Environmental Science

Award received

National 4 Environmental Science is graded pass or fail.

National 5 Environmental Science is graded A to D or No Award

Entry level – what do you need to do it?

Entry into National 4/5 Environmental Science will normally depend on your attainment in the S3 Environmental Science course or other science courses in S3. Your S3 science teacher will advise you on whether National 4 or National 5 is an appropriate level of study for you.

Course content: what will you learn?

N4 /N5 Environmental Science has three units;

Unit 1 Living Environment You will explore ecosystems, biodiversity and energy in food webs. There will be an opportunity to undertake a field trip to provide a hands-on experience of sampling techniques. You will get the opportunity to study the impacts on ecosystems by humans.

Unit 2 Earths Resources. In this topic you will study the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere and explore the diversity of natural resources that are useful to humans such as water, soils, limestone, crude oil, timber and plant and animal-based resources

Unit 3 Sustainability. In this topic you will define sustainable development and global citizenship, as well as exploring ways to reduce food waste, food miles and our carbon footprint. You will compare and contrast organic and non-organic farming methods. You will also study water conservation and look at the impacts of fossil fuel burning and the greenhouse effect. You will also get the opportunity to look at ways to reduce waste.

Teaching – what will you do?

Much of the course will be teacher-led but you will also be involved in a variety of tasks including practical experiments & investigations, written work, research and presentation tasks.

Assessment – how will you be assessed?

At National 4 and 5 level. You will be assessed as follows:

· Unit assessments, covering knowledge & understanding and problem solving.

· Practical investigation, including planning, carrying out and reporting on an experiment.

· For National 4 there is an Added value assignment, including researching and reporting on a relevant topic of your choice. At National 5 level there is an externally assessed assignment.

· End of course assessment - although there is no SQA final exam for National 4 you will be given an end of course assessment. For National 5 there is a 2.5 hour SQA exam.

Homework

You will be given regular homework tasks, eg practice questions, research and revision tasks.

Careers

A wide variety of careers are available for individuals with an environmental science background, ranging from direct environmental roles to more general sustainability and policy-related positions. Some common career paths include environmental consultant, environmental engineer, environmental scientist, environmental manager, ecologist, and environmental health officer.