The document outlines the agenda for a professional development session for VCE Environmental Science teachers in November 2013, including resource launches, unit explorations, and assessment discussions. Key topics covered include the exploration of study designs for units 1-4, assessments for environmental science, and case studies relevant to local contexts. Additionally, it provides insights into the course structure, timelines, assessment tasks, and strategies for effective teaching and learning in environmental science.

1. VCE
Environmental
Science
Teachers PD November 2013
Britt Gow

2. Agenda
9.00am Welcome & housekeeping - Sarah
9.15am Resources – Teacher‟s handbook Launch
9.30am
Introductions – on the Padlet Walll
10.00am
Exploring Units 1 to 4 - Study design
10.30am
Morning tea
11.00am
Continue exploring Units 1 to 4 - Outcomes
12.00pm
Developing a schedule and SACs for Units 1 & 3
1.00pm
Lunch
1.30pm
2.55pm
Exam , laboratory experiments, fieldwork and
excursions
Reflections & Farewell

3. An update from VAEE
 USB resources
 Trial exams and support for 2014
- VCE ES Conference
- Preparing for Unit 2 & 4
- Revision lecture
 Launch of “Issues of Sustainability”
Teacher Resource Book

4. More Resources….
 VAEE website and teacher‟s email
network (freelist)
 FUSE Ebookboxes
 VCE Environmental Science blog
 “Envirostudy” app for mobile devices
(IOS and android)

5. Introductions….
 Go to the VCE Environmental Science blog at
http://vceenviroscience.edublogs.org
 Access the Padlet wall and introduce yourself
 Name and school, Units 1/2 or 3/4 or both?
 Experience teaching Environmental Science
 What do you hope to get out of today?

7. Exploring Units 1-4
 Assessment
 Case Studies
 An overview of the outcomes
 Course outline - School
Assessed Coursework (where,
when, how?)

8. Assessment
 Unit 1 and 2
 Unit 3 (25% SACs)
 All school assessed
 Unit 4 (25% SACs)
 End of Year exam
worth 50% of final
score

9. Case-studies
 In Units 3 and 4, students apply scientific principles to
selected local contexts in the completion of assessment
tasks. It should be noted that, although assessment of
School-assessed Coursework will be in the contexts of
local selection the end-of-year examination will not
draw on specific details of the local contexts.
 Unit 3 – AoS 2 - a threatened species
 Unit 4 – AosS 1 – a pollutant
 Unit 4 – AoS 2 – an environmental project

10. Unit 1 – The Environment
AOS 1 – Ecological components &
interactions
Outcome 1
“On completion of this unit the student should be able to
identify and describe the components and natural
processes within the environment.”

11. Unit 1 – The Environment
AOS 2 – Environmental Change
Outcome 2
“On completion of this unit the student should be able to
analyse one human-induced environmental change and
options for remediation.”

12. Unit 1 – The Environment
AOS 3 – Ecosystems
Outcome 3
“On completion of this unit the student should be able
explain the flow of energy, nutrient exchange and
environmental changes in ecosystems.”

13. Unit 2 – Monitoring the
environment
AOS 1 – Environmental Indicators
Outcome 1
“On completion of this unit the student should be able to
explain the nature of environmental indicators for pollution and
ecological health of ecosystems.”

14. Unit 2 – Monitoring the
environment
AOS 2 – Using Environmental Indicators
Outcome 2
 “On completion of this unit the student should be able
to investigate and report on a local example
environmental degradation or environmental issue,
using an appropriate monitoring program.”
Outcome 3
 “On completion of this unit the student should be able
to analyse the scientific basis and use of for
environmental indicators for pollution control and
ecological health of ecosystems.”

15. Unit 1 & 2 Assessment
“Where teachers allow students to choose between tasks
they must ensure that the tasks they set are of
comparable scope and demand.”
Assessment tasks for this unit are:
 fieldwork and reports
 oral presentations
 practical activities and practical reports
 reports in multimedia and/or poster format
 tests

16. VCE Environmental Science
Unit 3
Area of Study 1 –
Energy & Global Warming
Area of Study 2 –
Diversity in the Biosphere

17. Area of Study One:
Energy and global warming.
 Concepts and principles of energy.
 Renewable and non-renewable
energy resources.
 Gases in the atmosphere
 Greenhouse effect – natural &
enhanced.

18. Unit 3 - Outcome One
“On completion of this unit the student should be able to
describe the principles of energy, and relate them to the
contribution of one fossil and one non-fossil energy
source to the enhanced greenhouse effect.”
Task 1 - A written report of a practical activity (20 marks)
and
Task 2 - A report in annotated poster or multimedia format
(30 marks)
Total = 50 marks

19. Outcome 1 – Term 1
Part A (20 marks)
 A collection of practical reports
 A write up of one practical report
 A ‘test’ based on a number of practical reports
Part B (30 marks)
 Annotated poster: comparison of a fossil & non-fossil
fuel
*SAME MARKING CRITERIA AS PREVIOUS
ASSESSMENT HANDBOOK

22. Unit 3 - Energy resources
You must be able to compare your non-renewable energy
resource with your renewable energy resource:
 accessibility and provision to meet energy needs
 energy conversions required
 efficiency of energy conversions
 environmental impact of extraction, conversion,
distribution and use on the environment and society
How can both resources meet the energy needs of a town
with reference to specific geographic location?

23. Q2 (c) Describe how the fossil energy source named in part b. is used
to meet the need of a specific geographic location, city or region. You
should include advantages and disadvantages of this energy source
for the particular application. (4 marks)
•
•
•
•
Melbourne is the capital city of Victoria with an estimated population
of 3 million people (1m).
Melbourne‟s energy needs are very demanding especially during
peak loads when energy demands are at their highest. Industry,
lighting, heating and transport are the main energy requirements
needed for Melbourne. Coal already does supply and cope with both
the base and peak loads in Melbourne (1m).
An advantage associated with coal is that it is accessible, cheap to
use and is widely available within Australia (1m)
A disadvantage associated with coal use is that is produces large
amounts of carbon dioxide emissions hence contributing to the
enhanced greenhouse effect (1m).

24. Typical exam question for Unit 3 – Area of Study 1
Q2 (d) Describe how the non-fossil energy source named in part b. is used
to meet the need of a specific geographic location, city or region. You
should include advantages and disadvantages of this energy source for the
particular application.
(4 marks)
Toora is located approximately 150km east of Melbourne in Gippsland.
(1m) Due to a small population the energy needs of the town are
relatively small. The general needs for energy are for heating, lighting,
farming and transport. The Toora wind farm currently supplies 6,600
homes with energy so could meet the supply needs of Toora and
surrounding Gippsland towns with energy. (1m) Wind farming is
associated with many advantages however, the biggest would be the
fact no greenhouse gas emissions are produced (1m). One main
disadvantage is the fact that wind farming relies on a constant supply of
wind and this is not always the case (1m).

25. Area of Study Two:
Diversity in the Biosphere
 Biodiversity
 Biodiversity management

26. Unit 3 - Area of Study Two:
Diversity in the Biosphere
 Types of…
 Value of...
 Conservation categories….
 Assessment of…
 Threats to…

27. Unit 3 – AoS 2 - Outcome 2
“On completion of this unit the student should be able to
describe the characteristics of biodiversity, evaluate strategies
to reduce the effects of threatening processes on biodiversity,
and apply this knowledge to one selected threatened animal.”
Task worth 30 marks:
 A report on one selected threatened animal presented in
any one or combination of the following:
 a written report
 an oral report
 a multimedia presentation.

28. Unit 3 – AoS 2 - Outcome 3
“Explain how scientific data is used in the evaluation of biodiversity
and is applied to the development of management strategies to
ensure biodiversity.”
Task/s worth 20 marks Any one or a combination of the following:
 a written or oral report
 a multimedia presentation
 a written response to set questions
 a report on data collected from fieldwork or other sources.

29. Unit 4 AoS 1: Pollution and health
Outcome 1: Describe the characteristics of pollutants, and
evaluate management options for reducing the risk of a
pollutant affecting the health of the environment and humans.
Task 1: A report on the findings of selected fieldwork and/or
practical activities relating to pollutant/s (30 marks)
Task 2: An evaluation of management strategies [of the
selected pollutant] based on primary and/or secondary data.
(30 marks)
Total = 60 marks

30. Useful Websites
• National Pollutants Inventory http://www.npi.gov.au/data/index.html
• Environmental Protection Authority –
http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/
• Urban Air Quality –
http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1283.html
• Water Quality http://www.enviroliteracy.org/subcategory.php/43.html
• Environmental Health http://www.enviroliteracy.org/subcategory.php/170.html

31. SACs for Unit 4 - AoS 2:
Applied environmental science
Outcome 2
Use the principles of ecologically sustainable development and
environmental management to evaluate environmental science
projects, including a focus on one selected environmental
science project.
Task 1 (20 marks) - A report or a test
and
Task 2 (20 marks) –
A report or an environmental management plan.
Total = 40 marks

32. Unit 4 - AoS 2 - Outcome 2
 Sewerage treatment plant upgrade
 Freeway development
 Energy efficiency improvements in a factory
 Co-generation plant
 Mining rehabilitation
 Waste minimisation and management
 Water treatment plant

33. Unit 3/4 Possible Timeline…
 Term 1 – Unit 3 Area of Study 1
- Energy principles (4 weeks) and Greenhouse Effect (4weeks)
- Introduce AoS 2 last week of term
 Term 2 – Unit 3 Area of Study 2
- Biodiversity (4 weeks) and management (4 weeks)
- Introduce Unit 4 AoS 1 (pollution & health) last 2 weeks of term
• Term 3 – Unit 4 Area of study 1 and 2
- Pollution & health (5 weeks)
- Applied Environmental Science (5 weeks)
• Term 4 – Finish Area of study two/ revision

35. End of Year Examination
NOTE: Outcome 1 (comparison of a fossil & non-fossil
fuel will be examined in regards to specific location) is the
only case study that will be directly examined on the end
of year exam.
All other outcomes will not refer to the specific SACs
completed in class however, students will need to apply
their knowledge from these SACs to effectively answer
questions.

36. Unit 3/4 Exam
15 mins reading time/ 2 hrs writing time
Section A – multiple choice
30 multiple choice questions (30 marks)
Section B – Short Answer (90 marks)
 6 short answer questions balanced across unit 3/4
 1 of these will be about the individual case studies
(fossil VS non-fossil fuel)
Contributes 50% of study score

37. Common student problems
 Run out of time ( 1 mark per minute)
 Questions that use calculations
 „Evaluate‟ – must give a judgement
statement and back up with
argument/evidence
 Monitoring is not a strategy

38. Course structure
 There is no prescribed way to teach the course you
could start with AoS 2 Biodiversity!
 New end-of-year exam gives more opportunities for
integration between the different Areas of Study.
 Organise your experiments, field trips and excursions
early.
 You may like to consider study camps during the school
holidays.

39. Laboratory Experiments
 Exothermic and endothermic
 Student Power
 Energy in candle wax
 Insulation investigation
 Effects of Sulphur dioxide

40. Excursions and Field Work
 Ecolinc
 Melbourne Water, Local Water Authority
 Melbourne, Healesville and Werribee Zoos
 Royal Botanic Gardens
 Toolangi
 Mt Rothwell Sanctuary

41. Good luck &
Use the VAEE VCE teachers
network for support!
brittgow@gmail.com