1. Science Instruction Exemplars Georgia Standards of Excellence
Dr. Juan-Carlos Aguilar
Science Program Manager
Georgia Department of Education

2. AGENDA Research Supporting the Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
Differences between the GPS and the GSE
The Three Dimensions of the GSE
Classroom Instruction: Gathering, Reasoning, and Communicating
A Phenomena based lesson
Questions and Answers

3. Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
Focus on explaining phenomena to construct scientific understandings of core ideas.
Expects instruction to be 3-Dimensional by using science and engineering practices to construct understandings of scientific core ideas and crosscutting concepts that are fundamental to all areas of science.
Build over time.
Explaining Phenomena & Solving Problems
“what scientists & engineers know”
“how scientists & engineers think”
Quotes from Peter A’Hearn
“what scientists & engineers do”

4. Research Supporting the Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
Research Supporting Science GPS
Research done during Science GPS
Research Supporting Science GSE
Core Ideas
GPS Content Standards
Science and Engineering Practices
GPS Habits of Mind Standards
GPS Nature of Science Standards
Crosscutting Concepts

5. What are the Science and Engineering Practices?

6. Science and Engineering Practices:
Asking Questions
Defining Problems
A basic practice of the scientist is the ability to formulate empirically answerable questions about phenomena to establish what is already known, and to determine what questions have yet to be satisfactory answered.
Engineering begins with a problem that needs to be solved, such as “How can we reduce the nation’s dependence on fossil fuels?” or “What can be done to reduce a particular disease?” or “How can we improve the fuel efficiency of automobiles?”

7. What are the Crosscutting Concepts?

16. Core Ideas Core ideas have a new role in science education.
Core ideas are used by students to make sense of phenomena.
Larger grain size that leads to utility across many phenomena.
Students should own their learning not just rent it from the teacher.

17. Major Changes to the Standards
Characteristics of science and nature of science standards have been embedded in the content standards.
Content was modified when appropriate to bring it up to date with current scientific knowledge.
Wording in the standards have been modified in some cases to reflect the following suggested changes:
increase of rigor
additional clarification
A few standards or elements were moved to a different grade level in response to survey data.
Included elements that addressed engineering practices (e.g. the engineer design process)
Use of “obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to” as a lead in to each standard.
Use of color coding to enhance clarity of connections between the standard and the supporting elements.

18. Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information to
From To
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information to
Students will
Understand
Be familiar with
Differentiate between
Analyze
Investigate
Demonstrate relations
Design and construct a device
Model
Plan and carry out investigations
Ask questions
Interpret data to make predictions
Construct explanations

19. Sixth Grade – Earth Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
S6E2. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the effects of the relative positions of the sun, Earth, and moon.
Develop and use a model to demonstrate the phases of the moon by showing the relative positions of the sun, Earth, and moon.
Construct an explanation of the alignment of the sun, Earth, and moon during solar and lunar eclipses.
c. Analyze and interpret data to relate the tilt of the Earth to the distribution of sunlight throughout the year and its effect on seasons.

20. Seventh Grade -Life Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
S7L3. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to explain how organisms reproduce either sexually or asexually and transfer genetic information to determine the traits of their offspring.
Construct an explanation supported with scientific evidence of the role of genes and chromosomes in the process of inheriting a specific trait.
b. Develop and use a model to describe how asexual reproduction can result in offspring with identical genetic information while sexual reproduction results in genetic variation.
(Clarification statement: Models could include, but are not limited to, the use of monohybrid Punnett squares to demonstrate the heritability of genes and the resulting genetic variation, identification of heterozygous and homozygous, and comparison of genotype vs. phenotype.)
c. Ask questions to gather and synthesize information about the ways humans influence the inheritance of desired traits in organisms through selective breeding.
(Clarification statement: The element is specifically in reference to artificial selection and the ways in which it is fundamentally different than natural selection.)

21. Eighth Grade -Physical Science Georgia Standards of Excellence
S8P2. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the law of conservation of energy to develop arguments that energy can transform from one form to another within a system.
Analyze and interpret data to create graphical displays that illustrate the relationships of kinetic energy to mass and speed and potential energy to mass and height of an object.
Plan and carry out an investigation to explain the transformation between kinetic and potential energy within a system (e.g., roller coasters, pendulums, rubber bands, etc.).
Construct an explanation about energy transformations within a system [e.g., lighting a match (light to heat), turning on a light (electrical to light)].
d. Plan and carry out investigations on the effects of heat transfer on molecular motion as it relates to the collision of atoms (conduction), through space (radiation), or in currents in a liquid or a gas (convection).

22. Georgia Standards of Excellence Biology
SB4. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to illustrate the organization of interacting systems within single-celled and multi-celled organisms.
Construct an argument supported by scientific information to explain patterns in structures and function among clades of organisms, including the origin of eukaryotes by endosymbiosis. Clades should include archaea, bacteria, eukaryotes, fungi, plants, and animals.
(Clarification statement: This is reflective of 21st century classification schemes and nested hierarchy of clades and is intended to develop a foundation for comparing major groups of organisms. The term 'protist' is useful in describing those eukaryotes that are not within the animal, fungal or plant clades but the term does not describe a well-defined clade or a natural taxonomic group.
Analyze and interpret data to develop models (i.e., cladograms and phylogenetic trees) based on patterns of common ancestry and the theory of evolution to determine relationships among major groups of organisms.
Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence to compare and contrast the characteristics of viruses and organisms.

23. Science Georgia Performance of Excellence Physical Science
SPS4. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to explain the changes in nuclear structure as a result of fission, fusion and radioactive decay.
Develop a model that illustrates how the nucleus changes as a result of fission and fusion.
Use mathematics and computational thinking to explain the process of half-life as it relates to radioactive decay.
(Clarification statement: Limited to calculations that include whole half-lives.)
Construct arguments based on evidence about the applications, benefits, and problems of nuclear energy as an alternative energy source.

26. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Thunder and Lightning
Write your observations of the phenomena
What questions would you need to ask to construct an explanation of the phenomena observed?

27. Structure for Student Thinking
The cause of the _______ was ________. Evidence to support my explanation is ___________.
The changes in the system are caused by ___________. Evidence to support my explanation is _________.
The Phenomenon is happening in a system that includes ____________ and changes in the system are caused by _________________. Evidence to support this assertion includes _________.
Changes in the system are caused by the flow of energy from the surroundings (another system) into, out of, or within the defined system. Evidence to support this assertion includes _________.

28. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Thunder and Lightning
Consider how (mechanism) this happens.
Consider the practices you might engage to make sense of this phenomenon.
Consider the crosscutting concepts you might address while studying this phenomenon.
Consider the core ideas you might encounter by studying this phenomenon.

29. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Thunder and Lightning
Practices (asking questions, constructing explanations supported by evidence, developing arguments supported by evidence)
Crosscutting concepts (systems, matter and energy, cause and effect)
Core ideas (matter is made of particles, energy transfers, energy is involved when matter changes states, matter cycles and flow of energy among living and nonliving parts of on ecosystem)

30. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Thunder and Lightning
Perhaps the thinking may follow a path such as:
Ask Questions:
Why we see the lightning before hearing the thunder?
What causes the lightning?
What causes the thunder?
Why is lightning jagged and 'zig-zagged' in shape?
What are the conditions needed for lightning to happen?
Would lightning happen when there are no clouds around?

31. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Lightning and Thunder
Perhaps the thinking may follow a path such as:
Develop data using investigations (e.g., look at different images of lighting to identify patterns.)
Develop relationships between matter and energy in a system from Core Ideas

32. An Example of a Lesson Under the New Standards
Science Phenomena: Lightning and Thunder
Perhaps the thinking may follow a path such as:
Construct explanations and models supported by evidence (e.g., heat energy transfers from high to low temperatures, matter is conserved, matter changes state, water appears as droplets in the cold air, organisms give off water vapor.)
Communicate explanations using models and arguments.

33. The Phenomenon A lesson in Refraction
Students observe the straw inside the bottle. They notice that the section of the straw that is in the water looks larger than the section that it is above the water and the straw appears to be broken.

34. A Lesson Format {suggested}
Topic:
Title:
Georgia Standards of Excellence
Lesson Performance Expectations
Student Performance
Gathering Information
Reasoning
Communicating
Assessment of Student Learning
Science Essentials
Science Practices
Crosscutting Concepts
Core Ideas

35. A Lesson Format for Formative Assessment {suggested}
Stage – Clarify Intended Learning
Practice
Guiding Questions
Teacher Notes
Stage – Elicit Evidence of Learning
Student’s product suggestions
Stage – Interpret Evidence
Student Evidence of Proficiency
Other Possible Responses
Act on Evidence
Stage – Reflection on and Extension of Learning

36. Questions
Will the 8th grade GMAS test the students on their knowledge of the content or the skills they are acquiring under these standards? We understand the answer is probably "both" but if the GMAS continues to be a multiple choice test, teachers are under pressure (TKES) to tailor their instruction accordingly, even if they generally agree with the direction the GSE is taking. (It might be helpful to provide teachers with the types of questions their students might encounter on the GMAS; it would be similarly helpful for preparing the district-created pre and post tests required under TKES for 6th and 7th grade teachers to ensure some continuity with the GMAS).

37. Items will tend to look like
Assessment Items Samples
Items do not look like
Items will tend to look like
Which of these landforms is formed by deposition?
a mountain near a lake
a canyon between two cliffs
a delta near the mouth of a river
a pool at the bottom of a waterfall
A group of students is performing an experiment in science class. The students drop an antacid tablet into a glass of water. The antacid tablet begins to dissolve and bubbles start to form. Which would MOST LIKELY explain why bubbles are formed?
The antacid tablet is chemically changing because gas is being released.
The antacid tablet is chemically changing because a solid is changing shape.
The antacid tablet is physically changing because the water becomes cloudy.
The antacid tablet is physically changing because the water is getting very warm.

38. Questions
Considering that our students only have one hour per week guaranteed computer time (for science) and teachers are limited as to the number of copies they can have printed; what suggestions do you have for resources to provide to students to aid in their research and investigations?

39. Question
How are students going to obtain the background knowledge they will need to "ask questions," "develop explanations," and "model relationships" (without computers or copied resources)?

41. Curriculum and Instruction: http://gadoe.org/surveys/CI-3WVZ6RW
Contact Information
Dr. Juan-Carlos Aguilar
(404) (office) or (404) (Cell)
Curriculum and Instruction: