Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM is aligned with the following North Carolina Science Curriculum program goals and objectives:

Program Goals

1. Understand the nature of science.
2. Become proficient in using science process skills to solve problems and make decisions.
3. Develop responsible attitudes toward the environment, science, technology, and society.
4. Understand basic scientific concepts and principles.

Elementary science is a vital component of the elementary curriculum and should be taught regularly throughout the year. Content areas of earth, life, and physical sciences can be presented in an integrated fashion using different areas of the Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM. Because young children are naturally curious and are excited about participating in experiential learning, the CD-ROM offers a stimulus for the integration of different content areas by using interactive media such as QuickTime Virtual Reality, movie clips, graphics, and hypertext. The instructional system of the Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM provides for developmentally appropriate science instruction to support readiness skills in other curriculum areas and contributes to thinking and reasoning processes.

The Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM provides a unique opportunity for young children to acquire science concepts and process skills as they observe, describe, and discriminate among objects and organisms in a hypermedia environment. The CD-ROM provides students the opportunity to observe and experience the properties of matter such as color, size, shape, and to work with plants, animals, and numbers. As children progress beyond the early elementary grades, they are ready for more formal science experiences. The CD-ROM provides opportunities for experiences which give broad coverage to environmental science topics and allows students to experience more abstract concepts. These experiences assist the child in developing a basic understanding of the conceptual themes of matter, energy, motion, time, space, and forces.

With young children, understanding the processes of science is more important than knowing the content of science. Through activities on the CD-ROM that use scientific processes, students gain a basic understanding of environmental science content. The development of problem-solving and reasoning skills, an essential part of the learning process, is facilitated through guided instruction and open-ended explorations on the CD-ROM. The inquiry-based activities on the Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM deal with real problems that are relevant to the student.

Competency Goal 1: The learner will develop an understanding of the nature of science.

• 1.1 Show that scientific knowledge is public.
• 1.2 Recognize that science is historic.
• 1.4 Recognize that scientific knowledge is tentative.
• 1.5 Demonstrate that science is probabilistic.

Competency Goal 2: The learner will develop the ability to use science process skills.

• 2.1 Demonstrate the ability to observe.
• 2.2 Demonstrate the ability to classify.
• 2.3 Demonstrate the ability to use numbers.
• 2.4 Demonstrate the ability to communicate.
• 2.6 Demonstrate the ability to infer.
• 2.7 Demonstrate the ability to predict.
• 2.8 Demonstrate the ability to use space-time relations.
• 2.9 Demonstrate the ability to interpret data.
• 2.10 Demonstrate the ability to define operationally.
• 2.13 Demonstrate the ability to formulate hypotheses.
• 2.14 Demonstrate the ability to formulate models.

Competency Goal 4: The learner will develop a positive attitude toward science.

• 4.1 Exhibit a positive attitude toward learning and experiencing science.
• 4.2 Exhibit a positive attitude for the need for conservation, preservation, and wise use of natural resources.
• 4.3 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the use of scientific inquiry as a way of thinking and problem solving.
• 4.4 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the importance of understanding the contributions of science and technology in shaping society.

Competency Goal 5: The learner will construct an understanding of self and his/her world.

• 5.1 Develop self-awareness by asking questions and communicating with others.
• 5.2 Use the senses to investigate the natural world and changes within it.
  • Explore basic cycles affecting the earth.
  • Investigate plant communities and the ecological relationships among plants and animals.
  • Investigate earth as a landform and explore forces affecting the land and water bodies of the earth over recent and geologic time.

The Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM supports the middle level science curriculum by providing inquiry-based explorations that integrate earth, life, and physical science. Science concepts are presented from a student-centered perspective and place an emphasis on the nature of science and inquiry. The instructional system on the CD-ROM provides the students with the opportunity to engage science process skills, including formulating hypotheses and interpreting data. The activities on the Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM provide students with problem-solving and reasoning experiences that are essential to the learning process. The scientific inquiry on the CD-ROM deals with authentic, real-world problems. Personal decision making and societal issue are interwoven into the CD-ROM science content. Appropriate guided instruction assists middle level students in the transition from concrete reasoning processes to abstract reasoning patterns.

Competency Goal 1: The learner will develop an understanding of the nature of science.

• 1.1 Show that scientific knowledge is public.
• 1.2 Recognize that science is historic.
• 1.4 Recognize that scientific knowledge is tentative.
• 1.5 Demonstrate that science is probabilistic.

Competency Goal 2: The learner will develop the ability to use science process skills.

• 2.1 Demonstrate the ability to observe.
• 2.2 Demonstrate the ability to classify.
• 2.3 Demonstrate the ability to use numbers.
• 2.4 Demonstrate the ability to communicate.
• 2.6 Demonstrate the ability to infer.
• 2.7 Demonstrate the ability to predict.
• 2.8 Demonstrate the ability to use space-time relations.
• 2.9 Demonstrate the ability to interpret data.
• 2.10 Demonstrate the ability to define operationally.
• 2.13 Demonstrate the ability to formulate hypotheses.
• 2.14 Demonstrate the ability to formulate models.

Competency Goal 4: The learner will develop a positive attitude toward science.

• 4.1 Exhibit a positive attitude toward learning and experiencing science.
• 4.2 Exhibit a positive attitude for the need for conservation, preservation, and wise use of natural resources.
• 4.3 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the use of scientific inquiry as a way of thinking and problem solving.
• 4.4 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the importance of understanding the contributions of science and technology in shaping society.

Competency Goal 5: The learner will have an understanding of the relevance of current topics in science.

• 5.1 Demonstrate knowledge of current societal/environmental issues in science.
• 5.2 Demonstrate knowledge of current research in science.
• 5.3 Demonstrate knowledge of various careers in science and technology.

Competency Goal 6: The learner will construct an understanding of science concepts through systems and diversity.

• 6.6 Demonstrate that people interact with the environment and produce change.(8th grade)
• 6.8 Investigate how human activities affect ecosystems.(7th grade)

The Coastal Explorations: Carolina Coastal Science CD-ROM supports the earth science high school science curriculum. The CD-ROM provides the upper secondary school student with a continuation of science concept development with emphasis on the nature of science and scientific inquiry. The activities in the CD-ROM reflect an attitude that science is understandable and is a process of finding out about the natural world. The CD-ROM activities place an emphasis on students using multimedia technologies to investigate authentic scientific problems. Science concept acquisition is emphasized by exploring recent developments in science that address social, political, and economic issues.

Competency Goal 1: The learner will develop an understanding of the nature of science.

• 1.1 Show that scientific knowledge is public.
• 1.2 Recognize that science is historic.
• 1.4 Recognize that scientific knowledge is tentative.
• 1.5 Demonstrate that science is probabilistic.

Competency Goal 2: The learner will develop the ability to use science process skills.

• 2.1 Demonstrate the ability to observe.
• 2.2 Demonstrate the ability to classify.
• 2.3 Demonstrate the ability to use numbers.
• 2.4 Demonstrate the ability to communicate.
• 2.6 Demonstrate the ability to infer.
• 2.7 Demonstrate the ability to predict.
• 2.8 Demonstrate the ability to use space-time relations.
• 2.9 Demonstrate the ability to interpret data.
• 2.10 Demonstrate the ability to define operationally.
• 2.13 Demonstrate the ability to formulate hypotheses.
• 2.14 Demonstrate the ability to formulate models.

Competency Goal 4: The learner will develop a positive attitude toward science.

• 4.1 Exhibit a positive attitude toward learning and experiencing science.
• 4.2 Exhibit a positive attitude for the need for conservation, preservation, and wise use of natural resources.
• 4.3 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the use of scientific inquiry as a way of thinking and problem solving.
• 4.4 Exhibit a positive attitude toward the importance of understanding the contributions of science and technology in shaping society.

Competency Goal 5: The learner will have an understanding of the relevance of current topics in earth/environmental science.

• 5.1 Demonstrate knowledge of current societal/environmental issues in earth science.
• 5.2 Demonstrate knowledge of current research in earth/environmental science.
• 5.3 Demonstrate knowledge of various careers in earth/environmental science and its application.

Competency Goal 6: The learner will have an understanding of location and mapping.

• 6.1 Demonstrate knowledge of mapping skills and location of points on the earth.

Competency Goal 7: The learner will have an understanding of geology.

• 7.3 Demonstrate knowledge of landforms.

Competency Goal 9: The learner will have an understanding of oceanography.

• 9.1 Demonstrate knowledge of ocean and estuarine circulation.
• 9.3 Demonstrate knowledge of shoreline processes.
• 9.4 Demonstrate knowledge of oceanic tides.
• 9.5 Demonstrate knowledge of the importance of locating and conserving the ocean's resources.
• 9.6 Demonstrate knowledge of marine communities.