Introduction to Systems,

Questions and Field

Investigations

AFWA Connecting Students, STEM and

Standards through Field Investigations,

PBLM and Systems Thinking

Series

Pages referred to on the following slides

can be found in the Field Investigations:

Using Outdoor Environments to Foster

Student Learning of Scientific Processes

Guide.

http://www.fishwildlife.org/files/ConEd-

Field-Investigations-Guide.pdf

Please have this guide on hand either

digitally or in print as you go through this

presentation.

What is a System?

Write down your definition of system on a

scratch piece of paper.

Systems Definitions

• An assemblage of inter-related parts or conditions through which matter, energy and information flow. (WA EALR’s)

• An organized group of related objects or components that form a whole. (NRC)

• A collection of things and processes that interact to perform some function. The scientific idea of a system implies detailed attention to inputs and outputs and interactions among system components. (AAAS)

(Field Investigation Guide, pg 1 and pg 77)

Systems Definition

• What other systems

exist?

– Economies

– Society

– Human

Environmental

Impacts

– An weather event

Engaging your Students in

Understanding Systems

For instance ask your students to draw

and label a local system and answer...

“What questions do I have about this

system?”

Benefits from Engaging your

Students in Understanding

Systems

• Not just describing a

horned toad, but

looking at where they

live, what they eat,

what eat’s them, how a

farmer impacts them,

and how a farmer is

impacted by them

paints a clearer picture.

• What other questions

can you think to add to

the list above?

Parts of a Local Forest System

Deciduous Tree

Coniferous Tree

Ferns

Moss

Bare Soil

Tree stump

Air

Parts of an Urban Ecosystem

Tree (conifer)

Bush

Sidewalk Bare Ground

Car

Building Air

Decaying leaves

Tree (deciduous)

Parts of a Local Schoolyard

System

Weeds

Gravel path

Wood chip path

Grass

Bare Soil

Deciduous Shrubs

Coniferous Tree

Systems Questions

• We want to ask students systems questions:

– Function of parts

– Energy forms and transfers

– Roles of parts in ecosystem

– Interconnections in ecosystem

– Lifecycles

– Adaptations

– Inputs and outputs

– Subsystems

Systems Questions

Why is Systems Understanding

Important?

• Content

background

(systems

understanding) is

crucial to asking

good questions.

• Good questions

are integral for a

successful field

investigation.

From Systems to

Field Investigations

Now let’s take the time to look at what

the Field Investigation process entails.

Field Investigation Process (pg. 3-4)

• Good Questions

Three types of Investigative Questions

• Hypothesis/Prediction

• Materials

• Procedures

• Collect, Organize and Analyze Data

• Conclusion

• Discussion

Types of Questions

• Essential Questions

• Investigative Questions

• Why? Questions

• Book – Researchable Questions

Types of Questions

• Essential Questions

• Investigative Questions

• Why? Questions

• Book – Researchable Questions

Our

Focus

Essential Questions

• Big picture questions

• Cannot be answered with one

investigation

• Connect various investigations

Essential Questions

“How healthy is

my stream?”

Investigative Questions

• Descriptive

• Comparative

• Correlative

Read the definitions on page 11 in the

Field Investigations guide.

Descriptive Questions (pg. 11)

1. How many ___ are there in a given area?

2. How frequently does ___ happen in a given period?

3. What is the (temp., speed, height, mass density, force, pH, etc.) of ___?

4. When does ___ happen during the year? (flowering, fruit, babies born,

etc)

5. Where does ___ occur over time? (What is an animal’s range?)

Descriptive Question

When Lewis and Clark were on their

expedition they were conducting a

descriptive investigation.

Their question: “What flora and fauna live in

this area?”

Field Investigation Process

Once we have completed a descriptive

investigation of our schoolyard or

natural area identifying the animals,

plants, and even the decomposers

that live there, we are then prepared

to conduct a comparative

investigation.

Comparative Questions (pg. 11)

1. Is there a difference in ____ between group (or condition) A

and group B?

2. Is there a difference in ___ between or among different

locations?

3. Is there a difference in ___ at different times (seasons)?

Comparative Question

Darwin’s finches are an example

of a comparative study.

“What are the differences in beaks among

finches on the Galapagos islands?”

http://www.biology-

online.org/2/11_natural_selection.htm

Correlative Questions (pg. 11)

1. What is the relationship between

variable #1 and variable #2?

2. Does ___ go up when ___ goes down?

3. How does ___ change as ___

changes?

Correlative Examples

1. What is the relationship between variable

#1 and variable #2?

– Such as between algae populations and the

birthrate of small mouth bass

2. Does ___ go up when ___ goes down?

– Such as temperature, pH, water levels, salinity

WHEN salmon #’s, # of anglers, # species of

trees

3. How does ___ change as ___ changes?

– Such as barometric pressure, viscosity, shadow

length AS precipitation, temperature, time

Correlative Question

Examples

1. Do animal tracks increase with greater forest

canopy cover?

2. Does the salmon population go down when

dissolved oxygen levels go up?

Comparative vs. Correlative

There is a fine line between these two investigation questions because

sometimes it seems that you are collecting the same data.

Here is how they are different:

Comparative – only collecting one set of data. Example Question:

Does the average height of same-aged Douglas Fir trees differ at

100 feet, 500 feet or 1000 feet above sea level?

– Students are comparing the height of trees at different

predetermined elevations.

– Data collected = height of trees

Correlative – actually collecting two sets of data. Example Question:

How does the average height of same-aged Douglas Fir trees

change as elevation increases?

–Students are looking for a correlation between height and elevation.

–Data collected = height of trees AND elevation.

Activity:

Investigation Questions for Sorting

• After reading these instructions, press ESC to exit this

presentation and return to the main Moodle site.

• Download Field Investigation Questions for Sorting

document and determine the type of investigation for each

question: descriptive, comparative or correlative.

• Check your answers using the Field Investigation Questions

for Sorting - Answer Key (also on the main Moodle site).

• Then, re-open the Introduction to Systems, Questions and

Field Investigations PowerPoint, return to this slide and

continue with the presentation.

A Sample Temperature Investigation:

Webinar

• Click on the link

below and the

archived webinar

page will open in

your browser:

http://www.eeweek.

org/webinars/field_

investigations

Then… Click Here and Watch

Minutes 22:47 to

39:00

Now What?

Continue through the Field Investigations section so you will be

ready to give it a try!

And…as a bonus:

Studies show that kids who

learn outside learn more, and

achieve higher grades!

Have fun and encourage kids

to think outside the

classroom!

Page 42 in the guide explains thoroughly how

to use your student’s questions to build a

field investigation.