Four Kinds of approaches to discussion:
1. Responding to a problem.
2. Responding to an observation.
3. Responding to a narrative.
4. Reflecting on classroom activities.
Our approach is: Responding to a problem.
-How can states, cites, and communities allow our oceans to succumb to such a bad state it is currently in?
- How can we get these people more interested and involved with helping out to improve the water overall?
Best Practices:
-Create a stimulus to begin the discussion.
->Question: "If everyone in the world stopped littering, do you think that would eventually stop pollution in waters? It would just slowly diminish if no one was adding to it?
-Plan the discussion. What topics do you want covered?
->Question: "What physically causes water pollution, who helps prevent it and why?"
-Instead of responding, ask another student what he or she thinks
->Question: "Why would anyone want to help clean and stop pollution? Specifically in oceans where we don't come in contact with on a day to day basis?"
-To prepare students for general discussion, at the beginning of the year have students discuss the nature of a good discussion
->Question: "What do you think are some characteristics of a good discussion? Is it something you can debate? It is important to work together as a group, but what if no one wants to help?
Our Service Learning Project:
-Currently we have contacted the beach clean up in Beverly MA (Coastsweep2011) and the Boston Aquarium to see if we could contribute in any way. They both have yet to respond so we are looking up new places to contact as back-ups.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
Service Projects
Critical attributes is a teaching strategy that focuses on transmitting procedural knowledge of identifying the essential elements of a concept so that students do not form inaccurate concepts and ultimately inadequate ideas and insufficient beliefs that are necessary to be effective citizens. (42) Basically critical attributes is being able to back up their information with facts and statistics so people do not form incorrect opinions and concepts on the matter. The critical attributes of our issue is the facts that all of our beaches have become more polluted over the past years. Beaches all over the North Shore have been closed down due to contamination. For example the beach in Lynn has had several issues over the years and has been closed a couple of times over the past few summers. We need to keep our oceans clean and the marine life safe and the only way to do this is to prevent contamination by monitoring our beaches and oceans. There is a ton of information on the pollution and contamination of our oceans and there are organizations all around the world that work with this issue so we can change it!
We could break the problem up into informational knowledge and procedural knowledge by listing the statistics and facts of the damage done to our oceans annually from dumping and waste. With the procedural knowledge we could provide the petition we think will help take action and call to the government's attention the problem the oceans are facing. This problem definitely affects us!
First we need to teach everyone about the importance of our issue and why we are even looking at it in the first place. Next we should focus on how this is affecting us personally so the people reading about it will have some form of self-connection. Lastly we need to address the ways in which everyone can attribute to the improvement in a costless effective manner. 1. The oceans and Boston Harbor is polluted and is still being polluted, leading to the decrease in clean available beaches and shut downs of the local beaches around us. 2. This pollution issue is costing us and families the ability to use these public places and hurting sea animals that could eventually become instinct. 3. Sign the petition. It costs nothing and takes a few minutes. This is the first step you can take towards helping and if you feel as strongly as we do about taking action, you can join us to helping clean up all the pollution.
Maggie, Lauren and I have been researching organizations and learning projects for our topic of ocean pollution. We recently have contacted a group that is called COAST SWEEP 2011. This organization is a part of an annual event to create awareness of pollution in our waters. People all over Massachusetts have been getting together to clean up beaches since 1987. This organizations website is very insightful with why they do this every year, their success and even a list of the top 10 debris they found last year in 2010. This is a great local organization that helps with pollution every year. The website is easy to access and it is easy to sign up to become a volunteer. We also found a petition that has a goal of 1,000 signatures. This petition is to tell Congress to clean up our oceans. There are currently 244 signatures, the last dating in late September. We thought this was a great way to get people to sign it and take the petition to the next level closer to its goal. We would all love for you guys to sign it if you are interested. If you go to the website, on the right hand side you can sign the petition electronically.
Colleen: When I first started researching this topic and possible organizations to work with I was a bit hesitant that we would find something in our area and during the right time. After looking around I found that there are several things going on during this time for the pollution of oceans. When we first found this petition I did not know how old it was or if it was really something that would make a difference. After reading about it and finding how easy it was be to sign I thought it was a great idea. I signed and you should too! This petition will make a difference and we all know that the North Shore needs it!
Maggie: I signed the petition to Congress to clean up our oceans. I think it completely goes with our mission and what we believe for the cleanliness and health of Boston Harbor and all oceans alike. I signed the petition and am very proud I did. I think that every little bit helps, and if we all take action it will make such a difference. On the petition site, I found many alarming facts about the oceans:
- Marine debris, especially plastic, kills more than one million seabirds and 100,000 mammals and sea turtles every year
- Researchers found that in the middle of the North Pacific there are six pounds of plastic for every one pound of algae
- In the 1970's, 17 million tons of industrial waste were legally dumped in the oceans. In the 1980's, this number was reduced to eight millions pounds of industrial waste, but still contained acids, alkaline waste, scrap metals and coal ash (Note that millions of pounds of industrial waste is still being dumped into the oceans)
- 300,000 dolphins, whales and porpoises die each year after becoming entangled in fishing nets .
-I believe that for the safety of our oceans and ocean life, it's important to take action and clean the oceans!
Lauren- Hey guys I too have signed this petition and I really hope you take the time to read about it and decide to take action with us! It would really help better our cause and I know that if you take the time to learn about it, you will want to support it as much as we do. As a classroom if we all work together to find out more information about the local issues we can work as a team to help improve them. By signing this petition you are taking us one step closer to our goals and the notion would be much appreciated. Even if you just look it up and read about it that is progress, anything to get the word out and get people knowing about it is a small but great achievement.
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