Cross-Curricular Chemistry Combustion
Imagine the joy associated with overhearing a student conversation about making connections between subject areas. It is quite the buzz.
School staff are more than accustomed to catching snippets of chat about a gamut of topics ranging from social activities to unusual language, from part-time work to celebrity gossip, but (be still my beating heart) I recently encountered a discussion at the end of a Year 11 Politics class that was about Chemistry.
About how these two subjects were drawing parallels in students' thinking, informing their conversation and generating excitement… well, from me, anyway!
Working in Humanities, we often hear about links between the disciplines within our Learning Area. Students will regularly speak politically in History, historically in Legal Studies, legally in Politics, ‘accountingly’ in Business Management and apply business understandings in Accounting.
We are also used to strong, viable connections between English and all Humanities subjects, whether through an emphasis on literacy skills and all this entails, or the historic context of a novel, the legal perspective of an argument analysis or the political motive for a letter to an editor.
But Chemistry? This hit from left field, and for a moment I was so taken aback, I didn’t know my isotope from my atomic mass, my covalent bonding from my metalloids!
That lesson, we had been learning about power in the Asia-Pacific region and discussing, more specifically, Indonesia’s rich resources and minerals. The reading and conversation was based around Indonesia’s economy and how it might generate wealth to become a powerful actor in the Asia-Pacific via its vast amount of nickel. Australia is our focus at the moment, so we have been chatting about all things neighbourly - the Pacific Island nations, Australia’s influence, the balance of power in this theatre, how states create wealth.
Upon overhearing the conversation about Chemistry and connections to using the Earth’s precious resources to generate coin, I asked the students what they were referring to specifically. They spoke about how, in Science, they had discussed the ethical use of minerals and that VCE Chemistry had touched on resource use already.
How fabulous!
In VCE Politics, we always remember that the key strategic pursuits of the state are national security, economic prosperity, regional relationships and international standing, and sometimes when trying to ensure the country is prosperous, leaders will make decisions that place the earth and its resources in jeopardy.
And this is where the connections flooded in - how Indonesia may have to increase mining to develop its power via prosperity, and yet what price will this have on the delicate balance of ecosystems and minerals and chemistry, biology, ecology…?
Although this particular conversation occurred at the Senior end of the school, we are hearing equally wonderful connections being made in Years 7 and 8 Humanities. Year 7 students are learning about what makes a place liveable and are considering climate and environmental concerns. Year 8 humanitarians are focusing on business and economics, all the while thinking about impacts on the environment and the responsible use of resources.
What an important time to be developing our thinking about the world and trying to discern the facts from the nonsense. What a critical moment to be learning these skills, and what an opportunity to make meaningful connections between vibrant subject areas.