Volume 19 • Number 3 • 2003 - the Marine Advanced Technology ...

THE JOURNAL OF MARINE EDUCATION
Volume 19 • Number 3 • 2003
THE POSSIBILITIES OF USING A HIGH SCHOOL OCEANOGRAPHY
COURSE TO FULFILL THE REQUIREMENTS OF ADVANCED PLACEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE–APES TAKES A SWIM
BY DR. ANGELA C. MORROW
ONE OF THE COLLEGE BOARD’S NEWEST ADVANCED PLACEMENT COURSES, AP
Environmental Science or (APES) is now five years old and continuing to grow as an interdisciplinary course that
can now be taught within an oceanography course. Exploring innovative ways to offer this course to high school
students through teaching APES principles and concepts within a high school oceanography course is one
alternative approach to the traditional, land-based environmental science curriculum.
Some high schools, especially coastal ones, already offer
oceanography or marine biology. Although these schools
might like to offer a traditional APES course, time constraints,
space, and funding often limit the school’s ability to do so. A
practical alternative is to re-tool the presently offered marine
science course to include APES principles and concepts. This
is not only realistic, but with two thirds of our planet covered
in water, a case might be made that it is more appropriate than
the typical approach to current course offerings.
HOW TO ACCOMPLISH APES INFUSION?
The first principle suggested in the College Board’s 2002
Environmental Science Acorn Book (which describes
suggested topic outlines) is Interdependence of Earth’s
Systems: Fundamental Principles and Concepts (25% of the
APES exam is derived from this area). Under this topic are the
following subtopics: The Flow of Energy; The Cycling of Matter;
The Solid Earth; The Atmosphere; and The Biosphere. Utilizing
Duxbury, Duxbury, and Sverdrup’s Introduction to the World’s
Ocean (2000) as a guide for a typical marine science course
these subtopics include:
TOPIC I - SUBTOPICS CHAPTER TITLE
The Flow of Energy
The Cycling of Matter
The Solid Earth
The Atmosphere
The Physical Properties of Water
The Chemistry of Seawater
The Structure of the Oceans
The Sea Floor and Its Sediments
Plate Tectonics
The Ocean and the Atmosphere
Students discussing a new law with classmates.
The Biosphere
Oceans: Environment for Life
Production and Life
The Plankton: Drifters of the
Open Ocean
The Nekton: Free Swimmers
of the Sea
The Benthos: Dwellers of
the Sea Floor
The second topic in the suggested outline is Human
Population Dynamics (10% of the exam). This topic is not
directly covered in the Duxbury text (2000). However, there
are several areas within this text that could be used as a
springboard for human population discussions.
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