Science Teachers’ Association of Victoria

VCE Conference Series 2004

Postal Address: PO Box 109 Coburg VIC 3058Phone: (03) 9385 3999 • Fax: (03) 9386 6722

Email: stav@stav.vic.edu.au • Website: www.stav.vic.edu.au

VCE Biology Teachers’ Conference

Monday 23 February 2004 @ Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton

Each participant will receive a CD of Proceedings from all five STAV 2004 VCE Conferences

as part of their registration.

Program8.15am Registration opens (Foyer, South One Lecture Theatre, Building 64)

9.00 - 9.05am Welcome (South One Lecture Theatre, Building 64)

9.05am VCAA Update

9.20 - 10.20am Keynote Address (South One Lecture Theatre, Building 64)

Under the microscope: stem cell researchDr Shae-Lee Cox, National Stem Cell Centre

10.20 - 11.00am Morning Tea & Displays (1st Floor, Campus Centre, Building 10)

11.10am – 12.10pm Optional Session A

12.15 - 1.20pm Lunch & Displays (1st Floor, Campus Centre, Building 10)

1.30 - 2.30pm Optional Session B

2.40 - 3.40pm Optional Session C

3.40pm Conference end

2

Session A - 11.10 - 12.10pm

A1: Review of Biology Study DesignIn this session you will break up intosmall groups of 20 and take part in adiscussion about the direction of biologyfor 2005. Bring along your ideas, viewsand opinions.Suitability: Units 1 – 4

No Limit

A2: Biology School Assessmentwith the State ReviewerKevin O’Leary,

Banksia Secondary CollegeThis session will look at how to assessBiology in Units 1 - 4. It will giveexamples of SACs and criteriaassessment for Units 3 & 4 and willexplain the changes to the SACs for2004. This session will be valuable forexperienced and new teachers ofBiology.Suitability: Units 1 – 4

No Limit

A3: Ecology and EnzymeInteractive SimulationsMichael O’Brien,

Newbyte Educational SoftwareEcology simulations which are easy touse and enhance the understanding ofyour students.Investigate how the new “Food Webs:Ponds”, “Food Webs: AustralianWoodlands” and “Enzyme Lab” softwarecan work in your classroom. This handson workshop will give you some greatpractical ideas for your class. Learnabout the hidden features and fullpotential of these programs from thedeveloper. Special emphasis will beplaced on using the new Pondssoftware.This year the workshop will be muchmore in depth than in previous years. Irecommend it for both beginner andexperienced users of this software. Alsolook out for our Genetics workshop atthis conference.Suitability: Years 7 – 12Limit 40 Commercial

VCE Biology Teachers’ ConferenceA4: Systems – Diet, transport, waste

and let’s not forget sex!Mark Loveday & Dianne Gordon,

Zoos VictoriaFind out how Healesville Sanctuary andMelbourne Zoo can support Biology Unit2: Functioning organisms, through arange of fun, inspiring programs. Forexample, students explore the question“What is coprophagy and why dopossums and koalas do it?” as well asdiscover a range of other animal feedinghabits and digestion processes. In theirexploration they will study animal scatsand skulls, have some hands-on timewith live animals, learn about wasteproduction and how it varies withenvironmental factors. Students will beactively engaged in lively discussion asthey find out about animalcontraception and the latestreproductive technologies used incaptive breeding - an important role ofall Zoos Victoria properties.Suitability: Unit 2

Limit 30 Extension Education

A5: BIOZONE Student Manuals

& Presentation MediaRichard Allan, Biozone International LtdThe latest (2004) editions of BIOZONE’smuch acclaimed Year 11 Biology andYear 12 Biology student manuals will beshowcased by the author. See howthese unique resources offer the verylatest information on ‘cutting edge’biology topics. The author will explainthe benefits of using these manuals andwhy they have become one of the mostpopular resources in Victorian highschools. FREE BOOK SAMPLES will beprovided to those attending thissession, plus each will receive a FREEsample of the presentation media onCD-ROM.Suitability: Units 1 – 4

No Limit Commercial

A6: Does Datalogging have

a role in Biology?John Gipps, Monash UniversityData logging is widely used in Physicsand to a lesser extent in Chemistry, butdoes it have a useful role in Biology? Inthis session I will demonstrate someshort experiments and discuss somelonger term ones to illustrate thisquestion.Suitability: Units 1 – 4Limit 40

A7: ZoonosisPhil Armato, RSPCA EducationAre you looking at investigatingsomething different when it comes topathogens? This program is designed tosupport Unit 3 VCE Biology, Outcome 3:Research Report/Presentation ondiseases. Australia has the highestpercentage of pet ownership, perhousehold, in the world. Should we beconcerned about the diseases they cantransmit? How does this effect the wayan organization like the RSPCAoperates? Zoonosis is the term used todescribe diseases that can betransferred from animals to human.Approximately 50 Zoonoses have beenreported in Australia. Come along andsee how you can use the RSPCA’s freeeducation service to focus your studentson the animals they come into the mostcontact with, how this affects workplacepractices and also possible examquestion scenarios.Suitability: Unit 3

No Limit Extension Education

A8: Innovation in the dairy industry

– not just cows and milk!Anne Semple, Education ConsultantAre you having trouble finding readilyavailable, reliable and balancedresources to support teaching andlearning in aspects of geneticinheritance and ‘new age’biotechnologies? Do your students findit difficult to analyse associated issues?This presentation will describe andexplain the Dairy CRC’s valuable newweb-based resource for teachers andstudents of VCE Biology. Essentially it isa portal to information onbiotechnologies and productsassociated with the CRC’s fields ofresearch that relate directly to the VCEbiology curriculum. The site will alsoprovide information on vocational andcareer opportunities associated with theindustry. It will provide a teaching-learning framework for students toresearch and analyse social,environmental and ethical issuesassociated with, for example,manipulation of genetic inheritance,cloning, stem cell research,transgenesis, the production ofnutraceuticals, and reproductive anddevelopmental technologies.Suitability: Units 1 – 4Limit 30

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Monday 23 February 2004A9: Gondwana GreeningGary Shadforth & Peter Kelly,

Royal Botanic GardensFind out how teachers of VCE BiologyUnit 4 can use the Royal BotanicGardens to cover Variation, NaturalSelection and Evolution. This sessionwill take you outside to follow asimulation of the ‘Gondwana Greening’program which reveals informationthrough some exploration. Studentmaterial and activities are provided.Suitability: Units 3 & 4

Limit 30 Extension Education

12.15 – 1.20pm

Lunch & Displays1st floor Campus Centre(Building 10)

Session B - 1.30 - 2.30pm

B1: Examiner’s ReportRuth Leslie, Marjory Martin &

Dawn GleesonReview of the 2003 Unit 3 & 4 WrittenExaminations.No Limit

B2: Genetics with CSIRORebecca Carter, CSIRO EducationBased on CSIRO’s very popular geneticsprograms, this hands-on workshopintroduces participants to the world ofDNA science. Participants willexperience a gel electrophoresisexperiment and will extract DNA frompeas. Basic genetics will be covered aswell as the applications of gelelectrophoresis. The session will alsogive details of CSIRO’s VCE Unit 4Genetic Engineering program.Suitability: Years 7-10

Limit 30 Extension Education

B3: Salty Solutions – ExploringSalinity FieldworkJenny Pettenon & Ann Fagan,

Landlearn – DPISalinity is one of the greatesteconomical and environmental threatsfacing the Australian landscape. Explorefieldwork opportunities close toMelbourne aimed at investigating theimpacts of dryland salinity on differentecosystems. Look at changes in theenvironment through monitoringenvironmental indicators such asground and surface water vegetationand production. Learn aboutmanagement strategies in place and

future management of salinity in theregion. There is no need for extrapreparation for LandLearn fieldwork.Suitability: Years 7 – 11Limit 30 Extension Education

B4: Intimacy with Naturein your classroomPeter Razos and Victor Fejes,

Trinity GrammarThis session offers a unique opportunityfor participants to see how to setup their own butterfly and giant stickinsect enclosure in their ownclassroom. We will see their fascinatingbehaviour and how these insects can beused in both senior Biology (evolution,adaptation) and junior science. A limitednumber of teachers will be given aninsect. Participants will alsobe given full access to the onlinescience resource site at DynamicScience Education. Check it out atwww.dynamicscience.com.au/testerfollow the prompts and go to“Curriculum material”.Suitability: Years 7 – 11

Limit 50

B5: Using a “Palm” Handheld

Computer In TeachingDon Collins, Princes Hill Secondary

CollegeYou may have seen people using theselittle computers (PDAs) that fit in yourpocket. Come and see how you canhave:• Many diaries (social, school etc)

separate or together with countdown days for when reports, etc aredue.

• ‘To do’ lists under many headings• Addresses, that you can ring from

your desktop computer (whereeverything gets backed up on) just byclicking on the name

• Memos eg for Biol, Yr 9 Sci, etc• Any website downloaded when ever

you backup• Any of your Word, Excel, Power Point

documents, photos• Choice of 15,000 programs available

on the web, a lot free, for any hobbyor interest as well as dictionaries

If you have a PDA, please share yourideas with us!Suitability: Years 7-12No limit

Session C - 2.40 - 3.40pm

C1: Investigating AntibioticResistance in BacteriaFran MaherA practical session to explore methodsfor studying bacterial sensitivity toantibiotics and antiseptic agents. Thissession is useful for new biologyteachers and those who have notpreviously learned basic bacterialculture techniques and methods fortesting antibiotic resistance.Suitability: Years 7 – 12Limit 20

C2: Genetics and Natural Selection

Interactive SimulationsMichael O’Brien,

Newbyte Educational SoftwareGood biology simulations save you time,are easy to use and enhance theunderstanding of your students.Investigate how “Drosophila Genetics”,“Pea Plant Genetics” and the “NaturalSelection Series” software can work inyour classroom. This hands onworkshop will give you some greatpractical ideas for your class. Learnabout the hidden features and fullpotential of these programs from thedeveloper.This year the workshop will be muchmore in depth than in previous years. Irecommend it for both beginner andexperienced users of this software. Alsolook out for our “Ecology” workshop atthis conference.Suitability: Years 7 – 12.

Limit 40 Commercial

C3: Digital Imaging –

Affordable and FunAdrian Thompson, AIS Australian

Instrument ServiceAIS will demonstrate digital imagingtechnology and the advantages it canoffer to science. We cover the setting upof a digital camera to an existingmicroscope (no special microscopeadapters are required), software andhow simple it is to capture both stillimages and short videos. We also coverspecial features of the software such asmeasuring, amalgamation of images,email, saving of images and more. Wealso look at how versatile they are byinterfacing with data projector, TV, VCR,Laptop and Desk Computer.Suitability: Years 7 – 12No Limit Commercial

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VCE Biology Teachers’ ConferenceC4: An overview of VCE Biology atthe Melbourne AquariumIngrid Scharer & Lai Danier,

Melbourne AquariumCome and join the Melbourne Aquariumeducation team for an insight into ourVCE Biology programs. This session willinclude an outline of ‘Shark Bites andSea Sex’ with a squid dissectiondemonstration, or our new Evolutionprogram ‘Kingdoms and Classes’ plus‘Balance Beneath the Blue’. Theseprograms encompass the topics ofreproduction, dentition, classification,ecosystems, adaptations and evolution.Each participant will also receive ateacher’s pack.Suitability: Units 1 – 4Limit 20 Extension Education

C5: Three Hands-on DataloggingExperiments for VCE Biology with

WorksheetsPeter Niass, Ozintell Pty LtdThis session is an opportunity forteachers to try out three differentinnovative experiments featuringFOURIER dataloggers. The experimentsare designed specifically for the VCEBiology syllabus. Teachers can take-away worksheets which are ready to usein class, and also a CD ROM withsoftware and other experiments.Suitability: Units 1 – 4

Limit 30 Commercial

C6: The ‘Forgotten Flora’ –

Fungi, Lichens, Liverworts,

Hornworts and MossesJosephine Milne & Teresa Lebel,

Royal Botanic Gardens, MelbourneAustralia’s ‘Forgotten Flora’ is theHornworts, liverworts, mosses lichensand fungi. Why use the same oldorganisms every time to teach studentsabout the environment, biodiversity andhealth of ecosystems? What are thelittle green umbrellas growing with mypot plant? What are those brightsplotches of colour on rock outcrops ifthey’re not paint? How does an orchidthat has no chlorophyll, and thereforeno way of making its own energy, grow?Is the mushroom I just picked a fruit orthe whole plant? These are just a few ofthe questions we hope to answer byproviding suitable resources and hands-on experience with the ‘Forgotten Flora’.Suitability: Unit 1

Limit 20 Extension Education

C7: Using Melbourne’s aquaticenvironments for BiologyMarion van Gameren, Earthlines,

Emma Campbell, Melbourne Water &

Keir Jarvis, Melbourne WaterwatchMelbourne Water and MelbourneWaterwatch have stimulating, hands-onresources for VCE Biology Unit 1covering:• Waterway and wetland ecosystems

(including aquatic diversity and foodchains)

• Short and long term change toaquatic ecosystems

• Fieldwork opportunitiesResources available include VCEteacher and student guides, data andinteractive virtual tours, guided toursand fieldwork materials.Suitability: Unit 1

No Limit

C8: Simple and Innovative ComputerTechnology for Biology TeachingPhil Jones, The Logical InterfaceIn this workshop I examine computer oftechnologies for use in biology teachingincluding:• Digital imaging and microscopy -

getting the most out of your existingmicroscopes and using the Proscopedigital microscope to expand yourmicroscopy into new experiences.

• Using time lapse photography tocapture seeds germinating,metamorphosis etc.

• A look at data loggers andinterfaces. A number of data loggersfrom Australia and overseas will beexamined and I will outline thefeatures necessary for their use inbiology. I will also help you to selectan appropriate data logger for yourneeds.

• Experiment worksheets for datalogging and microscopy will beprovided.

Suitability: Units 3 & 4.

Limit 30 Commercial

C9: Biology ExtrasPeter Ball, Southern BiologicalThere are lots of activities you can makeavailable to your students tosupplement and extend their biologystudies. This presentation will introducea number of inexpensive resources tograb their interest. For example:• see how the Many-Headed Slime

Mould, Physarum polycephalum,can be cultured

• find out about supplementinggenetics with genetic peasand barley

• learn more about WisconsinFast Plants

• look into antibiotics.You’ll find ideas for all levels.Suitability: Years 7 - 10, Units 1 - 4Limit 20 Commercial

3.40pm Conference end