InTeGrate Modules and Courses >Water Science and Society > Student Materials > Section 3: Social Science of Water > Module 7: What is in your water? > Summative Assessment: Contaminant Fact Sheet
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These materials are part of a collection of classroom-tested modules and courses developed by InTeGrate. The materials engage students in understanding the earth system as it intertwines with key societal issues. The collection is freely available and ready to be adapted by undergraduate educators across a range of courses including: general education or majors courses in Earth-focused disciplines such as geoscience or environmental science, social science, engineering, and other sciences, as well as courses for interdisciplinary programs.
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These student materials complement the Water Science and Society Instructor Materials. If you would like your students to have access to the student materials, we suggest you either point them at the Student Version which omits the framing pages with information designed for faculty (and this box). Or you can download these pages in several formats that you can include in your course website or local Learning Managment System. Learn more about using, modifying, and sharing InTeGrate teaching materials.
Initial Publication Date: March 28, 2017

Summative Assessment: Contaminant Fact Sheet

Instructions

In-Person Lab (Blended Class)

Break into groups of two to three students. You will need to bring at least one laptop per group. Coordinate your efforts to ensure that each group is researching a different contaminant.

At-Home Lab (Online Class)

If you are taking this class fully online, you will complete this assignment individually. Choose one contaminant from the list below to prepare your fact sheet.

Everyone

For this assignment, you will prepare a one-page (no more) fact sheet on one of the possible contaminants in drinking water in the U.S. listed below.

  • Atrazine (herbicide)
  • Glyphosate (herbicide)
  • DEET (insect repellent)
  • Selenium (inorganic chemical)
  • Cyanotoxins (blue-green algal exudate)
  • Endocrine-disrupting drugs
  • MTBE

The fact sheet should be one page only (type can be adjusted but no smaller than font size 10 and margins greater than 0.5 in), and should be neat and readable. The report should include the following:

  1. Basic chemistry of compound
  2. Use or natural source of compound
  3. EPA drinking water MCL (if regulated)
  4. Basis for MCL (health impacts, persistence)
  5. Recent issues? (occurrence in drinking water—is it a problem?)
  6. Treatment method most effective
  7. Outlook (Is this a future worry? Why?)
  8. Resources used (at least 3 accessible resources)

Lastly, reflect on the following questions and provide a succinct and substantive response in 50-100 words (not included in the one-page limit for the fact sheet).

  • Before you studied the material in Module 7, what was your major source of drinking water (tap, bottled, or well)? Are you considering changing your consumption from any of these water sources after having read the material? Why or why not?

Submitting Your Assignment

Save your fact sheet as a pdf and upload it to the dropbox that has been set up in your school's LMS. Make sure that your name (or names, if you did this project in a group) are listed at top of sheet. Include your name(s) and the compound name in the file name.

Scoring and Rubric

This assignment will earn a maximum of 100 points, as described int he rubric below.

Rubric
Work ShownPossible Points
Accurate length, neat and readable20
Basic chemistry of compound outlined (formula given)5
Use or natural source of compound identified (typical source of pollutant)5
EPA drinking water MCL , if regulated.5
Basis for MCL (health impacts, persistence)5
Recent issues? (occurrence in drinking water—is it a problem?)10
Treatment methods for remediation-- most effective15
Outlook (Is this a concern for the future? Why?)15
Resources used (at least 3 accessible sources)10
Reflection on drinking water sources10
These materials are part of a collection of classroom-tested modules and courses developed by InTeGrate. The materials engage students in understanding the earth system as it intertwines with key societal issues. The collection is freely available and ready to be adapted by undergraduate educators across a range of courses including: general education or majors courses in Earth-focused disciplines such as geoscience or environmental science, social science, engineering, and other sciences, as well as courses for interdisciplinary programs.
Explore the Collection »