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Teaching Tips
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| | The following suggestions were provided by the Chief Reader for AP Environmental Science after the 2000 and 2001 AP Readings or taken from the Teacher's Guide -- AP Environmental Science.
- Use current events. On a regular basis, set aside a day for students to bring in and discuss current articles they find in newspapers and magazines. Discussions about these situations often lead to other topics.
- Use technology. Many of the videos and videodiscs currently available are excellent and inexpensive resources that can be used in the classroom. PBS Nova and The Living Planet are just two examples of video series with environmental science content.
- Go on field trips. You should of course inspect any location being considered for a field trip. Here are some suggestions:
- Electric power plant-coal burning or hydroelectric. Touring a nuclear power plant may not be possible because there is usually a minimum age requirement and group size limitation.
- Wastewater treatment plant. The students complain, but they really enjoy this tour and find it very interesting and informative.
- Stream or pond. Measure the dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, pH, alkalinity, and hardness. Be sure to observe and-where possible- obtain samples of organisms for further study in the laboratory.
- Give students problems that help them increase their facility with calculations. Students will be better able to tackle these problems if they are comfortable with scientific notation.
- Encourage students to explain technical terms when they use them in an answer. Just dropping terms without demonstrating an understanding of the term will not earn any credit.
- Give students more practice in marshaling good arguments in favor of, or against, a particular position on an environmental issue. Make sure your students understand that restating the question is a waste of time in a timed test, and doing so will never earn any points.
- Give students the experience of designing a laboratory or field experiment, making sure they understand the components of such an investigation. They should practice formulating hypotheses and deciding whether a particular experimental design will test a stated hypothesis.
- Give students practice in carefully reading questions and responding appropriately. When questions ask the student to describe, discuss, or explain, they should go beyond listing and identifying.
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