Download APES Syllabus - Garrard County Schools

APES Syllabus
Description:
This course provides students with a balanced approach to a diverse study of our
environment. Students gain the science background necessary to analyze many issues
concerning the environment. Through readings and explorations (in class, via the
Internet and through field studies), students investigate the connections between science,
technology and society as these interrelationships affect the environment on a local,
national, and global level. The content of this course emphasized the more theoretical
areas of environmental science. Units of study include ecosystems, geological processes
and biodiversity. The course also looks at the interaction of humans in the environment.
Such topics as resource use and conservation, human population dynamics, global
warming, the impact of hazardous waste and environmental economics are explored.
This course serves as preparation for the Advanced Placement exam given in the spring.
Text: Environmental Science for AP
Supplementary reading: The Future of Life by E. O. Wilson
Lab Manual: Laboratory Investigations for AP Environmental Science by Bill Molnar
Course Outline
Introduction to APES
 Key Theories in Environmental Science
 Sustainability
 Environmental ethics
 Environmental Policy
o An introduction
o U. S. environmental policy
o International environmental policy
o Environmental policy process
 Critical Thinking about the Environment
o “To the Ends of the Earth” EO Wilson
o Chemistry and the Environment
 Systems and Change
 Biogeochemical Cycles
o Earth’s environmental systems
o Nutrients cycles/tutorials web activities/nutrient cycles creative writing
assignment/story
o Nitrogen cycle, carbon cycle, water cycle, phosphorus cycle, sulfur cycle
and the rock cycle
o Algal bloom experiment
Ecosystems, Biodiversity, and Population Ecology
 Ecosystems and Ecosystem Management
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o Eco footprint activity
o “The Bottleneck” EO Wilson
o Abiotic Factors Lab with Armadillidiums
Biological Diversity
o Biodiversity loss and species extinction
o Benefits of biodiversity
o Conservation biology
o Natural Selection Simulation Lab
o Pine Cone Biodiversity Lab
Biogeography
o Earth’s biomes
o “Nature’s Last Stand” EO Wilson
o Biome project
o Invasive Species wanted poster
o “Cane Toads” movie
Population ecology
o Density, distribution
o Limiting factors
o Logistic growth and exponential growth
o Carrying capacities
o K-selected and r-selected strategists
Biological Productivity and Energy Flow
o “The Planetary Killer” EO Wilson
Human Population and Food Supply
 Population Growth
o People and society
o Exponential growth
o Demographic transition
 Population pyramids with family data lab
 Changes in survivorship lab
o Carrying Capacity
 Lab with Lemna Minor/Population growth and carrying capacity
 “How Much is the Biosphere Worth?” EO Wilson
 “The People Bomb” movie
 Agriculture and the Environment
o Soils
 Soil profile, color, texture, composition
 Soil degradation (erosion and desertification)
 Soils lab
 composition/chemical and physical properties lab
 soil type using soil triangle lab
 Effects of Agriculture on the Environment
o Pesticides and fertilizers
o IPM
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o Soil infertility
o Erosion
o Salinization
o Water use
Sustainable Agricultural methods
o No till agriculture
o Crop rotation
o Contour farming
o Intercropping
o Wind breaks
o Organic farming
Succession, Forests and Oceans
 Ecological Restoration
o Succession Lab
 Forests
o Forest management
o Parks and reserves
o National Parks Project
 Fisheries
o Oceanography
o Marine ecosystems
o Human use and impact
o Marine conservation biology
o “For the Love of Life” EO Wilson
o “Empty Oceans Empty Nets” movie
o Tragedy of the commons activity
Energy Resources
 Fossil Fuels
o Coal
 Cookie mining lab
 Analysis of CO2 trends
 Individual Energy use audit lab
o Oil
o Natural gas
o Energy calculations
o Environmental impacts of fossil fuel use
 Mining and restoration
 Acid mine drainage
 Air pollutants
o Energy conservation
 Alternative Energy Sources
o Solar
 Passive
 Active
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o Biomass
o Hydroelectric
o Geothermal
o Wind
o Tidal
o Solar cooker lab
o Race to Save the Planet “
Renewable vs. Nonrenewable sources
Nuclear Energy
o Types of reactors
o Nuclear waste disposal
o “Great Blunders in History” movie on Chernobyl from the History
Channel
Water Use and Pollution
 Water Supply, Use, and Management
o “The Solution” EO Wilson
o Water diversion project
o Water quality lab
 Abiotic factors—dissolved oxygen, nitrates, pH, conductivity,
alkalinity, temperature, and transparency
 Macroinvertebrate count lab for local stream water quality (biotic
factors)
 Water Pollution and Treatment
o Sewage treatment
 Primary
 Secondary
 Tertiary
o Groundwater Contamination Lab
o Federal Regulations (The Clean Water Act) and Laws
o Chicago sewage treatment video from the History Channel
Atmosphere and Pollution
 Atmosphere, Climate and Global Warming
o Weather and climate
o Layers of the atmosphere
o Greenhouse effect
o Global climate change, CO2, and the Kyoto protocol
o Acid precipitation
o “An Inconvenient Truth” movie
 Air Pollution
o Primary pollutants
o Secondary pollutants
o Legislation (The Clean Air Act) and the EPA
o Particulate Collection Lab
o Lichen and air pollution lab
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Indoor Air Pollution
o Common indoor air pollutants and sources
o Indoor air pollutant ozone lab
Ozone Depletion
o CFCs
o CFC substitutes
o The Montreal Protocol
Waste Management
 Risk Analysis
o Toxins in the environment
o Effects of hazardous substances
o Policy
o LD 50 lab
 Toxic Waste
o Classification criteria
o Hazardous waste disposal methods
 Nuclear Waste
o High level radioactive waste disposal
o Low level radioactive waste disposal
 Solid Waste
o Municipal solid waste disposal methods
 Sanitary landfills/RCRA
 Incineration
 NIMBY
 Reduce and reuse
 Composting
 Recycling
 Consumerism
o Landfill simulation lab
Environmental Laws and Regulations
 Endangered Species Act
 CITES
 The Clean Air Act
 The Clean Water Act
 The Montreal Protocol
 The Kyoto Protocol
 CERCLA
 RCRA
 And others for review
Evaluation:
 Tests…………………50%
 Labs………………….20%
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Projects…..…………..20%
Participation…………10%