Curriculum

NZ Curriculum icon.

All LEARNZ field trips targeting primary and secondary schools are closely linked to the New Zealand curriculum, in particular science, social studies and geography. They can also be used by other subject teachers.

Key concepts

Adaptations, Antarctica, biodiversity, carbon cycle, climate change, ecology, environment, food webs, human impacts, ice, life cycle, marine communities, marine research, monitoring change, ocean acidification, oceans, Offshore, scientific research, sustainability.

The New Zealand Curriculum - NZC

Key Competencies

LEARNZ virtual field trips contribute to the development of all five key competencies:

Key Competencies	Examples of Related Field Trip Components
Thinking	Constructing questions to put to experts during Audioconferences and via Ask-an-Expert.
Using language, symbols and texts	Interpreting and making meaning of a variety of language and symbols in the Background Pages and throughout the web site.
Managing self	Numerous content-related Activities provide students with chances to engage with the material and create their own interpretation of the content.
Relating to others	Videos connect students with a range of expert opinions. Students listen actively when seeking answers to video questions.
Participating and contributing	LEARNZ Virtual Field Trips are an ideal medium for group-based topic inquiry. They also enable students to transfer new learning into the context of their own communities where they are encouraged to take action.

(See page 12-13 NZC 2007)

Values

The Antarctica field trip encourages, models and explores these values:

innovation, inquiry and curiosity
ecological sustainability
community and participation

(see page 10 NZC 2007).

E-learning and pedagogy

The Antarctica field trip directly involves learning that is supported by information and communication technology (ICT).

In particular, the trip will:

Assist the making of connections by enabling students to enter and explore new learning environments, overcoming barriers of distance and time.
Facilitate shared learning by enabling students to join or create communities of learners that extend well beyond the classroom.
Enhance opportunities to learn by offering students virtual experiences and tools that save them time, allowing them to take their learning further (Page 36 NZC 2007).

Social Science

Strand

Achievement Aims

Background Pages

Related Activities

Social Studies

Place and Environment

Level 2 Understand how places influence people and people influence places
Level 3 Understand how people view and use places differently
Level 4 Understand that events have causes and effects
Level 5 Understand how people's management of resources impacts on environmental and social sustainability

Activities

Science


Strand	Achievement Aims	Background Pages	Related Activities
The Nature of Science	Participating and contributing Levels 1-2: Explore and act on issues and questions that link their science learning to their daily living. Level 3-4: Use their growing science knowledge when considering issues of concern to them. Understanding about science Levels 1-2: Appreciate that scientists ask questions about our world that lead to investigations and that open-mindedness is important because there may be more than one explanation. Level 3-4: Identify ways in which scientists work together and provide evidence to support their ideas. Communicating in science Level 3-4: Begin to use a range of scientific symbols, conventions and vocabulary.	All	Activities
Planet Earth and Beyond	Earth systems Level 2-5; Explore and describe natural features and resources Interacting systems Level 2; Describe how natural features are changed and resources affected by natural events and human actions Level 3-5; Investigate the water cycle and its effect on climate, landforms, and life	All	Activities
Material World	Properties and changes of matter Level 2-5; Observe, describe, and compare physical and chemical properties of common materials and changes that occur when materials are mixed, heated, or cooled.	All	Activities
Living World	Ecology Level 2-4; Explain how living things are suited to their particular habitat and how they respond to environmental changes. Level 5; Investigate the interdependence of living things (including humans) in an ecosystem	All	Activities

The five science capabilities

Science Capability	Description
Gather and interpret data	Learners make careful observations and differentiate between observation and inference. Science knowledge is based on data derived from direct, or indirect, observations of the natural physical world and often includes measuring something. An inference is a conclusion you draw from observations – the meaning you make from observations. Understanding the difference is an important step towards being scientifically literate.
Use evidence	Learners support their ideas with evidence and look for evidence supporting others' explanations. Science is a way of explaining the world. Science is empirical and measurable. This means that in science, explanations need to be supported by evidence that is based on, or derived from, observations of the natural world.
Critique evidence	Not all questions can be answered by science. In order to evaluate the trustworthiness of data, students need to know quite a lot about the qualities of scientific tests.
Interpret representations	Scientists represent their ideas in a variety of ways, including models, graphs, charts, diagrams and written texts. Learners think about how data is presented and ask questions such as: What does this representation tell us? What is left out? How does this representation get the message across? Why is it presented in this particular way?
Engage with science	This capability requires students to use the other capabilities to engage with science in “real life” contexts. It involves students taking an interest in science issues, participating in discussions about science and at times taking action.

Technology


Strand	Achievement Aims	Background Pages	Related Activities
Technological Knowledge	Technological Products Level 1-3; Understand the relationship between the materials used and their performance properties in technological products.	All	Activities
Nature of Technology	Nature of Technology Level 1-3; Understand how technological development expands human possibilities and how technology draws on knowledge from a wide range of disciplines.	All	Activities

English

The selected processes and strategies indicators used in the table below are from Level three of the NZC, but aim to cover indicators from levels two to four.


Strand	Processes and Strategies Indicators	Example of Related Field Trip Component
Speaking, Writing and Presenting	uses an increasing understanding of the connections between oral, written, and visual language when creating texts creates a range of texts by integrating sources of information and processing strategies with increasing confidence	making the connection between Audioconferences, Background Pages, Videos, and own discussion when generating written responses assimilate information from Audioconferences, Background Pages, Videos, and Ask-an-Expert to create a range of texts
Listening, Reading and Viewing	selects and reads for enjoyment and personal fulfilment recognises connections between oral, written, and visual language integrates sources of information and prior knowledge confidently to make sense of increasingly varied and complex texts thinks critically about texts with increasing understanding and confidence	printed copies of Background Pages could be part of classroom library making links between Audioconferences, Background Pages, and Videos Audioconferences, Audioconference Backchannel, Videos, Diaries, and Ask-an-Expert can be used to make sense of Background Pages and Diaries and generate questions to put to experts for further clarification

NCEA

Science 1.14: Demonstrate understanding of carbon cycling
Students are assessed on the addition, removal and storage of carbon in short and long term biological, chemical and geological cycles.

ESS 3.5: Demonstrate understanding of the impact of human activity on the Earth System. External, 4 credits.Human activity could negative or positive such as fossil fuel combustion and sustainable practices. Impacts may be consequences such as climate change, ocean acidification and the extinction of species.