Exploring Sustainability through the Australian

Curriculum: Mathematics

Judy AndersonThe University of Sydney

judy.anderson@sydney.edu.au

ACSA Conference 2013

Why sustainability?

General Capabilities Cross-curriculum Perspectives

LiteracyAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

Histories and cultures

NumeracyAsia and Australia’s engagement with

Asia

Competence in Information and Communication Technology

Sustainability

Critical and Creative Thinking

Ethical Behaviour

Personal and Social Competence

Intercultural Understanding

Australian Curriculum F-10(ACARA, 2010)

Overview

1. What is sustainability?

2. What local, national and global issues could we investigate in mathematics lessons? What mathematical questions could we pose?

3. Do these issues provide “rich, engaging and authentic contexts”?

4. What impact would doing these tasks have on curriculum implementation?

What is sustainability?

http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/CrossCurriculumPriorities/Sustainability

“Sustainability addresses the ongoing capacity of Earth to maintain all life.”

Sustainable – “able to be maintained”

Education for Sustainability(ACARA, The Australian Curriculum, v5.0)

• “Education for sustainability develops the knowledge, skills, values and world views necessary for people to act in ways that contribute to more sustainable patterns of living.”

• Organising ideas: Systems, World Views, and Futures

http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/env_ed/

The Three Pillarsof Sustainability

How big is 7 billion?

Visualising populations

Stan’s café – Of all the people in all the world• http://www.stanscafe.co.uk/project-of-all-the

-people.html#videos

What is a sustainable population?

www.PopulationEducation.org

www.Worldof7Billion.org

China, 1978

Number of Male births per 100 female births

200 years that changed the worldHans Rosling

200 countries, 200 years, 4 minutesHans Rosling

http://www.gapminder.org/videos/200-years-that-changed-the-world-bbc/

What local, national and global issues could we investigate in mathematics lessons?

GLOBAL ISSUES

• Inefficient use of energy

• Lack of water conservation

• Increased pollution

• Abuses of human rights

• Consumerism

• …

Population and Resource Consumption

A paradox?

• Educating females reduces birth rates and therefore population growth

• However, more highly educated people with higher incomes consume more resources

Miniature Earth Project

http://www.miniature-earth.com/

If the world were a village of 100 people

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNnbO8x4JAY

Welcome to the global village

Earth is a crowded place, and it is getting more crowded all the time. As of 2010, the world’s population was 6 billion, 900 million – that’s 6 900 000 000. Thirty-two countries have more than 40 million (40 000 000) people.Eleven countries each have more than 100 million (100 000 000) people. China has over 1 billion, 300 million (1 300 000 000), while India has over 1 billion, 200 million (1 200 000 000) people.Numbers this big are hard to understand, but what if we imagined the whole population of the world as a village of just 100 people?In this imaginary village, each person would represent about 69 million (69 000 000) people from the real world.

69,000,000 people

If Australia were a village …

As of June 2006, the population of Australia was 20,589,432.

• If Australia were a village of 100 habitants, then the population of the entire world would be 31,500 people.

• Caucasian 91, Asian 7, Aboriginal and other 2

• 24 were born overseas

• 80 people in the village speak English at home

• 64 of the 100 live in a capital city

• 20 are under age 15, 67 are between 15 and 65, 13 are over 65

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAFu_gUwiM8&feature=related

Children’s story:If Australia were a village of 100 people

If the World were our Classroom …

• David J. Smith, the author of If the World Were a Village, has been asked to write a sequel to the original book.

• This time, he would like to base his data on a classroom. Our task is to research whether a single classroom can represent the world. He would like us to send him a letter reporting our findings.

• Small groups will first collect the data needed from students in our class and display it on a graph. We will then study the data and compare it to the original book and another class.

• David J. Smith will use our results to decide if this book would provide an accurate picture of the world

Another investigation:Travel Magazine Article

The editor of a travel magazine wants to include an article about the best countries in which to live.

Your job is to present information that compares the standard of living in Australia with that of three other countries on three different continents.

Use a variety of methods including data displays, data analyses and maps to support your conclusion.

AAMT National Mathematics Day

http://www.aamt.edu.au/Activities-and-projects/National-Mathematics-Day-2013

What local, national and global issues could we investigate in mathematics lessons?

What questions could students pose:

• How much water is saved by fixing a dripping tap?

• How much food is ‘thrown away’ in the canteen in a year?

• How much paper could be saved in a year by putting the school newsletter online?

• How much electicity is saved by turning off lights for one hour?

• …

http://www.literacyandnumeracy.gov.au/numeracy

The ActivityReduce, reuse, recycle, rethink

• Students collect, classify and count rubbish from the classroom or school bins

• Submit data collection between 15 July and 4 August• Early years to junior secondary

Is my class green?Comparing samples and populations

“What actions do you take at home to conserve the environment?”

• ‘My household has installed a water tank’• ‘My household has installed a water saving shower head’• ‘I take shorter showers’• ‘I turn off the tap while I brush my teeth’• ‘I turn off appliances (e.g. TV, computer, gaming consoles) at

the power point’• ‘My household recycles our rubbish’

ABS Website (Via Scootle search)

Action 4 or lower 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Water tank

Shower head

Short showers

Brush teeth, no tap

Off appliances

Recycle rubbish

What actions do you take in your home to conserve the environment?

2010 Data - % of YES respondents at each year level

What actions do you take in your home to conserve the environment?

2010 Data - % of YES respondents at each year level

Action 4 or lower 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Water tank 45 38 37 43 40 41 41 43 38

Shower head 40 46 45 44 46 48 46 50 52

Short showers 74 73 66 60 51 46 44 44 47

Brush teeth, no tap 92 91 90 89 87 85 85 83 85

Off appliances 52 51 47 47 44 43 47 44 45

Recycle rubbish 80 83 82 81 83 80 78 82 78

What local, national and global issues could we investigate in mathematics lessons?

LOCAL ISSUEShttp://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/1318.3Feature

%20Article14Aug%202009

What local, national and global issues could we investigate in mathematics lessons?

NATIONAL ISSUES• Loss of biodiversity and continued destruction of habitat• Depletion of river systems and groundwater aquifers giving rise to algal

blooms and declining aquatic ecosystems• High rates of land clearance and vegetation loss• Poor quality of soils• Sustantial adverse impacts on water quality (stormwater, sewage, …)• Invasive plants and animals• Rising salinity• Waste management• Population

Measures of Sustainability

• Living Planet Index

• Happy Planet Index

• Ecological Footprint

• Earth Overshoot Day

• …

Living Planet Indexhttp://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/all_publications/

living_planet_report/living_planet_report_graphics/lpi_interactive/

http://www.happyplanetindex.org/countries/australia/

Calculating Ecological Footprinthttp://www.epa.vic.gov.au/ecologicalfootprint/calculators/default.asp

Ecological Footprint Interactive Graph

http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/all_publications/living_planet_report/living_planet_report_graphics/footprint_interactive/

http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/gfn/page/earth_overshoot_day/