The
Finished Product
Participants who successfully complete an integration module will address the following science, math, and technology standards:
- National Science Education Standards (NSES)
- National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards (NCTM)
- International Standards of Technology Education
National Science Education Standards (NSES)
SCIENCE TEACHING STANDARDS:
NSES Teaching Standard A: Teachers of science plan an inquiry-based science program for their students. In doing this, teachers:
- Select science content and adapt and design curricula to meet the interests, knowledge, understanding, ability, and experiences of students.
“..teachers also consider their own strengths and interests and take into account available resources in the local community.”- Select teaching and assessment strategies that support the development of student understanding and nurture a community of science learners.
“Science is often a collaborative endeavor, and all science depends on the ultimate sharing and debating of ideas.”NSES Teaching Standard B: Teachers of science guide and facilitate learning. In doing this, teachers:
- Focus and support inquiries while interacting with students.
- Organize discourse among students about science ideas.
- Challenge students to accept and share responsibility for their own learning.
NSES Teaching Standard C: Teachers of science engage in ongoing assessment of their teaching and of student learning. In doing this, teachers:
- Use multiple methods and systematically gather data about student understanding.
- Guide students in self-assessment.
NSES Teaching Standard D: Teachers of science design and manage learning environments that provide students with the time, space, and resources needed for learning science. In doing this, teachers:
- Structure the time available so that students are able to engage in extended investigations.
- Create a setting for student work that is flexible and supportive of science inquiry.
- Make the available science tools, materials, media, and technological resources accessible to students.
- Identify and use resources outside the school.
- Engage students in designing the learning environment.
NSES Teaching Standard E: Teachers of science develop communities of science learners that reflect the intellectual rigor of scientific inquiry and the attitudes and social values conducive to science learning. In doing this, teachers:
- Display and demand respect for the diverse ideas, skills and experiences of all students.
- Enable students to have a significant voice in decisions about the content and context of their work and require students to take responsibility for the learning of all members of the community..
- Nurture collaboration among students.
- Model and emphasize the skills, attitudes, and values of scientific inquiry.
ASSESSMENT STANDARDS FOR SCIENCE:
NSES Assessment Standard A: Assessments must be consistent with the decisions they are designed to inform.
NSES Assessment Standard D: Assessment practices must be fair.
- Assessment tasks must be set in a variety of contexts, be engaging to students with different interests and experiences, and must not assume the perspective or experience of a particular gender, racial, or ethnic group.
SCIENCE CONTENT STANDARDS (Grades 9-12):
Science as Inquiry (Content Standard A)
Abilities Necessary to do Scientific Inquiry:
- Identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations.
- Design and conduct scientific investigations.
- Use technology and mathematics to improve investigations and communications
- Identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations.
- Communicate and defend a scientific argument.
Understanding About Scientific Inquiry:
- Scientists inquire about how physical, living, or designed systems function.
- Scientists rely on technology to enhance the gathering and manipulation of data.
- Mathematics is essential to scientific inquiry.
Physical Science (Content Standard B)
Motions and Forces:
- Objects change their motion only when a net force is applied. Laws of motion are used to calculate precisely the effects of forces on objects.
Conservation of Energy and Tendency toward Disorder:
- All energy can be considered either kinetic or potential.
- Systems have a natural tendency towards disorder.
Science and Technology (Content Standard E)
Abilities of Technological Design:
- Identify a problem or design an opportunity
- Propose designs and choose between alternative solutions.
- Implement a proposed solution.
- Evaluate the solution and its consequences.
- Communicate the problem, process, and solution
Understandings About Science and Technology:
- Science often advances with the introduction of new technologies
- Creativity, knowledge, and imagination are all important in the work of science and engineering.
- Technological knowledge is not always made public because of patents and financial considerations
Conservation of Energy and Tendency toward Disorder:
- All energy can be considered either kinetic or potential.
- Systems have a natural tendency towards disorder.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Standards (NCTM)
Math Standards Grades 9 – 12 addressed by Bionic Cat Investigation
- Number and Operations:
- Compute fluently and make reasonable estimates
- Algebra:
- Understand patterns, relations, and functions
- Geometry:
- Use visualization, spatial reasoning, and geometric modeling to solve problems
- Measurement:
- Understand measurable attributes of objects and the units, systems, and processes of measurement (make decisions about units and scales that are appropriate for problem situations involving measurement).
- Apply appropriate techniques, tools, and formulas to determine measurements.
- Problem Solving:
- build new mathematical knowledge through problem solving;
- solve problems that arise in mathematics and in other contexts;
- apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to solve problems;
- Reasoning:
- make and investigate mathematical conjectures;
- develop and evaluate mathematical arguments and proofs;
- select and use various types of reasoning and methods of proof.
- Communication:
- organize and consolidate their mathematical thinking through communication;
- communicate their mathematical thinking coherently and clearly to peers, teachers, and others;
- analyze and evaluate the mathematical thinking and strategies of others;
- Connections:
- recognize and use connections among mathematical ideas;
- understand how mathematical ideas interconnect and build on one another to produce a coherent whole;
- recognize and apply mathematics in contexts outside of mathematics.
- Representation:
- create and use representations to organize, record, and
- communicate mathematical ideas;
- select, apply, and translate among mathematical representations to solve problems;
- use representations to model and interpret physical, social, and mathematical phenomena
International Standards of Technology Education
Technology Content Standards
The Nature of Technology
Standard 3 : The Relationship Among Technologies and the Connections Between Technology and Other Fields
- Students will develop an understanding of the relationships among technologies and the connections between technology and other fields of study.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Innovation and Invention
- Knowledge protection and patents
Design
Standard 8 : The Attributes of Design
- Students will develop an understanding of the attributes of design.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- The design process
- Design problems are usually not clear.
- Designs need to be refined
- Requirements
Standard 9 : Engineering Design
- Students will develop an understanding of engineering design.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Prototypes
- Factors in engineering design
Standard 10 : The Role of Troubleshooting, Research and Development, Invention and Innovation, and Experimentation in Problem Solving
- Students will develop an understanding of the role of troubleshooting, research, and development, invention and innovation, and experimentation in problem solving.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Researching technological problems
- Multidisciplinary approach
Abilities for a Technological World
Standard 11 : Apply the Design Process
- Students will develop the abilities to apply the design process.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Identify a design problem
- Identify criteria and constraints
- Refine the design
- Evaluate the design
- Develop a product or system using quality control
- Reevaluate final solution(s)
Standard 12 : Use and Maintain Technological Products and Systems
- Students will develop the abilities to use and maintain technological products and systems.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Document and communicte processes and procedures
- Diagnose a malfunctioning system
- Troubleshoot and maintain systems
- Operate and maintain systems
- Use computers to communicate
The Designed World
Standard 15 : Agriculture and Related Biotechnologies
- Students will develop and understanding of and be able to select and use agricultural and related biotechnologies.
Specific Gr 9 – 12 Benchmarks:
- Biotechnology
