Research and writing are more than academic skills; they are essential tools for understanding the world and making a meaningful impact in it. From their earliest years, MKA students are guided to ask bold questions, explore multiple perspectives, and synthesize ideas across disciplines.
CURIOSITY-DRIVEN RESEARCH
By approaching research as an adventure, students investigate topics they care about and learn to analyze, interpret, and uncover new possibilities. They transform open-ended questions into meaningful discoveries.
Research at MKA is a cumulative, interdisciplinary experience guided by a shared understanding of the inquiry process. Librarians and teachers collaborate on research instruction, curriculum, and resource development. Concepts like the MKA Research Cycle give students a consistent structure and language they can carry with them from year to year and subject to subject. It also acts as a launchpad for specialized methods, including the scientific process.
At MKA, we believe that researchers, whether in the humanities or the sciences:
- Embrace research as a process of continual inquiry, reflection, and revision
- Ask and develop their own questions, driven by curiosity and passion
- Persevere through challenges and engage deeply with their chosen topics
- Consider multiple perspectives, and practice intellectual integrity
- Value reliability in sources and data, and make their research process visible
- Communicate findings clearly and creatively while celebrating the work of others
INQUIRY-FOCUSED LABORATORIES AND OTHER HANDS-ON LEARNING
STEM+ learning at MKA encourages students to develop understanding through hands-on learning, exploration, collaboration, and problem-solving. Faculty members nurture curiosity as they teach students to think like scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and computer programmers. As a result, students come to appreciate complex problems and develop the inspiration and capacity to solve them.
As scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and computer programmers, students are encouraged to understand the world by noticing, wondering, asking questions, and forming and testing their own hypotheses. Students learn to go beyond memorizing and applying formulas to understand concepts, patterns, and relationships. They develop the flexible and creative thinking skills to identify clues and available tools for problem-solving and the understanding that problems often have many creative solutions.
Observations, laboratory experiences, and other hands-on problem-solving explorations honor the scientific process without being constrained by it. Students explore and think through their discoveries as they record observations and data, a foundation for reflecting and making connections. As students develop their STEM+ literacy and critical-thinking skills, they learn to revise their thinking and shape further experimentation. Students of computer science learn to understand the power of programming in the context of Responsible Computing, which encourages them to consider coding as a high-leverage tool for solving problems with consideration of ethical applications in social contexts. Through intentional practice and perseverance, students come to appreciate both the beauty and the powerful application of the STEM+ skills they develop.
INFLUENTIAL WRITING
Through a multidisciplinary commitment to writing as a process, MKA students become distinctly confident and effective writers. Rooted in reflective practice, they continually engage in:
- Brainstorming and organizing ideas
- Drafting, rethinking, revising, and refining
- Asking meaningful questions and developing strong theses
- Supporting arguments with incisive evidence
- Engaging readers thoughtfully
- Using feedback to improve and deepen their work
All students receive the individualized guidance and feedback they need to grow. Through conferring with teachers who act as mentors and coaches, students learn to write with clarity, purpose, and depth across disciplines and languages. From literary analysis and historical research to world language essays, they build the confidence and skill to tell their stories, demonstrate their expertise, and make a meaningful impact beyond MKA.
Our graduates consistently report that their college professors are impressed with their writing and that their peers seek them out as writing coaches.
