|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Preceding Pages
- Looking Ahead
- Part A: Beliefs About Best Practices for Teaching and Learning Mathematics and Science
- Part B: Beyond Beliefs: The Guiding Principles
- Structure for the Discussion of Guiding Principles
- Guiding Principles
- Structure for the Discussion of Guiding Principles
- Organization for Discussion of Each Guiding Principle
- 1. Students Understand the Nature of Mathematics and Science
- 2. Students communicate effectively in mathematics and science.
- 3. Students reason effectively in mathematics and science.
- 4. Students are problem-solvers in mathematics and science.
Current Page
- Guiding Principle #5. Students understand their roles in the natural world.
- Instructional Implications
- Content Standards
- A. Students apply mathematics and science concepts to demonstrate an understanding that natural systems, including human systems, are cyclic and interconnected.
- B. Students demonstrate an understanding of their role in the natural world and how to take responsibility for their impact on it.
- C. Students understand that human impact on the environment can include more effective management of resources and reduction of harmful effects.
Following Pages
The natural world with its myriad components exists as an interconnected whole. Mathematics and science provide a window through which students can view and identify their roles and relationships in a larger context. Human activities, collective and individual, have an impact on the planet and beyond. As people develop an understanding of the world and their role in it, they develop an appreciation of the interconnectedness of natural systems. This understanding can result in responsible behavior and stewardship.
Instructional Implications Students at all levels should be exposed to the beauty and wonder of the natural world in all its mathematical and physical complexity. Seeing the intricacies of fractals or the amazing world of microorganisms in a drop of pond water is much more likely to contribute to an understanding of the connections and interdependencies in the natural world than memorizing long lists of technical terms.
Field experiences should play an integral role in science and mathematics education Pre-K-12. This includes not only visits to the river or the ocean, but also to landfills and sewage treatment plants. Students need to experience first hand that matter and energy cannot be created or destroyed. Whatever they use must come from somewhere, and after it is used, it goes somewhere as well.
Instruction should help students see themselves as members of larger communities. Community service activities should be part of the Pre-K-12 curriculum, since a person who helps with a community beach clean-up is much less likely to throw a candy bar wrapper off a boat.
The study of the natural world is a scientific area that relies extensively on mathematics to describe and model real situations. Students should use mathematics to communicate about natural systems and to help describe quantitatively the effects of certain variables (especially humans) on various systems.______________________________________________
SnapshotBefore studying other ecosystems, first-graders explore their own schoolyard over an extended period of time to find evidence of animals, plants, water, sunlight and shade. Their first day involves a silent walk; silence helps the students focus on the sights, sounds, smells and feel of the world around them. They try to walk so they make no noise, pausing often to note their surroundings. These pauses can be enhanced by closing their eyes.
Later, students talk about what they heard, saw, smelled and felt. Their attention may be drawn to animals, plants, water and sunlight. Trying the activity again is helpful.
In subsequent days, they walk through the schoolyard, recording their findings in field notebooks with pictures and words. Some recording is done on sight, while some is done back in the classroom. Resources include books, which are used in the field and the classroom, and adult volunteers who help with children's observations, identification and questions. The class discusses, compares and records its findings.
This activity helps young children become better observers of the world around them, notice relationships among their observations and understand their part in protecting this world.
==========================================
Content Standard A. Students apply mathematics and science concepts to demonstrate an understanding that natural systems, including human systems, are cyclic and interconnected.
________________________________________________________It is especially true in the natural world that "What goes around, comes around." Although the environment is constantly changing, many of those changes occur in cycles which can be influenced at many points by humans. It is important for students to realize that all parts of a natural system are connected: an impact on one part of a system does not change that one part in isolation, but may affect many parts of the system. These interrelationships in nature can be described both qualitatively and quantitatively.
Performance Indicators Primary
1. Demonstrate that things are made of parts.
2. Explain that when parts are put together, the whole can do things the parts couldn't do by themselves.
3. Describe relationships and patterns observed in nature.
Intermediate
1. Describe a food web and food pyramid.
2. Describe roles in a community (producer, consumer, decomposer).
3. Use numbers to describe populations.
Middle
1. Demonstrate the Law of the Conservation of Matter (S-E8)
2. Describe some specific cycles of matter (e.g., water cycle).
3. Describe the influence of abiotic and biotic factors on biotic communities.
4. Describe how similar responses occur in natural systems from the microscopic world to the global level.
5. Use numbers to describe relationships between parts of a natural system.
Secondary
1. Compare and contrast life functions (respiration, circulation etc.) carried out by different organisms.
2. Model mathematically the effects of human actions or other variables on natural systems.
3. Explain that even in some very simple systems it may not always be possible to predict accurately the result of changing some part of the system.
4. Describe the effects of human intervention in a matter cycle.
5. Explain the concept and value of biodiversity.
______________________________________________
Snapshot Seventh-graders study the permeability of different soils. Students measure water before it enters certain soils and the amount of water retained after a set period of time. Learners examine soil and water data to conjecture about water retention in those soils. Students in groups discuss the implications of this data in terms of a pollutant's possible effects to the soil, plants and animals affected by that soil, and the rate at which the pollutants could be flushed from a site.
The students now add a pollutant (food coloring) to the water samples, running the colored water through clean soil samples. An examination of the emerging water allows learners to compare the amount of the food coloring that is retained by each soil. They then use clean water to flush each soil until the resulting water runs clear, measuring the amount of flush water needed in each case.
After discussion of their findings, additional experiments are designed and conducted to determine the effects of other pollutants on soil and water.
==========================================
B. Students demonstrate an understanding of their role in the natural world and how to take responsibility for the impact on it.
________________________________________________________All humans are subject to the same laws of nature that govern other organisms. Humans have many of the same needs as other organisms in the natural world, and they carry out many of the same functions. However, unlike other living things, humans have an unusual ability to
Performance Indicators Primary
1. Identify many different groups to which they belong.
2. Explain why each group is different and has its own goals and needs.
Intermediate
1. Explain that in any environment some organisms survive and others do not.
2. Identify the needs of humans and other organisms for energy and resources.
3. Identify and explain some of the impacts that human beings, as a group and as individuals, have on their environment.
4. Describe the concept of waste.
5. Compare biodegradable and non-biodegradable materials.
Middle
1. Research and evaluate the social and environmental impacts of scientific and technological developments. (S-M1)
2. Describe an individual's biological and other impacts on an environmental system. (S-M4)
3. Realize that actions which may be appropriate in one set of circumstances may not be appropriate in a different set of circumstances.
4. Identify actions that may have immediate and/or long term consequences.
Secondary
1.Create a model that illustrates the different human, biotic and abiotic pressures on different populations in an ecosystem.
2. Design a sustainable community.
______________________________________________
Snapshot Students in a high school environmental science course have been studying the effect of agricultural practices on water quality. They have identified a local lake as suffering from algal blooms due to high levels of nitrates.
Teams of students investigate various aspects of the problem and possible solutions. One group uses topographic maps to define the watershed that drains into the lake. Another group studies satellite computer images to determine land use patterns within the watershed. Others study remedies tried at similar lakes and determine their likely effectiveness. Still others prepare pamphlets for local farmers, homeowners and a golf course outlining practices that might minimize nitrate runoff into the lake.
Later, the class will prepare an educational video about the lake's problems for distribution through the local library and video store. Finally, students will present their proposal to the local planning board and other officials.
==========================================
Content Standard C. Students understand that human impact on the environment can include more effective management of resources and reduction of harmful effects.
________________________________________________________The consequences of human intervention in the natural world may be positive or negative. As humans become more aware of their potential for harming the environment, there are many who are becoming more concerned and active in efforts to protect and even restore it. Innovations in mathematics and science have enabled humans to monitor and test environmental conditions more accurately, as well as providing the technology to manage resources and repair environmental damage more effectively. Students should realize that their individual efforts (resource conservation, recycling) are as important as large scale efforts (Superfund site clean-ups) in maintaining the condition of the natural world.
Performance Indicators Primary
1. Identify commonly used resources, their sources, and where waste products go. (S-M3)
2. Demonstrate some practices for recycling and care of resources. (S-M4)
Intermediate
1. Explain practices for conservation in daily life, based on a recognition that renewable and nonrenewable resources have limits. (S-M4)
Middle
1. Use mathematics to calculate the cumulative effect of individual actions in a population.
2. Compare environmental impacts of the use of various resources.
3. Use measurement tools to quantify environmental conditions.
Secondary
1. Demonstrate the importance of resource management, controlling environmental impacts, and maintaining natural ecosystems. (S-M2)
2. Use technological tools to model environmental impacts.
3. Use risk assessment to evaluate plans designed to address environmental problems.