Environmental Health Lesson Plan for 9th-12th Grades

Title

Computer Science for a Safer World: GIS and Mapping Environmental Health Risks.

Authors

Trainees in the Education Outreach Team (EOT), which is part of the Research Experience and Training Coordination Core (RETCC) in the UC Berkeley Superfund Research Program (SRP). Local high-school students and teachers provided feedback.

Audience

High-school students, 9th – 12th grade. Could be adapted for middle-school students.

Background and Description

SRP Trainees (graduate students and postdoctoral scholars working on biomedical and/or engineering projects) established the EOT in 2023, to foster relationships with local public-school districts and engagement with students. The workshop was initially developed for 9-12th grade students in McClymond’s High School, Oakland, CA, for Computer Science week in 2023, via an invitation through the Oakland Public Education Fund.

In collaboration with the McClymond’s Career Guidance Counselor, team members designed a 90 minute workshop to demonstrate the application of computer science to environmental health/justice through three steps: 1. Introduce environmental health/justice issues of local interest through an interactive presentation; 2. Provide experience using GIS tools such as CalEnviroScreen 4.0 and the SRP-supported Drinking Water Tool; and, 3. Enable students to develop their own research questions through guided data exploration. Another goal was to introduce the students to potential interdisciplinary career paths.

In 2024, the team developed the workshop into a modular lesson plan and instructional materials for teachers that could be adapted to explore issues in a local context in the Bay Area and California. The team shared the lesson plan with local teachers during Ignited Education’s professional development training weeks, in July 2024 (Sustainable Solutions for Alternative Futures) and June 2025 (East Bay Water Week). Teachers utilized the resources in lesson plans and provided valuable feedback.

Lesson Plan Components and Links

  1. Presentation (Google Slides). 43 slides (~45 minutes). Link to Slides.
  2. Student Guide (Google Doc). Step-by-step guide to two exercises (~45 minutes): Link to Student Guide.
  3. Instructor Guide (Google Doc). Same as Student Document with additional suggestions for instructors. Link to Instructor Guide.

Acknowledgement and Disclaimer

This resource was supported by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under grant number P42ES004705. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.