| Home |
| Adaptation |
| Forests |
| Fire |
| Science |
| Mathematics |
| English |
| Farming |
| References |
| Sponsor's Message |
| Credits |
| Register |
Posted on Facebook
In this task students explore their current understanding of issues relating to bushfires in Australia and construct a plan for gathering and presenting further information.
A teenager from Sweden has posted a message on the Facebook wall. The teenager has heard about bushfires in Australia and wants to know more.
As a class, brainstorm what is known about bushfires. Collate ideas under themes such as damage, location, social impacts, etc.
Working in pairs, students list ideas about how bushfire information can be explained to someone who is not familiar with the Australian environment?
Guide questions:- What English skills are required?
- What is the most important information to include in your response?
- What is the best way to provide accurate information?
- Are some text types more useful than others?
- What perspectives should be included? (for instance, environmental, human, economic, social, etc.)
Students contribute useful information sources about bushfires to an Ideas Bank. Students write a response for Facebook using information from this. Useful websites are located in the References section.
Resources
Segment from On Borrowed Time video
The truth of the article
This task will enable students to interpret and evaluate a range of newspaper articles on bushfire.
Students evaluate newspaper articles on bushfire accessed from leading state or territory newspaper websites. Students will need to be provided with the URLs for these.
Discuss and agree on an evaluation strategy. The guide questions can promote discussion to inform the decision-making process for this.
Guide questions:- What text types have been used?
- What type of evidence has been used? How has it been used?
- What is factual? What is opinion?
- What is the purpose of the article? What are its key ideas?
- How have different perspectives been covered – social, environmental, economic?
- Is the broader issue of species survival evident? Is it appropriate to the article?
Students locate an article about bushfires and evaluate it using the agreed strategy, justifying their perspective with supporting evidence.
Collate a list of the broad themes covered in the articles. Tally the number of times these are reported. Are there any significant differences in the tallied themes? Do some themes occur more or less frequently? If so, why?
Discuss the role of effective media coverage and text types as ways of presenting different perspectives on sensitive or important issues.
To burn or not to burn
In this task, students debate the use of 'prescribed burns' as a fire management strategy.
Students research fire management strategies in their state or territory using official government or authority websites. Websites are listed in the References section.
-
Guide questions:
- What is the current approach to fire management in our state/territory?
- What are prescribed burns? How often do they occur? Who is responsible? Why are they carried out?
- How is bushfire part of Australia's ecology?
- What happens to the plants and animals after a fire? Is there a strategy for helping them survive?
Organise students into affirmative and negative teams to debate the motion "Prescribed burns are an important fire management strategy".
Teams plan their argument using information and evidence from their research. Teams rehearse their opening argument using appropriate, effective speech and argument to influence the audience.
Teams debate according to an agreed structure. Adjudicator and students provide feedback to debating teams.
Resources
See list of fire-related websites located
in References section:
References – Fire
Taking a stand on future research
This task enables students to write a persuasive argument that states their personal view with supporting evidence about the need for further fire research for conserving many species.
Present students with the following quote from On Borrowed
Time by David Lindenmayer (2007), pp.104-105:
'Australia is one of the most fire-prone places on the planet, there have been very few long-term studies of fire and its impact on the vast majority of organisms. .... We need major and sustained research into fire, particularly given the number of species it threatens - it is the second worst problem, after land clearing, facing Australian birds.'
In small groups, students create a visual representation with appropriate annotations to show how they believe fire is threatening species. Students develop an I need to know more list at the same time.
Students share their visual representations and the class compiles an I need to know more list. They annotate next to each point suggestions as to where this information may be located.
Students discuss how fire research can help the situation. Students revisit their visual representation and add how research can help with the different aspects.
Students use their visual representations as a foundation for composing a persuasive letter to a politician or appropriate authority arguing the need for further research into fire to help conserve many species.
Guide questions:- What will be the key arguments?
- What supporting evidence will be needed?
- How can accurate evidence be guaranteed?