Module 5
1. Module 5
1.28. Page 3
Module 5—Hydrocarbons and the Petroleum Industry
Reflect on the Big Picture
Throughout your study in this module you have collected evidence of the petroleum industry's activity in your local area. You may have collected photographs, newspaper articles, or lists of events you have observed.
Go through the evidence you collected. Identify and consider some of the issues with which the evidence is connected. Use the steps below to guide your investigation.
Purpose
To consider the impact of the petroleum industry at local, provincial, and international levels.
Procedure
Step 1: Review the pieces of evidence you collected in this module. Prepare a list that identifies characteristics of the industry. For each characteristic, identify the perspectives represented. See page 45 of the textbook if you need help identifying perspectives.
For example, you may have a photograph of an equipment yard for an oilfield company. You might list a technological perspective—the machinery used to extract oil that is used to make gasoline, and an economic perspective—the company provides jobs for the local economy and taxes that support the community’s growth and other programs.
Step 2: Consider the information and perspectives from the list you prepared in Step 1. Identify one pressing issue that emerges or jumps out from your list. Describe how this issue relates to the petroleum industry.
Step 3: Can the pressing issue you identified be rephrased as a research question? For example, if your issue involved a concern about soil contamination at oil well sites, a possible research question might be, “Are there guidelines for reclaiming soil at oil well sites?”
Step 4: Type your research question into an Internet search engine. Save a copy of the search results.
Step 5: Comment on the first 15 search results. Is this an emotional issue, an issue of much debate, a focus of research, or a target for development of government policy?
Step 6: Predict how this issue will be resolved in the future. Support your prediction using evidence from your research or from other sources.
Save your work in your course folder. Contact your teacher to find out which parts of your work you should submit.
Module 5: Lesson 6 Assignment
Retrieve your copy of the Module 5: Lesson 6 Assignment that you saved to your computer earlier in this lesson. Complete the Assignment. Save your work in your course folder, and submit a copy to your teacher. Remember to ask your teacher which parts of your work from the Reflect on the Big Picture activity should also be submitted.