Year 10 Science · Unit 1 · Lesson 16
Challenge Worksheet
Learning Goals
Evaluate the claim
Someone claims...
"Traditional ecological knowledge is not real science, it is just folklore passed down through stories. It has not been tested using the scientific method, it cannot be peer-reviewed, and it is based on spiritual beliefs rather than objective observation. Therefore, it should not be used in official government conservation decisions, which must be based only on rigorous, published, peer-reviewed scientific research."
(a) What part of this claim has some scientific merit? Identify at least one genuine limitation of IEK from a Western scientific framework perspective.
(b) What is misleading or incorrect in this claim? What features does IEK share with scientific observation? Give at least two points.
(c) What evidence would you need to see to decide whether IEK-based conservation strategies are effective? Describe one way IEK and Western science could be tested together.
1. Western science has existed for approximately 400 years; Aboriginal ecological knowledge spans 65,000 years. What does this difference in timescale mean for the depth of ecological data embedded in IEK? Give a specific example from this lesson.
2. In 2019 the Australian Government's national fire management review recommended integrating Indigenous cultural burning. Construct a brief argument, claim, evidence, reasoning, for why IEK should inform official biodiversity conservation policy.
Wrap Up
In one sentence, what was the main idea of this lesson?