Ecosystems Curriculum

This section addresses students' tendency to over-emphasize balance in ecosystems to the exclusion of flux. It helps students to realize that balance and flux are natural states in an ecosystem and that each state plays a role in ecosystem dynamics. This section uses a combination of stories, discussions, and games to help students realize that balance and flux are natural states in an ecosystem and that each state plays a role in ecosystem dynamics.

Section 6: Understanding Goals

Subject Matter

• Ecosystems are dynamic and some amount of flux, or change, is natural.
• Because of interdependencies in the ecosystem, the fates of the populations are linked. Events that affect one population typically have ripple effects—affecting other populations. When one population is out of balance, others may be too.
• Organisms in a food web have a certain amount of ability to adapt, and a certain amount of redundancy exists. This provides a kind of overall stability in the food web.
• Studying the dynamics of flux is a way of understanding the nature of the system.
• Flux is not necessarily harmful to an ecosystem.

Causality

• Balance and flux in a system can cause complex effects.
• The balance of one population affects the balance of others. When one population becomes unstable and it's numbers begin to oscillate, others typically become unstable too.
• Some events do not have strong or direct adverse effects on ecosystem members because the ecosystem members are able to adapt.