Northern Territory

Concepts and Contexts

2. Life and Living

CC 4.2 examine scientific evidence for models and concepts that are used to explain the processes that connect living systems and lead to change.

CC 5.2 analyse concepts and principles relating to interactions, balance, continuity and change in living things.

CC 5+.2 analyse and map the development of scientific understandings about living systems and change.

• present evidence that plants and animals are made up of cells, e.g. identify similarities and differences in specimens of cells, use a microscope to identify the structure of different cells.
• examine the effects of new technologies on people and their environment, e.g. biotechnology in reducing disease, reproductive technologies.
• research reproductive technologies and communicate own and others opinions on the impact of these, e.g. IVF, genetic counselling.
• Investigate different reproductive strategies and evaluate their effectiveness in ensuring survival of the offspring, e.g. sexual and asexual reproduction.
• Examine and debate issues associated with species biodiversity, e.g. contemporary rates of species loss, human use of natural environments, introduction of exotic species.

• use theories and scientific models to describe how genetic continuity is maintained from generation to generation naturally and artificially, e.g. reduction of genetic material in gametes, recombination, inheritance of characteristics, the role of breeding programs for specific characteristics in pets and agriculture, the role of genetic counselling in reducing genetically inherited diseases.
• analyse the effects of environmental change on living things and ecosystems, e.g. the use of a species for biological control of a pest, the effects of introducing herbicides or pesticides on ecosystems.

• Identify the historical developments of cellular structure/processes and evaluate their significance, e.g. biotechnological use of microbes.
• Research scientific intervention into life processes and assess their impacts on society, e.g. use and development of vaccination, gene therapy.
• evaluate the long term effects of human activities on different ecosystems and the effectiveness of measures used to minimise human impact.