STANDARDS FOR GEORGIA'S NEW HIGH SCHOOL EARTH SYSTEMS COURSE

Draft performance standards for a new Georgia high school Earth Systems course have been posted for public comment at http://www.georgiastandards.org/science.asp.

The six content standards cover:

Composition and formation of Earth systems
Plate tectonic influences on geologic features, materials, and hazards
The actions of water, wind, and gravity to create landforms and landscapes
The use of rock relationships and fossils to reconstruct the Earth's past
The interaction of insolation and Earth systems to produce weather and climate
The ways in which life responds to and shapes Earth systems

The standards have been correlated to the National Science Education Standards and to Benchmarks for Science Literacy.

Part of the rationale for the high school course is the recent move of Middle School Earth Science in Georgia from eighth to sixth grade. After the standards and their subordinate elements are presented, time will be allowed for discussing strategies to interest local school systems in offering the high school course.

Presentation Time: 8:25 AM-8:45 AM

STANDARDS FOR GEORGIA'S NEW HIGH SCHOOL EARTH SYSTEMS COURSE
WITHERSPOON, William, Fernbank Science Center, DeKalb County School System, 156 Heaton Park Drive, Atlanta, GA 30307, bill.witherspoon@fernbank.edu, BARTLEY, Julie K., Department of Geosciences, University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA 30118, DODGE, Rebecca, Department of Geosciences, State Univ of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA 30118, VINCENT, Paul, Department of Physics, Astronomy, & Geoscience, Valdosta State University, 1500 N. Patterson St, Valdosta, GA 31698-0055, KIELBORN, Terrie, Ithica Elementary School, Carroll County Schools, 75 Whitworth Road, Villa Rica, GA 30189, and MARSHALL, Gail, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, College of Education, University of West Georgia, 513 North Hulett Road, Villa Rica, GA 30180 Draft performance standards for a new Georgia high school Earth Systems course have been posted for public comment at http://www.georgiastandards.org/science.asp. The six content standards cover: Composition and formation of Earth systems Plate tectonic influences on geologic features, materials, and hazards The actions of water, wind, and gravity to create landforms and landscapes The use of rock relationships and fossils to reconstruct the Earth's past The interaction of insolation and Earth systems to produce weather and climate The ways in which life responds to and shapes Earth systems The standards have been correlated to the National Science Education Standards and to Benchmarks for Science Literacy. Part of the rationale for the high school course is the recent move of Middle School Earth Science in Georgia from eighth to sixth grade. After the standards and their subordinate elements are presented, time will be allowed for discussing strategies to interest local school systems in offering the high school course.
Southeastern Section–55th Annual Meeting (23–24 March 2006) General Information for this Meeting

Session No. 1 Geoscience Education and the History of Geology Marriott Hotel: Andrew Jackson 8:00 AM-12:00 PM, Thursday, 23 March 2006 Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, Vol. 38, No. 3, p. 3
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Southeastern Section–55th Annual Meeting (23–24 March 2006)
Paper No. 1-2