Cleaning Up Your Act

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  Model Eliciting Activity (MEA)

• Formative Assessment

  
  

  Day 2 Carouseling activity over the 5 major background areas. Activity described in the teacher instructional guide (see Instructional Suggestions section).

  Topics:

  1. Fossil Fuels
  2. Homeostasis
  3. Marine biomes
  4. Environmental Protection Agency
  5. Economical/Environmental impact of an oil spill

• Feedback to Students

  
  

  A class discussion will follow the background activity.

  Once placed in teams of 3-4 (according to best practices), students will share ideas and decide on an approach to solve the client's problem.

  After the first letter has been written, teacher has the option to allow for peer reviews.

  Students will be able to reflect after presentations and decide if they would change their own procedures.

  Presentation Review Form

• Summative Assessment

  
  

  The teacher will evaluate the final presentation on its scientific merit. Are the students' explanation of procedures based on the scientific method? Are their choices supported by evidence? Are they able to justify why they made the choices they did in designing their procedures?

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  Students will:

  • Use critical and logical reasoning skills to evaluate scientific explanations
  • Understand how differences in scientists backgrounds can influence inferences/explanations about their observations
  • Understand functions and the importance of scientific models
  • Use different strategies to solve scientific and ethical issues
  • Recognize consequences of catastrophic events to biodiversity of an ecosystem

• Prior Knowledge

  
  

  **Guidelines for teacher-led discussion after carouseling activity**

  FOSSIL FUELS

  Fossil Fuels are hydrocarbons (composed of hydrogen and carbon) formed from the remains of dead plants, animals and other, simpler, life forms. Specific fossil fuels are coal, crude oil and natural gas. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide; a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.

  Crude Oil is a fossil fuel that is 82-87% carbon and 12-15% hydrogen. It can be separated by distillation under varying temperatures to form gasoline, kerosene, flight fuel, heating oil, etc. It is mostly made from phytoplankton (free floating) photosynthesizing single cell creatures such as diatoms and blue green algae as well as zooplankton (free floating) animals and single cell animal-like creatures. Oil is hydrophobic meaning it is not soluble in water. Oil is less dense than water so it floats.

  HOMEOSTASIS

  Homeostasis is any self-regulating process by which biological systems tend to maintain stability while adjusting to conditions that are optimal for survival. It can also be defined as the ability or tendency of an organism or cell to maintain internal equilibrium by adjusting its' physiological processes. The ability of a system or organism to maintain optimal conditions that promotes its survival.

  MARINE BIOMES

  Marine Biomes cover 3/4 of the earth's surface. This includes oceans, coral reefs, and estuaries. Each biome consists of many ecosystems whose communities have adapted to the small differences in climate and the environment inside the biome.

  All living things are closely related to their environment. Any change in one part of an environment, like an increase or decrease of a species of animal or plant, causes a ripple effect of change in through other parts of the environment.

  Large or small, simple or complex, no organism lives alone. Each depends in some way on other living and nonliving things in its surrounding.

  ENVIRONMENTAL & ECONOMIC IMPACT OF OIL SPILLS

  Environmental impacts can be devastating and long lasting. Oil can be toxic and result in the death of many sea creatures and water birds. It can kill plankton and contaminate human food sources. Loss of eggs and larvae will cause declines in adult populations.

  Studies are still underway. A new study was released on August 1, 2012 that indicates dispersants used in the BP oil leak killed plankton and may have disrupted the food chain in the gulf. Complete results won't be apparent for years.

  We know that the Exxon Valdez oil spill off of Alaska in 1989 continues to have a negative impact on the environment.

  Economic impact can be extreme as well. Recreational activities such as sun bathing, swimming, boating, angling and diving will be disturbed. Hotels, restaurants and businesses that engage in the tourist trade may be forced to close. Fishermen may be out of work and food sources may decline. Power stations that use sea water and desalination plants will not function.

  The cost of clean-up can run into the billions and there is a domino effect of unemployment in the affected area.

  ROLE OF EPA

  The Environmental Protection Agency was established in 1970 due to rising concern about pollution. The first Earth Day was held in 1970 and resulted in an outpouring of public support that the government could no longer deny. The mission of the agency is to protect human health and the environment.

  The agency sets levels of allowable pollution to our air, water and land. They enforce their policies by levying fines or initiating criminal prosecution that could result in imprisonment.

  The current priorities of the EPA are as follows:

  1. Taking Action on Climate Change
  2. Improving Air Quality
  3. Assuring the Safety of Chemicals
  4. Cleaning up our Communities
  5. Protecting America's Waters
  6. Expanding the Conversation on Environmentalism and work for Environmental Justice
  7. Building Strong State and Tribal Partnership

  
  (Optional background article - "BP oil spill dispersants may have hurt Gulf of Mexico food chain, study finds")

  Available at: http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2012/07/bp_oil_spill_dispersants_may_h.html

  
  Background standards

  SC.4.E.6.3 : Recognize that humans need resources found on Earth and that these are either renewable or nonrenewable.

  SC.4.L.17.2 : Explain that animals, including humans, cannot make their own food and that when animals eat plants or other animals, the energy stored in the food is passed to them.

  SC.4.L.17.3 : Trace the flow of energy from the Sun as it is transferred along the food chain through the producers to the consumers.

  SC.4.L.17.4 : Recognize ways plants and animals, including humans, can impact the environment.

  SC.4.P.12.2 : Investigate and describe that the speed of an object is determined by the distance it travels in a unit of time and that objects can move at different speeds.

  SC.5.P.8.2 : Investigate and identify materials that will dissolve in water and those that will not and identity the conditions that will speed up or slow down the dissolving process.

  SC.7.E.6.6 : Identify the impact that humans have had on Earth, such as deforestation, urbanization, desertification, erosion, air and water quality, changing the flow of water.

• Instructional Suggestions

  
  

  (based on 45-50 minute periods, days can be coupled for 90 minute blocks)

  Day 1

  1. (Optional "buy in" activity) Students view a short video clip on oil spills (list of possible videos: Video Links). Possible videos (see document for links):
     1. Exxon Valdez
     2. Could Hay help Clean Up Oil?
     3. Hair boom vs. Conventional boom demo
  2. Class discussion follows - student led and teacher directed as necessary (you don"t want to point them or influence how they may evaluate materials in the MEA).

  Day 2

  1. Students break into 5 groups and participate in a carouseling activity over background topics (ie topics are written as headers on large poster paper and placed around the room - groups rotate, reading/writing any info they know about the topic - it helps to assign a particular color marker to each group for accountability).
  2. Teacher leads discussion over topics.

  Day 3

  1. Students are presented with the article "Spill Response Plan" then the first client letter for close and critical reading (see Reading Passage 1 for article link and client letter).
  2. Class discussion follows to ensure understanding of the task. Discussion can also focus on what engineering is and what engineers do.
  3. Homework could be students recording individual brainstorming to solve the client"s problem.

  Day 4

  1. Students are grouped in teams of approximately two to four according to best practices and the teacher"s professional judgment.
  2. In teams, students share the best idea that they imagined with their teammates.
  3. Teams select an idea that they would like to develop further and each team then creates a procedure to solve the client"s problem.
  4. Teacher will ask students reflection questions as teams are creating their procedures and address any issues that may arise. For example if students are working on an MEA for the first time, it might be difficult for them to grasp that they need to come up with a clear and concise procedure rather than a final answer (i.e., simply selecting and ranking alternatives).
  5. (Opt"l) Teachers might choose to lead the students in a pre-exercise to learn how to write a detailed procedure (e.g., have students write detailed instructions of how to tie a shoelace and have another student try to follow the step by step instructions).
  6. Students write a detailed letter to the client (Acme Oil) explaining their procedure in detail.
  7. Last 5 minutes of class, students receive the second client letter and the second set of data.

  Day 5

  1. Teams test, evaluate, and revise their first procedure as necessary with the second data set.
  2. (Optional/if time allows) Peer review where groups exchange work and offer constructive criticism.
  3. Students write a second letter to the client (Acme Oil) explaining their procedures in detail and how and why the procedure did or did not change.

  Day 6

  1. Teams present their results to the rest of the class. Presentation Review Form

• Guiding/reflective Questions

  
  
  1. What things do you think are most important to the client?
  2. Can the data be interpreted in various ways?
  3. Can you design a ranking system that fairly evaluates all of the alternatives?
  4. Do you have to prioritize items to achieve an acceptable ranking?
  5. Can you explain your reasons for the rankings you make?

• Reading Passage 1

  
  

  Dear Engineering Student Team:

  Our company, Acme Oil, has experienced a spill of approximately 120 million liters of crude oil that has escaped into the water.

  It is imperative that we move quickly to clean up this spill to minimize the impact on the environment.

  We are requesting assistance in evaluating the materials and techniques in the attached data set to determine the most practical procedures to clean up the spill.

  We look forward to your report, ranking the materials (1-5) from best to worst. Please explain the procedure that was used, because new cleaning methods may become available in the future and we need to be able to use your procedure to rank them as well.

  Sincerely,

  E. Wile, CEO

  Acme Oil Company

  See article: Spill response plan: http://www.petroleumnews.com/pntruncate/62980178.shtml

• Readiness Questions

  
  
  1. Who is the client?
  2. What is the problem?
  3. What are they requesting your team to do?
  4. What might be difficult about solving this problem?
  5. What do you need to include in your solution or recommendation?
  6. How will your team think like engineers?
  7. What will you need to include in your letter?

• Data Set 1

  
  

  Data 1

• Letter Template 1

  
  

  Dear Mr. E. Wile,

  Our team, _________________, has determined that you should use the following materials and techniques. The order from best to worst is

  1) _________,

  2) __________,

  3) __________.

  4)___________.

  5)___________.

  Our procedure for ranking is

   

   

   

   

  Sincerely, _________________________

  Engineering Student Team

• Comprehension/readiness questions

  
  

  See readiness questions

• Reading Passage 2

  
  

  Dear Engineering Student Team:

  Thank you for your great work in evaluating the previous materials and techniques.

  However, we failed to give you a vital piece of information. The spill was previously believed to be contained, but the separated ring has reattached to the loop current and the spill is spreading. The following data illustrates the impact.

  We are asking that you re-evaluate your original procedure by considering this new information in additional to two new options for cleanup. Please describe your procedure and determine if it still works with this new information. If it still works please describe why, and if it does not work please indicate why not. Again, please provide a ranking of each of the methods according to your procedure.

  We are anxiously awaiting your results.

  Sincerely,

  E. Wile, CEO

  Acme Oil Company

• Data Set 2

  
  

  Data 2

• Letter Template 2

  
  

  Dear Mr. E. Wile,
  
  Our team, _____________, has determined that you should use ______________. The order from best to worst is
  
  1) _________,
  
  2) __________,
  
  3) __________,
  
  4) __________,
  
  5) __________,
  
  6) __________,
  
  7) __________.
  
  We (did/did not) have to change our procedure.
  
  
  
  Our procedure for ranking is:
  
  Sincerely, __________________________
  
  Student Engineering Team

• Additional Instructions or Materials

  
  

  Additional Resources:
  
  http://web.archive.org/web/20130323161151/http://www.fox10tv.com/dpp/news/gulf_oil_spill/where-does-oil-spill-clean-up-waste-go
  http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/kevin-costner-machine-bp-oil-clean/story?id=10689928
  http://www-static.shell.com/static/usa/downloads/alaska/4_controlled_burning.pdf
  http://www.itopf.com/information-services/publications/documents/TIP9DisposalofOilandDebris.pdf
  http://www.spillking.com/compare.shtml
  http://oceanscience.wordpress.com/2010/06/11/gulf-oil-spill-georgia-update-6-11-10/

• Reflection question 2

  
  

  1. Did your procedure work with the introduction of the new data?

  2. Were you able to support your procedures with scientific ideas/data?

  3. Once you heard the presentations of the other teams, are there any changes you would make in your procedures?