High AP Environmental Science
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Number of Credits
1
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Estimated Completion Time
2 Semesters
Pre Requisites
Algebra I and two years of high-school science, with labs
Description
AP Environmental Science provides students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies required to understand the interrelationships of the natural world. Students identify and analyze environmental problems that are natural and human-made. They evaluate the relative risks associated with these problems and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing problems. Laboratories support student content mastery in both hands-on and virtual experiences.
Follow the link below for the Department of Education description of this course:
http://www.cpalms.org/Public/PreviewCourse/Preview/4354
Follow the link below for the College Board description of this course:
Segment 1:
Module 1
- Sustainable land and resource use
- Agricultural Revolution
- Industrial Revolution
- Tragedy of the Commons
- Public land use
- Science as a process
- Scientific method
- Economic impacts of environmental problems
- Cost-benefit analysis
- External and marginal costs
- Laws, treaties, and organizations relevant to sustainability
Module 2
- Biological populations and communities
- Interactions among species
- Photosynthesis and cellular respiration
- First and second laws of thermodynamics
- Food chains and food webs
- Trophic levels and ecological pyramids
- Natural biogeochemical cycles
- Evolution and natural selection
- Primary and secondary succession
- Ecological niches
- Biodiversity and loss of biodiversity
- Extinctions
- Endangered and threatened species
Module 3
- Weather and climates
- Seasons
- Solar intensities and latitudes
- Major terrestrial and aquatic biomes
- Ocean circulation and currents
- Earth’s layers
- Plate tectonics
- Rock cycle
- Mineral formation and extraction
- Global mining reserves
- Forests and forest management
Module 4
- Human population distribution and movement
- Historical population sizes
- Fertility rates
- Demographic transition
- Age-structure diagrams
- Controlling human population growth: Case studies
- Urbanization
Module 5
- Energy resources and consumption
- Fossil fuels
- Nuclear energy
- Hydroelectric energy
- Renewable and alternative energy resources
- Energy conservation
- Sustainable energy policies
Segment 2:
Module 6
- Composition of Earth’s atmosphere
- Stratospheric ozone
- Primary and secondary air pollution
- Thermal inversions
- Indoor air pollution
- Acid deposition
- Greenhouse gases and the greenhouse effect
- Climate change
- Ozone loss
- Clean Air Act
Module 7
- Soil formation and composition
- Physical and chemical properties of different soil types
- Erosion, deforestation, and desertification
- Soil conservation
- Types of agriculture
- Irrigation
- Green Revolution
- Sustainable agriculture
- Fish farming and ranching
- Food production and distribution
- Human nutritional requirements
- Agricultural subsidies and international food relief
- Pesticides and pesticide use
- Alternative pest management strategies
Module 8
- Physical properties of water
- Water use and resources
- Groundwater and watersheds
- Water supply and quality problems
- Water pollution types and prevention
- Water quality indicators
- Wastewater treatment and water purification
- Water quality legislation
Module 9
- Risk and risk assessment
- Risk-benefit analysis
- Transmissible and non-transmissible diseases
- Smoking
- Diet and human health
- Medicine and population growth
- Toxicology
- Dose-response relationships
Module 10
- Solid and hazardous waste
- Cleanup of contaminated sites
- Waste disposal and reduction
- Landfills
- Recycling, re-using, and composting
- Carbon footprints
- Global change and sustainability
Household items for lab experiments