SCI 3 The Big Debate

Science Summary
KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack

Project three – The Big Debate
Page 3.1
Teachers
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The Big Debate

summary
This curriculum resource is designed to use cycling and aspects
relating to it in order to understand how science works. The
materials use cycling and associated resources to explore
scientific knowledge, theories and models to provide a deeper
understanding of the scientific process.
Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009
The health of the nation

There is growing concern that we as a nation are becoming less healthy.
Much of this concern centres on changing lifestyles resulting in lack of
fitness, often characterised by increasing levels of obesity. While at an
individual level this can result in medical problems and changes in self-
esteem, as a nation it is reducing lifespan, increasing dependency on the
health and social services and resulting in loss of capacity for work. This
has a significant effect on the future economic state of the country.
Children of school age are particularly sensitive to issues around personal
image. They are increasingly exposed to a culture of celebrity with its
portrayal of specific lifestyles coupled with personal image. They are
growing up in circumstances where lifestyle choices are subjected to
significant pressure through advertising and media to conform. The Big
Debate focuses on identifying trends in health, activity and transport,
which provides a background against which children can make their own
lifestyle choices.
In this project students will look at travel, health and exercise at a personal,
local and national level. The activities will develop skills of analysis and
evaluation by considering data and will also look at collecting different
forms of data – precise data from a scientific investigation, and survey
data where it is necessary to consider aspects of reliability and accuracy.
Science Teaching delivery map
Page 3.2
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The Big Debate

teaching delivery map
Areas within the Key Stage 3 (KS3) programme of study
Unit no. Key concepts Project summary
1.1b Scientific thinking Critically analysing and evaluating evidence
from observations and experiments.

Unit no. Key processes Project summary
2.1a Practical skills Use a range of scientific methods and
techniques to develop and test ideas.
2.1c Practical skills Plan and carry out investigative activities.
2.2a Evidence Obtain, record and analyse data from a wide
range of sources, and use findings to provide
evidence for scientific explanations.
2.2b Evidence Evaluate scientific evidence and
working methods.
Science Teaching delivery map
Page 3.3
Teachers
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The Big Debate

teaching delivery map
Areas within government initiatives/programmes
Initiative/programme How the project links to this initiative/programme
Key Stage 3 (KS3) science Section 1 – How science works.
Section 2 – Organisms, behaviour and health.
Every Child Matters (ECM) • Physically healthy

• Healthy lifestyles
• Enjoy and achieve
Healthy Schools (HS) • Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE)
• Healthy eating
• Physical activity
Social and Emotional Aspects • Self-awareness
of Learning (SEAL) • Social skills
Sustainable Schools (SS) • Food and drink
• Travel and traffic
• Inclusion and participation
Science Teaching notes and
KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack lesson plans
Page 3.4
Teachers
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The Big Debate

lesson plans
The health of the nation

The project consists of three activities:
Activity 1
The national picture

Analysing statistics to pick out an overall picture or message. The message
is then translated into a form that is accessible to members of the public –
a video broadcast.
Activity 2
The local picture
Learning about sample size when conducting a survey and then planning
a survey of young people to provide representative information about
school travel.
Activity 3
Investigating the benefits of exercise
Investigating the exercise benefits of different methods of travel to school,
based on heart rate data.
Each of these activities is designed to cover several hours of work, and
to involve work outside classroom settings. Students will need access to
digital cameras, spreadsheets and data loggers to successfully complete
all three activities.
Page 3.5
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The Big Debate

activity 1 – structure

Activity
Tables of data are provided from national statistics on obesity rates in
children, activity levels in children and on methods of transport. Students
analyse the data tables, or others provided for this activity, to identify key
messages. They then plan a video sequence to communicate these key
messages to others and create a video using Photo Story or similar software.
The completed videos could be uploaded to a website for downloading to
mp3 players.
The messages behind the provided data are:
• Rates for obesity and being overweight in children are high and increasing
• Levels of activity in children fall as they get older
• Rates of use of ‘passive’ forms of transport are increasing while rates
for ‘active’ forms of transport are decreasing
Additional work
Use regional data sets to compare with the national picture. Decide if the
issue of children’s health is greater in a large city such as London.
Equipment required
• Digital cameras
• Access to computers running Photo Story or similar software
Health and safety

Check policies on photographing children and ensure parental consent has
been obtained where appropriate.
Resources:
Handout 1 The national picture
Worksheet 1 The national picture
Page 3.6
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The Big Debate

The national picture – additional information

Producing a Photo Story
Photo Story software for Windows XP computers is available as a free

download from Microsoft:

www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/
default.mspx
Support resources available from:

www.papajohn.org
www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/learnmore/
ballew_photostory3.mspx
If you are using a computer running Windows Vista, a similar software
tool to Photo Story exists within the Windows Photo Gallery – click the
‘make a movie’ button. No download is needed, but the above support
sites provide guidance that is relevant to both software tools.
School Travel Plan websites:

www.schooltravelplans.org/
www.saferoutestoschools.org.uk/index.php?f=travel_plans.htm
www.rbkc.gov.uk/sttravelplans/general/default.asp
School Travel Advisers’ toolkit:

www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/sd/managers/travel/STAtoolkit
Science
The Big
Debate...
Handouts and worksheets for photocopying
Activity 1
Science Activity 1
KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack Handout 1
Project three – The Big Debate Page 1 of 3
Page 3.9
These statistics have been collected nationally by different government

departments. They are based on large samples of people to increase the
reliability of the findings.
Table 1 shows actual and predicted numbers of children who are either
overweight or obese:
Number of children obese and overweight 2003–2010
Boys 11-15
2003 2010
Total number 1,676,800 1,554,300
Obese 335,777 479,519
Overweight 242,822 221,859
Girls 11-15
2003 2010
Total number 1,591,900 1,489,000
Obese 351,682 396,325
Overweight 260,856 241,566
Source: Forecasting Obesity to 2010. National Centre for Social Research and Department
of Epidemiology and Public Health at the Royal Free and University College Medical
School, Copyright 2006: The Information Centre, Lifestyles Statistics
Science Activity 1
Page 3.10
Table 2 shows how children’s levels of physical activity change as they

get older:
Children’s physical activity in 2002 – percentage of each age group

Boys
Age 11 12 13 14 15
60 mins per day 77 71 69 62 69
30-59 mins per day 9 11 17 14 14
Less than 30 mins per day 14 18 15 24 17
Girls
Age 11 12 13 14 15
60 mins per day 64 52 50 44 50
30-59 mins per day 16 22 23 21 15
Less than 30 mins per day 20 26 27 35 35
Source: Health Survey for England 2002, The Department of Health,
Copyright: The Information Centre, Lifestyles Statistics
Science Activity 1
Page 3.11
Table 3 shows the changing pattern of transport in the country over

a ten-year period:
Average distance travelled by different methods of transport

Distances in miles
1995 2005
Walk 200 197
Bicycle 43 36
Hire bus 106 122
London bus 43 67
Car 2,082 2,061
London Underground 60 67
Taxi 46 60
Source: Transport Statistics Bulletin, National Travel Survey: 2005, Department for
Transport, Copyright: The Information Centre, Lifestyles Statistics
Science Activity 1
KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack Worksheet 1
Page 3.12
What message do these figures suggest?

Your task is to work as a group and to study the tables of data. Identify what
for you are the most important messages. You can do further calculations if
you wish by finding averages or percentages. You could also use the figures

to draw graphs.
Make a video to inform the public of these messages.

When you have agreed on the messages you need to collect images that
communicate the message. Use the internet to find images and save graphs
and charts as image files, or make your own images using a digital camera.
Use presentation software such as Photo Story or iPhoto to create a video
sequence – add captions and music to enhance the message. If possible,
make your video available as a podcast for download to a music player or
mobile phone.
Page 3.13
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The Big Debate

The local picture

Activity
Students plan and carry out a survey to find out how people travel to school
and the reasons for their choice. Groups will need to make decisions on
the aims of their survey, the types of questions they will ask, whether the
survey requires an interviewer, how to structure questions as open or
closed, how to analyse the data, how to make the survey quantitative
and how to choose a representative sample. Once the survey has been
administered and the results analysed groups will need to find an effective
way to communicate their findings.
To help understand issues to do with sample size and reliability, an exercise
is included that involves estimating numbers of objects using a mark and
recapture technique. This involves taking a sample of objects, marking them
and then mixing the marked objects with all of the unmarked objects. By
counting the numbers of marked objects from a second sample, the total
number of objects can be estimated. Estimates become more accurate the
larger the sample size, which raises the question of what is the optimum
sample size to use in a survey. Beans, pasta shapes and small building
bricks are suitable objects for this activity – about 300-500 should be
used, preferably in an opaque bag or plastic container.
Additional work
The data gathered and the analysis performed in this activity
can contribute to the development of the School Travel Plan.
A guide to setting up travel plan groups can be obtained from:
tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/local-travel-plan-groups.pdf
Page 3.14
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The Big Debate

The local picture (continued)

Equipment required
• 300-500 small objects in an opaque bag or plastic container and
a marker pen for each group

• Access to a computer for designing and printing questionnaires,
and for analysis of results
Health and safety

Warn groups not to place beans or raw pasta in their mouths.
Resources:
Worksheet 1 The local picture
Science
The Big
Debate...
Activity 2
Science Activity 2
Page 3.17
The local picture
You are going to conduct a survey of students to find out the

different methods people use to travel to school, and their
reasons for making their choice of transport. One aim of your
survey should be to find out how many students make their
choice because it is a healthy option. You should also find out
how many students would consider riding a bicycle to school,

and what changes are needed to help encourage more people
to ride to school.
You need to plan what questions to ask and how to carry out your survey.
One type of survey involves an interviewer asking a small number of
questions to individuals face to face. This produces quite long and varied
answers which are not easy to analyse, but give a lot of information. Another
type of survey could be done online or using a form. The questions often
have tick boxes for the answers, which makes analysis easier. A computer
can be used to count up different responses. This type of questionnaire
survey needs a trial run to make sure the correct range of answers has
been provided.
How to make the survey reliable

You need to ask enough people in your survey to be sure that you have
sufficient evidence for your conclusions. In this activity you are going
to investigate one method of estimating the best size of sample to get
representative results.
You need a population of objects. Your task is to decide how many objects
are in the whole population. You do this by taking a sample, marking the
objects and then mixing them back with the whole population. Counting
how many marked objects are found in a second sample allows you to
work out the size of the whole population, but how big a sample is needed
to get a reliable estimate of the size of the whole population?
Science Activity 2
Page 3.18
The local picture
What to do
1. Count out ten objects from the population and mark them.
2. Mix the ten objects back into the population. (First sample)

3. Take a second sample of ten objects from the population and count
how many of these ten are marked – these are the ones that have
been recaptured.
4. Work out an estimate of the size of the whole population using
this formula:
Population size =
(size of first sample x size of second sample) ÷ number recaptured.
5. Repeat this process with different sample sizes, such as 20, 30, 40, 50.
6. Decide which size sample is needed to get an accurate estimate of the
population size. This task is easier if you can compare results from
different groups of people who are doing this investigation.
7. From this activity you should be able to decide how many people
should be included in your survey to be representative of the number
of students in your school. This technique is called mark and recapture.
It is used by biologists to estimate the size of animal populations.
Science Activity 2
Page 3.19
The local picture
Results table
Number in Number in Number Estimate of

first sample second sample recaptured population size
The survey
You should now know:
• What your survey aims to find out
• What type of survey you are planning
• How many people you need to ask to get reliable results
Carry out your survey and analyse your results. Present your findings in a
way that communicates the main points and includes supporting evidence.
Page 3.21
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The Big Debate

Investigating the benefits of exercise

Activity
Students record their heart rate during different journeys along a common
route. The simplest method is to compare a journey on foot with the same
journey on a bicycle, as this can be completed without needing access to

a road. If a suitable road journey is available, the two ‘active’ forms of
transport can be compared with the same journey in a private car or by
public transport.
To record changing heart rate, use a remote data logger with a chest
transducer sensor. Other sensor types could be used but may give less
reliable results or cannot be used safely while riding a bicycle. The data
collected can be compared by overlaying the data sets onto a single
graph, or constructing separate graphs with the same scales.
The outcome of this investigation will probably show that only a bicycle
provides sufficient intensity of exercise to have a positive impact on heart
and lung fitness. In conjunction with Activity 1: ‘The national picture’, this
activity shows that one effective way of reversing the increasing trend
towards obesity would be to encourage greater use of cycling as a means
of transport to and from school. Other benefits may include a reduction
in congestion around schools, improvement to air quality, improved safety
for pedestrians and better road awareness in students.
Additional work
Continued monitoring of heart rate for the same journey should show
improved fitness over a period of weeks. Other variables that could be
monitored include tidal volume and peak flow using a spirometer sensor.
Page 3.22
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The Big Debate

Investigating the benefits of exercise (continued)

Equipment required
• Heart rate sensor (chest transducer type) and remote data logger

• Access to computer for downloading and comparing data
Health and safety

A risk assessment needs to be carried out for this activity. Check local
regulations on outdoor and off-site educational activities. Be aware of pre-
existing medical conditions in students before they undertake strenuous
activities. Avoid competitiveness between students who may wish to obtain
excessively high heart rate measurements. Be aware of traffic hazards.
Resources:
Worksheet 1 Investigating the benefits of exercise
Science
The Big
Debate...
Activity 3
Science Activity 3
Page 3.25
Investigating the benefits

of exercise
How you travel to school has an effect on your health and
on the health of the community. Extra traffic contributes to
congestion, but travel by car or bus is easy and usually quicker.
Walking is seen as healthy, and is a good way of getting exercise.
Riding a bicycle to school is quicker than walking but can add
to congestion in a minor way as pedestrians and drivers need

to make space for cyclists. But is riding a bike to school more
healthy for the cyclist than walking?
Background information
One aspect of fitness that is very important is the ability of lungs to absorb
oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide. The heart and circulation also need
to be able to transport and deliver these gases at different levels of exertion.
To keep the heart and lungs fit, one recommendation is that individuals
should do at least 15 minutes of physical activity three times a week. This
activity should make their heart beat at 70 per cent of its maximum rate.
This does not necessarily improve balance, strength or skill, but does
improve stamina.
It is possible to measure maximum heart rate by monitoring the pulse when
exercising at maximum exertion. An easier way is to estimate maximum
heart rate by subtracting age in years from 220. For a 15 year old this gives
a maximum heart rate of 205 (220 minus 15).
Exercise at 70 per cent of maximum heart rate for a 15 year old would
give a pulse rate of (205 x 70) ÷ 100 = 143.5.
Science Activity 3
Page 3.26

of exercise
What to do
How much exertion is needed to get a 15 year old’s pulse to reach 144
for 15 minutes? Could you use the journey to school as a way of getting
this exercise?

Use a data logger to monitor the heart rate of a student travelling to
school, or on a journey of similar length. You will repeat the measurements
for different methods of transport such as by car, on foot and by bicycle
for the same journey.
Produce a series of graphs that show the change in heart rate for the same
journey using different methods of travel. Format the graphs so that each
one uses the same scales for each axis.
The following graphs show the heart rate of an adult male (70 per cent max
heart rate = 130) on a journey of about 1km. The journey ‘profile’ was:
200m downhill 8% gradient
600m uphill 6% gradient
200m uphill 2% gradient
Travel by car
140
120
100
Pulse rate
80
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time in minutes
Science Activity 3
Page 3.27

of exercise
Travel by walking
140
120
100
Pulse rate
80
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time in minutes
Travel by bicycle
140
120
100
Pulse rate
80
60
40
20
0
0 2 4 6 8 10
Time in minutes
Science Activity 3
Page 3.28

of exercise
Analysis of graphs
From the graphs you have drawn calculate the time taken for each journey.
Describe the heart rate during each journey. From your analysis decide
whether the journey to school is a good opportunity for improving lung

and heart fitness.
In the example graphs above none of the journeys were long enough to
make an impact on heart and lung fitness. The longest time was the walk,
which took just over eight minutes.
Travel by car appears to reduce the heart rate slightly, and the heart rate
never exceeds 80 beats per minute (bpm). This is unlikely to make any
improvement to fitness. The walk raised the heart rate slightly. It was more
variable and reached about 95bpm on the steepest upward gradients.
This higher heart rate was not maintained for long and so there would
be little training effect resulting in improved fitness. The bicycle journey
caused the heart rate to increase to 140bpm. It was greater than 130bpm
(the target heart rate for this person) for about one minute, and so parts
of this cycle journey produced enough exertion, but not for long enough.
From this evidence the person would need to continue cycling up a six
per cent gradient for 15 minutes to reach their exercise threshold, or they
need to pedal faster.
Conclusion
Use your data to make recommendations about how students could use
their journey to school as a way of increasing their fitness.

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Science Summary

KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack

The Big Debate

The health of the nation

The Big Debate

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

The Big Debate

Every Child Matters (ECM) • Physically healthy

The Big Debate

The health of the nation

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

The Big Debate

The national picture

Health and safety

The Big Debate

The national picture – additional information

Photo Story software for Windows XP computers is available as a free

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

Support resources available from:

School Travel Plan websites:

School Travel Advisers’ toolkit:

The national picture

These statistics have been collected nationally by different government

Number of children obese and overweight 2003–2010

The national picture

Table 2 shows how children’s levels of physical activity change as they

Children’s physical activity in 2002 – percentage of each age group

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

The national picture

Table 3 shows the changing pattern of transport in the country over

Average distance travelled by different methods of transport

The national picture

What message do these figures suggest?

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

Make a video to inform the public of these messages.

The Big Debate

The local picture

The Big Debate

The local picture (continued)

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

Health and safety

The local picture

You are going to conduct a survey of students to find out the

how many students would consider riding a bicycle to school,

How to make the survey reliable

The local picture

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

The local picture

Number in Number in Number Estimate of

The Big Debate

Investigating the benefits of exercise

journey on a bicycle, as this can be completed without needing access to

The Big Debate

Investigating the benefits of exercise (continued)

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

Health and safety

Investigating the benefits

to congestion in a minor way as pedestrians and drivers need

Investigating the benefits

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009

Investigating the benefits

Investigating the benefits

Science. KS3 Cycle Curriculum Pack. Version 1. April 2009