When I was in high school, I loved the weekends! After a hard week of classes, I looked forward to spending time with my friends, watching movies, playing tennis, participating in one of the school clubs, or cheering on one of the sports teams.  While I had homework that I needed to attend to at some point over the weekend, I can’t recall being part of any club or activity that required additional homework.  Yet, that’s not the case for our Academic Decathlon students!

The Academic Decathlon (AcaDec) is a National Competition in which teams of students compete.  This past Spring, they announced that the overall curricular theme for 2023–2024 is Technology and Humanity. Following is some general information on the topics in each subject area.

• ART: The art curriculum will explore technology and art.

• ECONOMICS: The economics curriculum will cover fundamental economic concepts, microeconomics, and macroeconomics and will include a thematic section on technology, innovation, and the economy.

• LITERATURE: The literature curriculum will include critical reading, one long work of literature, and selected shorter works. The long work of literature will be The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin.

• MATHEMATICS: The mathematics curriculum will cover general mathematics, geometry, and an introduction to differential calculus.*

• MUSIC: The music curriculum will explore musical works used in science-fiction films.

• SCIENCE: The science topic will be an introduction to neuroscience and will include a section on technology and neuroscience.

• SOCIAL SCIENCE: The social science topic will be the history of computers.

For a Competition, students will deliver speeches, write essays, be interviewed by judges, asking them thoughtful questions about their past experiences and goals for the future, and take challenging exams in Art, Economics, Literature, Math, Music, Science, and Social Science.

Last Friday, I was invited to meet our high school students as they prepared for the Irving  Invitational Competition the following day.  Over 40 of our students were divided into teams going over content, asking questions, and helping each other to prepare.  I arrived while they were studying parts of the eye.  They weren’t just learning about the essential parts of the eye that I remembered when I was in school.  My father is a practicing eye doctor, and I only knew some of the advanced material from books and journals he had.  I sent a picture of the material to him, and he asked what I was doing around premedical students!  It was advanced material!

Mrs. Morris, the Oakwood AcaDec Coach, displays a fantastic sense of patience and organization.  Her understanding of the Academic Decathlon helps to provide clarity to students as well as the reassurance of focusing on the right things.  She also works to empower the veteran and older students to serve as peer mentors and leaders for others.

There was a buzz around the rooms.  Students had formed learning communities in which they felt vulnerable to sharing what they didn’t know and asking for help from their peers.  Students who knew the information displayed empathy and patience in slowly walking through it, showing them where the information was in the handouts, and giving positive reinforcement to stick with it.

The next day, I came back for the competitions.  Students were in classrooms testing from 9:00 a.m. to 3:15 p.m., taking Art, Economics, Literature, Mathematics, Music, Science, and Social Science tests.  In addition to volunteering as proctors, parents, and other supporters also provided food to keep students fueled.  Their smile and encouragement was also a boost to the students.  As soon as the tests were complete, students left the room relieved.  Many students expressed the need for sleep, rest, and video games.  Others cited the need to study for their classes, while others raced off to prepare for a jazz band clinic and performance.

That afternoon, Mrs. Morris notified me that Oakwood High School scored First Place at the Irving Invitational Competition!  They outperformed 47 other teams from Ohio, Texas, Arizona, Alaska, and Wisconsin, who were also competing!  

I appreciate our students for challenging themselves, working together, and delving into areas to broaden their learning.  The season has just started, and I invite you to keep an eye on our AcaDec students this year!  #OneOakwood