actively engaging learners in interdisciplinary curriculum through the integration of technology
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This article was downloaded by: [Eindhoven Technical University]On: 22 November 2014, At: 02:41Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH,UK
Computers in the Schools:Interdisciplinary Journal ofPractice, Theory, and AppliedResearchPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wcis20
Actively Engaging Learners inInterdisciplinary CurriculumThrough the Integration ofTechnologyKaren Dutt-Doner a b , Marty Wilmer c , CathyStevens c & Lisa Hartmann ca University of Southern Maine , USAb undergraduate teacher education program TEAMS(Teachers for Elementary and Middle School),Department of Teacher Education , 504 Bailey Hall,Gorham, ME, 04038, USAc Scarborough Middle School , 44 Gorham Road,Scarborough, ME, 04074, USAPublished online: 11 Oct 2008.
To cite this article: Karen Dutt-Doner , Marty Wilmer , Cathy Stevens & LisaHartmann (2000) Actively Engaging Learners in Interdisciplinary CurriculumThrough the Integration of Technology, Computers in the Schools: InterdisciplinaryJournal of Practice, Theory, and Applied Research, 16:3-4, 151-166, DOI: 10.1300/J025v16n03_04
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J025v16n03_04
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Karen Dutt-DonerMarty WilmerCathy StevensLisa Hartmann
Actively Engaging Learnersin Interdisciplinary Curriculum Through the Integrationof Technology
SUMMARY. Global Warming: A Heated Debate is an interdisciplin-ary WebQuest project developed to target science and technology con-tent standards in the State of Maine Learning Results. By implementingthis interdisciplinary, technology-based group research project, wehoped that students would become more interested and involved in theirlearning, better understand and practice research skills, be able toretrieve more current Internet information for their research projects,support each other in their learning, and have a better understanding
KAREN DUTT-DONER is Assistant Professor, University of Southern Maine,Coordinator of the undergraduate teacher education program TEAMS (Teachers forElementary and Middle School), Department of Teacher Education, 504 Bailey Hall,Gorham, ME 04038. E-mail: [email protected] WILMER is Teacher, Scarborough Middle School, 44 Gorham Road, Scar-borough, ME 04074.CATHY STEVENS is Math & Science Teacher, Scarborough Middle School, 44Gorham Road, Scarborough, ME 04074.LISA HARTMANN is Technology Specialist, Scarborough Middle School, 44 Gor-ham Road, Scarborough, ME 04074.
[Haworth co-indexing entry note]: ‘‘Actively Engaging Learners in Interdisciplinary Curriculum Throughthe Integration of Technology.’’ Dutt-Doner, Karen et al. Co-published simultaneously in Computers in theSchools (The Haworth Press, Inc.) Vol. 16, No. 3/4, 2000, pp. 151-166; and: Integration of Technology intothe Classroom: Case Studies (ed: D. LaMont Johnson, Cleborne D. Maddux, and Leping Liu) The HaworthPress, Inc., 2000, pp. 151-166. Single or multiple copies of this article are available for a fee from TheHaworth Document Delivery Service [1-800-342-9678, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (EST). E-mail address:[email protected]].
� 2000 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. 151
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of reliable and unreliable Internet resources. This paper outlines our projectin trying to implement technology into our teaching. We reflect on ourexperiences as well as provide suggestions for others. [Article copies availablefor a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678. E-mailaddress: <[email protected]> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com>]
KEYWORDS. Interdisciplinary curriculum, research, Internet, activelearning, cooperative learning, technology integration
BACKGROUND
Global Warming: A Heated Debate is an interdisciplinary projectthat has been developed as a result of a mini-grant awarded by theScarborough (Maine) School Department. These grants support teach-ers in developing assessments that measure student progress in meet-ing the State of Maine Learning Results (K-12 performance standards)(http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/resourc.htm) and/orpromote the use of technology to meet the Learning Results. Thisproject is based on the instructional model of a WebQuest, the develop-ment of which originated with Bernie Dodge, a professor at San DiegoState University. WebQuests are designed to effectively use the learn-er’s time. In addition, the goal of a WebQuest is to extend and refineknowledge about a topic.
In this project, students take on roles as members of various groupstestifying before a special subcommittee whose task is to recommendwhether or not the U.S. Senate should ratify the Kyoto Protocol, aninternational agreement that outlines varying target levels for reduc-tions in greenhouse gases for industrialized nations. A lot of contro-versy exists regarding the topic of global warming–scientists havegenerally agreed that it is happening, but the extent to which it is beingcaused or accelerated by human activity is not so certain. Mandatedreductions in greenhouse gas emissions will almost certainly haveeconomic impacts on many industries and consumers (e.g., in the formof higher fuel taxes and material costs, decreased consumer choice,lost jobs, etc). So what should we do if we are not sure of the causes orthe outcomes of a problem? Can we afford to wait and take our chanceswith the outcomes until more is known, or should we act now, even ifthat action is costly? Students use various resources, many of them
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online, to prepare a presentation for the subcommittee, giving thepoint of view of their interest group. In being asked to consider howsome of the other groups may rebut their arguments, students arealso able to see how the same scientific and economic data may beslanted or used differently by groups of differing points of view.
This project is targeted at middle school science curricula, but alsoinvolves social studies and language arts. It could also be modifiedand implemented at the high school level. We implemented the projectin two classrooms: in a multi-age, grades 6-8 mainstreamed classroomthat was team-taught and in a seventh-grade science class. The drivingforce behind the design of this project was to target the science andtechnology content standard in the State of Maine Learning Resultsentitled ‘‘Implications of Science and Technology’’: ‘‘Students willunderstand the historical, social, economic, environmental, and ethicalimplications of science and technology’’ (p. 77). In addition, the stu-dents will demonstrate their ability to meet ‘‘Inquiry and ProblemSolving’’ standards, ‘‘Civics and Government/International Relations’’standards, ‘‘Economics/Economic Systems of the United States’’ stan-dards in the social studies, and ‘‘Research-Related Writing and Speak-ing’’ standards in English language arts. Specific middle grades per-formance indicators that we feel this activity addresses are that thestudents will be able to:
1. Use search engines and other Internet resources to collect infor-mation for research topics.
2. Work, write, and speak effectively when doing research in allcontent areas.
3. Assess the ways in which the United States government has at-tempted to resolve an international problem.
4. Identify how the fundamental characteristics of the UnitedStates economic system (e.g., private property, profits, competi-tion, and price system) influence economic decision making.
5. Explain how personal bias can affect observations.6. Construct logical arguments.7. Research and evaluate the social and environmental impacts of
scientific and technological developments.8. Describe an individual’s biological impact and other impacts on
an environmental system.
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9. Give examples of actions that may have expected or unexpectedconsequences that may be positive, negative, or both.
10. Explain the connections between industry, natural resources,population and economic development.
11. Discuss scientific and technological ideas and make conjecturesand convincing arguments.
12. Access information at remote sites using telecommunications.13. Identify and perform roles necessary to accomplish group tasks.
WHY DID WE TRY SOMETHING NEW?
The topic of global warming was not a new one in our teaching.Prior to WebQuest, a more traditional approach was used to teach thistopic. Classroom lecture along with students completing research proj-ects on various topics using library resources (including encyclopedi-as, journals, and CD-ROM resources) served as the means for learningabout global warming. While some students used Internet access athome as a resource, many were unable to discriminate between reli-able and unreliable sources.
We found that students often relied on frequently outdated informa-tion using this form of research, and most of the information wasprovided by the teacher in a didactic format (i.e., discussing graphs;presenting formulas, theories, and models, etc.). Since this approachdid not allow for the students to truly become active participants intheir learning, we sought a more constructivist approach to studentlearning.
These limitations, along with the efforts of our school to betterintegrate the Science and Technology State of Maine Learning Resultsinto our teaching and curriculum, suggested the integration of technol-ogy into our teaching. As a result of our efforts, we received a smallgrant to design and implement a Webquest project that focused on thetopic of global warming (http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/teacher.htm)
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
There are many underlying principles that guided our work in de-veloping this project. First is the notion of active learning based on a
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constructivist model. There is a great deal of research, not surprisingto teachers, that suggests students learn more and retain more whenthey are actively engaged in their own learning (Meyer & Jones,1993). Participating in real-life simulations not only provides studentswith an authentic task in which to demonstrate knowledge and skills,but it gives credibility to the task. Students also can better understandthe purpose for a project that has real-life implications. When studentsare guided using a constructivist model (Brooks & Brooks, 1993;Forman & Kuschner, 1977), the teacher, and possibly peers, help themdevelop a deeper understanding of content and skills. In addition, ateacher interacting with students using a constructivist model focuseson each individual child, building on the student’s strengths to over-come areas of weakness. Second, and related to the first, is the notionof collaborative group work. The research in this area suggests thatstudents are academically stronger working with others than they arealone (Johnson, Johnson and Holubec, 1990; Slavin, 1990). In addi-tion, the teacher can structure classroom activities in such a way thatstudents support one another with the guidance to truly learn newinformation. Johnson, Johnson and Roy (1984) point out the impor-tance of working in groups: ‘‘More elaborate thinking, more frequentgiving and receiving of explanations, and greater perspective in dis-cussion material seem to occur in heterogeneous groups, all of whichincrease the depth of understanding, the quality of reasoning, and theaccuracy of long-term retention’’ (pp. 27-28). Third, the research onmultiple intelligences suggest that there is ‘‘a wider family of humanintelligences’’ than once believed (Gardner, 1983). Gardner proposedthat each person has one or more inherent intelligences that should bedeveloped in order for him/her to reach full potential. Teachers need toprovide more opportunities for students to share their knowledge indifferent ways so that we can tap into their different intelligences.Finally, in recent years, the implementation of an interdisciplinaryapproach to teaching has taken root in schools across the country(Willis, 1999). The ever-expanding curriculum and the standardsmovement has made it necessary to consider ways to integrate contentknowledge. Research has found that interdisciplinary learning pro-vides opportunities for students to apply skills, retrieve informationfaster, gain depth and breadth in learning, have more quality time forcurriculum exploration, and learn important information by truly un-derstanding concepts and underlying structures (Lipson, 1993).
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By implementing an interdisciplinary, technology-based group re-search project we hoped that students would (a) become more inter-ested and involved in their learning, (b) better understand and practicethe use of research skills, (c) be able to retrieve more current informa-tion for research projects from the Internet, (d) support one another intheir learning (about using technology, about the in-depth content ofglobal warming), and (e) have a better understanding of reliable andunreliable Internet resources.
Even more specifically our goals for the project included that thestudents should:
1. Gain experience exploring resources and learn how to use themto complete a research assignment.
2. Gain experience using evidence to construct and present logicalsupporting arguments for an assigned point of view.
3. Learn how economic, as well as societal and scientific, factorsinfluence national and international political decisions.
4. Gain insight into how (what appears to be) a given set of scien-tific and/or economic facts can be used to support differingpoints of view.
5. Gain new background knowledge and insights regarding thegreenhouse effect, global warming, and related science and so-cial studies content.
Once the grant proposal had been accepted, we had the tediousresponsibility of putting up the WebQuest site with all its necessarydetails on the Internet. As we were developing our project, we first hadto choose a topic. While this should not have seemed to be such adaunting task, it quickly became one. As we were considering thetopic, we needed to ensure that there would be enough current infor-mation for our students to use on the Internet to support their researchprojects. In addition, we needed to ensure that we were coveringappropriate content as it related to our district curriculum and State ofMaine Learning Results. Once we chose global warming as a topic, wethen struggled with finding model sites to support varying points ofview and to ensure that these model sites were quality sites. As wewere developing our WebQuest site, a number of people became in-volved–including our technology specialist within the school, the twoteachers implementing the project, and a district technology special-ist–to get the Web site up and running on the school’s Web page. We
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needed to ensure that the site included enough detail and support forthe students. We also needed to include information for other teacherswho may want to implement the project, so we created a teacher’spage. We logged over 100 hours in doing the preliminary work ofgetting the site ready for implementation.
THE WEBQUEST PROJECT
Assuming about 45 minutes of science class time involved daily, theproject (group preparation and presentations) took from four to sixweeks. Because the project was an interdisciplinary one, pulling in theresources/time of the language arts and/or social studies classes, theoverall span of time was shortened.
To begin the WebQuest, our school’s technology specialist held aseries of classes to teach the students the necessary information andassess their understanding of the Internet and our school policies inorder for the students to earn their Internet licenses. An Internet li-cense is required of all students at the middle school in order to use theInternet as a resource. Only those students whose parents signed apermission slip could earn the license. For a variety of reasons (noparent signature, absenteeism, and a new class member), 5 of the 37multi-age students did not earn a license.
Before starting the Global Warming WebQuest, the teachers neededto provide the students with some background information. Com-mencing with a brainstorming session, students listed everything they‘‘knew’’ about global warming and the greenhouse effect, without anyfeedback from the teachers as to the veracity of their statements. Theirfirst homework assignment was to come up with three questions thatthey would like to answer about these topics. These questions werecompiled by topic area into one list, including global warming causes,gases, treatments, and effects; ozone depletion causes and effects; andgeneral effects (related to global warming and the greenhouse effect).
In the next class, a graph from the GEMS (Great Explorations inMath and Science; Lawrence Hall of Science, University of Californiaat Berkeley) unit showing there were several ice ages over time wasdiscussed. The teachers explained that the ozone layer depletion is notactually related to global warming, which was a common misconcep-tion held by many of our students. Students were then given twopackets per cooperative group, Chapters 1, ‘‘Clues to Past Climate,’’
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and 3, ‘‘Current Global Climate Change,’’ from the National ScienceTeachers Association book, Forecasting the Future: Exploring Evi-dence for Global Climate Change, along with a sheet of backgroundquestions. These questions were:
1. What is the greenhouse effect?2. What is global warming?3. What gases contribute to global warming?4. Where do these gases come from? (Most will have more than
one source.)5. How do these gases contribute to global warming?6. What can be done to prevent global warming from getting
worse, or to make the situation better?
The students could work on the questions together within their groups.Some chose to have one student read while they all listened for theanswer to one of the questions, which seemed to be the best methodfor obtaining the most complete answers. Other groups split up thereading and skimmed for answers, but they often got only part of ananswer for most questions. Students had about three class periods (42minutes each, with a break in the middle for lunch) to work on thisactivity. Answers were corrected and graded for completion and accuracy.
Then students were introduced to the WebQuest site in order to ensurean understanding of the project: (http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/teacher.htm). Teachers walked students through the site, ex-plaining how to access the WebQuest, how to get to the different pages,and the expectations for the activity. (See Appendix A for Web pageintroduction.) The next day, students were given their assignment totheir specific group. (See one of eight detailed WebQuest assignmentsin Appendix B.)
Each group was given a folder in which to keep notes, plans, etc., sothat the absence of any one student would not hold up the group. Eachgroup was responsible for researching their assigned point of view,and giving an oral presentation, with visuals, as if they were present-ing to a Senate subcommittee who would then recommend whether ornot the United States should ratify the Kyoto Protocol. Guidelines tohelp support the students in their project were provided on the Web-Quest site and included background information for each group, focusquestions, team responsibility assignments, guidelines for planning the
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required PowerPoint presentation, and project requirements (http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/process.htm).
Three individual assignments were required. First, each student wasrequired to maintain a dated log, explaining what they did during thatclass period, what sites they visited or resources they used, what theylearned, and what they planned to do during the next class. This logwas checked periodically to assure that students were entering ade-quate information, and was collected at the end of the project. Asummary of one resource was also required. This included providingan accurate citation, a detailed summary, and an explanation of howthis resource supported their group’s point of view. The summary wascollected about one week prior to the oral presentations. Third, eachstudent needed to respond to the United Nations question, which basi-cally asked, when the effects of something are not clear, should onetake action now or wait and see what happens in the future? Responseswere collected about two weeks after the introduction to the WebQuest.Students were given a hard copy of the two scoring rubrics that indicatedhow the three individual assignments and the group presentation weregoing to be graded. We were hoping that the students would use therubrics as guides for their work (http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/grouprbr.html and http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/indivrbr.html).
In order to support the group research project, the class was as-signed to the computer labs for as many days as it was available,approximately three to four times per week for four weeks. Sometimeswe had one lab available; other times we had two. Lab One had about15 computers available for student use, while Lab Two had 10. Stu-dents could work with a partner at a computer, which allowed morethan half to be on the Internet on lab days. We also had four computersin our classroom, two student and two teacher computers, that studentscould use when they were in the room. Students were not allowed toprint out copies from the Internet since we wanted to assure that theywould go online to complete the project! They needed to record theURL where they visited and take notes for each site. Because of thelimited class time devoted to the project, during class students werealso required to visit only the sites that were linked to our WebQuest(http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/resourc.htm). They couldexplore the Internet on their own, during study halls, or at home, ifthey felt this was necessary. We spent days finding the best sites, and
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we wanted to assure that the students checked them out before theywent looking elsewhere.
Students who were not able to work on a computer had a fewoptions. First, these students worked in our school library, with teach-ing partners, the first couple of days. However, they had trouble locat-ing appropriate resources. Finally, we selected books and made themavailable in our classroom, which also allowed more kids to access acomputer during the period. Each group also had a copy of each of theother chapters from Forecasting the Future to keep in their folder.Once a group felt they had enough information for their requiredPowerPoint presentation, they could start planning their visuals. Werequired a fairly explicit storyboard before any group could startworking on a PowerPoint presentation. As the culminating projectactivity, each group was given approximately 10 minutes to presenttheir point of view, which we filmed. For all PowerPoint presenta-tions, students were required to submit a printout of their slide show aswell. The presentations were evaluated using the rubric for grouppresentations as a checklist and recording any other pertinent informa-tion on the sheet. We then discussed each group’s presentation andcame to a consensus on a grade for each group and for each individu-al’s participation in the group. For example, one student talked toothers during her group’s presentation, so we gave her a slightly lowergrade for this piece.
POSSIBLE VARIATIONS OF OUR WEBQUEST
Of course, there are many other possible variations to our approach.Here are a few suggestions.
1. Invite community members and/or parents into your classroomfor the presentations; have them take the roll of U.S. Senatorsand actually vote on the treaty–or let the whole class assume theSenate roll.
2. To make the experience more authentic, a social studies classcould have each student assume the identity of a senator from anassigned state; the student would then need to consider how his/her state’s interests would be affected by the treaty, and vote ac-cordingly.
3. At the time of this writing, the deadline for nations to ratify theKyoto Protocol was March 1999, but the Senate vote has not
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been taken. It is therefore quite possible that U.S. ratificationwill have been decided by the time you would be ready to usethese project plans. If so, they can still be used in several ways.The easiest approach would be to ignore the result of the Senatevote; present it to the students after their own presentations havebeen made and a classroom ‘‘vote’’ taken. If students are awareof the results already, change the scenario, increasing the amountof the reduction in greenhouse gases being mandated. Would thischange anyone’s thinking?
4. We limited the number of presenting groups to eight, both for lo-gistics purposes as well as to attempt to keep a balance of prob-able points of view.
5. If desired, more detailed content knowledge could be incorpo-rated into the project by adding more (or more specific) interestgroups to the presentation plan. For instance, a team of oceanog-raphers could be added that could explore in-depth the unfoldingknowledge of the role of the oceans as a carbon sink in thegreenhouse effect. Nuclear and renewable energy industry repre-sentatives could be added to increase a focus on the pros andcons of various types of energy sources.
EVALUATION OF THE WEBQUEST PROJECT
After this experience, it was clear to us that students learned moreabout global warming using the WebQuest approach. Upon reviewingstudent reflections on the project, it became clearer that the WebQuestnot only taught them about the issues surrounding global warming butalso encouraged them to understand the real-life implications. Onestudent reflected:
I learned how global warming affects us and what can happen.Our group thought we should ratify the treaty. It doesn’t matter tome if it’s signed. I do want to try to stop global warming, but afterwatching other presentations I don’t like the idea of prices goingup and people losing jobs.
The questioning and reflecting that this project encouraged had amuch greater impact on students than simply learning factual informa-tion. Utilizing varying resources on the Internet that represented vary-
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ing viewpoints provided the students with an opportunity to considerthis issue from all sides. In addition, students were required to demon-strate their technology skills through use of the Internet and creation ofPowerpoint presentations. Students worked well in their collaborativegroups by sharing their expertise and developing effective PowerPointpresentations. The Internet proved to be a better way for students toobtain current information. Students were interested and deeply in-volved in the project activities. A couple of groups presented at astatewide conference entitled ‘‘Global Climate Change in Maine–TheRisks and Opportunities’’ as a result of this project.
We came across three stumbling blocks, probably not uncommon toteachers who have made efforts to use the Internet in their teaching.First, students presented some factually inaccurate information thatthey found on the Internet. Second, as with all teachers, we foundcomputer access difficult to manage with many students working onthe same project. Third, there were a number of logistical problemsthat occurred as we were implementing this project for the first time.Rather than each teacher trying to reinvent the wheel, we offer thefollowing suggestions from our classroom experience that should helpmaximize student focus and work quality.
1. Have a file for each group that contains a printed copy of theirgroup ‘‘Information Kit,’’ ‘‘Process Page,’’ etc. Students notworking on the computer did not have their group questions andidentity in front of them unless they had taken their own notes.
2. As a pre-project activity, have students complete a ‘‘scavengerhunt’’ of selected sites from the Resource Page. This will requirestudents to visit a variety of sites so that they are aware of theinformation available in the linked sites. (see A Virtual Tour ofthe Greenhouse Effect, http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/weblesson.htm)
3. Require that the ‘‘summary of a piece of evidence’’ be due mid-way through the project, not at the end of it. You might also wantto require each group member to summarize a different source toensure that the group is accessing a variety of resources.
4. Carefully consider the level and experience of your class beforestarting the project; if this is their first research experience, youmay want to cut down the individual project requirements.
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5. Some background knowledge about the carbon cycle and green-house effect would help assist middle-level students to more eas-ily and quickly make sense of the various terms and resourcesthey encounter; a good way to obtain some of this backgroundwould be with some of the early activities in the GEMS unit,Global Warming and the Greenhouse Effect (1990: LawrenceHall of Science, University of California at Berkeley–http://www.lhs.berkeley.edu/GEMS/GEM322.html). Another resource is Fore-casting the Future: Exploring Evidence for Global Climate Change(1996: National Science Teachers Association, Arlington, VA–http://www.nsta.org/pubs/special/popular.htm). This curriculum and activ-ity guide includes many readings you may duplicate for students, aswell as hands-on activities to increase each student’s knowledgebase.
BACK TO THE KEY QUESTION,WHY DO WEBQUEST?
It seems through all of this detail about our project, it is important torevisit the reasons why a teacher should consider taking the plungeinto WebQuest. For teachers, it provides an opportunity to integratetechnology into an existing curriculum. In addition, it utilizes thelearner’s time, focusing on using information rather than looking forit. Finally, the project supports the learner’s thinking in-depth at thelevels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.
For students, using the Internet as a research tool allows currentaccess to information that may otherwise be inaccessible. In addition,students can share information found through the use of the Internet.Finally, students become more familiar with technology and learn howto find quality information on the Internet.
REFERENCES
Forman, G. & D. Kuschner. (1977). The child’s construction of knowledge. Belmont,CA: Wadsworth Co.
Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. New York:Basic Books.
Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T., & Holubec, E.J. (1990). Circles of learning (3rd ed.).Edina, MN: Interaction Book Co.
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Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T., Holubec, E.J., & Roy, P. (1984). Circles of learning(2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Association for the Supervision of Curriculum Devel-opment.
Lipson, M., Valencia, S., Wixson, K., & Peters, C. (1993) Integration and thematicteaching: Integration to improve teaching and learning. Language Arts, 70(4),252-264.
Meyer, C., & Jones, T.B. (1993). Promoting active learning. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Slavin, R. (1990). Cooperative learning: Theory, research and practice. EnglewoodCliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Willis, S. (1999, Summer). Crossing discipline lines. Curriculum/Technology Quar-terly, 8(4), 1-2.
APPENDIX A
INTRODUCTION
A team of experts sponsored by the United Nations published areport in 1995, which concluded that humans are influencing the cli-mate of the earth. But how much? Even after many years of study, thisIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was not able todecide how significant that human influence is. They think that at leastanother decade of research will be required to answer that question.
So what do we do in the meantime? How urgent is the need foraction? These are the most hotly debated questions.
Meanwhile, an international conference on climate change was heldin Kyoto, Japan, in 1997. There, the industrialized nations of the worldagreed to reduce their emissions of heat-trapping ‘‘greenhouse gases,’’within 15 years, by an average of 5.2% (below 1990 levels) by theyear 2012. The United States agreed to a 7% reduction. Even thoughthe U.S. agreed to these reductions at the conference, the ‘‘KyotoProtocol’’ is really an international treaty. In order for the U.S. to enterany treaty, the Senate must first ‘‘ratify’’ it.
SOME BACKGROUND
Scientists estimate that life has existed on Earth for four billionyears, and in that time, the climate has fluctuated many times betweenperiods of tropical heat and ice age. Now the earth appears to be
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getting warmer again–but why? One thing that scientists know is thatsince the time of the Industrial Revolution, atmospheric carbon diox-ide levels have risen by about 25%. Another thing that has beendemonstrated is that during periods of rising global temperatures,carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere also rise. However, scientistsare not sure if the rising temperature causes the carbon dioxide toincrease, or if increased carbon dioxide causes the temperature to rise.
The ‘‘Kyoto Protocol’’ mentioned above will ‘‘enter into force’’ onthe international level only after two conditions are met:
1. Fifty-five (55) countries must sign and ratify the treaty.2. Those countries must represent at least 55% of the greenhouse
gas emissions from industrialized nations.
Since the U.S. represents such a large proportion of the worldwideemissions, these conditions make it difficult (but not impossible) forthe treaty to take effect without being ratified by the U.S.
APPENDIX B
To help the United States Senate decide whether or not to ratify thetreaty, a special sub-committee has been formed by the Senate to studythe issues involved. To do this, the sub-committee will be calling forpresentations by various interest groups that may be affected if thetreaty goes into effect–or doesn’t go into effect. You have been chosento be part of a team that will represent one of these groups!!
Insurance Industry Lobbyists represent companies, which insure prop-erty against damage from floods and other natural catastrophes, suchas hurricanes.
Environmental Lobbyists represent groups concerned with protectingthe environment, such as Sierra Club, World Wildlife Federation,Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, and Friends of the Earth.
Forest Industries Lobbyists represent companies that produce tree-based products such as lumber and paper.
Transportation Industries Lobbyists represent a variety of companiesthat are in some way related to transporting people and goods fromplace to place, including auto manufacturers and gasoline/oil producers.
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Consumer Advocates represent a variety of groups working to protectthe well-being of consumers of all ages and income levels, such as theNational Consumer Coalition, Consumer Union, AARP, and the Cool-er Heads Coalition.
Ambassadors of a Coalition of Third World Nations mainly representpoor agricultural countries, which have not been asked to limit green-house gas emissions because they do not have large developed indus-tries. Many of them are small island nations.
Food Producer Lobbyists represent farmers and livestock producers whoare concerned with supplying food to a growing international population.
Scientific Advisory Panel has been given the responsibility to factuallysummarize scientific data and theories on global warming and green-house gas emissions to the scientifically illiterate sub-committee.
Your task in this ‘‘Global Warming WebQuest’’ is to become a mem-ber of one of the interest group teams described above. You and yourteammates will work together to create a presentation to the Senatesub-committee that will summarize the point-of-view of your interestgroup with regard to the issue of the United States being required toreduce greenhouse gas emissions. (http://www.scarborough.k12.me.us/middle/quest/teachers.htm)
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