Roads
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Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Working with Students
Further Resources
This task is about making observations from a photograph and then identifying related environmental issues.
Task administration:
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online.
Equipment:
digital recorder (optional); OHT, data show, interactive whiteboard or other IT tools to present photograph (optional)
- This task is intended to be an oral assessment.
- The teacher asks students the questions on the task sheet and records the responses. The responses can be recorded directly onto the task sheet or digitally.
- The task was trialled with groups of 4 students, but this could be adjusted to smaller or larger groups, as long as opportunity for all students to contribute is provided.
- The photograph should be presented in colour and in such a way that all students can see it easily.
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The teacher may prompt students to encourage them to further explain their ideas, e.g.:
- Tell me more about that.
- What else do you notice?
- Why do you say that?
- Refer also to the prompts for Question c).
Teacher prompt
The purpose of question c) is to investigate students’ concept of risk. To what extent do they weigh up the notion of severity with likelihood?
During their discussion, prompt students to think about the big picture, long term impact of a particular event. Encourage them to think about a chain of events set off by one event.
Some prompting questions might be:
- How likely is that to happen?
- What would happen next?
- What effect would that have on all the kiwi that live here?
Rationale for assessing this task orally
The observations and ideas being assessed in this task are complex. At Level 2 most students’ writing will not capture the richness of their understanding or the connections they are able to make.
The observations and ideas being assessed in this task are complex. At Level 2 most students’ writing will not capture the richness of their understanding or the connections they are able to make.
Copyright:
Image copyright: D. Johnson, 2011, www.virtualoceania.net/newzealand
Permission for educational use in New Zealand classrooms.
Level:
2
Curriculum info:
Keywords:
Description of task:
Task: Make observations from a photograph, identify potential environmental problems giving reasons, decide which problem is the most important, and give reasons for the choice. Assessment
focus: (1) observation, and (2) identifying and prioritising cause and effect relationships.
Curriculum Links:
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss:
- how scientists look very carefully, and describe exactly what they see.
- how our science understandings help us explain what we observe.
Science capability: Gather and interpret data (TKI)
Capability: Engage with science
This resource provides opportunities to discuss risk, how likely it is for events to happen, and which are most important to manage.
Science capabilities:
Answers/responses:
| a) | Students are expected to notice the main features`, e.g., the kiwi sign, the road and the surroundings (ferns, grasses, etc.). |
| b) |
Students are expected to predict a problem or problems that a road might have on the kiwi, e.g., problems caused by vehicles on the road and the road surface such as being run over by a car, etc.
More advanced thinking: Students talk about how construction of the road and the provision of access for people impacts on the kiwi habitat or environment.
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| c) | Students are expected to recognise the danger to kiwi from road users. More advanced thinking: Students talk about issues on the environment or habitat that the road brings. See Diagnostic and formative information for more details. |
Based on a sample of 24 Year 4 students from 3 schools.
Teaching and learning:
The key ideas that are covered in this task are shown below.
| Nature of science: Participating and contributing | Science knowledge |
| When making decisions about environmental issues, it is important to ask questions such as, “What could happen if …..” | Any event affects the environment and what lives there. |
Why are the ideas in this assessment task important for students to learn?
- In making sound decisions about the environment and what lives in it, we need to be aware that all changes have a flow on effect to the environment itself and what lives there.
- Considering what effects an event might have, and deciding how likely and how serious the effects might be, assists decision-making about managing risk.
Noticing is an important prerequisite for making decisions. Students need to be aware of the different elements within any environment before they can think about how these things impact on each other. Noticing what is missing is also important.
Diagnostic and formative information:
Responses students made in the trials
Question a): Noticing
The things that the students noticed in the trials were: a kiwi sign, road, stones, tarmac, gravel, power lines, power pole, trees, ferns, grass, sky. They also noticed what was missing e.g., no footpath, no street lights and no white or yellow markings on the road.
Question b): Identifying problems
Students identified problems in different ways:
Problems caused by vehicles on the road and the road surface itself. Each group in the trial schools identified the speed of cars as a problem for the kiwi.
Question a): Noticing
The things that the students noticed in the trials were: a kiwi sign, road, stones, tarmac, gravel, power lines, power pole, trees, ferns, grass, sky. They also noticed what was missing e.g., no footpath, no street lights and no white or yellow markings on the road.
Question b): Identifying problems
Students identified problems in different ways:
Problems caused by vehicles on the road and the road surface itself. Each group in the trial schools identified the speed of cars as a problem for the kiwi.
Cars going too fast might not notice the kiwis and run over them.
Some students thought the vehicles’ noise might disturb the kiwi.
Students were aware of the possible follow on effects car crashes might have on the kiwi’s habitat.
Students were aware of the possible follow on effects car crashes might have on the kiwi’s habitat.
Cars out of control could crash into kiwi burrows.
Crashing into power poles could cause bush fires and kiwis might die.
Students in each group were concerned about the impact of the road itself on the kiwi.
Stones on the road might hurt their feet.
Sticky tar might get them stuck.
Kiwis might trip over pebbles and stones.
Students in one school talked about possible problems with the road that had nothing to do with kiwi.
There are no middle white lines so cars might crash.
The road is narrow so cars might crash.
The school these students attend is situated in an area where there has recently been much publicity about the high number of crashes on a local road. Their responses probably illustrate the role background knowledge plays in what students actually notice and comment on.
Problems caused by construction of the road. Some students mentioned the damage to the kiwi’s habitat from the building of the road (for example reducing the kiwi’s habitat by removing trees).
Problems caused by the road providing access to more people. Students talked about problems people might cause the kiwi.
People might set traps.
People might hunt the kiwi.
People might drop litter which kiwis might eat and die.
Some students felt that the sign increased the danger to the kiwi by signalling to hunters and smugglers where kiwi could be found.
Question c): Which is the worst problem?
The worst problem identified by all groups was that the kiwi might die. All the students talked about the kiwi being endemic to New Zealand and being endangered. They were aware that there is a risk that kiwi could become extinct.
Question c): Which is the worst problem?
The worst problem identified by all groups was that the kiwi might die. All the students talked about the kiwi being endemic to New Zealand and being endangered. They were aware that there is a risk that kiwi could become extinct.
Students talked about a number of ways the kiwi might die but most said kiwi being run over was the worst problem the road caused. One group thought that bush fires were the worst potential problem (perhaps signalling an awareness of the severity of habitat destruction for the whole kiwi population as opposed to cars killing individual kiwi) but even this group thought kiwi being run over was the most likely problem.
One group talked about how air pollution caused by vehicles could kill kiwi. These students seemed to have a generalised understanding that “pollution” was a bad thing but could not explain exactly what the pollution was or how it would impact on kiwi. Another group thought that the plants beside the road would dry up and this would mean the worms would move and then the kiwi would have nothing to eat. This response indicates a developing understanding of inter-connectedness but the argument would be strengthened if students had more contextual knowledge.
Although the focus of the task was on identifying problems the discussions provided opportunities for students to display various science understandings.
Students displayed an understanding of a range of science concepts. These include:
Kiwi are flightless birds and nocturnal.
All students knew that kiwi could not fly and so were in danger from road vehicles and predators. They also knew kiwi were active at night and that road users would not see them crossing the road.
Although the focus of the task was on identifying problems the discussions provided opportunities for students to display various science understandings.
Students displayed an understanding of a range of science concepts. These include:
Kiwi are flightless birds and nocturnal.
All students knew that kiwi could not fly and so were in danger from road vehicles and predators. They also knew kiwi were active at night and that road users would not see them crossing the road.
Kiwi are endemic to New Zealand and endangered.
All the students knew the kiwi was a native of New Zealand and that its numbers were low. Most also knew that if they became extinct in New Zealand they would be extinct worldwide. Some students gave the example of the moa.
Kiwi are at risk of habitat destruction.
Students talked about forest fires caused by camping, power lines and cigarettes burning the bush and they talked about cutting down trees to construct the road. Both of these things reduced the habitat for the kiwi and could expose it to predators. There was some confusion, though, about where kiwi lived. Some students talked about kiwi living in burrows while others thought kiwi lived in trees.
Next steps:
This task requires students to think at a “systems level”. However, before they can begin to consider how a particular action or event will affect a system they need some understanding of the individual parts of the system.
In this activity, ideally students should be able to observe the photograph closely and give detailed descriptions of what they see. (Close observation is an important skill to develop in science). Students may need practice with this. Encourage students to carefully describe what they see, rather than just label it. For example, if students say they can see plants. Ask, “What do they look like? What colour are they? What are their leaves like? What sort of place do you think this is?” In this task students also have to be able to “read” a road sign. In the trials there was some confusion about what the kiwi sign meant. For example, some students thought it meant kiwi were allowed to cross the road. As a class you could discuss the possible meanings of the sign. How does the sign convey its message? (This is a good opportunity to build understandings about language, symbols and text.)
Noticing what is there, is an important first step that may help students think about likely impacts of particular actions or events. However, if they are to make accurate predictions of likely consequences they also need knowledge about the particular context. For example, what sort of plants and animals live there and what are the relationships between them?
Students also need the language to explain cause and effect relationships. Simply asking “Why do you think that?” can encourage students to form better explanations.
To be able to make informed decisions about environmental issues, students also need to develop a sense of probability and risk. One strategy could be to get students to brainstorm all possible consequences, encouraging students to be as creative as they can, and then get the class to debate which are the most likely scenarios and explain why. The class could also debate which would be the most damaging scenarios. Are there any scenarios that appear near the top of both lists? A scenario that is both likely and damaging is serious.
To be able to make informed decisions about environmental issues, students also need to develop a sense of probability and risk. One strategy could be to get students to brainstorm all possible consequences, encouraging students to be as creative as they can, and then get the class to debate which are the most likely scenarios and explain why. The class could also debate which would be the most damaging scenarios. Are there any scenarios that appear near the top of both lists? A scenario that is both likely and damaging is serious.
Science in the real world is rarely “black and white” and the ability to weigh up and consider various alternatives is an important skill for students to develop. An important idea to develop when considering endangered species is the relative impact of events and actions on individuals compared with their impact on populations.
Many students in the trials who were concerned about the kiwi’s safety posed solutions such as building a fence alongside the road or taking kiwi out of the wild and putting them in zoos. This could be an interesting discussion starter. What would be the pros and cons of these suggestions? How practical are they? How would each contribute to saving individual kiwi, populations of kiwi, other animals that live in that habitat, etc.?
To find other ARB resources about cause and effect click on the link or use the keyword cause and effect.
To find other ARB resources about kiwi click on the link or select Living World and use the keyword kiwi.
Other keywords that you can use are food webs or food chains, and interdependence.
Cause and effect relationships can be explored in many different contexts.
The following table shows Building Science Concepts books that have a focus on cause and effect.
| Living World | Environment | Other |
|
3 Birds 6 Spoil animals 21 Life between the tides 22 Tidal communities 53 Moulds and fungi |
1 Waterways 2 Weathering and erosion 12 Volcanoes 40 Earthquakes 43 Spring 44 Spring is a season 50 Storms 52 The land changes |
8 The Moon 9 Shadows 16 Sand, salt and jelly crystals 23 Fresh food 24 Preserving food 32 Introducing metals 33 Working with metals 34 Parachutes 37 Floating and sinking 38 Understanding buoyancy 42 Marbles 46 Keeping warm 47 Insulation 56 Bread 57 Eggs 58 Ice 59 Bikes |