STEM IA High School

High School Courses

Our high school programming is structured to meet the high standards of Alberta’s curriculum while allowing students flexibility to explore unique and innovative STEM courses. Our program prepares students for post-secondary studies through our exemplary programming and teaching, and helps students make informed choices about their education path beyond grade 12.

There are three components to our course offerings:

Core Courses delivered according to the Alberta curriculum in preparation for graduation
Honours Academies that offer challenging academic courses for motivated students (developed in conjunction with post-secondary experts)
Options Courses that provide numerous options to explore innovative STEM programming across a broad range of leading edge topics

These courses are supported by Alberta’s first MIT Fab Lab – a digital fabrication facility providing formal links to 1750 labs in over 100 countries.

Alberta Curriculum

Core Courses

We follow Alberta Education’s Programs of Studies for all our core courses. We have high academic standards for all of our courses, and believe a well-rounded education is important for all students.

In addition to our complementary courses, below are the core courses available:

Honours Academies

The Honours Academies at STEM IA provide next level learning opportunities for self-motivated students interested in research, academic challenge and deep scholarship.

Students in these courses have the opportunity to go beyond the confines of the Alberta Program of Studies, exploring specific STEM topics in greater depth through the lens of technological applications. Reflecting STEM IA’s commitment to keeping pace with technological advancements in our programming, our course curricula will be developed and continuously reevaluated by advisory boards from Canadian post-secondary institutions and professionals in relevant STEM disciplines.

The preliminary Honours Academies are described below. Course offerings may change in response to student needs and interests.

Designed for students interested in diving deeper into topics such as human systems, genetics, disease, and ecology, these courses provide an intensive focus on biological knowledge, biotech innovations, and advanced lab skills that expand the exploration of biology beyond the standard coursework. Through both lab work and study of current research, students will attain a deeper understanding of human systems, disease, genetics, and cutting-edge technological advances in the biological science fields. Aspiring students will develop critical research and analytical skills, including descriptive statistics, basic principles of experimental design, review of scientific literature, and laboratory reporting.

Students will be prepared to take the Biology 30 Diploma Exam in June while gaining practical knowledge and skills directly transferable to health sciences faculties in post-secondary. The course curriculum will be developed in conjunction with an advisory board of faculty from post-secondary institutions and other health sciences professionals.

Ideal for students passionate about the language of mathematics and its broad and deep applications to the entirety of STEM, this intensive course covers subject matter in greater depth, requiring more sophisticated problem-solving. The course offers students a comprehensive treatment of the demanding calculus concepts covered in Math 30-1 and Math 31, while also introducing an array of concepts and techniques essential in engineering, the experimental sciences and the social sciences. The material is presented with a dual purpose: to equip students with the necessary knowledge to explore STEM disciplines in post-secondary, while also celebrating mathematics as a deep and rewarding subject in and of itself.

Students also explore other advanced topics, including probability, statistics, methods in data analysis and linear algebra. Students will be prepared to take the diploma exam in January and continue to explore calculus and other topics in the second semester.

An advisory board consisting of mathematicians and statisticians will play an active role in course curriculum and delivery, with both the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta represented on the committee

Options Courses

At STEM Innovation Academy, options courses are organized and delivered in strands. Within each strand, courses build the knowledge and skills of that discipline in partnership with industry and post-secondary experts. Courses provide a scope and sequence of learning experiences that build foundational STEM skills, while using the design process to create innovative solutions to unique problems.

Students will choose courses from the different strands to develop a diverse set of knowledge, skills and experiences while developing and practicing interpersonal skills integral to success in the ever-evolving workforce.

Engineering and Design

Courses in the Engineering and Design strand focus on utilizing the design process to create innovative solutions to real-world problems. Students learn a variety of hands-on and digital skills and gain valuable prototyping and fabrication experience in our MIT Fab Lab, which connects students to their global peers via a network of 1750 labs in over 100 countries.

Ever wondered what it would be like to build an interactive digital experience? In this hands–on course students will build physical devices that will interact and manipulate digital content. Whether students are new to coding or have prior experience they will choose an appropriate language (Scratch, Python, C# etc.) to write code to control events and behaviors for the digital content they create. In addition to programming, the course will build both technical and creative skills as students solve problems to create a physical device to interact with their digital content. Students will prototype and develop a final product using a variety of technologies, including sensors, 3D printing, laser cutting and 3D modeling (TinkerCAD and Fusion360). Projects may include interactive storytelling experiences, digital immersion experiences, sporting experiences, educational or community interactive products, interactive game experience (dance mats or whack a mole) or even a traditional arcade machine, the choice is yours!

In this design course, the worlds of Engineering and Architecture collide. Students will explore unique challenges facing society today and into the future. Through a system thinking approach, students will explore the relationships between economic, environmental, and societal issues. Students will use the contemporary tools of design while working with experts on projects that matter to themselves and their communities. Students will use professional software development tools and methodologies, such as: GIS (Geographic Information Systems), CAD (Computer-Aided Design Software), BIM (Building Information Modelling), and more. In addition to architectural design, students may explore additional topics such as sustainable system engineering, urban planning, energy innovation, and clean technologies.

Computational Thinking

In today’s digital age, computational thinking is an essential skill. It is a systematic approach to solving complex problems by breaking them down into a series of distinct steps. Solutions are presented in a form that can be effectively carried out by people or computers. Courses in the Computational Thinking strand involve students undertaking hands-on learning in computer programming and electronics to create ‘smart’ design solutions.

Students learn to design and build robots, to program autonomous behaviors, and to use sensors to improve the robot’s ability to navigate and interact with its environment. The course covers both technical and practical skills, providing hands-on experience with programming logic and the essentials of designing and building a robust robot. In addition to working with the VEX V5 robotics platform, students will also learn the basics of electro assembly through construction of their own electronic devices and robotic applications. In the final module, students will use robotics to create a unique final product that automates an aspect of their own lives or the lives of others in their community.

More than a typical computer science course, here students continue to build their technical skills in the higher-level computing courses, increasing their fluency in object-oriented programming and gaining a fuller understanding of the differences between languages. These more advanced courses offer students the opportunity to apply software engineering principles and will cover more advanced data structures (e.g., lists, stacks, queues, trees) along with efficiency and complexity algorithms for searching and sorting. Students will also utilize professional software development tools and methodologies – such as APIs, libraries, IDEs and collaboration tools – in their own projects. In addition to programming, students will explore additional topics in computer science, learning about embedded computing systems, cybersecurity, the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data and the societal impacts of technological change.

Mechatronics engineering is the design of computer-controlled electromechanical systems. In this higher-level course, students will integrate the concepts of automation, robotics, control systems, electronics systems, and computer programming, requiring students to tackle increasingly complex challenges that require design and programming ingenuity. Students expand their understanding of higher-level spatial awareness and control algorithms, and work with a variety of sensors, such as gyroscopes and vision sensors integrated with microprocessors and microcontrollers, such as Arduino and Raspberry Pi. They also gain exposure to robotics in manufacturing applications, including how process control impacts quality and efficiency. As students progress through the course, they are expected to complete more advanced projects with greater autonomy using project applications in machine vision, servo control, and automation. Sample projects include robotic arm, storage solutions, smart home applications, smart agriculture, and IoT applications.

New Media

Innovative ideas are spread by creative, effective, and engaging communication. Courses in the Media strand leverage digital technologies and the art of communication to connect with authentic audiences using persuasive storytelling.

New Media Essentials provides students with the fundamental skills and knowledge to progress into either Entrepreneurship and Innovation 20 or Graphics and Animation 20. The course will introduce students to a wide range of media tools and techniques to create digital media content. Starting with graphic design, students will create a range of digital content that they will later bring to life with animation software. Furthermore, students will explore photography essentials and expand their post–production digital processing skills. Building on these skills students will create audio/visual content to communicate their ideas. To create media content students will use software from Adobe Creative Cloud such as Illustrator, Animate, After Effects, Lightroom and Premier.

Building on the core skills developed in New Media Essentials, students will expand their skills with the aim of becoming entrepreneurs. To begin, students will explore the principles of entrepreneurship, specifically looking at ideation and business planning. Students will then be challenged to create their own venture and marketing plan using Adobe design tools and software. In addition, students will explore entrepreneurship law to consider the challenges faced when starting a business. Also, students will investigate strategies to manage their ventures financially. Moreover, students will have the opportunity to explore emerging technologies from artificial intelligence to quantum computing, as well as analyse how companies on the front lines of innovation are leveraging new technologies to redefine industries and reshape the global economy. Students will take an in-depth look at key areas of disruption and gain a deeper understanding of the potential impact of these changes. Possible topics include: fintech (including blockchain, cryptocurrency and NFTs); artificial intelligence and machine learning; data analytics; advanced manufacturing; intellectual property; and case studies in entrepreneurship. 

Building on the core skills developed in New Media Essentials students will continue their journey in digital storytelling and character development by creating complex 2d vector graphics and 3d modelling content that will be brought to life using animation software such Adobe Animate and After Effects for a variety of audiences.  Moving beyond the art of animation students will continue their journey into the fundamentals of game development and theory by exploring powerful industry software’s such as Unreal Engine 5 and Unity. Furthermore, students will integrate their digital content in Virtual and Augmented reality to explore various applications in industry. 

Health and Medical Sciences

Many students are interested in future careers in the field of medicine and/or health sciences. Tremendous innovations are taking place in these fields – including right in our own backyard. Students have an opportunity to explore multiple facets of these exciting field through a unique selection of courses.

Biomedical Science is a course pathway that integrates the STEM disciplines for a wide range of careers. The depth and scope of the courses reveal an array of future relevance in human and animal physiology and health, microbiology, pharmacy, chemistry, forensic science, and research in areas such as bioinformatics, biomedical engineering, and fabrication. The rigorous and relevant biomedical science sequence will engage students in the design process by analyzing data in medical outbreaks and how to relate this data within the context of patient empathy and societal needs. Students will examine the structures and interactions of human body systems and explore the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, all while working collaboratively to understand and design solutions to the most pressing health challenges of the 21st Century and the future. In addition, students will become biomedical engineers as they leverage the technologies available in the Fabrication Lab to create medical solutions for clients from community organizations like Make:able and Makers Making Change. Students will have the opportunity to analyze and evaluate the latest innovations in medicine such as nanotechnology, medical imaging, mixed reality immersive technologies, artificial intelligence, Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), 3D printing, and genomics. The biomedical pathway is an exciting challenge that requires a deep understanding of how to apply science, technology, and engineering to solve complex problems. Each course in the biomedical science sequence builds on the skills and knowledge students gain in the preceding course.

Program Enhancements (Grades 10-12)

Students will explore leading-edge technologies and disruptive innovations. These unique sessions are delivered by industry experts and post-secondary guest speakers. Students will deepen their understanding of STEM fields and consider the potential economic, social, political and ethical impacts of these developments. Potential topics include: artificial intelligence and machine learning, medical technologies, cleantech, blockchain, building systems, agriculture technologies, and quantum computing.

Pathways Pursuit is an open-ended deep dive for students to pursue a passion of their choice. There are four pathways to choose from: STEM Pathway, Entrepreneurial Pathway, Community Outreach Pathway, and the Personalized Pathway. Students are expected to complete at least one pathway during their high school career. Pathways Pursuit is an independent endeavor driven by students personal motivation while being guided by teacher mentors, industry or community mentors.