Making it Real.... Relinquishing Control
I love Level 3 Biology right now. We are doing AS91601, colloquially known as 3.1 - a standard one colleague of mine calls the only real science we do in the school. That colleague teaches another Science, and, by his own admission, is quite jealous. The task requires students to measure the response of a plant or animal to an environment stressor. Measure - the collection of primary data, carried out through fair testing or pattern seeking. In past years we've done this the easy way. Only 1 plant or animal, in fact in some years, the whole cohort has done the same organism, and a limited list of abiotic environmental stressors. Students went through the process mechanically, robotically, with little interest or engagement. They shared methods and results (inauthentically) and in the worst instances, fabricated the entire investigation. This year we relinquished control. There is a vastly extended list of suggested plants and animals, and others will be considered. Th