| Unit
2: Environmental Change in Terrestrial Ecosystems
Instructor's Guide to Activities |
Goal
Students are introduced to terrestrial change as one form of environmental
change. Students will be able to understand land-use/cover
change and to assess it from a variety of data sources.
Learning Outcomes
After completing the exercises associated with these activities, students
should be able to:
| Activity 2.1: Vegetation Cover | -- Plotting bi-variate data, and analysis/interpretation of results |
| Activity 2.2: Satellite and GIS Images of Terrestrial Change | -- Identification of terrestrial change in satellite imagery and GIS outputs |
| Activity 2.3: Fiction and Fact: Terrestrial Change in Film | -- Analysis of film for portrayals of land-use/cover change |
| Activity 2.4: Our Town: A Historical Reconstruction of Terrestrial Change | -- Use of qualitative data sources to identify changes in land-use/cover over time |
| Activity 2.1: Vegetation Cover |
Goals
Students use basic quantitative data to understand the relationship
between climate and vegetation.
Skills
Tasks
Students plot data on vegetation cover and precipitation in order to
identify the type of relationship that exists between the two variables.
Students will then use the results of the scatterplot to answers questions
about the relationship between the variables and to predict what would
happen to vegetation cover if precipitation amounts were affected by environmental
change.
This activity is primarily geared toward students who have relatively little experience with analyzing and interpreting quantitative data. To adapt this activity to a higher skill level, consider the following options:
| Activity 2.2: Satellite and GIS Images of Land Cover Change |
Goals
Students become familiar with two methods that geographers use for
assessing global environmental changes -- satellite imagery and Geographic
Information Systems -- and use these data sources to detect spatial and
temporal changes in land use and land cover.
Skills
Data Sources
Based on information gathered in background reading and in observation
of the images provided, students write short responses to several questions
on the student worksheet. As a homework assignment, students write
a longer essay in which they will assume a role based one of two scenarios
provided.
BACK
| Activity 2.3: Fiction and Fact: Terrestrial Change in Film |
Goals
Students identify the ways in which land-use/cover change and other
human-induced impacts to the environment are portrayed in film.
Skills
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Tasks
Students view one of the selected movies with a list of questions to
consider during the film (see below). Instructors may choose one
film for all students to view or allow students to select a film of their
choice. After watching the film, students write a 2-3 page movie
review of the film that underscores the movie’s portrayal of land-use/cover
change. Student will then present their review to the class in a
“Siskel and Ebert”-style debate regarding the ability of the movie to portray
land-use/cover change effectively and discuss how these portrayals can
be linked to global change.
Instructors should preview the selected movie that the students will watch. The movie can either be shown in class or placed on reserve for students to access on their own time. In addition, students can be given the option of renting the film at their own convenience. Most of these films are popular and should be available at local video rental stores. In a large class, you may wish to provide students with several movie options.
As you preview the film, identify key elements of land-use/cover change in order to have an idea of what the students should provide in their essays. Students will consider the following key questions when viewing the film and preparing their reviews:
| Activity 2.4: Our Town: A Historical Reconstruction of Terrestrial Change |
Goals
Students are introduced to the use of qualitative data sources for
identifying elements of terrestrial change. The activity helps students
interpret different types of qualitative data and develop skills of analysis
that will allow them to make generalizations about land-use/cover changes
in historical contexts.
Skills
Option I
Students analyze repeat photographs of the Dust Bowl period.
Photos have not been provided, but are easily accessed by the instructor
for classroom use (see resources above). If you do not wish to focus on
the Dust Bowl, you can select other photos that illustrate significant
changes in land use/cover over time (e.g., agricultural to urban, forests
to agricultural, etc.). The student worksheet is written for use
with any set of photos.
As individuals, or in small groups, students answer the questions on the student worksheet and write a one-page memo as a consultant to Soil Conservation Service about the possible human causes of the changes identified. To wrap up the activity, hold a “Dust Bowl Policy Conference” to discuss the individual or group findings. The Conference may be just a group discussion or a more formal process where the groups present their findings to the class. During the conference, students should discuss the power and limitations of this type of analysis and the type of data as a source of information.
Option II
The product of this activity may be a museum-quality exhibit to be
displayed at the undergraduate library, the departmental showcase, the
public library, or some other public venue. Students collect qualitative
information on historical changes in land-use/cover for a particular study
area (i.e., the local city, county, or other area of interest) that illustrates
or provides evidence for (1) terrestrial change in the study area, (2)
the human driving forces of terrestrial change, and (3) the effects of
terrestrial change on humans and the human responses to such change.
To begin, divide the class into groups based upon the different types
of data to be explored. You can use the 6 groups below as a guide.
Group A: Photographic Collections of the Study Area
Group B: Oral Histories of the Study Area
Group C: Newspapers and Public Texts of the Study Area
Group D: Personal Diaries and Travel Logs (Semi-private accounts)
of Study Area
Group E: Maps and Map Collections of Study Area
Group F: Fictional Accounts and Art of the Study Area (optional)
Allow students to choose the type of data they would like to work with (if feasible). Some students may prefer to work with archival data, while others may prefer to interview people. A very shy person may be intimidated by collecting oral histories. The point of this exercise is to demonstrate not only the way that certain data sources come together to create a “big picture,” but also to demonstrate how certain methods of working collaboratively can help develop a whole project.
As each group begins its data collection, each person should carefully record her/his sources and reference them so that they can be located again. Each person in the group will write a 2-3 page summary (with references) of the information they have found and how it relates to 3 general study questions about terrestrial change listed above. Each student will submit this summary to their group for consideration.
Once all the data have been collected, each group should discuss the strengths and weaknesses of their data source. What does it offer and what does it leave out? Do you have to get special permission to use the data? Do you need written consent to record an interview? Do you need special equipment to photocopy a map? Each group will write a 1-2 page working paper on the biases of their data sources that should be made available to all groups.
Finally, each group prepares samples of their findings in a form that
can be used in a museum exhibit or poster session (i.e., photographs, photocopies
of newspaper accounts, excerpts from oral histories, copies of hand-written
diary accounts, copies of maps). Investigate the possibility of displaying
this exhibit in a public location within the community, the University,
or within the department.