NEWARK ACADEMY 91 South Orange Avenue Livingston, New Jersey 07039 Telephone: (973) 992-7000 Fans (973) 992-8962 wwwinewarka.edu Dan Erlandson Visitation November 21, 2014 AP/IB Environmental Science By the time I artive at 1:30, class has been in session for a half hour. The class is in the midst of a unit on toxicology. Students are seated at the “U” table arrangement, making final preparations via Q & A for the lab they ate about to do. Student work involves trying to find the tight design to do a longer-term lab on germinating seeds in water that has been salinized. ‘The experimentation they do today is really to establish their designs for the longer lab. Dan, as dictated by IB, serves a8 resource throughout their craftwork with petri dishes, lab seal sheeting, and duct tape, but he does not tell them what is going to be the most efficient approach. Students are going to learn on their own which designs have succeeded and which have failed Dan has paired students, and since September paisings have shifted from lab to lab. This arrangement may be pattally responsible for the high degree of collegiality that exists during the experimentation, Dan encourages collaboration between partners and between groups. All students work in earnest, even some of his seniors whose jaded affects have made them less productive in other classroom environments. After 35-40 minutes of lab work, students clean up and reassemble at the tables. Here Dan. reviews several scenarios regarding the effects of pollution and the degradation of water. Using 2 projected chart, revealing information bit by bit, allows students to digest some difficult information slowly. ‘The final discussion addresses “the Dirty Dozen,” now really the dirty 22. Fat solubility is the chief concer, as students consider the ways in which our world is so toxic; ie. flame retardant clothing or bedding, and mercury contamination in the fish we eat. Tshould note that this class is the last class of the day on a Friday. ‘The bell for dismissal rings and no one even moves before the conversation is concluded two minutes later. Dan's excellence as a teacher is on display in a variety of wayst a healthy learning. environment has been established where tisk taking is an integral part of the process, a well designed ninety minute class/lab that is fully engaging because it is both challenging and fun, the clear respect students have for the work they are doing, the respect students have for Dan. 5 VK Von Rollenhagen Dean of Faculty | |