Science Task Prescreen
Task Title: Investigating the Long Island Sound Lobster Collapse
Grade: High School
Date: 2023-10-25
SEP: Engaging in Argument from Evidence
DCI: LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience
CCC: Stability and Change
Task Purpose: The task assesses students’ ability to evaluate evidence regarding the impact of environmental changes on the stability of the American lobster population in the Long Island Sound.
Instructions
- Before you begin: Complete the task as a student would. Then, consider any support materials provided to teachers or students, such as contextual information about the task and answer keys/rubrics.
- Prescreen: Answer the following high-level questions to identify any major red flags (🚩) in your task. If you find one or more red flags, consider the purpose of the task and the evidence gathered to determine whether the task warrants a deeper dive.
Prescreen Questionnaire
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Is there a phenomenon or problem driving the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 2. Can the majority of the task be answered without using information provided by the task scenario? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 3. Can significant portions of the task be answered successfully by using rote knowledge (e.g., definitions, prescriptive or memorized procedure)? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 4. Does the majority of the task require students to use reasoning to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 5. Does the task require students to use some understanding of disciplinary core ideas to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 6. Do students have to use at least one science and engineering practice to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 7. Are the dimensions assessed separately in the majority of the task? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 8. Is the task coherent and comprehensible from the student perspective? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
Recommendation
Based on your assessment needs and the task purpose recorded above, make a recommendation about this task moving forward (choose one):
- [x] Warrants further review.
- [ ] Should not be used.
Summary
Summarize your evidence and reasoning:
The task effectively utilizes an engaging real-world phenomenon—the Long Island Sound lobster collapse. It integrates the three dimensions by having students manipulate a simulation (SEP) to gather evidence on how changing variables like nitrogen and temperature disrupt ecosystem stability (CCC), leading to a collapse rather than a resilient return to normal (DCI). The task requires the scenario to answer the questions and is not based on rote memorization.