This elaboration provides students with an opportunity to develop this core Science Inquiry Skill whilst addressing intercultural science inquiry skills relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures within the context of the following content description(s) from the Science Understanding and/or Science as a Human Endeavour strand(s).
Ecosystems consist of communities of interdependent organisms and abiotic components of the environment; matter and energy flow through these systems (ACSSU176)
People use scientific knowledge to evaluate whether they accept claims, explanations or predictions, and advances in science can affect people’s lives, including generating new career opportunities (ACSHE160)
A potential way to approach this content description is:
Students could investigate flora and fauna records as depicted in rock paintings and pictorial histories for evidence of species-specific information. For example, using such information students could formulate a research hypothesis and predict the possible distribution of animals that are now extinct on the Australian mainland, such as the Tasmanian Tiger or the Tasmanian Devil.