Learning Objectives
In our high school statistics textbook, statistics is defined as the science and art of collecting, analyzing, and drawing conclusions from data.3 Understanding statistics “will help you make good decisions based on data in your life.”4 A challenge I face when communicating the mathematical and statistical content and concepts to my students is the frequent disconnect between textbook real-life scenarios with the realities and knowledge my students possess from their lived experiences.
This curriculum unit introduces students to the broader environmental issue of marine biotoxins and their impacts on the human seafood supply. Biotoxins found along the California coastline will be a focus of this unit, with examples from the San Francisco Bay and Monterey Bay areas included due to their local proximity to East Side San Jose. Throughout this unit, students will learn the history of California’s Marine Biotoxin Monitoring Program, examine existing data presented in research and reports from local, state, and federal government agencies, and understand the sampling techniques and methods used to determine health policies and advisories. Students will look at existing evidence of human contributions to conditions that are enabling increased proliferation of toxic algae. My students may also participate in the processes to monitor marine biotoxins. Students will develop materials to inform their community of ways to minimize risks associated with certain seafood consumption practices.
Statistics is classified as a mathematics course, yet the content has applications across the biological, physical, and social sciences. This curriculum unit is written for students taking Advanced Placement (AP) Statistics and includes activities that examine data collection techniques, experimental design, and statistical inference where data are used as a basis for making predictions, decisions, and conclusions on populations of study.
Students will examine data from existing studies and government agencies to make predictions regarding the effects of domoic acid among humans and other sea creatures. Existing studies report confidence intervals and confidence levels regarding rates and number of expected instances of domoic acid poisoning. Students will interpret the meaning of the confidence intervals and whether year-to-year trends are expected versus outliers. There will also be interpretations of the conclusions of studies with considerations to societal, corporate, and ecosystem impacts. Furthermore, students will be able to inform and educate the Overfelt community how to minimize risk of toxin exposures through seafood preparation and consumption.
Components of this unit can be adapted and used to teach the statistics content found in our Integrated Math 1, 2, and 3 courses. The content background provides an overview of two categories of common seafood illnesses caused by marine biotoxins and may be of interest to life science, biology, and chemistry teachers. Teachers from areas outside of California can utilize the examples in this unit and compare their local relevant city, county, and state agency algae and biotoxin monitoring programs that occur at oceans, lakes, rivers, and other bodies of water.
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