Insight: EPS Independent Curriculum | Relevance, Agency, and Empathy

by Matt Delaney, Director of Academic Design & Integration

The Independent Curriculum is rooted in many of EPS’s core values: independence, agency, self-direction, collaboration, empathy, and relevance. Four different independent options provide students the opportunity to explore topics that are not generally present in upper school programs.

Seminars (10-12)           Independent Study | Independent Project (11-12)           Senior Thesis (12)

In each of the above options, students are generally exploring some version of the question:  How does the world work? How did the world work in the past? How does the world work now? How might the world work in the future? Implicit in each of these questions is a desire to understand the different phenomena and systems that compose the world, coupled with an empathy for humans and their relationships to and with those phenomena, systems, and each other.

Independent Curriculum Facilitators

Student demand for independent offerings has steadily increased over the life of the school. To streamline staffing and bring additional consistency to the program, starting in the fall of the 2024-25 school year, three Independent Curriculum Facilitators are providing support and mentorship to students engaging an independent study, Independent Project, or Senior Thesis.

Dr. Anne Duffy (Science) Mr. Wen Yu Ho, (Social Science), and Mr. Eric Sieg (Tech & Comp Sci) bring a wealth of experience and knowledge from their academic discipline work, research practices, and project planning backgrounds.

Content Experts (internal and external)

Whether a student is exploring potential topics for an upcoming proposal or already engaged in an independent effort, they have access to a resource that captures the different areas of expertise and interest of EPS faculty and staff members.  For example, because I have been identified as a faculty member with a background in economics, a student working on an independent study in Behavioral Economics has set up two meetings with me to discuss his work this fall.

As we continue to explore new possibilities for the 11th and 12h grade experience at EPS, we are also working to connect students to outside experts, both internal and external to the EPS community.

Impact Project Prototype (Spring 2024-25)

A new project opportunity for seniors is being prototyped this spring. Projects are one term in length with collaborative teams composed of 2 to 6 students.  See a more detailed overview by Jonathan Briggs in a future Insight.

A full listing of independent options can be found at: https://courses.eastsideprep.org/

Independent Study | Independent Project (Fall 2024-25)

US Seminars (Fall 2024-25)