Environments - AQUACULTURE FARMER  

School of Fish - What's involved?

Are Salmon Farms damaging Australian waters?

It's about Domestication, changed Ecology, Sustainability! Should we do it?

Dangerous Diving [from National Museum Australia]

"The Pearl Diver" by Julia Johnson

Prawns for Profit (developed by CSIRO, UTS & AAMT)

School of Fish - What's involved?

Primary Middle Secondary

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Numeracy

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Critical and creative thinking

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Literacy

Cooperative Learning Activity

Teacher

ABC Education developed "Focus Questions, Activities, Questions for Inquiry, & a Research Project".

ABC PDF

Local Copy

Students

1. In groups of 3 - 5 students, watch the following video about a community school raising barramundi for the local restaurants as well as fresh greens and keeping the tanks clean of any fish poo.

Landline - Fish Out of Water
26 September 2015
https://youtu.be/tOMR0WuQ2jA

2. Analyse what the students have done in Kangaroo Island school and their production of Barramundi from these two resources. Make sure you cover:

• Aquaculture Skill Centre - its physical set up

• Why Barramundi?

• 6 Tanks - estimate the size and holding capacity.

• Feed - what sort of feed is involved?

• Weighing scales - what sort would they need to weigh the barramundi?

• Animal Behaviour - What do the students have to take into account?

• Waste water - estimate how much water would need to be taken out of the tanks each week. Where does this water go? How could it be filtered and used.

• Aquaponics - what is it? Research what the students did and what designs did they come up with? Why?

• Testing for Nitrates - what are these? Why are the students testing for them? What is pH? How does it affect the water?

• Life cyle of Barramundi - what is the time frame for the Barramundi to go from Fingerlings to a mature size?
  

3. The Principal, Peter Philp [2024], states that there was a lot of Trial and Error setting up this aquaculture farm and that the students were involved in the process. He concedes at times the outcomes have not justified the costs and in the past there was talk of shutting the program down. But he says after a review and a revamp, the school has chosen to go the other way, investing in a food processing centre so the students can finish what they start.

The vision is to have that paddock-to-plate experience for tourists that come in. They'll come in, the students will greet them, they'll show them through and around the facility, all the facility, then they'll come back, sit down and the students will serve up the product from our paddock onto their plate. (Source: Landline)

As a class group, would you consider this opportunity is feasible for your school. What would you need to do to convince the rest of the school community of this venture?

4. To learn more about the pitfalls and this school's new vision, you will need to contact Kangaroo Island Community Education School at Parndana.

Before you contact the school directly, you will need a list of questions about the project.

Some ideas could be:

• The cost - to set up and running costs

• the equipment required - its maintenance and upkeep

• the time required to set up the program and how much time does it take up each day

• how it fits into the curriculum

• what would the teachers need as far as Professional Learning and who would need to be involved

5. Compile your questions. Share with the class.  With your Teacher's permission and guidance,  contact the Kangaroo Island Community Education school about this program.

You might choose to ring, write or email:

Contact Kangaroo Island Community Education
Email: dl.1882.info@schools.sa.edu.au
Parndana Campus: Wedgewood Road, Parndana, South Australia, 5220
Telephone: (08) 8559 6068

6. Work out if you would still like to set this program up at your school. Gather support if you think it worthwhile. How will you do this?  

7. Make a submission in writing to your Principal and Executive Staff after you have all the facts and the commitment of your class and maybe school community.

Tour of Kangaroo Island school's barramundi aquaponic fish farm 2023
https://youtu.be/4L6-aVELNaM?si=gyHBdtRf5ekC9n0l

BTN in October 2015 explored this "tank to plate" concept in Barra School, highlighting the school in Parndana, Kangaroo Island

BTN 20 October 2015 (still available December 2024)

In addition in 2020 another school, Good Shepherd Lutheran School in South Australia is following suit of the Kangaroo Island school in this video from BTN 23 June 2020 (still available December 2024)

Are Salmon Farms damaging Australian waters?

Middle Secondary

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Critical and creative thinking

Australian Curriculum General Capability: ICT Capability

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Ethical Understanding

Australian Curriculum Cross Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability Priority 

Philosophy

Cooperative Learning Activity

1. In groups of 3 - 5 students, investigate the following websites:

The Ancient skate - Maugean Skate - 'threatened' by salmon farming. 9 November 2023 (Source: Roaring 40 Skayaking) ABC RN Breakfast 9 Nov 2023 Resources about the Maugean Skate: a. Fishing Tasmania b. BBC c. Tasmanian Government	The Conversation 14 February 2023
The Conversation 17 September 2021	The Conversation 1 November 2016

2. Analyse the information stated here. What is opinion and what is scientific evidence? Write up a list of the statements and categorise them under "Opinion" and "Scientific Evidence".

3. Using these articles as stimulus material, in your group, come up with 5 questions for each of the question quadrants:

Concentrate on the "Questions for Thinking". Share with another group your Questions for Thinking. Did they have the same questions? Collate both groups questions and share with the whole class.

Discuss.  

4. List the concerns voiced from these articles. Discuss with another group of four students. Were any ethical questions raised? Were they in opinion or backed by scientific evidence?

5. What do you think? Is the Salmon Industry damaging Australian waters? If so, how? To what extent? If not, why not? Give clear reasons for your thinking.

It's about Domestication, changed Ecology, Sustainability! Should we do it?

Secondary

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Critical and creative thinking

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Literacy

Australian Curriculum General Capability: Ethical Understanding

Australian Curriculum Cross Curriculum Priorities: Sustainability Priority

Cooperative Learning Activity

1. Read the following articles from The Conversation

The Conversation, 27 May 2015

The Conversation 21 July 2015