Planning

Each outcome in VCE Environmental Science draws on a set of key science skills listed on pages 7–9 of the study design. The development, demonstration and application of the key science skills must be integrated into a teaching and assessment program and applied in a variety of contexts including practical work. A number of approaches to teaching and learning can support the development, demonstration and application of key science skills, including a focus on inquiry where students pose questions, explore scientific ideas, draw evidence-based conclusions and propose solutions to problems. An appropriate balance of theoretical and practical activities should be included in teaching and assessment programs.

Students should be expected to demonstrate progressively higher skill levels across Units 1–4. Teachers are encouraged to map the specific teaching and assessment of the Units 1–4 Environmental Science skills across all units, ensuring that all key science skills are covered in the delivery of a program of study and that skills are covered at progressively higher levels. Making explicit to students when and how they are developing each of the Units 1–4 Environmental Science skills can also facilitate student-directed learning and encourage students to self-monitor their successful achievement of each skill.

Examples of teaching and learning activities that include the development, demonstration and application of key science skills integrated into key knowledge has been provided in the Teaching and Learning activities and in the Sample teaching plans.

VCE Environmental Science

VCE Environmental Science involves learning technical language and understanding data representations that describe complex processes and the relationships between Earth systems over time.

Information sources related to environmental science use a range of representations such as diagrams, tables, graphs, photographs, video sequences, simulations and text to describe environmental science concepts and phenomena. Teachers are encouraged to support student learning of this multi-modal language by unpacking how each representation works in using multi-literacies (text and images) to develop explanations of these concepts and phenomena.

Strategies for supporting students’ development of literacy in science include:

• providing students with opportunities to read, view, write, speak and listen to a wide range of texts and media to source and compare information, including traditional textbooks and online journals in addition to news websites and blogs, videos and social media channels
• students generating representations and explanations that illustrate student thinking in ways that allow the teacher to clarify and provide feedback
• teachers guiding and collaborating with students to construct different scientific explanations, illustrations and data representations, enabling students to compare and evaluate information from different sources to understand how ideas can be represented in different ways and to distinguish between scientific and non-scientific ideas.

Scientific literacy

Scientific literacy refers to peoples’ understanding of scientific concepts, phenomena and processes, and their ability to apply this knowledge to new and, at times, non-scientific situations (PISA, 2018). This involves students:

• being curious and asking, investigating or determining answers to questions generated from their observations about everyday experiences
• describing, explaining, hypothesising and making predictions about scientific phenomena
• critically evaluating the quality of scientific information and data on the basis of its source and the methods used to generate it
• identifying scientific issues underlying local, national and global issues and decisions, and expressing their own views that are based on scientific and technological understanding
• understanding and evaluating articles about science in the public domain and discussing the validity of the conclusions
• proposing arguments based on evidence and drawing valid conclusions from data.

Strategies for supporting students’ development of scientific literacy include:

• students working collaboratively and ethically in practical activities and discussing observations and results
• students participating respectfully in group discussions and debates
• teachers continually questioning and inquiring, encouraging students to make observations, to question the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of science-related phenomena, and trying to make sense of them using their knowledge and research.

Teachers are advised to provide students with learning opportunities that allow them to critically evaluate the stories, claims, discoveries and inventions about environmental science they hear and read in the media and to examine the relevance of science in their everyday lives. New and innovative contemporary research and ideas have been infused throughout the Teaching and Learning Activities.

VCE Environmental Science may be delivered through local as well as national and global case studies and examples that illustrate how environmental issues and challenges are addressed. This contextual approach to teaching environmental science concepts applies across all Units 1–4 as a basis for exploring the key knowledge and developing the key science skills in VCE Environmental Science. Inclusion of localised, contemporary environmental science case studies and the facilitation of interactions with scientists and their scientific research allows students to appreciate the values and ethics of becoming a scientist and may lead them to consider possible careers in the many practices of environmental science.

Sources of information

Although original environmental science research reports are accessible, many require subscription, and most are written for a research audience. For the purposes of VCE Environmental Science, teachers and students may access reports, videos and summaries of contemporary environmental science research and expert commentary through popular science publications (for example, Cosmos, The Scientist, Nature and Scientific American) and online science media outlets where areas of interest can be filtered (for example, Australian Science, ScienceAlert and Science Daily). A range of other science organisations, such as ABC Science, CSIRO and Museums Victoria, also provide access to contemporary scientific research via email subscription.

Other sources of information include:

• Current environmental science research and collaborative community-based projects can be accessed through the Internet and are often reported in the media, particularly in the local press where updates on local government initiatives and management projects are published.
• Search for ‘environmental organisations Australia’ and scroll through the list of organisations to select those of relevance to your teaching and assessment program.
• Contact local environmental groups for information and data related to local issues; for example, Landcare Australia identifies local groups by entering a postcode.
• Citizen science programs are available all over Victoria. Search for ‘citizen science, Victoria’ to locate opportunities available, noting that some opportunities involve interstate collaboration. Organisations such as Environment Protection Authority Victoria and the Australian Citizen Science Association include multiple programs suitable for VCE Environmental Science students across Units 1–4.
• Regular media sources, such as podcasts and webinars, enable students to communicate with environmental scientists, enabling students to see the passion and skills scientists have for their field / research. Scientists may discuss the practical challenges and solutions (if available) and the potential of their research or project findings.

Adapting case studies and contemporary scientific research for learning and assessment

Teachers are encouraged to create and share the case studies and practical activities they develop as part of their teaching and assessment programs.

Environmental science case studies and contemporary research findings and innovations can be used in a variety of ways. Students can read and review the purpose, design, findings and interpretations of the case study or research. Case studies, media reports or research communications provide adequate details for this to occur. Academic research articles can be sourced online and the abstract, findings and conclusions are often suitable for student interpretation.

Teachers should plan carefully when accessing case studies and contemporary scientific research for classroom use.

• Review the case study, article or information source: check the science, check the suitability for students, check the readability for students, and check the availability (how will this medium be shared with students?). In many cases, teachers may need to edit the case study or article to make the readability and length manageable for students.
• Decide how to use the article: as a role play prompt (for example, to explore stakeholder positions in an environmental management proposal); as an example that illustrates investigation design; as text that requires students to analyse and evaluate research findings; as a comparison with known information (for example, a new fieldwork technique or an alternative environmental management solution to a problem already explored by students); or as secondary data for analysis and interpretation.
• Guide students to review media communications, checking bias and authenticity while learning how to reference and acknowledge sources.

Teachers may adapt research scenarios and reports to create assessment tasks (see Suggested approaches to assessment tasks); for example, case study analysis and evaluation, application of Earth systems thinking, data analysis, literature review or explanation of a designed solution to an environmental issue or challenge. If assessment tasks are developed collaboratively between schools, then schools must modify the task sufficiently so that the task is unique to each school and each student cohort in a single year, in order to minimise authentication risks. This may be achieved by, for example:

• selecting different aspects of a case study, or selecting and adapting different elements of an information source, as a basis for the stimulus materials used for the assessment task
• altering the type of assessment task generated from the stimulus material; for example, considering whether structured questions, a flowchart, an oral presentation or a sequence of PowerPoint slides may be appropriate for assessing relevant key knowledge and key science skills.

Problem-based learning

A problem-based learning approach is conducive to linking various scientific concepts and skills to examine science-based issues in society. This approach focuses on open-ended questions or tasks, provides authentic contexts for exploring environmental science ideas, emphasises student independence and inquiry, and builds capabilities including critical and creative thinking, ethical understanding, and individual and collaborative scientific endeavour.

Scenarios can be developed from actual case studies reported in scientific journals, from local scenarios and issues, or from a fictional case study or scenario. A problem-based learning approach can also be used to develop specific key science skills. The key science skills selected should link to relevant environmental science content.

The following steps are useful when using a problem-based learning approach:

Step 1: Define the question / scenario / problem carefully: what are you trying to find out?

Step 2: Refine the question / explore possible options: use group or class brainstorming to generate ideas.

Step 3: Plan the actual investigation / narrow your choices: this may require group or class consensus.

Step 4: Test ideas and obtain further information: use experiments to generate primary data or use a literature review to collate relevant secondary data.

Step 5: Write a conclusion that draws upon discussions / research / experiments.

Problem-based scenarios do not necessarily have a single solution. Class problem-based learning can be used to generate different questions for students to investigate, particularly for experimental investigations.

Examples of two problem-based learning approaches as an inclusion in a teaching and learning program are available at: Examples of problem-based learning approaches in VCE Environmental Science. The first example relates to examining science-based issues in society and supports students in developing their problem-solving skills in responding to the issue of the effects of loud music on a threatened bird species and on human hearing. The second example shows how the key science skill of developing a hypothesis can be structured through addressing the question, ‘Do fertilisers improve soil?’. The Unit 3 Teaching and Learning Activities also include a problem-based learning activity.

Practical work is a central component of learning and assessment in each unit. It includes a range of activities and is also used for a range of purposes, for example:

• developing observational skills
• introducing and / or consolidating a concept or idea to help students in the process of knowledge construction
• developing practical, manipulative laboratory skills and fieldwork skills
• developing science inquiry skills to enable students to construct evidence-based arguments
• developing understanding and experience of the nature of science and how scientists work.

Practical activities play an important role in developing 21st-century transferrable skills and capabilities, with post-secondary educational institutions and future employers looking for critical thinkers who can problem-solve. Practical activities may also be used to develop assessment tasks such as the production of a scientific report or poster based on logbook records, reflective annotations from a logbook of practical activities and the analysis of data / results including appropriate graphical representations and formulation of generalisations and conclusions.

A ‘practical activity’ refers to any teaching and learning activity which at some point involves students observing or manipulating the objects and materials they are exploring. The observation or manipulation of objects might take place in a school laboratory but could also occur in out-of-school settings, such as the student’s home or in the field. Practical activities are not limited to experiments, as these often relate to the testing of a prior hypothesis. While some practical work takes this form, other examples do not. The methodologies listed on pages 10 and 11 of the VCE Environmental Science Study Design include those that provide opportunities for a range of practical activities to be undertaken across Units 1–4, specifically: classification and identification; controlled experiments; correlational studies; fieldwork; modelling; product, process or system development; and simulations.

The Environmental Science study design does not specify the methodologies, methods or materials required to complete practical activities since each school has a unique resourcing capacity. In addition, different methodologies may be better suited to the key knowledge and relevant key science skills in different areas of study. Teachers are advised to use the flexibility afforded in the study design to decide when students will develop, apply and demonstrate their understanding of each of the scientific investigation methodologies across Units 1–4.

Simulations, remote experiments and virtual experiments may be used as the basis for experiments where physical resources are limited (for example, equipment, facilities or access to appropriate sites). Students may also be provided with sample experimental data when physical resources are not available, so that they may represent the data in chart and / or graph form, analyse the results and report their conclusions.

As a guide, teachers should ensure that students undertake at least one practical activity for each sub-heading of key knowledge in each area of study.

Fieldwork provides opportunities outside the laboratory for students to learn important skills, including research design, data generation and recording, survey techniques, animal observation, trapping and handling, measuring environmental variables, habitat assessment and the use of various equipment and instruments. Interviews and questionnaires are also relevant to Environmental Science as fieldwork, particularly in gauging stakeholder perspectives about different environmental issues and management strategies. Students gain hands-on and real-world experiences through fieldwork, and develop knowledge and skills that prepare them for future work pathways.

Fieldwork can be undertaken in a range of contexts applicable to the study of Earth’s four systems and their interactions. Schools with limited access to natural ecosystems could use sections of gardens, particularly soil and leaf litter or artificial aquatic ecosystems in aquaria. However, wherever possible, investigations of such ecosystems should be supported by fieldwork in local natural ecosystems such as the local stream, remnant vegetation or parklands. If using local or state parks, regulations regarding activities and the collection of organisms need to be checked and followed. Activities should be planned to create minimal impact on the ecosystem and/or environment under investigation. Alternatives to the collection of biotic and abiotic materials, for example scientific drawings, photography, digital imaging and video capture, should be considered by schools.

Investigations related to case studies may involve students visiting commercial or industrial sites. All health and safety regulations must be followed, and teachers are advised to contact sites prior to arrival to ascertain possible risks and to review risk management procedures.

Many resources for fieldwork techniques can be accessed via the Internet. The GLOBE Teacher’s guide provides detailed, step-by-step data collection procedures for an extensive range of topics. It also provides useful alternatives to expensive fieldwork equipment.

Fieldwork techniques in VCE Environmental Science

A variety of data generation and collection techniques relevant to fieldwork in VCE Environmental Science should be undertaken. Examples of five fieldwork techniques that are applicable to VCE Environmental Science are available at: Examples of fieldwork techniques in VCE Environmental Science.

General guidelines for fieldwork techniques

• The roles and importance in science of careful observation and recording, and ethical reporting, should be emphasised in all fieldwork.
• While teachers may select a range of sampling techniques in fieldwork, the study design has specified the use of grids, quadrats, transects and mark-recapture.
• In sampling, only small sample amounts (for example, a few grams or a few millilitres) are collected or small sample areas (for example a square metre) are surveyed from often very large areas; samples collected and areas surveyed should represent the whole area as much as is practical. Careful consideration should be given to where and when the samples will be collected; the number of samples that will be required; how the samples will be collected; and how the samples will be stored during transportation and over the time that they will be analysed.
• Field sketches or photographs can be used to provide information about the context of a study site (as a visual description of the site), or to indicate the location of sample sites or transects (in preparing to investigate the physical or chemical properties of air, soil or water samples) or to use in comparing a site with historical photographs or drawings of the site (when investigating environmental change over time).
• Questionnaires can be structured in a way that makes the data readily presented in graphical form – typically bar charts or column graphs – whereas the use of open-ended questions in interviews enables more detail to be elicited.
• Students should be respectful of others’ views and should consider the sensitivity of some topics prior to using questionnaires or conducting interviews. Ethical practices in science include that any research involving human subjects, including questionnaires and interviews, may be conducted only with the informed consent of the subjects, even if this condition limits some kinds of potentially important research or influences the results. Students are therefore advised to inform possible participants as to the nature of the questions that will be asked, seek their permission to continue with the questionnaire or interview, and advise participants that they may withdraw at any time.

The undertaking of fieldwork will be affected by availability of resources, physical conditions and accessibility of local ecosystems and weather conditions. It is important to consider these factors when sequencing learning activities.

There are many definitions of ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’. Students will consider these in some detail in Unit 3 Area of Study 2 as they examine an environmental management case study in depth. Across all Units 1–4, concepts related to sustainability and sustainable development will be explored and discussed by students in terms of the six sustainability principles outlined on page 18 of the study design: conservation of biodiversity and ecological integrity; efficiency of resource use; intergenerational equity; intragenerational equity; precautionary principle; and user pays principle. A systems thinking approach and the consideration of stakeholder values, knowledge and priorities (explained on pages 18–19 of the study design) are also integral to evaluating the sustainability of environment-related proposals and decisions. Students are required to apply these terms when identifying and evaluating environmental science scenarios in both familiar and unfamiliar contexts.

Sustainability

Sustainability can be considered as a long-term goal (for example, a more sustainable world) and involves the consideration of ecological, socio-cultural and economic factors in the pursuit of an improved quality of life. It is often focused on transforming existing systems and processes to create sustainability, with no assumption that growth is required.

• Ecological factors influence our ability to live within the means of our natural resources.
• Socio-cultural factors influence the ability of social systems, such as societies and communities, to achieve wellbeing through application of ethical practices and equity in access to resources.
• Economic factors influence the ability of a country or a business organisation to produce operational profits.

These three factors are sometimes referred to as the ‘pillars of sustainability’. Interactions between these three factors, or pillars, can be illustrated by considering that a prosperous society (economic factors) relies on a healthy environment (ecological factors) to equitably provide food and resources, safe drinking water and clean air for its citizens (socio-cultural factors).

The relationship between sustainable development and sustainable development goals

Sustainable development refers to the many processes, pathways and actions required to achieve sustainability (for example, sustainable agriculture, forestry and fishing practices, efficient use of natural resources, responsible government and law making, transfer of knowledge and skills from research into practice and public education). It is focused on creating a sustainable outcome for humans, and is often seen as a guide to behaviour, with economic growth being essential to attaining the goals.

The United Nations has identified 17 sustainable development goals with 169 targets as a way to implement its 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Teachers can use these to illustrate sustainable development aims and actions. For VCE Environmental Science, the goals relating to clean water and sanitation (Goal 6), affordable and clean energy (Goal 7), industry, innovation and infrastructure (Goal 9), sustainable cities and communities (Goal 11), responsible consumption and production (Goal 12), climate action (Goal 13), life below water (Goal 14) and life on land (Goal 15) provide relevant points for discussion, particularly in considering future actions for achieving sustainability.

The relationship between sustainable development and sustainability principles

To link the six sustainability principles to sustainability and sustainable development, teachers may ask questions such as, ‘How can our school environment be improved to achieve inter-generational equity?’ and ‘What actions would be needed to reduce our current dependence on fossil fuels, and how do they relate to each of the six sustainability principles?’. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals may also be used to explore sustainable development; for example, Target 13.1 states ‘Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries’. Teachers may ask questions such as ‘Which of the six sustainability principles are associated with adaptive responses to climate-related natural disasters?’ and ‘How does the precautionary principle apply in proposed actions related to adapting to climate-related hazards: are some actions riskier than others in terms of environmental effects?’

Contestability of sustainability and sustainable development definitions

The concept of sustainable development was described by the 1987 Brundtland Commission Report as ‘development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’. While the key difference between these terms is that sustainable development includes outcomes related to economic growth, teachers can discuss the contestability of the definitions of both ‘sustainable’ and ‘sustainable development’ with students by asking questions such as:

• Is there a conflict between the terms sustainable and development?
• What should be sustained in sustainable development: the economy, the environment or human welfare?
• What are the uncertainties associated with the Brundtland definition of sustainable development?
• How are needs determined?
• What should be developed?
• Is development the same as growth?
• Whose needs and whose development should be promoted?
• Is the level of need the same across different individuals and groups in society?
• Does development refer to environmental growth (for example, improved air quality or reforestation), economic growth (for example, increased gross national product) or growth in human welfare (for example, health, working conditions and income distribution)?
• Is sustainability solely an anthropocentric view of the future?
• In what ways would people with different value systems (anthropocentric, biocentric, ecocentric, technocentric) have different interpretations of the definitions and applications of sustainability and sustainable development?
• Why might sustainability or sustainable development be difficult to achieve?
• How can the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals be used to explain the difference between sustainability and sustainable development?
• What are we ultimately wanting to sustain?
• What ethical values are needed for a sustainable future?

To collaborate respectfully and meaningfully with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, local protocols and agreements are required to determine how Koorie knowledge and data can be accessed, shared and used. The study design provides guidance and web links to relevant resources related to protocols. The Traditional Owners for any location in Victoria can be identified see map and Australian locations see map.

Teachers are encouraged to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and perspectives in the design and delivery of teaching and learning programs related to VCE Environmental Science. VAEAI is the peak is the peak Koorie community organisation for education and training in Victoria. VAEAI has produced the Protocols for Koorie Education in Victorian schools, to support teachers and students to learn about local, regional, state and national and international Indigenous perspectives.

The VCAA has prepared on-demand video recordings for VCE teachers and leaders as part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Perspectives in the VCE webinar program held in 2023 which was presented with the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Inc. (VAEAI) and the Department of Education (DE) Koorie Outcomes Division.

Lisa Daly from Cultural Minds provides some useful advice when considering how to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in VCE Environmental Science:

VAEAI Cultural Understanding and Safety Training (CUST) is a useful professional learning activity for teachers to undertake when considering how they may best include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in VCE Environmental Science.

Other resources when considering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives:

• Aboriginal Victoria
• Culture Victoria
• Museums Victoria
• Australian National Herbarium
• Department of Environment, Water, Land and Planning (DEWLP) Aboriginal Water Program
• Forest Fire Management Victoria.

There will also be Aboriginal and Torres Straits knowledge, culture and perspectives that are appropriate to include and consider from other states in terms of a national Australian context, or other Indigenous perspectives from other countries that are appropriate from an international context.

Incorporating Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives into teaching and learning programs in VCE Environmental Science can be achieved by accessing the outcomes of current and past collaborations related to environmental management projects that involve partnerships that bring scientists together with Traditional Owners, land managers, policy makers, and a range of government and non-government organisations. For example, the National Environmental Science Program publishes accessible reports of project outcomes.

Examples of national collaborative projects involving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples that link to relevant key knowledge and key science skills in Units 1–4 Environmental Science can be found at Collaborative environmental science projects including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Further examples can be found in the Teaching and Learning Activities.

The overarching questions in Units 1 and 2, and the scope of the key knowledge that underpins the Outcomes, enable teachers to design teaching and assessment programs that are tailored to meet the needs of their cohort, and the contexts in which their schools are placed and in which students are learning, including resources. These programs must be aligned to the VCE Environmental Science Study Design and comply with the VCE assessment principles.

Examples of contexts relevant to Unit 1 can be found at Unit 1 Environmental Science learning context examples.

Examples of contexts relevant to Unit 2 can be found at Unit 2 Environmental Science learning context examples.

When developing teaching and learning programs, teachers must consider:

• duty of care in relation to health and safety of students in practical work, investigations and excursions, including in the laboratory and when undertaking fieldwork
• legislative compliance (for example, chemical storage and disposal, and copyright)
• sensitivity to cultural differences and personal beliefs (for example, discussions related to personal use of natural resources)
• adherence to community standards and ethical guidelines (for example, environmental responsibility when undertaking fieldwork including following national park regulations)
• respect for persons and differences in opinions; sensitivity to student views on the use of living things in research (for example, providing alternatives to the use of bioassays and bioindicators in pollution investigations).

For more details regarding legislation and compliance, refer to page 5 of the VCE Environmental Science Study Design 2022–2026.

The VCE Environmental Science study provides students with the opportunity to engage in a range of learning activities. In addition to demonstrating their understanding and mastery of the content and skills specific to the study, students may also develop employability skills through their learning activities.

The nationally agreed employability skills* are: Communication; Planning and organising; Teamwork; Problem solving; Self-management; Initiative and enterprise; Technology; and Learning.

The table links those facets that may be understood and applied in a school or non-employment related setting to the types of assessment undertaken across Units 3 and 4 of the VCE Environmental Science study design.

*The employability skills are derived from the Employability Skills Framework (Employability Skills for the Future, 2002), developed by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Business Council of Australia, and published by the (former) Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training.

Curriculum framing questions in the study design

Scientific inquiry involves students asking or responding to a question by selecting an appropriate investigation methodology and developing a method to generate primary and/or secondary data, and then reporting findings in response to the question. It is an approach that enables students to discover and learn through their own or guided explorations in response to scientific questions.  The range of scientific investigation methodologies appropriate for VCE Environmental Science is listed on pages 10 and 11 of the study design.

The VCE Environmental ScienceStudy Design is structured as a series of curriculum-framing questions that reflect the inquiry nature of the discipline. These questions are open-ended to enable students to engage in critical and creative thinking about the environmental science concepts identified in the key knowledge and associated key science skills, and to encourage students to ask their own questions about what they are learning. In responding to these questions, students demonstrate their own conceptual links and the relevance of different concepts to practical applications.

Using a scientific inquiry approach enables students to:

• engage with science-based questions
• prioritise evidence in responding to questions
• formulate explanations from evidence
• connect explanations to scientific knowledge
• communicate and justify science-based explanations of concepts and phenomena.

Teachers are advised to use the flexibility provided by the structure of the study design in the choice of contexts (both local and global) and applications for enabling students to work scientifically and answer questions. Opportunities range from the entire class studying a particular context or application chosen by the teacher or agreed to by the class, through to students nominating their own choice of scenarios, research, case studies, fieldwork activities or ethical issues.

At the end of a unit or on completion of an outcome, students should be able to respond to the relevant curriculum framework questions. Teachers may consider using these as the basis for an assessment task.

Levels of student independence in scientific inquiry

Scientific inquiry can be scaffolded to support students in developing key science skills. The level of scaffolding selected will depend on factors such as students’ prior skills and the level of complexity of the investigation and / or the methodology and / or the method.

Five levels of scaffolding of scientific inquiry can be used:

• A confirmation / prescription inquiry involves students confirming a principle through an activity when the results are known in advance; students are provided with the question, method and results, and are required to confirm that the results are correct.
• A structured inquiry in which students investigate a teacher-presented question through a prescribed procedure; students generate an explanation supported by the evidence they have generated or collated.
• A guided inquiry where the teacher chooses the question for investigation; students work in one large group or several small groups to work with the teacher to decide how to proceed with the investigation. This type of inquiry facilitates the teaching of specific skills needed for future open-inquiry investigations. The solution to the guided inquiry should not be predictable.
• A coupled inquiry, which combines a guided inquiry investigation with an open inquiry investigation: the teacher chooses an initial question to investigate as a guided inquiry and students then build on the guided inquiry to develop an extension or linked investigation in a more student-centred open inquiry approach.
• An open inquiry, which most closely mirrors scientists' actual work and is a student-centred approach that begins with a student's question, followed by the student (or groups of students) designing and conducting an investigation or experiment and communicating results.

Investigations related to a particular topic may range from being a confirmation / prescription type inquiry through to an open inquiry, depending on student experience. Teachers may consider organising students into groups according to their level of experience so that targeted support can be provided to build students’ skills when undertaking and designing investigations.

The principles of the scientific method through fair testing and the design of controlled experiments are important in science but may not always enable students to understand scientific ideas or concepts, answer their questions or appreciate how scientists work and the nature of science. For VCE Environmental Science, nine different scientific investigation methodologies to generate primary and/or secondary data may be used and have been outlined on pages 10 and 11 of the study design.

Common to different scientific investigation methodologies are three key aspects that are central to the study design's inquiry focus:

• asking questions
• testing ideas
• using evidence.

Teachers should ensure that students are provided with opportunities to undertake each of the nine scientific investigation methodologies listed on pages 10 and 11 of the study design across Units 1–4 so that students can evaluate when and why it is appropriate to use some and not others. Students should select and justify a selected methodology, and then determine an appropriate method and/or technique that will be used, in response to an investigation question or issue. The choice of scientific investigation methodology will be determined by the question under investigation. There should be congruence between the question under investigation and the chosen methodology. The selected method and associated data generation and collection techniques should also be congruent with the chosen methodology.

Some methodologies may be more widely used in VCE Environmental Science than others, particularly case studies, controlled experiments, fieldwork, correlational studies and simulations, and will depend on the nature of the investigation.

For many investigation methodologies, an investigation question may not lend itself to having an accompanying hypothesis; in such cases students should work directly with their investigation questions.

Examples of teaching and learning activities that use different scientific methodologies have been provided in Examples of scientific methodologies applicable in VCE Environmental Science. Further examples for each unit and area of study can be found in the Teaching and Learning activities.

Some scientific practical investigations will be student-designed and / or adapted by students, depending on the outcome and the level of student experience in undertaking practical work. Teachers must approve all student practical investigations to be undertaken. Not all planned student investigations can proceed due to issues including safety, equipment availability, time constraints and / or management of large student numbers.

Due to the potential scope of scientific investigations, students must be practical and realistic when deciding on investigation topics. Teachers need to be equally pragmatic when counselling students about their choice of investigation topic and when guiding them in the formulation of the investigation question. Appropriate teacher intervention not only minimises risks but also serves as important feedback for students. Schools should have in place approval mechanisms, either through ethics committees or approval authorities within the school, to ensure that students undertake appropriate research.

Scientific investigation phases

Regardless of the scientific investigation methodology chosen, planning and conducting a scientific investigation involves six distinct but interrelated phases. The following diagram shows the relationships between each phase in designing and undertaking scientific investigations.

Image description

While the maintenance of a logbook is common scientific practice in recording primary data, the way that logbooks are used for VCE Environmental Science purposes has been extended to include notetaking by students related to the collection of secondary data as well as supporting teachers to authenticate and assess student work.

The presentation format of the logbook is a school decision, and no specific format is prescribed. Its purposes may include:

• providing a basis for further learning; for example, contributing to class discussions about demonstrations, activities or practical work
• reporting on an experiment or activity
• responding to questions in a practical worksheet or problem-solving exercise
• writing up an experiment as a formal report or as the basis of a scientific poster.

Data contained within a student’s logbook may be qualitative and / or quantitative and may include the results of guided activities or investigations; planning notes for experiments; results of student-designed activities or investigations; personal reflections made during or at the conclusion of demonstrations, activities or investigations; simple observations made in short class activities; links to spreadsheet calculations and other student digital records and presentations; notes and electronic or other images taken on excursions; database extracts; web-based investigations and research, including online communications and results of simulations; surveys; interviews; and notes of any additional or supplementary work completed outside class.

The logbook may be maintained in hard copy or electronic format. For many schools, it may be easier to require that students maintain a hardcopy logbook to avoid falsification and / or alteration of results. All logbook entries must be dated and in chronological order. Investigation partners, expert advice and assistance and secondary data sources must be acknowledged and / or referenced in the logbook.

For Unit 4, Area of Study 3, the student’s logbook entries are assessed as well as their scientific poster.

For more information and advice regarding the assessment of Unit 4, Outcome 3 see Suggested approaches for developing assessment tasks.

Scientific posters are widely used in academia, research and in the general scientific community as a visual means of communicating the outcomes of scientific investigations. They are not designed to simply replicate a scientific report in that they provide a different means by which science information is communicated, particularly to peers and the school community. Teachers may elect to include the requirement for an oral presentation to accompany a scientific poster. The use of QR codes to link poster sections to a complete practical report or to sections of the logbook may be used by some schools but is not compulsory. If QR codes are used in the Unit 4 Area of Study 3 scientific poster, the words do not count as part of the 600-word limit.

Design principles for scientific posters

Key design principles for effective scientific poster communication for the purposes of VCE Environmental Science include:

• Logical sequencing and easy identification on the poster of the hypothesis or question, aim and conclusion and other key parts of the investigation.
• Inclusion of only the essential details for conveying what was done in the investigation and what was discovered (for example, only the key aspects of an experimental procedure should be outlined).
• Use of relevant visual aids (for example, tables, photographs, diagrams and graphs) to reduce the amount of text, thereby avoiding overcrowding of the poster.
• Use of font, font size and colours that will be easily read by all those viewing the poster (note that many people have difficulty reading in the colours of red and green).
• Careful editing of text – terminology and spelling should be checked; wording should be simplified; acronyms should be defined; and complexity should be reduced (for example, phrases or bullet points, rather than sentences, should be used). A test is that others with little or no background in the area under investigation should be able to understand the language and identify the key points of the investigation.
• Clear labelling of all images (for example, diagrams or photographs of the experimental set-up or results).
• Graphs drawn with clear, relevant scales, grids, labels and annotations.
• Editing of graphs derived directly from spreadsheet programs so that graphs do not have coloured backgrounds, grid lines, or boxes that distract from the poster information.
• Axis labels formatted in sentence case (Not in Title Case and NOT IN ALL CAPS).
• Calculations presented in a clear, non-repetitive manner (for example, one sample calculation can be shown and then the results of similar calculations can be displayed in a table); appropriate units must be shown.
• All references stated and appropriate acknowledgments provided.

Scientific poster sections

Scientific poster sections, specifically the communication statement reporting the key finding of the investigation as a one-sentence summary, title, introduction, methodology and methods, results, discussion, conclusions, references and acknowledgments, are mandated for the scientific poster that is constructed as part of the assessment for Unit 4 Outcome 3. Within the mandated sections, some tailoring of organisational elements is optional.

The centrally placed one-sentence statement of student investigation results in the scientific poster for Unit 4 Outcome 3 emphasises the importance of clear, succinct scientific communication to the wider community, and requires that students carefully consider why they had undertaken their selected investigation and how the major investigation finding can be reported. 

Scientific poster templates may be used provided that the mandated poster sections are included. The use of a template can help minimise many common communication faults by keeping column alignments logical, including mandated sub-headings that provide clear cues as to how readers should travel through poster elements, and maintaining sufficient 'white space' so that clutter is reduced.

There is no mandated VCAA style for the use of person or voice in writing a scientific poster, since the scientific community has not reached a consensus about which style it prefers. Increasingly, using first person (rather than third person) and active (rather than passive) voice is acceptable in scientific reports and posters, because arguably this style of writing conveys information more clearly and concisely.

However, this choice of person and voice brings two scientific values into conflict – objectivity versus clarity – which may account for the different viewpoints in the scientific community. Use of tense is dependent on the section of the report: when describing something that has already happened (for example, the investigation procedure) the past tense is used, as in 'The aim of the experiment was to...'; when describing something that still exists (for example, the report, theory and permanent equipment) the present tense is used, as in 'The purpose of this report is to...', 'The First Law of Thermodynamics states that:… ' and ‘Quadrats can be used to...'

The 600-word limit for the scientific poster requires that students carefully consider what should be included to ensure effective science communication. Teachers may assess some components of the investigation through logbook entries, particularly some of the background information, data manipulation and discussion of results. Poster title, student name / identification number, tables, graphs, flowcharts, figure captions, references and acknowledgements are not included in the poster word count.

Further consideration of the poster format in the VCE Environmental Science Study Design 2022–2026 can be found at: How to create a better research poster in less time (#betterposter Generation 1) - YouTube

Tabular presentation of data

• Each column of a table should be headed with the physical quantity and the appropriate unit; for example, time (seconds).
• The column headings of the table can then be directly transferred to the axes of a constructed graph.

Graphical representation of data

To explain the relationship between two or more variables investigated in an experiment, data should be presented in such a way as to make any patterns and trends more evident. Although tables are an effective means of recording data, they may not be the best way to show trends, patterns or relationships. Graphical representations can be used to more clearly show whether any trends, patterns or relationships exist. Conclusions drawn from data must be limited by, and not go beyond, the data available. 

The type of graphical representation used by students will depend upon the type of scientific investigation methodology and the type of variables investigated. Graphical representations in VCE Environmental Science provides further information including conventions for drawing graphs.

A great deal of information and data related to climate change can be found in the public domain. See Credible data sources

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations’ body for assessing the science related to climate change. Since the IPCC was established in 1988, there have been five Synthesis Reports.

The IPCC is currently in its Sixth Assessment Cycle during which Assessment reports of its three Working Groups, three Special Reports, a refinement to the Methodology Report and the Synthesis report will be produced.

• The Working Group 1 Summary for Policymakers report describes the observed and projected climate changes and is currently available on the website.
• The Working Group 2 report describes impacts, adaptation and vulnerability and will be published in March 2022.
• The Working Group 3 report focuses on mitigation of climate change and will be published in April 2022.
• The Synthesis report is the last of the Sixth Assessment Report products and will be published in October 2022.

The Synthesis report will inform the 2023 Global Stocktake by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The year 2023 is when countries will review progress towards achieving the Paris Agreement goals, including the goal of keeping global warming to well below 2 ^oC while endeavouring to limit it to 1.5 ^oC.

See IPCC reports

The IPCC reports are a good source of data for VCE Environmental Science and include content that is relevant across all Units 1–4, particularly Unit 4 Area of Study 1. Specific regional reports, including an Australasian region fact sheet and a set of FAQs that explain the currently understood science behind climate change observations provide information that is accessible to students.

Teachers should select appropriate graphs to support students in interpreting data and in considering how confidence and certainty in data is expressed. Levels of confidence can also be examined using statements in the reports such as:

Frequency of extreme fire weather days has increased, and the fire season has become longer since 1950 at many locations (medium confidence). The intensity, frequency and duration of fire weather events are projected to increase throughout Australia (high confidence) and New Zealand (medium confidence).

Teachers may also access past IPCC reports to compare reported levels of confidence in current data and likelihoods of future events occurring.

Confidence and certainty in climate data

In IPCC reports, confidence is expressed qualitatively and indicates how certain we are that scientific findings are valid. The level of confidence is determined by the type, amount, quality and consistency of evidence. A ‘very high confidence’ rating means that there is at least a 9 in 10 chance of a finding being correct. Other qualitative descriptors related to level of confidence are shown in the table below.

The certainty of scientific findings is then described using likelihoods. Findings are assessed probabilistically using observations, modelling results or expert judgement. They are assigned a term from a scale ranging from exceptionally unlikely (less than 1% probable) to virtually certain (more than 99% probable).

IPCC findings provide authentic opportunities for teachers to discuss the concept of scientific uncertainty and the nature of evidence. Questions such as, ‘What circumstances would lead to scientists having insufficient data to determine level of confidence?’ and ‘Why isn’t a likelihood category of ‘certain’ corresponding to 100% probability included in IPCC’s likelihood terminology?’ may be used to explore uncertainty in measurement.

Mitigation and adaptation strategies to climate change

Teachers should note that the consideration of mitigation and adaptation strategies in relation to climate change is specified in Unit 4 Area of Study 1. If climate change is used as a context for exploring key knowledge in other units and areas of study in the study design, mitigation and adaptation strategies should also be examined so that students can consider solutions to the issue of climate change. Key knowledge points in the study design such as ‘the role of innovation and science in responding to challenges as a result of environmental change and disruption’ in Unit 1 Area of Study 2 provide opportunities to discuss predicted future climate change outcomes in a positive light. Teachers are also advised to select data from the IPCC reports that enable discussions of mitigation and adaptation strategies in real life contexts, enabling students to apply critical and creative thinking skills in suggesting actions, for example:

From a physical science perspective, limiting human-induced global warming to a specific level requires limiting cumulative CO2 emissions, reaching at least net zero CO2 emissions, along with strong reductions in other greenhouse gas emissions. Strong, rapid and sustained reductions in CH4 emissions would also limit the warming effect resulting from declining aerosol pollution and would improve air quality.

Source: IPAC Headline Statements