DeWitt Clinton High School

Science Department

The Living Environment Class

Ms. Vasquez

MsVasquezScience@aol.com

Introduction

You graduated from High School ten years ago, attended medical school and became a prestigious pneumologist so you are a specialist in respiratory diseases. You belong to a research medical group trying to solve the problems with asthma in the Bronx. As a doctor you are trying to help your asthma patients. Most of them are teenagers.

They live in the same neighborhood in the Bronx. They visit the emergency room at least three times a month because of asthma attacks. Your research group wants to find out what is causing such attacks, and also how to control the problem in this neighborhood

Task

The research group consists of:

**An environmentalist: one concerned about environmental quality especially of the human environment with respect to the control of pollution **and two doctors.

Your group will:

1. Create a three pages report that will educate the community to know what asthma is and how to control this condition.

§ ► The paper must be double-spaced.

► The font used must be 12pt.

2. Offer a final presentation describing your findings.

►Your group will have five minutes for the oral presentation.

You will:

3. Complete your assigned task in your group

4. Submit a final essay using other groups’ presentations.

Process

In order to complete the task your research group will use public policy analysis format.

*Day #1 Define the problem: complete worksheet number one.

*Day #2 Using resources provided below complete worksheet number two for gathering evidence.

*Day #3 At this point your group is ready to identify causes of the problem and complete worksheet number three.

*Day #4 Since your group will conduct a formal presentation to the community you need to evaluate existing public policies and worksheet number four will help you accomplish this part of the task.

*Day #5 A very important part of your job is to educate your community and developing public policy solutions to eliminate or diminish the problem and its causes, to help you simplify this explanations your group will complete worksheet number five.

*Day #6 Finally your group needs to develop the best public policy solution to keep the community focus for the best solution and now your group finish worksheet number six

*Day #7.Today your group will organize the final report and practice for the final presentation.

*Day #8 Presentations begin today. While presentations are taking place take notes (you will use these notes for your final essay)

*Day #9 Presentations end today.

Resources

http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/search/index.htm

http://www.governmentguide.com/govsite.adp?bread=*Main&url=http%3A//www.governmentguide.com/ams/clickThruRedirect.adp%3F55076483%2C16920155%2Chttp%3A//www.cdc.gov/

http://www.epa.gov/asthma/asthma.html

http://www.epa.gov/iaq/asthma/index.html

http://www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/images/asthma_allergy_bulletin.pdf.pdf

http://www.epa.gov/iaq/asthma/quiz/index.html

http://www.medicinenet.com/Asthma/article.htm

http://www.niehs.nih.gov/airborne/home.htm

Evaluation

DeWitt Clinton High School

Goal

Name: ________________________

Teacher: Ms Vasquez

Date Submitted: ____________

Title of Work: ___________________

CRITERIA

Points

	4	3	2	1
Introduction	All questions were answered completely and rationales for the answers were clearly stated.	All questions were answered completely, but rationales for the all the answers were not clearly stated.	Not all questions were answered completely, or greater than 2 rationales for the all answers were not clearly stated.	All questions were not answered completely.	20
Task	All areas of the task were addressed and handled with a high degree of sophistication. The plan followed by the team demonstrated a great deal of thought.	At least one area of the task was not addressed. The plan followed by the team demonstrated a great deal of thought.	At least two areas of the task were not addressed. The plan followed by the team demonstrated a moderate level of thought.	The task is incomplete and/or it is apparent that little effort went into the development of the task.	20
Process: Teamwork	It is evident that a mutual effort and cohesive unit created the final product.	The team worked well together, but could have utilized each other's skills to a better degree.	The team had problems working together. Little collaboration occurred.	The final product is not the result of a collaborative effort. The group showed no evidence of collaboration.	20
Project: Originality Using PPA	Completed six worksheets required for the PPA analysis.	Completed five worksheets required for the PPA analysis.	Completed only four worksheets required for the PPA analysis.	Completed three or less worksheets required for the PPA analysis.	20
Grammar, Format, and Spelling for the final essay.	The final body of work was free of grammar, spelling, and formatting errors.	The final body of work had 1 error related to either grammar, spelling, or formatting errors.	The final body of work had 3-5 grammar, spelling, and formatting errors.	The final body of work had major grammar, spelling, and formatting errors.	20
				Total---->	100

Standards

Performance Standards in this WebQuest

◉New York State Living Environment Standards

Standard 4

PERFORMANCE INDICATOR 5.2

Explain disease as a failure of homeostasis

Major Understandings

5.2a Homeostasis in an organism is constantly threatened. Failure to respond effectively can result in disease or death.

5.2h Disease may also be caused by inheritance, toxic substances, poor nutrition, organ malfunction, and some personal behavior. Some effects show up right away; others may not show up for many years.

5.2j Biological research generates knowledge used to design ways of diagnosing, preventing, treating, controlling, or curing diseases of plants and animals.

◉English Standards

E1c Reads, understands and produces written and oral work.

E3b The student participates in group meetings.

E4b The student analyzes and revises the work to make it suitable for the audience.

S5f Students work individually and in teams to collect and share information and ideas.

S7b The student argues from evidence.

S7e Students communicates in a form suited for the audience.

A2a Student makes an oral presentation of project plan.

Conclusion

Asthma is a chronic lung condition. Controlling asthma triggers in the environment is a very important part of asthma care. This condition is also associated to hereditary factors. For this reason it is of great challenge for scientist to find a cure. The solution to this problem is in our hands and the hands of people that learn how the problem could be controlled. Everybody will benefit by implementing easy techniques for asthma care. Learning and helping the community now will warranty a better environment for the future generations. Researchers should contribute by developing new drugs to control asthma before it becomes acute. By the control of this condition patient hospitalization is reduced. By reducing hospitalization costs more funds could be used in the area of research. As a whole we need to address this issue reaching to government agencies to develop new policies to reduce pollutants that trigger asthma. By making policies that penalize acts that harm the environment we can contribute to the needed solution. Being asthma aware at all levels, individuals and communities will push the right buttons for a healthier population.