Module 3 Intro: Module Summary/Assessment

1. Module 3 Intro

1.36. Module Summary/Assessment

Module Summary and Assessment

Module 3—Ecosystem Diversity

Module Summary

Canada’s national parks are treasures that need to be preserved for future generations to enjoy. To maintain the biodiversity of the parks, people must understand what important interactions occur in the ecosystems. The more you know and understand about these interactions, the greater will be your ability to preserve them.

You have learned that ecosystems contain many different species of organisms. These organisms are considered to be species if they can reproduce and produce viable offspring. Some other terms discussed were population and communities. A population is a group of one type of species living in an area, and communities are made up of many different populations.

You have also learned that ecosystems contain many different communities, populations, and abiotic components that all interact. The interactions an organism has with its biotic and abiotic environment make up its niche and determine the organism’s distribution and habitat requirements. Scientists organize all of the biotic components into one of three domains—bacteria, archaea, and eukarya. Species within each of these domains can be further classified into a kingdom, then a phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. Species scientific names are made up of the genus and species name and are unique to each species. Dichotomous keys help people identify and name unknown species.

In this module you have learned about the relationships occurring between the biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems. Each living thing is dependent on its non-living environment for survival. The protection of this environment is one of the key aspects of maintaining biodiversity. In Module 4 you will again look at populations and examine how their interactions with the biotic and abiotic environment can cause the populations to change over time.

Module Assessment

In this module you will develop a public-awareness advertisement to educate the general public about the work Parks Canada does to maintain the diversity of organisms within Canada’s national parks. Read the following project description. Do not begin this project until instructed to do so in Lesson 1.

Parks Canada Ecological Integrity Advertisement

Parks Canada constantly monitors ecosystem changes in order to maintain and restore ecological integrity. Your task is to develop a public-awareness advertisement describing the work Parks Canada does to maintain ecological integrity in national parks. The following questions should be answered in your advertisement:

In your own words, what does ecological integrity mean to you?
Why is ecological integrity important in national parks?
What are some stressors affecting ecological integrity? Describe how humans are directly and indirectly causing many of these stresses.
How does Parks Canada monitor ecological integrity?
How does Parks Canada maintain ecological integrity?
Does Parks Canada draw on the traditional knowledge of First Peoples and integrate this knowledge into the management of park ecosystems?
What is the status of an endangered species found in Canada’s national parks, and what is being done to help prevent its extinction?
What is an example of an exotic species found in Canada’s national parks?
What research is being done and why? (One research program occurring in a national park should be explained.)
How does the common naming system (binomial nomenclature) help with this research?

Your advertisement may be in any of the following forms:

a television advertisement (PowerPoint presentation)
a radio advertisement (recorded on tape, computer, or a printed transcript)
a poster
a brochure
any other form approved by your teacher

You are creating an advertisement and will need to keep your message short and to the point. The television or radio advertisement should be no longer then 60 seconds. Read over the rubric to make sure your advertisement meets all the necessary criteria.

Place each part of the presentation into your learning portfolio. You will add to it in each of Lessons 1, 2, and 5.

The Parks Canada Website on Ecosystem Management will provide most of the information needed for your advertisement.

To get to this website, perform a search by entering the keywords “parks Canada” into a search engine. Once at the Parks Canada website, enter “ecosystem management” into the website search bar. You will know you have chosen the correct article if the navigation bar to the left contains headings such as “Ecosystem Principles” and “Ecosystem Restoration.”

You will be able to use the information from these web pages to begin creating your ad. You may need to perform other searches in the Parks Canada website to complete this assessment.

	4	3	2	1	0
Questions Answered	All ten questions (six in Lesson 1, two in Lesson 2, and two in Lesson 5) are thoroughly and accurately answered in the presentation.	All ten questions are answered in the presentation.	From five to nine of the questions are answered in the presentation.	Three or four questions are answered in the presentation.	Fewer then three of the questions are answered in the presentation.
Presentation Quality	The presentation is clear, organized, and creative.	The presentation is clear and organized.	The presentation is understandable.	The presentation is not clear or not organized.	The presentation is not clear and is disorganized.