdu. Another year, we might focus on Sanskrit literature: for example, poetry, drama, and/or short stories. In other iterations, the class might explore LGBTQ authors, the South Asian diaspora, and even the works of a particular author. The readings would focus mainly on shorter literary works, such as short stories and poems, but there would also be in most of these classes the opportunity to read full books (e.g. Bharati Mukherjee’s Miss New India and Wife, the Sanskrit Vetālapañcaviṃśati, Abha Dawesar’s Babyji) or excerpts thereof. Within each version of the course, students would be able to research and learn about the historical context of the works as well as where they fall in the literary sphere. 

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • Spanish and Latin-American Current Events and Cinema through Conversation

    Prerequisite: A grade of B or better in Spanish IV or with departmental permission. This course is not eligible for the language department graduation requirement. It is available for upper-level Spanish students and heritage and native speakers of Spanish.

    During this one-module course we will watch contemporary films, documentaries and the news in Spanish as a way of better understanding the culture of, and current events in, Spanish-speaking countries. The course will feature a total immersion in the Spanish language. The key topics we will focus on will be social justice, politics, art, and immigration. Nightly readings will be intended to complement the themes we discuss in class.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • The Guillotine and the Gun: French and Russian Revolutions

    (9/10) This course explores the origins, tumultuous paths, and impact of two of the world's first truly modern revolutions.  The French Revolution promised enlightened equality, but gave rise to the Terror and Napoleon's dictatorship. The Russian Revolution promised a Marxist utopia, but resulted in the reign of Stalin. . . and the subsequent slaughter of forty million people. Both revolutions also accorded an unprecedented and controversial public role to feminism, atheism, socialist, and anti‑imperialist ideologies, all of which we will explore.  In a comparative manner, we will examine the key historical actors and ideas that contoured these revolutions, largely through the exploration of original documents, including speeches, philosophical treatises, diaries, political manifestos and art.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • The Samurai: Their Life & Legacy

    (11/12)The samurai are an enigmatic, close-knit, and of enduring interest, part of Japan’s history. Their origins and evolution into unmistakable leaders from the 17th-20th centuries give us an enormous repository of material with which to examine Japan’s evolution on to the world stage as an independent, determined, and imperial power. The samurai establishment, its power, culture, and engagement with the world become the focus for a good part of this course. We delve into the interaction between Japan, its neighbors, and the European merchants that conveyed and shared the Tokugawa Shogunate culture around the world. We take a particular close look at the educational heritage of the European encounters with the Shogunate. The samurai-establishment’s lasting legacy, as Japan turns towards democracy followed by militarism, is the last stop on this path through Japanese history. 

    This course awards credit toward the Social Justice requirement.

  • Topics in Jazz History

    Come explore the development of jazz from slavery through bebop. Through recordings, guest artists, and readings, we will attempt to define this uniquely American idiom. Recent topics have focused on the music of John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, and Duke Ellington.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement. 

  • Topics in Music History

    This survey course covers selected developments of Western music from the ancient world to contemporary times. Standards for exploration will include examination of the elements of music and their evolution. Music examples will include live performances as well as recorded examples. We will explore the current trends of each period. Recent topics have considered the music and lives of Beethoven, Stravinsky, Mozart, local Boston area composers, and 20th-century music. This course is open to all students.
     

  • Totalitarianism: Past and Present


    (11/12) “Totalitarianism is not only hell, but also the dream of paradise..."
    ‑Milan Kundera.
     
    This course takes students on a fascinating exploration of the totalitarian and fascistic tendencies that have proven to be alluring alternatives to the democratic states and societies.  These movements were often shrouded with utopian promises against a backdrop of apocalyptic struggles, regardless of the temporal or geographic location of the totalitarian movement.  We begin by examining five national case studies drawn from Europe and Asia between the 1920s and 1960s.  We then investigate more modern iterations of fundamentalism, including political, racial, and religious fundamentalism.  The class concludes by focusing on the nature and appeal of cults.  A final project invites students to tie the course’s main themes together.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • U.S. Black Studies

    (11/12)Black Studies is a broad field of study that can be approached from many disciplines. In this six-week course, we survey African American history from the period of the Great Migration through the present. We explore the socio-economic, political, and cultural contributions of African Americans with an emphasis on movements for racial equality, the arts, and Black feminism. Texts include foundational writings in African American history and literature, including writings from W.E.B. Du Bois; James Weldon Johnson; Booker T. Washington; Martin Luther King Jr.; Malcolm X; Ida B. Wells; Angela Davis; Shirley Chisholm; Audre Lorde; Richard Wright; James Baldwin; Langston Hughes, and many others.
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement. 

  • U.S. Constitution

    (11/12) US Constitution is a hands-on, project-based class that seeks to examine the roots and development of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and then asks students to apply the document practically to several real and fictional Supreme Court cases. Hence, students begin the module with factual readings, the Federalist Papers and smaller debates, and general discussion. The class looks at the way fundamental concepts and definitions of freedom, citizenship, and “for all” have been shaped, undermined, and refined through the Constitution and its interpretation by the US Supreme Court. As the mod progresses, the assignments become more difficult and intense (briefing cases like Marbury v. Madison and Tinker v. Des Moines School District), culminating in the preparation and presentation of oral arguments for a mock Supreme Court in two cases, and sitting as a justice for one. Much of the grading for the class is done in groups, rather than individually, and so students are asked to trust and depend on their peers while making sure to hold up their own end of the workload. 
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • U.S. Environmental History

    (11/12) How did European cattle wage war on the Wampanoag in colonial Massachusetts? How did the Bible’s Eden, a belief in magic, and a mapping mistake come together to lay the groundwork for race-based disenfranchisement and colonial incursion? How did soil make decisions about what slavery would look like in the Cotton South? How did capitalist ideas effect changes in the landscape of New England? How does the difference of 20 inches of rain per year lead to drastic differences in population, politics, and culture between eastern and western states? What myths do we tell ourselves when we visit our national parks? How are we, through globalization, forcing ourselves to change the way we talk about the natural world? What is truly natural and how do we use Nature as a weapon to destroy societies and the earth? With this introduction to the newest field of American History, we will learn to study history by looking at the roles humans play within ecosystems and the effects of those ecosystems on human society.
     
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • U.S. Native Americans

    (11/12)Before Europeans arrived, indigenous cultures thrived in the Americas.  This course will start by examining their ancient past and move through the impact that Native Americans have had on the development of the United States and vice versa. The indigenous population of North America contains a vast array of cultural diversity. How do our own assumptions about Native Americans compare to their experiences? We will examine how Native Americans have managed to overcome (or adapt to) genocide, warfare, disease, assimilation, and massive land loss in order to retain their unique cultural identities.  We will explore the development of Native American history from the early years of the United States through the radical political movements of the 1970s to contemporary issues Native Americans face. This course will also push students to think of new ways to study history. How can we understand a culture, or cultures, so different from our own, especially when there are no traditional historical documents left? 
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • U.S. Voting and Elections

    (11/12)Who has been likely to turn out to vote and what has been done to prevent voting - and what difference does that make for electoral results? What is the Electoral College and how does it work? How do voters decide their choice for president? How have voting rights become the most powerful vehicle for defining social power and identity in the US? Could elections be the key to a truly just United States? These questions are among the issues that students will explore by examining current and past presidential races and the laws, court cases, and media industry of elections. With a particular focus on the racialized, gendered and class-conscious history of voter suppression, we will also explore American politics in general, examining the ideas, ideologies, policies, people and events of the American political scene.
     
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • U.S. Youth Subcultures

    (11/12) This course explores the role of subcultures in contributing to the cultural spectrum of the United States between the 1920s and the twenty‑first century.  Studying subcultures can reveal as much about the shadows of society in which they resided as it does the mainstream.  Subcultures also represent a unique intersection of radical political ideologies and innovative artistic trends, often expressed through a group’s attachment to a specific genre of music, social outlet, and/or fashion.  We will examine the value systems, and the broader historical contexts that gave rise to them, of: the flappers; hipsters, and beatniks; greasers;  hippies; the hip‑hop and punk rock scenes, and street art.  We will also focus on the ways in which society has repeatedly co‑opted these previously marginal movements, rendering them into yet another popular means of corporatized mass consumption.
     
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

  • Understanding Hayao Miyazaki Through Literature

    (10) In this course, students will analyze films by Hayao Miyazaki, one of the world’s most famous animators and film directors, well known for masterpieces such as My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away. Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea series, Grimm’s Tales, and Japanese folktales are a few of the works that have inspired his films and will provide literary and cultural context. All of the works will provide ground to discuss the complex role of female protagonists in the world of animation and literature. The students will have the opportunity to create their own folktale.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation requirement.

  • West African Dance

    The content of this course gives an introduction to basic West African movement, rhythms, and songs. Each class begins with a warm-up to prepare the body for this particular style of movement, followed by movements across the floor, and finally work on specific dances. Students will learn several dances from West Africa, primarily from Nigeria, Mali, Guinea, and the Senegambia regions. Classes are accompanied by live drumming, giving the students the opportunity to understand the unique connection between polyrhythmic timing and the body in motion. While the class focuses on the dances of West Africa it is also a means for understanding the culture of the people.

    This course awards credit toward the social justice graduation credit.

  • World Religions

    (9/10th) This one module class will examine the origins and practice of major world religions.  We will examine religion and our relationship with it. The class will explore the main characters and practices of these religions and how they have spread and developed. We will also explore the main schisms in such religions and analyze why and how they happened.  By the end of the class, we will develop a comparative study and identify commonalities and differences between these faiths.  We will also explore religious tensions in current domestic and international arenas.
     
     
    This course awards credit toward the social justice requirement.

Department Faculty

45 Georgian Road | Weston, MA 02493 | 781-642-8600

The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.