As we come back from winter break we have more than just snow days on our mind. Due to Oakton’s renovations and lack of space for classes, we as students have the task of quickly figuring out which classes to take in our upcoming year. As if Oakton didn’t already have enough options to choose from, Oakton decided to add some more science options for rising juniors and seniors just to make your decisions a little harder. As you go through your decision making process and start to finalize your schedule for next year, here are my selection of new courses to consider.

Number one: Oceanography. If you are a rising junior or senior and enjoy using your previous knowledge from both biology and chemistry or are looking to go into a field focusing on marine life, this is the class for you. You’ll get to learn about marine life, sea water, sentiments, human impact, and ocean formation. You’ll take notes, participate in online simulations, and have all the normal classroom quizzes, tests, and projects. If you are interested in this class you can talk to Ms. Bingham or Dr. Fernandez about the details.

Number two: Biotechnology. This class is focused on the human body and upcoming gene targeting treatments and therapies to help cure cancers, chronical illnesses, and other life threatening issues. You must have completed both a year of biology and chemistry in order to take this class. If you are looking to go into the medical field, whether it be a research job or a medical practitioner of some sort this sort of class would be great to take. Also if you are interested in detective work and how we are able to use DNA sequencing to help catch criminals, this is a class that you would find pretty exciting. You’ll explore several different ground breaking technologies that will improve our medical practices and treatment. You will also explore how DNA sequencing works and how it is used. If you have any questions about the class or just want more details you can talk to Ms. Bingham or Dr. Fernandez.

These new additions to the science curriculum allow us students to focus our attention to something that we are truly interested in and might one day find a job in. Make sure that when you are picking your classes you find a class to take that is exciting and interesting for you. Good luck picking your classes for next year Oakton!