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WATER
ECOLOGY EXCHANGE
Project
Study: Field-work in Biology, Vasaskolan, Gävle, Sweden-Imberhorne
School, East Grinstead, England
Goals:
# Exchange of experience and information derived from fieldwork
in water ecology involving students from Vasaskolan and Imberhorne
School.
# To develop personal student and teacher contacts between the participating
schools.
These
goals will be achieved through field-studies investigating ecological
factors in brackish
water, freshwater ponds and rocky seashore, comparing results and
discussing similarities and differences in the two eco-systems.
Biology
teachers involved: Ann Stenström and Karin Werner, Vasaskolan;
Beth Frampton, Sue Dean and Simon Perry, Imberhorne School.
Working
Methods:
The Swedish students go to the Gulf of Bothnia outside Gävle
where they undertake field studies in the brackish waters as well
as a fresh water lake. The English students investigate the waters
of an estuary and the seashore located on the Isle of Wight, an
island off the south coast of England.
A shared project schedule will be used in the field studies, in
which the occurrence and frequency of different organisms, the results
of abiotic measurements and other ecological values are recorded.
Examples
of schedule headings:
Description of the research area and its surroundings
Type of bottom
Salinity
Depth visibility
Oxygen content
Phosphate/nitrate content
pH
The presence of various animal species
The presence of different macroalgae species
The presence of seed plants
The presence of some plankton groups
Timetable
May 1998:
Two biology teachers from Vasaskolan participate in the fieldwork
at Imberhorne School.
Aug/Sept
1999:
Two biology teachers from Imberhorne School participate in the fieldwork
and follow-up at Vasaskolan. Some Swedish students send their excursion
reports to Imberhorne school.
May
2000:
First year A-level students from Imberhorne perform fieldwork on
the Isle of Wight according to the above schedule.
June 2000:
Imberhorne students summarise their findings and mail their data
to Vasaskolan.
Aug/Sept
2000:
Imberhorne students discuss results with Vasaskolan students when
visiting Gävle.
Vasaskolan biology students carry out the same kind of field-work,
summarise their findings and later mail their data to Imberhorne.
The
next step will be student exchanges involving participation in each
other's field-work..
July
2001:
Swedish students and teachers accompanied and participated on Imberhorne
fieldtrip studies on Isle of Wight including:
1. Comparison of three ponds, two freshwater and one brackish for
aquatic animal diversity.
2. Measure distribution of plants along a transect - succession
on a saltmarsh.
3. Population Ecology studies on a Rocky Sea Shore.
August
2001:
Imberhorne students and teacher bring fieldtrip results to Sweden
for discussion in Biology lessons. They also participate on excursion
to the brackish water with the Swedish students.
In
future:
Continuing and developing the mail exchange and the participating
in each others fieldwork, preparations and follow-up.
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