CLOSED-ECOLOGICAL-SYSTEMS IN THE TEACHING OF ENVIRONMENTAL SUBJECTS

IN THE NEAR FUTURE, OUR CHILDREN WILL MAKE CHOICES THAT WILL SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE ALL LIFE ON EARTH. IT IS IMPERATIVE THEY OBTAIN A COHERENT OVERVIEW OF HOW THE BIOSPHERE OPERATES, AND HOW THEY ARE PARTICIPANTS. CLOSED-ECOLOGICAL-SYSTEMS (CES) WERE DEVELOPED AT NASA'S JET PROPULSION LABORATORY FOR LIFE-SUPPORT STUDIES AND HAVE BEEN IN RESEARCH FOR OVER 20 YEARS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII. CES ARE CONSIDERED AUTHENTIC MINI-PLANETS-A GALLON-SIZED SIMPLIFIED ANALOGUE OF THE BIOSPHERE THAT WILL AUTONOMOUSLY RECYCLE ITS ELEMENTS AND SUPPORT LIFE FOR DECADES. CES ARE A FASCINATION FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES AND ATTITUDES. WHILE THESE HAVE OBVIOUS INSTRUCTIONAL VALUE CONCERNING GLOBAL ECOLOGIC TOPICS, CURRENTLY MARKETED CES NOVELTIES ARE STATIC AND OF LIMITED USEFULNESS. A SPECIALIZED INTERACTIVE CES-PHOTOBIOREACTOR, ACCOMPANIED BY DEFINED MEDIA, EXPERIMENTAL PROTOCOLS, AND SHORT INSTRUCTIONAL TEXT MODULES ARE BEING DEVELOPED. THIS IS A SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL AID APPLICABLE TO GRADES K-12. THE REACTOR CONTAINS SHRIMP-ALGAE AND EVEN FISH-PLANT ECOSYSTEMS. IT INCORPORATES ACCURATE BUT INEXPENSIVE INSTRUMENTATION. THE PROJECT IS A HANDS-ON APPROACH TO EXPLORE A VARIETY OF MAJOR ECOLOGIC PRINCIPLES FROM THE SIMPLE TO THE SOPHISTICATED. IT ADDITIONALLY OFFERS THE EDUCATOR A VEHICLE IN WHICH TO INTRODUCE RELATED ENVIRONMENTAL SUBJECTS.