GOAL: To develop an understanding of the interdependence of all organisms and the need for conserving natural resources

• National Science Education Standards' Content Standards, Content Topics, and Rationale
  • CE/CE Online Concepts and Content Objectives Based on the NSES Standards Cited

NSES Content Standard

• History and Nature of Science

• Historical Perspectives

  Usually changes in science occur as small modifications in extant knowledge. The daily work of science and engineering results in incremental advances in our understanding of the world and our ability to meet human needs and aspirations. Much can be learned about the internal workings of science and nature of science from study of individual scientists, their daily work, and their efforts to advance scientific knowledge in their own area.

  The historical perspective of scientific explanations demonstrates how scientific knowledge changes by evolving over time, almost always building on earlier knowledge.

CE/CE Online Concept A:
• Survival on this planet may depend on achieving a better understanding of the relationships between all living organisms and planet earth.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• A1

  To understand the history of the environmental movement

• A2

  To understand the role of the individual in the continuation of the ecological movement started by the early environmentalists

NSES Content Standard

• Life Science

• The Interdependence of Organisms

  Organisms both cooperate and compete in ecosystems. The interrelationships and interdependencies of these organisms may generate ecosystems that are stable for hundreds or thousands of years.

CE/CE Online Concept B:
• The earth is a complex sphere composed of a variety of interdependent systems.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• B1

  To understand that the earth's crust and atmosphere comprise a system containing smaller distinct ecosystems

• B2

  To understand some factors that cause ecosystems to be different

• Life Science

• The Interdependence of Organisms

  Living organisms have the capacity to produce populations of infinite size, but environments and resources are finite. The fundamental tension has profound effects on the interactions between organisms.

CE/CE Online Concept C:
• The area where an organism lives must provide it with its basic life requirements.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• C1

  To understand that each species occupies a specific space with specific needs

• C2

  To understand that an organism's habitat is affected by abiotic and biotic factors

• C3

  To understand the similarities that exist within systems from the lowest to the highest levels of organization

NSES Content Standard

• Life Science

• The Interdependence of Organisms

  The atoms and molecules on the Earth cycle among the living and nonliving components of the biosphere.

• Earth and Space Science

• Geochemical Cycles

  The Earth is a system containing essentially a fixed amount of each stable chemical atom or element. Each element can exist in several different chemical reservoirs. Each element on Earth moves among reservoirs in the solid Earth, oceans, atmosphere, and living things as part of geochemical cycles.

  Movement of matter between reservoirs is driven by the Earth's internal and external sources of energy. These movements are often accompanied by a change in the physical and chemical properties of matter. Carbon, for example, occurs in rocks as limestone, in the atmosphere as a gas, in water as dissolve carbon dioxide, and in all living things as complex molecules that control the chemistry of life.

CE/CE Online Concept D:
• Similarities exist within different ecosystems.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• D1

  To understand that abiotic materials are recycled continuously through both the living and nonliving components of the ecosystem

• D2

  To understand that man can alter or interrupt the natural cycling of abiotic materials in the ecosystem

NSES Content Standard

• Science in Personal and Societal Perspectives

• Population Growth

  Populations grow or decline through the combined effects of births and deaths, and in countries through emigration and immigration. Populations can reach the limits to growth. Carrying capacity is the maximum number of individuals that can be supported in a given environment. It is not availability of space, but the number of people in relation to resources and the capacity of Earth systems to support human beings.

CE/CE Online Concept E:
• Populations are dynamic with identifiable characteristics and measurable growth patterns.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• E1

  To understand the characteristics of populations

• E2

  To understand factors that affect populations

• E3

  To understand methods of analyzing changes in populations

• Life Science (Grades 5-8)

• Populations and Ecosystems

  Populations consist of all individuals of a species that occur together at a given place. All of the populations living together and the physical factors with which they interact compose an ecosystem.

CE/CE Online Concept F:
• Populations interact to form a dynamic community of living organisms within the ecosystem.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• F1

  To understand ecological relationships among different populations within an ecosystem

• F2

  To understand a community

• Life Science

• The Interdependence of Organisms

  Human beings live within the world's ecosystems. Increasingly, humans modify ecosystems as a result of population growth, technology, and consumption. Human destruction of habitats through direct harvesting, pollution, atmospheric changes, and other factors is threatening global stability, and if not addressed, ecosystems will be irreversibly damaged.

CE/CE Online Concept G:
• An increase in human population can have a significant impact on the biosphere.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• G1

  To understand that increased population, mobility and affluence are changing the demands on the environment

• G2

  To understand that the carrying capacity may be increased by improved conservation methods and proper management of our natural resources

• G3

  To understand alternatives that can limit population growth

NSES Content Standard

• Life Science

• The Cell

  Plant cells contain chloroplasts, the site of photosynthesis. Plants and some other organisms, use solar energy to combine molecules of carbon dioxide and water into complex, energy rich organic compounds. This process of photosynthesis provides a vital connection between the sun and the energy needs of living systems.

• Life Science

• The Interdependence of Organisms

  Energy flows through ecosystems in one direction, from photosynthetic organisms to herbivores to carnivores and decomposers.

CE/CE Online Concept H:
• Living organisms share in a variety of complex interrelationships which are based on interdependence.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• H1

  To understand how the interrelationship of organisms produces an intricate and complex web of life

• H2

  To understand that energy does not cycle within an ecosystem

NSES Content Standard

• Life Science

• The Molecular Basis of Heredity

  Changes in DNA (mutations) occur spontaneously at low rates. Some of these changes make no difference to the organism, whereas others can change cells and organisms. Only mutations in germ cells can create the variation that changes an organism's offspring.

• Life Science

• Biological Evolution

  Species evolve over time. Evolution is the consequence of the interactions of (1) the potential for a species to increase its numbers, (2) the genetic variability of offspring due to mutation and recombination of genes, (3) a finite supply of the resources required for life, and (4) the ensuing selection by the environment of those offspring better able to survive and leave offspring.

  Biological classifications indicate how organisms are related. Organisms are classified into a hierarchy of groups and subgroups based on their evolutionary relationships. Species is the most fundamental unit of classification.

• Life Science

• Matter, Energy, and Organization in Living Systems

  The energy for life ultimately derives from the sun. Plants capture light energy and use it to form strong (covalent) chemical bonds between the atoms of carbon-containing (organic) molecules. These molecules can be used to assemble larger molecules with biological activity (including proteins, DNA, sugars, and fats). In addition, the bonds between the atoms can be used as sources of energy for life processes.

  As matter and energy flows through different levels of organization of living systems -cells, organs, organisms, communities- and between living systems and the physical environment, chemical elements are transformed and recombined in different ways. Each transformation results in the storage and dissipation of energy into the environment as heat. Matter and energy are conserved in each transformation.

• Life Science

• The Nervous System and the Behavior of Organisms

  Like other aspects of an organism's biology, behaviors have evolved through natural selection. Behaviors often have an adaptive logic when viewed in terms of evolutionary principles.

  Organisms have behavioral responses to internal changes and to external stimuli. Responses to external stimuli can result from interactions with the organisms own species and others, as well as environmental changes. These responses can be either innate or learned. The broad patterns of behavior exhibited by animals have evolved to ensure reproductive success. Animals often live in unpredictable environments, and so their behavior must be flexible enough to deal with uncertainty and change.

CE/CE Online Concept I:
• Organisms adapt to their environment.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• I1

  To understand the difference between adaptation and speciation

• I2

  To understand that behavior is the pattern of activities an organism develops in response to its environment and that innate and learned behavior differ

NSES Content Standard

• Life Science

• Matter, Energy, and Organization in Living Systems

  The distribution and abundance of organisms and populations in ecosystems are limited by the availability of matter and energy and the ability of the ecosystem to recycle organic materials.

CE/CE Online Concept J:
• Ecological succession is a series of sequential changes caused by populations of a community producing conditions that are unfavorable for their own survival.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• J1

  To understand primary succession

• J2

  To understand secondary succession

NSES Content Standard

• Earth and Space Science

• The origin and Evolution of the Earth System

  Interactions among the solid Earth, the oceans, the atmosphere, and living things have resulted in the ongoing evolution of the Earth system. We can observe some changes such as earthquakes and volcanoes on a human time scale, but many processes such as mountain building, erosion, and plate movements take place over hundreds of millions of years.

CE/CE Online Concept K:
• The theory of plate tectonics explains land mass movements on earth.

CE/CE Online Content Objective:

• K1

  To understand that major land masses of the earth have moved over geological time

• Earth and Space Science

• Energy in the Earth System

  Global climate is determined by the heat transfer from the Sun at and near the Earth's surface. This heat transfer is influenced by dynamic processes such as cloud cover and the Earth's rotation, and static conditions such as position of mountain ranges and oceans.

CE/CE Online Concept L:
• The earth's biosphere is variously subdivided according to specific characteristics.

CE/CE Online Content Objectives:

• L1

  To understand that the earth is divided into distinguishable biogeographical regions

• L2

  To understand that biomes are large noncontinuous regions that are typified by certain defining climax species

• L3

  To understand the location and characteristics of each of the biogeographical regions

• L4

  To understand the biotic and abiotic factors that determine major biomes of the biosphere

• L5

  To understand that dispersal of populations between biomes and biogeographical regions are limited by certain physical barriers
  
  

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This is the time this file has been accessed since 12/20/95.

The University of Tennessee at Martin is not responsible for the information or views expressed here.

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