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Disposable
Diapers: An Evaluation
Subject
Area
This activity
is designed for the Grade 11 advanced Biology curriculum as a
locally designed unit/research project. It is also suitable for
the Grade 11 advanced Chemistry curriculum as an alternative to
the mandatory Industry and Society Project in Core Unit 7: Industry
and Society.
Learning
Outcomes
Teaching,
learning and evaluation will focus on the student's ability to:
- Design
and perform a scientific experiment;
- Evaluate
and speculate on the environmental impact of a product;
- Research
and consider several aspects of an issue.
Classroom
Development
- Students
should work in groups of four. The work should be divided up
in the group and a project proposal outlining this should be
handed in.
- Some
guidance may be required for the experiments on the diapers
and their materials. This could be done as a class activity
with the variables outlines by the teacher. Different groups
could test different aspects of the materials and the class
results could be tabulated to be included in all reports.
Timing
- One period
will be required for a formal introduction to the topic and
some background information on the technological aspects of
the product.
- One period
will be necessary to perform the experiments.
- Time
may be added for research time and class presentations. Senior
students should be expected to complete much of this on their
own time. At least six weeks should be given to complete this
project.
Cross-disciplinary
Links
Business
- Business and Marketing classes may wish to study the economic
importance of this product in comparison to traditional diaper
options. Related marketing strategies could also be examined.
Family Studies
- Students can address aspects of child care as they relate to
the issue.
Student
Assignment
This assignment
consists of four areas of consideration: Research, Study, Interview
and Further Research.
- Research
Contact
the companies which produce disposable diapers and determine
the following:
- the
technology involved;
- the
raw materials and waste products;
- process
involved;
- location
of plants and their economic importance.
- Perform
a scientific study of one aspect of this product.
Following
the scientific method:
- Ask
a question about an aspect of disposable diaper;
- Prepare
a hypothesis;
- Design
a method to test your hypothesis;
- Perform
an experiment;
- Obtain
results and make conclusions.
Possible
topics for experimentation:
- volume
of water absorbed .
- comparison
between brands, sizes, and with cloth diapers.
- Stay-dry
lining: how stay-dry is it?
- the
effectiveness of the absorbent material
- How
biodegradable is the material?
- Effectiveness
of closure tabs.
- Interview
a parent with a child in diapers.
Find
out such things as:
- the
number of diapers used per day;
- type
of diaper used; reason it was selected;
- cost
per day, per month, per baby;
- opinions
on cloth versus disposable diapers;
- cost
and time involved in laundering diapers;
- environmental
considerations involved with disposable diapers.
- Research
Find
what information that you can on the environmental impact
of disposal diapers. Consider the landfill problem, the production
of this product, the impact on sewage treatment facilities,
and the environmental impact of alternatives.
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