MADISON PUBLIC SCHOOLS AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

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1 MADISON PUBLIC SCHOOLS AP ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE Authored by: Jennifer Freeman Reviewed by: Mr. Lee S. Nittel Director of Curriculum and Instruction Mr. Tom Paterson K12 Supervisor of Science and Technology Approval Date: Fall 2012 Members of the Board of Education: Lisa Ellis, President Patrick Rowe, Vice-President Kevin Blair Thomas Haralampoudis Linda Gilbert James Novotny David Arthur Shade Grahling Superintendent: Dr. Michael Rossi Madison Public Schools 359 Woodland Road, Madison, NJ

2 I. OVERVIEW The goal of the course is to help students develop an understanding of the natural world with particular attention to interactions and relationships between its components and human impact on them. Scientific principles, concepts and methodologies will be used to identify and analyze environmental problems, risks developing as a result of these problems, and possible solutions or prevention strategies. After taking this course, students should be equipped to make independent and informed decisions about the consequences of their actions on the environment, both as a citizen and a consumer. II. RATIONALE As stated by the National Science Education Standards, 1996, science education is important at a universal level: First, an understanding of science offers personal fulfillment and excitement benefits that should be shared by everyone. Second, Americans are confronted increasingly with questions in their lives that require scientific information and scientific ways of thinking for informed decision making. In addition, the collective judgment of our people will determine how we manage shared resources such as air, water, and national forests. At a personal level, students completing this course will be prepared for the AP Environmental Science exam. The content of this course is guided by the College Board and models a rigorous college course stressing scientific principles and analysis. This type of course often includes a laboratory component. Successful completion of the course and the subsequent exam is intended to enable students to undertake a more advanced study of topics in environmental science during their first year of college or to fulfill a basic laboratory science course requirement. III. STUDENT OUTCOMES (New Jersey Core Curriculum Standards) 5.1 Science Practices: All students will understand that science is both a body of knowledge and an evidence-based, model-building enterprise that continually extends, refines, and revises knowledge. The four Science Practices strands encompass the knowledge and reasoning skills that students must acquire to be proficient in science. 5.2 Physical Science: All students will understand that physical science principles, including fundamental ideas about matter, energy, and motion, are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of phenomena in physical, living, and Earth systems science. 5.3 Life Science: All students will understand that life science principles are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of the complexity, diversity, and interconnectedness of life on Earth. Order in natural systems arises in accordance with rules that govern the physical world, and the order of natural systems can be modeled and predicted through the use of mathematics. Common Core State Standards for Literacy in Science and Technical Subjects (Grades 11-12) 1. Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to important distinctions the author makes and to any gaps or inconsistencies in the account. 2. Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; summarize complex concepts, processes, or information presented in a text by paraphrasing them in simpler but still accurate terms. 2

3 3. Follow precisely a complex multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks; analyze the specific results based on explanations in the text. 4. Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades texts and topics. 5. Analyze how the text structures information or ideas into categories or hierarchies, demonstrating understanding of the information or ideas. 6. Analyze the author s purpose in providing an explanation, describing a procedure, or discussing an experiment in a text, identifying important issues that remain unresolved. 7. Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., quantitative data, video, multimedia) in order to address a question or solve a problem. 8. Evaluate the hypotheses, data, analysis, and conclusions in a science or technical text, verifying the data when possible and corroborating or challenging conclusions with other sources of information. 9. Synthesize information from a range of sources (e.g., texts, experiments, simulations) into a coherent understanding of a process, phenomenon, or concept, resolving conflicting information when possible. 10. By the end of grade 12, read and comprehend science/technical texts in the grades text complexity band independently and proficiently. The student will: relate scientific concepts to everyday experiences and the impact on human activities diagram a system (i.e. ecosystem, water and biogeochemical cycles) organize components of systems into a concept map make inferences from observations and from collected data that a system is composed of interactive parts (ecosystems, and soil composition) predict the outcome of removing a component from a system (food webs, carbon-oxygen cycle) classify according to some method or system (i.e. macroinvertebrate classification) collect and record data construct models formulate hypotheses judge reasonableness of estimates, measurements, and results predict future events or conditions question conditions in a testable way use computer applications to simulate experimentation, information gathering, data representation, and communication of experimental findings use mathematics to calculate quantities or determine relationships debate solutions to environmental problems read tables and graphs to represent and interpret data communicate about a scientific contribution in a clear and concise manner write about a scientist or inventor in historical context select and use tools appropriate for a task use a variety of tools to make accurate measurements (microscopic measurement) seek and report information IV. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS AND CONTENT Humans in the Environment What is the difference between overpopulation and consumption overpopulation? What are the three most important factors that determine human impact on the environment? How are the global commons exploited? 3

4 What are the five stages of addressing environmental problems? Why are environmental impact statements important? What are the costs associated with pollution? The Living World and Earth s Systems How are the laws of thermodynamics related to photosynthesis and cellular respiration? How does energy flow through a food web? What is ecological succession? What are the major types of interactions between organisms? How might a limiting resource affect a species ecological niche? What is a keystone species? What are the main steps in each of the following biogeochemical cycles: carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and water? What distinguishes each of the five layers of the Earth s atmosphere? What basic forces determine the circulation of the Earth s atmosphere? How does solar intensity differ at different latitudes affect temperature at the Earth s surface? What is the role of solar energy and the Coriolis effect in global water flow patterns? What are some effects of El Nino? How do you distinguish between weather and climate? What is plate tectonics? Where do earthquakes and volcanoes commonly occur and why? What two climate factors are the most important in determining an area s characteristic biome? What environmental factors are most important in determining the kinds of organisms found in aquatic environments? What are the problems associated with chemicals that exhibit bioaccumulation and biomagnification? How does a dose-response curve help determine the health effects of environmental pollutants? How does risk assessment help determine adverse health effects? What information does a cost-benefit analysis provide decision makers? Human Population Dynamics What is population ecology? What is the effect of each of the following on population size: birth rate, death rate, immigration, and emigration? How do intrinsic rate of increase and carrying capacity produce the J-shaped and S-shaped population growth curves? When determining Earth s carrying capacity for humans, what must be considered in addition to human numbers? What is the relationship between carrying capacity and agricultural productivity? What is the relationship between economic development and population growth? How can a government encourage global population stabilization? What problems are associated with suburban sprawl? How can city planners incorporate environmental sustainability? Energy Consumption How does energy consumption differ in highly developed versus developing countries? What environmental problems are associated with the use of fossil fuels? How do government subsidies affect energy prices? What are the advantages and disadvantages of producing electricity through nuclear energy? What are the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy, wind energy, and hydropower? What is the difference between energy conservation and energy efficiency? Earth s Resources Which human activity is responsible for almost 70% of global water consumption? How can sustainable water use be achieved? 4

5 How can cities promote water conservation? What are the four components of soil, and how is each important? What ecosystem services are performed by soil organisms? What is sustainable soil use? Through what natural processes are minerals concentrated in Earth s crust? What are some harmful environmental effects of mining and processing minerals? How can minerals be conserved? What are some important ecosystem services provided by biological diversity? How do humans cause species endangerment and extinction? Why are conservation biology and restoration ecology important? What is the goal of wildlife management? What are some strategies to protect biological diversity? What are some important ecosystem services provided by natural areas? What are the environmental impacts of industrialized agriculture? What are some harmful environmental effects associated with the farming of fish? Pollution What are the characteristics and effects of each class of air pollutants? How did the Clean Air Act affect air pollution? Why is air pollution worse in developing countries than in highly developed countries? What are some potential effects of global climate change? How can we diminish and adapt to global climate change? What are some effects of water pollution? What is the difference between point source and nonpoint source pollution? What are the main goals of the Safe Drinking Water Act? What are the advantages and disadvantages of pesticide use? What are some alternatives to pesticide use? How do laws regulate pesticide use? How can we reduce the volume of solid waste? Choices for the Future What is environmental sustainability? What steps must we take to stay within Earth s carrying capacity? V. STRATEGIES Students will regularly answer essay questions that require them to analyze environmental problems or design experiments and discuss their possible results and applications. Students will participate in lab explorations to discover, verify, apply, and extend concepts from biological and physical sciences. Students will participate in field-based investigations during which they will pose hypotheses, develop methods and sampling protocols, and collect, analyze, and interpret original data. Students will develop models which represent their understanding of the connections among Earth s biotic and abiotic systems. Students will engage in teacher-guided class discussions which explore environmental risk assessment, predict future conditions, and propose solutions to local and global environmental issues. VI. EVALUATION Student assessment is accomplished on a regular basis using a variety of measures including: Class work Lab Reports Evaluation of Homework Quizzes 5

6 Tests Classroom Presentations Field Study Individual Experiment/Research Project AP Exam VII. REQUIRED RESOURCES Textbook: Raven & Berg, Environment, 5 th Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2006 Supplemental Resources: McConnell & Abel, Environmental Issues: Measuring, Analyzing, and Evaluating, Prentice Hall, 2002 Molnar, Laboratory Investigations: AP Environmental Science, The Peoples Publishing Group, 2005 VIII. SCOPE AND SEQUENCE Unit 1 Humans in the Environment (3 weeks) Chapter 1 Introducing Environmental Science and Sustainability (2 weeks) Definition and importance of Environmental Science Sustainability Tragedy of the Commons Scientific Method How to identify and analyze environmental problems Hunger Banquet Experimental Design Tragedy of the Commons Sustainable Fishing Simulation Basic Concepts and Tools: Using Math and Critical Thinking Chapter 2 Environmental Laws, Economics, and Ethics (1 week) history and policies of conservation and environmental movements Unit 2 The Living World and Earth s Systems (10 weeks) Chapter 3 - Ecosystems and Energy (2 weeks) Ecology Ecosystems Laws of thermodynamics Flow of energy through ecosystems Net Primary Productivity Lab Eating at a Lower Trophic Level Chapter 4 - Ecosystems and Living Organisms (2 weeks) 6

7 Four premises of evolution by natural selection Primary and secondary succession Keystone species Symbiosis (distinguish among mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism) Species richness The Lorax "The Effects of Coyote Removal in Texas: A Case Study in Conservation Biology" Predator-Prey Simulation Field Trip: Hutcheson Memorial Forest - succession Chapter 5 Ecosystems and the Physical Environment (2 weeks) Carbon cycle Nitrogen cycle Phosphorus cycle Water cycle Human effect on biogeochemical cycles Solar energy and its role in climate and atmospheric circulation Patterns of ocean circulation and its interaction with the atmosphere Weather versus climate Plate tectonics Bathymetric Maps and Plate Tectonics Fundamental Topics in Meteorology Specific Heat and Climate Formation of Deserts Chapter 6 - Major Ecosystems of the World (2 weeks) Nine major terrestrial biomes Human effects on each type of biome Types of aquatic ecosystems Environmental factors and human behavior affecting aquatic ecosystems NY/NJ Baykeeper guest lecture oyster project in the Raritan Bay Estuary Chapter 7 Human Health & Environmental Toxicology (2 weeks) Use of chemicals hazardous to human health Risk analyses to determine adverse health effects using a dose-response curve Ecological effects using cost-benefit analyses Book discussion: Silent Spring Movie discussions: Erin Brockovich, A Civil Action 7

8 What Is the Risk? Allium Test Unit 3 Human Population Dynamics (4 weeks) Chapter 8 - Population Change (1 week) Factors that produce changes in population size Biotic potential (intrinsic rate of increase) Carrying capacity Differences between J-shaped and S-shaped growth curves Density-dependent and density-independent factors that affect population size Type I, Type II, and Type III survivorship curves Infant mortality rate Total fertility rate Replacement-level fertility Age structure Population Growth Project Video: The World in Balance (NOVA) Quantitative Analysis: World Population Growth Chapter 9 - Facing the Problems of Overpopulation (2 weeks) Effects of population size to hunger, natural resources, the environment, and economics methods of several governments to slow population growth Steps governments and individuals can take to achieve global population stabilization Population Distribution and Survivorship Chapter 10 The Urban World (1 week) Urbanization Trends in the distribution of people in rural and urban areas Problems associated with the rapid growth rates of large urban areas How cities are analyzed from an ecosystem perspective Brownfields Use of zoning in land use planning How a city s transportation infrastructure affects urban development Suburban sprawl Characteristics of an ideal sustainable city Guest lecture Conditions in Bombay Guest lecture Urban Ecology Unit 4 Energy Consumption (2 weeks) 8

9 Chapter 11 - Fossil Fuels (1 ½ weeks) Per-capita energy consumption in highly developed and developing areas Advantages, disadvantages, and environmental problems associated with coal, oil, and natural gas use Synfuels Reasons for the US to develop a comprehensive national energy strategy CO 2 Emissions from Fossil-Fuel Burning Political Activism Letter Movie: Who Killed the Electric Car Chapter 12 - Nuclear Energy (1 week) Nuclear processes How mined uranium is used inside the reactor to produce heat and then electricity How clean the process is compared to coal Cost Safety concerns Pennium-123 Energy Resource Comparison Chapter 13 - Renewable Energy and Conservation (1 ½ weeks) Active and passive solar energy Advantages and disadvantages of solar thermal electric generation and photovoltaic solar cells in converting solar energy into electricity Renewable energy sources that are not direct or indirect results of solar energy Energy conservation versus energy efficiency Solar Absorption Part 5 Earth s Resources (5 weeks) Chapter 14 Water: A Limited Resource (1 week) Chemistry of a water molecule Water cycle Problems due to flooding Problems due to lack of water Suggest conservation strategies Water Loss Drop by Drop Water Diversions 9

10 Stream Monitoring Chemical analysis and macroinvertebrates to determine water quality Chapter 15 Soil Resources (½ week) Nature and properties of soil What can happen to plants and water resources if erosion or mineral depletion occurs Sustainable soil use Soil Analysis Chapter 16 Minerals: A Nonrenewable Resource (½ week) Properties of minerals types of ores, how they form, and how deposits are discovered and harvested Environmental impact of mining, global consumption patterns Conservation strategies Copper Extraction Chapter 17 Preserving Earth s Biological Diversity (1½ weeks) Importance of biodiversity Threatened, endangered, and extinct species Characteristics common to many endangered species Human causes of species endangerment and extinction How invasive species endanger native species Conservation biology and wildlife management Invasive species walk Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index Chapter 18 Land Resources (1 week) Trends in land use across the United States Natural areas Federal lands Wetlands Agricultural lands Deforestation Desertification Threats to wetlands Research Activity: Natural Areas Video: Full Focus Fire Management Field trip or Guest lecture: Fire damage and recovery - Pine Barrens Field trip or Guest lecture: Characteristics and local preservation Wetlands Chapter 19 - Food Resources (½ week) 10

11 Industrialized agriculture Subsistence agriculture Current food safety issues Environmental impacts of industrialized agriculture Potential benefits and problems with genetic engineering Fishing and aquaculture Unit 6 - Pollution (5 weeks) Chapter 20 - Air Pollution (1 week) Classes of air pollutants Adverse health effects of specific air pollutants Effects of the Clean Air Act on air pollution Air pollution conditions in less developed countries Particulate Air Pollution Lab Acid Rain Lab Chapter 21 Regional and Global Atmospheric Changes (1 week) Greenhouse effect Greenhouse gases Potential effects of global warming, including rising sea level, changes in precipitation patterns, effects on organisms, effects on human health, and effects on agriculture Ways to alleviate and adapt to global warming Parts of the ozone layer Potential effects of ozone depletion Global Climate Change Project Video discussion: An Inconvenient Truth Chapter 22 - Water Pollution (1 week) How sewage is related to eutrophication, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and dissolved oxygen Point source pollution Nonpoint source pollution Primary, secondary, and tertiary treatments for wastewater Goals of the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Clean Water Act Soil pollution Salinization Soil Salinization Lab Drinking Water Safety Lab Chapter 23 - The Pesticide Dilemma (1 week) 11

12 Types of pesticides Problems associated with pesticide use, including development of genetic resistance; creation of imbalances in the ecosystem; persistence, bioaccumulation, and biological magnification; and mobility in the environment Alternative ways to control pests, including cultivation methods, biological controls, reproductive controls, pheromones and hormones, genetic controls, quarantine, integrated pest management and irradiating foods U.S. laws that regulate pesticides Organic Feud Chapter 24 - Solid and Hazardous Wastes (1 week) Municipal and non-municipal solid waste Sanitary landfills Mass burn incinerators Source reduction, reuse, and recycling help reduce the volume of solid waste Hazardous waste Legislation and environmental justice Energy and Recycling Assessment Solid Waste Education Project Solid Waste Collection Lab Unit 7 - Choices for the Future (1 week) Chapter 25 - Tomorrow s World Sustainability Challenges confronting our efforts to improve the quality of human life worldwide Role of education in changing personal attitudes and practices that affect the environment Important environmental goals that can be accomplished most effectively at national and international levels Personal Energy Use Audit Globalization and the Environment 12