AICE Videos, Course Descriptions, and Student Resources

Cambridge Assessment International Education Videos

Cambridge AICE Course Descriptions And Resources. RHS Pre-aice History Resources For Students

RHS Aice Course Descriptions And Resources For Students
The following are course descriptions provided by the AICE instructors to assist you in choosing AICE courses.  Please feel free to contact individual instructors with additional questions.

AICE Art & Design (9479) - AS & A Level - 9479 syllabus
Instructor:  Ms. Lori Smith
Grade Levels 10-12
AICE Art & Design encourages you to explore a range of processes and techniques in a chosen area of study. The class encourages personal responses that are based on knowledge and understanding and skills in art, craft and design. You will develop an inquisitive, creative approach to research and problem-solving and learn how to record notes from first-hand observation, personal experience and other sources.  In additon,  you will develop your independent expression by analysing, evaluating and applying concepts and techniques to the artwork you create.  Reflecting on your process is a critical element in this course.  You will not simply create great works of art:  you will become more aware of the reasons why you create the artwork you do.

AICE Art & Design Resources:

AICE Biology (9700) - AS & A Level -  9700 Syllabus  
Instructor:  Mrs. Nadine Kalajian
Grade Levels:  11-12

AICE Biology will offer you the opportunity to deepen and refresh the knowledge you gained in Biology I. The emphasis is to develop a profound understanding of many of the fundamental concepts in the field of Biology rather than an overview of all possible topics. There will be heavy emphasis on laboratory practical work in which you will gain not only procedural knowledge, but also become comfortable with designing and carrying out your own inquiries. This course provides an in-depth study of key biological concepts as outlined by the Cambridge Program Standards.  This course emphasizes the application of knowledge, scientific methods and procedures, and independent research. At the end of this rigorous and demanding course students will sit for the 3-part AICE exam.

AICE Biology Resources 9700

AICE Business (9609) - AS & A Level - 9609 Syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Christine Kearns
Grade Levels:  10-12

This course will inform students of the distinctive role that business plays in our society.  Through the examination of case studies in economics, business ownership, and technology, students will enhance their appreciation for the impact of effective organizational models and leadership styles in the corporate world. 

AICE Business Resources

AICE Drama (9482) - AS Level - 9482 syllabus
Instructor:  Ms. Kelly Rose
Grades: 10-12

AICE Drama encourages students to explore a range of practical and theoretical approaches to drama from script to performance. The course encourages students to develop the ability to apply practical skills effectively and to analyse and evaluate both their own work and the work of others. At the AS Level, students focus on three key areas: • the exploration, interpretation and analysis of the potential of dramatic texts in a performance context • the development of dramatic skills and their application to the process of devising based on a selected stimulus • the development of acting skills and their application to scripted performance.

AICE Drama Resources:

AICE Drama Resources

AICE English General Paper (8021) - AS Level 
8021 syllabus
Instructor:  Mrs. Linda Foster
Grade Level:  9-12

This course promotes the skills of rational thought, persuasion, analysis, interpretation and evaluation.  It encourages the exploration and appraisal of social, cultural, economic, philosophical, scientific and technological issues.  Students will develop an understanding and appreciation of individual, social, and cultural diversity as well as maturity of thought and clarity of expression both verbally and in writing.  Through the reading of timely literature, outside novels and works, and current media reports, students will develop critical reading and analysis skills.

AICE English General Paper Resources:

AICE English Language (9093) - AS Level -
9093 Syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Anne Straub and Mrs. Cynthia Bolton
Grade Levels:  Grades 10-12

Have you ever heard a love song that made you cry, listened to a speech that compelled you take action, or read a blog that made you laugh out loud? More importantly, have you ever wished that you could have that same effect on others?  If so, then AICE English Language AS Level is right up your alley. In this course, you will learn the distinguishing features of a given text and how to apply that understanding to your own writing.

AICE English Language Resources

AICE English Literature (9695) - AS & A-Level - 
9695 syllabus
Instructors:  Mrs. Cynthia Bolton & Mrs. Anne Straub
Grade Level: Grade 12

AICE literature provides students with an opportunity to study several pieces of literature in four genres in order to gain a greater understanding of literary techniques, themes, purpose, etc.  Students will read assigned literature at home and spend class time dissecting the material through a variety of venues. Students will also learn to express their interpretations of the works through written analytical essays that demonstrate a strong grasp of the English language. 

AICE English Literature Resources

AICE Environmental Management (8291) - AS Level -
8291 Syllabus
Instructor:  Mr. Aaron LeBlanc
Grade Levels:  11-12

Students entering AICE Environmental Management class do not need to have studied environmental science or management before taking this class.  In this class, students will develop knowledge of Earth's natural systems, the effects of human activity on these systems, and important environmental problems which face the world today.  Students will learn that solutions to environmental issues are not easy to find, recognize that the environment is an important social and political issue, and understand the important role that individuals have in thinking about these issues and considering solutions. 

AICE Environmental Management Resources

AICE Geography (9696) - AS Level -
9696 syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Jackie Insalaco       
Grade Levels: 9-12

The AICE Geography course is designed to help students understand and interpret issues affecting people, places, and environments.  Students will develop an understanding of topics within physical geography and human geography as well as an awareness of the causes and effects of change on natural and human environments.  Key concepts covered in AICE Geography are space, scale, place, environment, interdependence, diversity, and change.  Students will be challenged to think logically and present ordered and coherent arguments in a variety of ways.  

AICE Geography Resources

AICE Global Perspectives (9239) - AS Level
9239 syllabus
Instructor: Ms. Kathy Moore
Grade Levels:  Grades 10-12

The focus of AICE Global Perspectives is on developing the ability to think, speak, and write critically about a range of global issues where there is always more than one point of view.  Students will become aware of global themes and issues, viewed from personal, local, national and international perspectives, and of the connections between them.  This cross-curricular program challenges students to work in groups, to present seminars, to create projects, and to publish essays.  Students who sign up for AICE Global Perspectives must be self-motivated and have the ability to establish and meet deadlines.  This course is recommended for juniors but is also available to sophomores (who have completed AICE English General Paper) and seniors.  

AICE Global Perspectives Resources:

AICE Global Perspectives Resources

AICE Information Technology (9626) - AS & A-Level -
9626 Syllabus
Instructor:  Mrs. Susanne VanBrunschot
Grade Levels:  10 -12

AICE Information Technology will explore the impact of IT on industry and commerce, transportation, leisure activities, mediciine, workplaces, and homes.  To explore this impact, you will learn about various hardware and software applications and understand how they work with each other and with us in our environment.  You will then consider the uses of new technologies and how they affect our everyday life and how the rapid changing technology of our society is driving global communication through various platforms. 

AICE Information Technology Resources

AICE Marine Science (9693) - AS & A-Level -
9693 Syllabus
Instructor:  Mrs.  Julia Pearsall
Grade Levels:  Grades 10-12

This class is a college level introductory class into the marine sciences and is designed as a survey class of some of the different marine science disciplines.  The class will cover the basics of geological oceanography, chemical oceanography, physical oceanography and ecology of the marine environment as well covering basic scientific practices and methodologies.  The class contents will include but not be limited to the following:

  1. Scientific Method—including experimental design, interpretation of experimental data, inherent variations and limitations in the measurement of experimental data, and an understanding of the challenges that the marine environment poses to experimental design;

  2. Marine ecosystems and biodiversity—including discussions of the interrelatedness of populations of predators and prey, various marine feeding strategies, reproductive strategies in the marine environment, predator avoidance, marine succession, relating extreme and unstable environments to the level of biodiversity, specialized and general marine ecological niches, and the correlation between the level of biodiversity and the specificity of ecological niches;

  3. Energetics of marine ecosystems—including discussion on the movement of energy through the different marine ecosystems, transfer of energy, and loss of energy;

  4. Nutrient cycles in marine ecosystems—input and output to the reservoir of dissolved nutrients, nutrient availability and productivity, biological uses of nutrients, and a discussion of how productivity may be limited by the availability of dissolved nutrients;

  5. Coral reefs and lagoons—a discussion of the Darwin-Dana-Daly theory of atoll formation, protective role of reefs, cause and effects of reef erosion, and the use of artificial reefs in the protection of shores and anchorages;

  6. The ocean floor and the coast—including a discussion of tectonic theory and how it has helped to shape the ocean basin, process of erosion and sedimentation that give rise to the morphology of the littoral zone, and how environmental factors influence the formation of ecological communities in the littoral zone;

  7. Physical oceanography—including discussion of the factors that affect tides and currents and the climactic impact of ocean events including but not limited to El Niño;

  8. Chemical oceanography—including discussion of the factors that affect the chemical composition of seawater, layering and mixing of the ocean waters, and the impact of marine chemistry on ocean structures and the marine organisms. 

AICE Marine Science Resources

AICE Mathematics (9709) - AS & A-Level -
9709 Syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Wanda Krajewski 
Grade Levels:  Grades 10-12

Students entering the AICE Mathematics class should be ready to learn at a fast-pace.  The students in this course typically learn a chapter a week, so this requires students to enter the class with a solid foundation of mathematical skills as well as an ability to learn new skills quickly.  The class will focus on many mathematical concepts and topics including quadratics, coordinate geometry, circular measure, trigonometry, vectors, differentiation, integration, logarithmic and exponential functions, the numerical solution of equations, and statistics. 

AICE Mathematics Resources

AICE Modern European History & AICE United States History (9489) - AS-Level -
9489 syllabus
AICE Modern European History Instructor:  Mr. Jon Reneau - Grade Levels:  Grades 9-12 
AICE United States History Instructor:  Mr. Michael Inman - Grade Levels: 10-12

The purpose of the AICE Modern European History course is to enable students to understand the developments that shaped Modern European History.  This will be achieved with a holistic understanding of Europe as a geographic region from 1789 to 1939.  Europe’s key developments will be studied in relation to the wider European context and with attention focused on the broader issues (revolution, nationalism, imperialism, war and totalitarianism) that helped shape European history.  Generally, assessment will follow the AICE History essay model. Non-essay format assessment will only be used to ensure reading comprehension.

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, "We are not the makers of history.  We are made by history."  AICE US History aims to develop an interest and appreciation for the human endeavour by providing students with a greater knowledge and understanding of historical periods and themes.  Students will travel through time and explore the expansion of power in the US from the 1840s - 1930s, reenact the Civl War and Recontruction and analyze the war's origins, be dazzled by the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era, and feel the heartbreak of the Great Crash, the Great Depression, and the New Deal.

AICE Modern European History Resources
AICE United States History Resources

AICE Music (9483) - AS Level -
9483 syllabus
Instructor: 
Grade Levels:  10-12

The AICE music class is an advanced music class that is an in-depth study of music history and/or music performance.  Students who are interested in the class should either have completed AICE General Paper and/or have a significant background in music.  Please note there is NO requirement that students in the class have a musical background.  The information provided by AICE makes it very clear that non-music people are encouraged to take the class.

The topics covered in the class cover a wide range of musical ideas including (but not limited to) form, harmonic structure, historical context, and emotion in music.  Two fundamental ideas in music are assigned by Cambridge each year for in depth study.  Additional concepts are assigned by the teacher to ensure a thorough understanding of music.  The examination for this class does require students to perform musical pieces, compose short musical pieces, and write about music based on selections that are played for you.

If you enjoy listening, talking about, and discovering, music AICE is a wonderful class.  Be prepared to contribute to daily class discussions and to see music in a totally new way!

AICE Music Resources

AICE Physics (9702) - AS & A-Level -
9702 syllabus
Instructor:  Mrs. Tania Hartman
Grade Levels:  12

AICE Physics is a survey of physics that includes the study of such topics as kinematics (describing motion), accelerated motion, dynamics (explaining motion by looking at the forces involved), work, power, energy, momentum,  properties of matter, electric fields,  electric current, practical circuits, waves and their properties, and radioactivity.   Laboratory activities and their analysis will be an integral part of the course.   As physics relies heavily on mathematical problem solving, it is HIGHLY recommended that you have completed Algebra II Honors with at least a B and are currently enrolled in an upper-level mathematics course. 

AICE Physics Resources:

  • STEM Learning Website - Navigate via ‘resources’ to Secondary and A Level Science. You will need to create an account if you have not used this resource before. The physics section is subdivided in familiar topics and each topic contains (or is linked to) a wide range of resources, e.g. detailed lesson plans, videos and interactive animations.

  • Institute of Physics Website - Navigate to ‘Teaching Advanced Physics’. This site gives ideas and resources for teaching physics, grouped in familiar topics.

  • PhET University of Colorado Boulder Interactive Simulations Website - This site contains a vast range of physics simulations, often of experiments which are difficult to perform within the laboratory. You will need to register to gain full functionality, for example to download the teacher notes which are essential for each activity. 

  • Minute Physics YouTube Channel -  This site contains some entertaining and thought provoking ‘sketch type’ videos which are particularly useful for wave particle duality and explaining the Universe.

  • The Particle Adventure Website - This is an excellent resource to accompany the Particle Physics topic. It provides a comprehensive set of resources and activities for all the aspects covered in this topic, with plenty of scope for independent and Next Steps 12 active learning. In the additional features section, there is a link to a highly useful wall chart on Fundamental Particles and their interactions.

AICE Physics Resources

AICE Psychology (9990) - AS Level -
9990 syllabus
Instructor:  Mrs. Megan Crawford & Mr. Doug Kuhblank
Grade Levels:  11-12

AICE Psychology is an internationally accepted college level course that explores behavior and mental processes through twenty “core studies” from Psychology’s past. Students who take this course will gain a working knowledge of what psychologists do, how they gather their data, and how the research is applied to daily life.  Students in the AICE Psychology class are expected to able to write for evidence, evaluation, application, and analysis.  Students will write a total of 20 papers as they relate to 20 original research studies and will take 20 tests to prepare for the AICE exam during the year.  The 20 research studies to be examined will allow students to reflect on five key approaches in psychology: cognitive psychology, social psychology, developmental psychology, physiological psychology, and the psychology of individual differences. 

AICE Psychology Resources:

AICE Psychology Resources

AICE Sociology (9699)- AS Level -
9699 syllabus
Instructor: 
Grade Levels:  10-12

In a rapidly changing world, Cambridge International Sociology offers students the opportunity to not only explore the processes that are shaping current trends, but also to develop an understanding of the complexity and diversity of human societies and their continuities with the past. The study of Sociology should stimulate awareness of contemporary social, cultural and political issues, and focus attention on the importance of examining these issues in a rigorous, reasoned and analytical way. 

AICE Sociology Resources:

AICE Sociology Resources

AICE Spanish Language (8022) - AS Level -
8022 syllabus
Instructor: Mrs. Ana Garcia

Grade Levels:  Grades 11-12

Students in the Spanish Language class will study a wide range of topics in the language including human relationships, family, patterns of daily life, the media, food and drink , law and order, religion, health and fitness, work and leisure, employment, sports, and education.  It is recommended that students who wish to enter the AICE Spanish Language class have a minimum of three previous years of instruction in Spanish.  Students are required to complete a speaking presentation that will be recorded as part of the exam for this class. 

AICE Spanish Language Resources

AICE Thinking Skills (9694) - AS & A-Level -
9694 syllabus
Instructor:  Ms. Kathy Moore
Grade Levels:  10-12

Thinking Skills is an intriguing course that allows candidates to develop a specific set of transferable intellectual skills, independent of subject content including Critical Reasoning and Problem Solving.  The focus of the Critical Reasoning unit is on development of skill sets to

  1. evaluate the credibility of evidence (information) to make decisions based on rational,  logical reasoning;

  2. to analyze and draw appropriate conclusions from scientific data;

  3. to unpack arguments, identify flaws in reasoning and present reasoned arguments.

The Problem Solving unit focuses on analytical thinking using data and strategies to create/find solutions to real world scenarios.  Students learn to think critically “outside the box,” look at scenarios from different perspectives and discover “what to do” (strategies to implement) “when we don’t know what to do.”  

Students must have a “true desire to think,” be actively involved in group discussions AND motivated to improve their skills at thinking.  We practice making informed decisions based on sound logical reasoning.  The curriculum creates opportunities for and encourages free and open debate, critical and investigative thinking, and informed and disciplined reasoning.

AICE Thinking Skills Resources