[KHO1416 (Alt 11, 12)]

Year, Prerequisite: Completion of Biology, Chemistry, and Hawaiian 3 or above, or interview with kumu.  Open to Grades 11-12.

This is the first science department course offering at KSK to be taught entirely in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language).  The content covered will be comparable to the Marine Science course taught in English, students motivated in the Hawaiian language will gain an additional layer of understanding of marine science by learning ma ka ʻōlelo makuahine.  The course lends power to the language revitalization movement, showing that the Hawaiian language can be used in every contemporary context.

This course focuses on the unique and fragile marine ecosystems of our islands.  One of the main principles of Hawaiian society was the conservation of resources.  The ability of the traditional Hawaiians to live in a finite ecosystem depended on marine knowledge and conservation ethics that should still be applied today.  This course is divided into two sections: Oceanography (the physical and chemical aspects of the ocean) and Marine Biology (the living aspects of the ocean).  Throughout the year, the interaction of humans with the ocean and the comparison of traditional and modern management principles will be analyzed.  We will study the reef and all its inhabitants in great detail and conduct a field survey monitoring the health of corals in Kāne‘ohe Bay.