GRACE

LUTHERAN COLLEGE
EST. 1978

YEAR 7 SCIENCE
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT

Name: Class: Teacher:

JTN, GH, N2B, WF, KIM, MV, DM

Unit: Biology Semester 2, Term 3, 2022

Instrument No: 3

Technique: Science Investigation

Task:
You are required to complete a series of biological field studies to observe biodiversity in
the local school area. You will then record and interpret the results to draw conclusions
about human impacts on our school ecosystem.

Conditions:
Length (words) 400 - 600 words

Own Time 1 % hours per week

Laboratory Lessons 5 lessons

Important Dates:
KIM, (VIV, WF, N2B JTN, GH, DM
Handed Out 10th of August 11th of August
KIM, MV, wr-, N2B JTN, GH, DM
Checkpoints 24th of August
23rd of August
KIM, MV, WF, N2B JTN, GH, DM
Final Copy 7th of September th
8 of September
Results:

Understanding Overall
Inquiry Skills
Science
Presentation of Assignment
Assignments Presentation Guidelines (unless directed differently by the Assignment Task Sheet):
Task sheet (including criteria sheet) to be included for marking purposes
Cover Sheet/Title Page which includes Student name, subject teacher, topic, and due date. All pages to be
securely stapled together
Page Layout: 2cm margins, footer with page numbers, student name and subject details
Word processed assignments: minimum size 12 font and 1.5 line spacing Handwritten assignments must be clear
and legible
Referencing Requirements
Complete and correct referencing of sources must be acknowledged (bibliographic and in-text)
Research notes MUST be included where indicated on the task sheet and should clearly show the research process
used.
A Bibliography or Reference list is to be included at the end of the assignment (Harvard or APA Systems of
referencing are acceptable).
Students are encouraged to use the Automatic Referencing feature of MS Word (unless otherwise advised by their
teacher).
Refer to the College Assessment Procedure for further information

8AM Submission Deadline for Draft and Final Submissions

Tasks will be deemed to be late if they are not in the possession of the class teacher (hard copy or electronic) or their
nominated proxy (i.e., eGrace) by 8:00am on the due date, regardless of the student's presence or otherwise at school. Take
Note: Students who have difficulty accessing eGrace must email their teacher (with the assignment attached) or email
grace@glc.qld.edu.au (with the assignment attached) and request it be forwarded to the class teacher. Refer to the College
Late & Non-Submission Procedure for further information.

Draft Submission
A draft is a piece of work that is a substantial response to the task. It should attempt each criteria/objective of the task and
be of a standard that is ready for submission and able to be used for assessment purposes. You will be given feedback on
your draft, and your final assessment should be reworked upon reflection on this feedback. Failure to submit a draft on the
due date will result in lunchtime and/or afternoon withdrawal(s) until a draft is obtained. Late drafts will not be provided
feedback and instead students will need to proactively seek verbal feedback during class time. Failure to submit a final copy
on the due date will result in the draft being used for final grading. You are required to submit two (2) copies of your draft to
your teacher (ideally this would be 1 (one) Paper Copy as well as 1 (one) Electronic Copy via eGrace). Refer to the College
Late & Non-Submission Procedure for further information.

Late Assignment Policy

Students in Year 7-9 must a provide Medical Certificate or a letter from a parent/guardian to explain an illness. Year 10-12
students require a Medical Certificate as per QCAA requirements for draft and final assessment. Extensions are to be
submitted to and approved by the Head of Department or Coordinator. It is the responsibility of the student to arrange an
extension at least two (2) days prior to the due date (final or draft) and for legitimate reasons only. Late Assignments,
without explanations acceptable to the Head of Department or Coordinator, will not be considered and results will be
determined by drafts. Take Note: Computer and technology failure (i.e., USB failure) is NOT an acceptable excuse for late or
non-submission of assessment. It is the responsibility of the student to constantly back up their work and print regularly. You
work should always be saved in at least two (2) places. Senior Students Take Note: Students failing to submit assessment
which contains mandatory aspects of the course, runs the risk of losing credit for that semester unit, potentially jeopardizing
their OP/QCE/ATAR eligibility. Refer to the College Late & Non-Submission Procedure for further information.

Plagiarism - Authenticity of Student Work

'Plagiarism' is defined as using another person's words, ideas or opinions as one's own work, without reference to the
author, including published sources from print or electronic media (authenticity), as well as work from another student
(collusion) or member of the community. This includes (but is not limited to) copying, cutting and pasting from the
Internet, as well as copying from other students and/or published works. If plagiarism is found at the Draft stage (although
this is not the teacher's responsibility) the student will need to rewrite the plagiarised section of the assignment during
lunch time withdrawal(s) until it is of an acceptable standard. If plagiarism is found in the Final Submission the result will be

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that the plagiarised section of the assignment will be given a non-result. If a student has been found to be handing out their
assessment for others to view, they will also be penalised as stated above as they have been involved in the plagiarism
process. Refer to the College Plagiarism Procedure for further information
Investigating Biodiversity Quadrats
It would be difficult to count all the organisms in a habitat, so a sample is
taken. A tool called a quadrat is often used. It marks off an exact area so that
the plants and animals in that area can be identified and counted. We can
count individual organisms within the quadrat or estimate their percentage
cover. Using percentage cover is particularly useful when it is difficult to
identify individuals within the quadrat, e.g., grasses, algae.

Pitfall traps are often used to sample the small invertebrates

living on the ground. You can't count all the animals in an area.
You can get an idea of the variety and number by using a pitfall
trap to capture beetles, ants and other insects. To set up and use
a pitfall trap properly the top of the container should be level
with the soil surface.

Transects
A tape is laid along the ground in a straight line. All living organisms that touch the tape are recorded.

Task:
In preparation for this scientific investigation, you have practiced using quadrats and transects to
measure biodiversity.

As a class two areas within the school grounds will be selected to survey. There must be some
differences between the two areas. Pitfall traps must be able to be left safely outside without posing a
risk to other students.
Questioning and Predicting
Class discussion
Identify a question that could be answered using the results of your study

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Question 1
Predict which of the two sites you have selected will have the highest level of diversity.
Justify your prediction.
The one with the less people touching it I predict that it would have more biodiversity and a
high population
Planning and Conducting

Question 2a
Identify any safety risks that may arise when conducting biological fieldwork.
1) Un even ground
2) Roots

3) Trees

4) Other people
Question 2b
Describe how you will effectively manage these risks to keep all group members safe.
1) Tread carefully
2) Look down for them
3)watch where you are walking

3) Look out

Method
Step 1 — Place a 1m x 1m quadrat within each of your two selected areas. List the living organisms that
are observed within these quadrats.
Question 3

Quadrat 1

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 Quadrat 2

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Step 2 — Set up a pitfall trap in a safe place within the quadrats and leave overnight.
Step 3 — Check the pitfall trap and record all organisms found inside.
Results
Record your results from the quadrats and pitfall traps in the table below:
Organisms Quadrat 1 Quadrat 2 Pitfall Trap 1 Pitfall trap
2
Ants 4 ants 2 ants 16 0

Cockroach 0 0 0 1

Grass 5% 1% N/A N/A

Worm 0 1 0 0

Average
Processing and analysing data
Question 4

5
a) Compare your results of the organisms found in the quadrats/pitfall traps and draw a conclusion
about why fewer/more organisms are found in one area compared to the other.
We found that the bigger insects were in the quuadrat / pitfall trap with more people But the pitfall trap /quadrat
with less people had a bigger population

b) Using your understanding of the requirements for survival explain why the conditions present in
one area support a higher level of biodiversity.

Evaluating
Question 5
Thinking about how you collected data on biodiversity using quadrats and pitfall traps, are the
results you have recorded a true reflection of all living things present at the College?

. No as there are much bigger animals such as spiders and snakes that cannot fit in the pitfall trap
as well as creatures not being seen with the naked eye plus animals that are in the soil

Question 6
Propose how you could change your method to improve the reliability and validity of your results.
Explain what changes you would make and why those changes would more accurately reflect all
organisms present at the College. A larger scale of pitfall traps as well as larder pitfall traps using
buckets and dig and place quadrates below ground

6
The food web above represents the organisms found in a river system. The local council decides to spray
for flies as the residents have been complaining about them. Predict what could happen and how this
might affect the level of biodiversity found in the river system. Use the food web to justify your answer.
There would be more water weeds due to the flies having them in their diet there would be a lower
amount of frog’s turtles and dragonflies because on the food web all those animals depend on flies as a
food source

Classification
Question 8
Your task is to first create a dichotomous key that identifies 10 living organisms that can be observed at
Grace Lutheran College and then to justify your choice of questions by selecting a peer to check that
they could successfully identify all living organisms using the key (this will be done in class under
teacher supervision).
Possible choices (or pick your own)
Gum tree Grass e.g., Buffalo Magpie Rat Worm Python
Ant Dandelion Fly Mosquito Crow Grasshopper
Frog Kookaburra Clover Lady beetle Cockroach Ibis

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