TITLE
Minds of Our Own: Program 2: Lessons from Thin Air

CLIP DESCRIPTION
This segment examines whether students have acquired a real understanding of scientific phenomena by asking Harvard and MIT students where the mass of a tree comes from as it grows from a seed. Education experts provide an explanation of this phenomena and how the college students' difficulties answering it is a symptom of a problem in science education.

AAAS BENCHMARK
5E (6-8) #1 . Food provides molecules that serve as fuel and building material for all organisms. Plants use the energy in light to make sugars out of carbon dioxide and water. This food can be used immediately for fuel or materials or it may be stored for later use. Organisms that eat plants break down the plant structures to produce the materials and energy they need to survive. Then they are consumed by other organisms.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Just about everyone will agree that trees are made from sunlight, water, and soil the trees sucks up from their roots. But the surprising truth is that trees are made from air! Trees are solar-powered machines that convert air into wood. Why is it that, despite the fact that photosynthesis is one of the most widely taught subjects in science, so few people really understand the central idea underlying this system? Starting with this question, program two explores why something taught in school can go unlearned and shows that we often teach without regard to what children actually need to know.

RIGHTS
President and Fellows of Harvard College. All Rights Reserved.

PUBLISHER
Annenberg/CPB