Michaela 215492 EDUC9311

Dunmall

Geography lesson plan

items
1  Title: Human impact on the great barrier reef
 Content descriptor: The environmental and human influences on the location and
characteristics of a place and the management of spaces within them (ACHASSK113). Locate
and collect relevant information and data from primary sources and secondary
sources (ACHASSI095)
 Achievement standard excerpt: They identify the effects of these interconnections (human
and environment) on the characteristics of places and environments
 Time: 50-minute lesson
 Year level: Year 5
 Resources required: Computer, screen to play videos, computers for student research,
notebooks.
 Key inquiry question: What human activities have positively or negatively impacted
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef?

2 General background information

 Second lesson in unit
 First lesson: Introduced the Great Barrier Reef, students placed into 2 groups –
environmentalists and tourists, will have researched the question: why should (tourists), or
shouldn’t (environmentalists), people be able to interact with the reef?
3 Concept focus e.g. Environment, sustainability etc
 Focus on environment, students will be investigating how humans impact the reef.
4 Introduction to the lesson - 10 minutes
 Watch to reengage students on the topic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d5VdQzAC_Y - Great barrier reef advertisement video
(tourist point of view). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-h6sWpbpUHg - Raise the Reef
campaign video (environmentalists)
 Students will use research they have gathered to form an argument surrounding original
question, noting it down in their books.
5 Body of the lesson - 30 minutes
 Learning activity: In-class debate
 Students take turns being the leader of their group (tourist or environmentalist).
 Putting their point of view forward and debating against a member of the other team for 1
minute each.
6 Conclusion to the lesson – 10 minutes
 Students will be introduced to topic for next lesson – using their combine knowledge to make
the reef sustainable for everyone.
 Exit cards
 Pack up of classroom – return of computers, clean up tables.
7 Reflection/Assessment
 Students will be formatively assessed during their talk, what knowledge they bring
for their group, book notes will be observed.
 Formative assessment, also be carried on from the previous lesson through
observation of how students research their side of the debate.
8 Evaluation:
Students fill out exit cards (appendix 1) in order for the teacher to evaluate student learning.
Michaela 215492 EDUC9311
Dunmall

9 Learning activity(s)
To begin the class students will start by watching videos, in order to remind them of the content from
last weeks’ lesson on the topic of The Great Barrier Reef. There are a number of pedagogical benefits
to using videos but the main focus here to help facilitate their thinking and further engage (or
reengage) them in the topic itself. A connection has been made between ‘visual clues, the memory
process, and the recall of new knowledge,’ it is for this reason that the lesson will start with 2 videos
(Groessler, 2018). Beyond this it has also been shown that video, when incorporated into classroom
learning, increases student motivation and has potential for deeper understand of the learning they
would have engaged with during their previous lesson of research (Groessler, 2018).

The body of the lesson will have students debating against each other in front of the the class, trying
to convince the other group that their point of view is the right one. In-class debates have been shown
to help students’ critical thinking skills by making sure they are involved in the learning process itself
(Brown, 2015). Students improve their critical thinking skills through engaging in high order thinking
when considering how to respond to another student’s argument (Brown, 2015). In-class debates also
make students work on their collaborative learning skills by prompting interaction between not only
students and teachers, but also one student to another. Debates allow students to study one side of
the argument in depth knowing that another student can give them to important information and
resources from the other side of the argument. This allows students to not only show their
collaborative learning abilities but also show their teacher they are able to engage in student led
learning. Student lead learning is important in the classroom as often students come up with ideas
that teachers do not think of, engaging with another person their age can help nurture and build that
idea up (Checkley, 1995).

Finally, students will complete an exit card at the end of the lesson showing what information they
have learnt about the issue through the act of debating it. The importance of students filling out exit
cards is that it shows teachers the information and understanding that students have retained
throughout their unit learning. Beyond this, Robert Marzano also finds that students can also provide
feedback to teacher regarding how they want to learn and what materials will help them achieve a
better result (Marzano, 2012). The benefits of having students reflect on their own learning is
unrivalled as often they know the specifics surrounding what can help them improve. Whether it is
expanding on ideas with another students or having the teacher give them more specific instructions,
an exit card is the perfect way for a teacher to assess their students but also for the students to help
inform the teacher of what they need.
Michaela 215492 EDUC9311
Dunmall

References:
Brown, Z. (2015). The use of in-class debates as a teaching strategy in increasing students’
critical thinking and collaborative learning skills in higher education. Educational Futures,
(7)1, 39-55.

Checkley, K. (1995). Balancing student choice and curriculum goals. Education Update,
37(9).

Groessler, A. (2018). Pedagogical benefits of video for teaching and learning - The University
of Queensland, Australia. Uq.edu.au. Retrieved 20 March 2018, from
http://www.uq.edu.au/teach/video-teach-learn/ped-benefits.html

Marzano, R. (2012). Art and science of teaching: The many uses of exit slips. Educational
Leadership, 70(2), 80-81.
Michaela 215492 EDUC9311
Dunmall
Appendix 1
Exit Card Exit Card
Before you leave class today you must write down 3 new things you learnt. One Before you leave class today you must write down 3 new things you learnt. One
from the research you completed and two from something you learnt from your from the research you completed and two from something you learnt from your
classmates debating the other perspective classmates debating the other perspective
1. Something you learnt yourself 1. Something you learnt yourself

2. One thing you learnt from a classmate debating the other perspective
2. One thing you learnt from a classmate debating the other perspective

3. Another thing you learnt from a different classmate debating the

3. Another thing you learnt from a different classmate debating the other
other perspective
perspective