Advanced Placement Environmental Science
Course Description
How will this class
change
how you see our world?
AP Environmental Science
“For in the end,
we will conserve
only that which we love;
we will love
only that which we understand;
and we will understand
only that which we have been taught.
-- Baba Dioum, Senegalese environmentalist, 1968
Interdependence
Human Population
Environmental Quality
Global Changes
Resources
Environment and Society
Instructor: Mr. Dave Fujiyama [email protected] Room: P-6
Textbook: Environmental Science: Earth as a Living Planet 6th ed.,
Botkin, Daniel B., and Keller, Edward A., Wiley, 2007
The following excerpt is from the College Board's site for AP Environmental Science:
"The goal of the AP Environmental Science course is to provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world, to identify and analyze environmental problems both natural and human-made, to evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems, and to examine alternative solutions for resolving and/or preventing them.
"Environmental science is interdisciplinary; it embraces a wide variety of topics from different areas of study. Yet there are several major unifying constructs, or themes, that cut across the many topics included in the study of environmental science. The following themes provide a foundation for the structure of the AP Environmental Science course.
1. Science is a process.
o Science is a method of learning more about the world.
o Science constantly changes the way we understand the world.
2. Energy conversions underlie all ecological processes.
o Energy cannot be created; it must come from somewhere.
o As energy flows through systems, at each step more of it becomes unusable.
3. The Earth itself is one interconnected system.
o Natural systems change over time and space.
o Biogeochemical systems vary in ability to recover from disturbances.
4. Humans alter natural systems.
o Humans have had an impact on the environment for millions of years.
o Technology and population growth have enabled humans to increase both the rate and scale of their impact on the environment.
5. Environmental problems have a cultural and social context.
o Understanding the role of cultural, social and economic factors is vital to the development of solutions.
6. Human survival depends on developing practices that will achieve sustainable systems.
o A suitable combination of conservation and development is required.
o Management of common resources is essential."
a single thing in nature,
we find it attached
to the rest of the world.
Course Description
The AP Environmental Science (APES) course is designed to be the equivalent of a one semester, introductory college course in environmental science. The goal is to provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world, to identify and analyze environmental problems, and to examine alternative solutions to resolve and prevent them.
Supplementary Resources
Readings will be assigned from the many sources to clarify and deepen your understanding of central issues, including:
- National Geographic Magazine articles online
- Student Companion Site for our textbook (authors Botkin and Keller)
Student-driven activities
Like most college courses, APES includes lectures, discussions and moderated debates, presentations, and written assignments. The course also includes laboratory and field investigations (on campus) to complement the classroom portion of the course by allowing students to learn through firsthand observation and experience. But being my APES student entitles you to a more exciting opportunity…
Field Studies: The Newport Bay Conservancy tour You'll have the opportunity to participate in a trip to the Upper Newport Bay where we'll use outrigger canoes to tour and study the estuary ecosystem. Using outriggers does not 'spook' the wetland birds as much as approaching them on foot, so we'll be able to get some good photographs of wildlife. You'll learn firsthand how estuaries serve as biomechanical and biochemical filters; that is, the plants are able to filter out pollutants carried into the estuary so that by the time the water exits the estuary and enters the ocean, it's much cleaner! You'll appreciate how fragile these ecosytems are, and you'll be armed with strong arguments, based on science, for preserving these wetland ecosystems from development into parking lots, housing, and shopping malls.
Field Studies: Trout in the Classroom project In our classroom, we’ll accept delivery of rainbow trout eggs sometime in early November; observe them hatch; monitor water chemistry and environmental conditions; and finally take a field trip to release them into the headwaters of the Santa Ana River near Big Bear in the San Bernardino National Forest. You'll put on fishing waders to keep you warm and dry, and then wade into the steam, collecting macroinvertebrates like mayfly nymphs and caddisfly larvae living under rocks and logs. You'll make inferences about the quality of the stream water based on what kinds and how many macroinvertebrates you capture and release. You’ll learn about water chemistry, riparian ecology, history of water issues in California, consequences of human activity on aquatic ecosystems, and insects that live in trout streams. You’ll discover that the portion of the Santa Ana River that you’re familiar with—that dry, trash-filled, concrete-lined river bed near the “Orange Crush”—is nothing like the pristine Santa Ana River in the San Bernardino National Forest. You’ll be charged with the task of taking photographs of the Santa Ana River from our trip beginnings—at its mouth at Newport Beach—all the way to its headwaters. You’ll be amazed how different this stream is in places where humanity has not disrupted its ecosystem!
Field Studies/Independent Explorations: Biodiversity Garden Your small group of teammates will be assigned a plot of land in our garden—with hard work, a lot of love and some diligent research, you’ll turn it into a beautiful, flower-filled Biodiversity Garden that will attract pollinators like bees and hummingbirds. You’ll learn about soil chemistry, soil fungi, symbiotic relationships, nitrogen fixation…and you might get a nice tan, too! It’s possible that an overnight field study in our yard can be arranged—I’ll keep you posted.
Field Studies/Independent Explorations: Solar-Powered Oven You will design and build a solar powered oven. You’ll have one full school day to bake a cookie, a brownie, or a baked potato...or fry a scrambled egg. Yes, you’ll eat your project, and I’ll have a taste, too. If I get indigestion from eating your project...well, we'll talk, won't we? Heh heh heh...
Sometimes we say
the darndest things when
the microphone's on...
"If you've seen one redwood, you've seen them all."
—former President Ronald Reagan in 1981
"Trees cause more pollution than automobiles do."
—former President Ronald Reagan in 1981
"A tree is a tree.
How many more do you have to look at?"
—Ronald Reagan, then-governor of California, objecting to expansion of Redwood National Park, 1966.
"A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location. I'm not one though who would attribute it to being man-made."
--Sarah Palin, dismissing global warming as influenced by human activity, Newsmax interview, Aug. 2008
"It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it."
--Former Republican Vice President Dan Quayle, during George H. W. Bush's presidency 1989-1993
And finally, some wisdom to ponder....
[The wise] speak because they have something to say;
Fools because they have to say something.
—Plato, Greek philosopher 427 BC - 347 BC
****
The College Board AP Environmental Science Examination
date Mon 7 May 2012 at 8:00 am
website http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/cal.html
If you're taking more than on AP exam in May 2012, note that the APES exam is scheduled ahead of all others (it coincides with AP Chem on the first week of AP exam week!)
The exam is three hours long; half the time is for multiple choice (MC); the remainder for free response (FRQ). The MC constitutes 60% of the total score, and has 100 questions. This section tests your breadth of knowledge of environmental science topics and issues.
The FRQ section allows 90 minutes for 4 FRQs, which constitute 40% of your test score, and it focuses on your depth of knowledge. Here’s where you critically analyze a set of circumstances and justify your conclusion. You’ll have one data-set question, one document-based question, and two synthesis-and-evaluation questions.
Taking the College Board APES Exam is optional. Remember that if you receive a reduced fee/free meal at school, you are eligible to take this exam at a greatly reduced fee.
Look deep into nature,
and then
you will understand
everything better.
-- Albert Einstein
Upcoming Assignments See all
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