Science department begins integration of earth science topics after NGSS assessment

Last September, 1,185 Saratoga High and Los Gatos High students across all grades took the Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) Earth and Space Science Standards Assessment.

The results of the assessment show that juniors and seniors scored better overall than freshmen and sophomores.

“The standards are taught in Earth Science and AP Environmental Science, so students who had those classes previously probably did better on the assessment,” said Cheryl Lenz, head of the science department. 

However, the pattern cannot be confirmed because the school did not survey the students about whether they had taken an Earth Science course. 

California adopted the NGSS in 2013, and the standards for science expanded to include earth and space science in addition to biology, chemistry and physics — the most common science classes here. 

Lenz said that NGSS sets performance standards, core ideas, scientific practices and crosscutting concepts that students should know and be able to do. The assessment allows science departments at Saratoga and Los Gatos to understand where students are with their understanding of earth and space science, but it will have no impact on how teachers incorporate earth sciences into other courses.

“The assessment is a snapshot of where a student's current understanding is about earth and space science,” Lenz said. “It was given to gather a baseline for these standards so that as we start teaching the standards, we can compare students’ knowledge over time.”

According to Earth Science and Biology teacher Lisa Cochrum, California is requiring earth science knowledge because it directly ties into the issues of climate and energy use, which are crucial topics for understanding other sciences. 

“It’s going to be a pointless conversation if I talk about the consequences of fossil fuel use or adding methane to the atmosphere, but the students don’t understand the basics of how the environment works,” Cochrum said. 

Live Science said that California has the second greatest earthquake magnitude rating in the United States, and Word at Last records that California has the second-most number of active volcanoes in the United States. California’s location exposes it to a greater number of natural disasters, which makes it crucial for students to learn about its geography through Earth Science. 

The state gave the school two options regarding how to incorporate earth science into the curriculum: Use a four-year science plan that requires the students to take earth science, biology, chemistry and physics, or integrate the concepts of earth and space science into other science classes.

“We made a decision as a department to do the integrated method because we have such a demand on campus for AP courses,” Cochrum said. “Students’ opportunity to take APs would be severely limited if we went to a four-year option.”

The curriculum here is being adjusted to fit these new standards. Biology will include units of carbon dating and human impact on the environment. Chemistry will include units on the impact of fossil fuels. Physics will include units on the energy factor.

Additionally, the school is in the process of creating its own test to check students’ understanding of earth science concepts that were learned through their integration with the other sciences. 

“The test will be more of a reflection on us in our teaching than it is on students,” Cochrum explained. “Since there is no final exam, this is a way for us teachers to be held accountable that we are integrating it appropriately.”