UNESCO resource kit - science and technology educa...

Outline of the modules (continued)
7 Sources of fresh water
In this module students are asked to:
• interpret data, presented in tabular form, on the
distribution of water on Earth and on daily
inputs and outputs in humans and transpose
these into visual form;
• find out from first-hand practical activity the
percentage of water in various fruits and
vegetables;
• interpret visually presented information on the
various sources of fresh water;
• treat a sample of "raw" water in the same ways
that it would be treated by a water company and
to understand the purpose of each step in the
treatment process;
• undertake tasting tests of various samples of
drinking water and relate the tastes to some
standard reference solutions.
8 Managing water resources
In this module, students are asked to:
• estimate how much water they use each day;
• suggest ways that they could reduce the
amount they use;
• compare the savings they could make with the
estimated losses from leaking pipes;
• consider competing claims on water resources,
present the case for a particular point of view
and participate in reaching a balanced
judgement;
• compare the amounts of water used by people
in different parts of the world;
• consider likely problems in meeting the demand
for water during the next quarter century.
9 Forests for the future
In this module, students are asked to:
• assess the economic importance of wood
products;
• consider where wood products come from;
• survey various aspects of a forest environment;
• investigate the interaction between water and
soil;
• estimate the economic value of a forest;
• assess the health of coniferous trees.
This module is designed to help students to
appreciate the importance of fresh water to humans
(and other living things), where this fresh water
comes from, how it can be made safe to drink and
the effects that the source and any subsequent
treatment of the water can have on its taste. All of
the activities except tasting water can be done
individually or in groups. Tasting should be done
individually though judgements about how best to
describe the taste are best discussed.
This module is designed to help students to
appreciate just how much water they personally
use and the problems there might be in meeting this
demand in different parts of the world or in the
future. The first activity involves two different
exercises in estimation and the second activity
involves adopting the roles firstly of a particular
user of water resources and secondly of an
impartial decision maker. Presented data is then
used both to make comparisons and to anticipate
possible future problems.
The module provides an opportunity for students
to consider, in the context of a practical situation,
the broad environmental concepts of biodiversity,
sustainability, regenerating capacity, productivity
etc. These general ideas can be drawn out of the
particular context of forestry. Finland is bound by
the principles defined at the Rio Conference on
Environment and Development (1992)and at the
subsequent Helsinki Conference on the Protection
of Forests in Europe (1993),and these govern the
development of its forestry policies.
About one third of the Earth's land surface is
covered by forests. Finland is situated in the boreal
coniferous zone and the corresponding figure is
two thirds.