School Improvement in Maryland
The Three Gorges Dam - Should It Be Completed?
Grade Level: Middle Time Frame: 120-150 minutes MSPAP Connections: Geography, Skills and Processes Geography Standards: 4,6,9,11,14,16,18..
Geography Skills.
Objectives.
Inquiry Questions.
Materials.
.
Teacher Background/Preparation.
Getting Started.
Activities.
.
Evaluation Suggestion.
Extending the Lesson.
Selected Bibliography.
Internet Sites.
 
Geography Skills.

.

  • Identify and organize issues that should be considered in tackling a geographic problem.
  • View maps and pictures of a place to collect geographic information and draw inferences.
  • Organize data in tables or diagrams to make decisions or draw conclusions.
  • Prepare written and oral explanations of geographic relationships based on synthesis and analysis of information.
     

Objectives.
    Students will analyze the geographic problem/issue of whether or not the Three Gorges Dam should be completed by
    • Taking a position
    • Gathering, organizing, and interpreting information related to the position taken
    • Presenting conclusions to those with both similar and different positions
    • Analyzing each position and making a decision
    • Writing a justification for the decision reached
       
Inquiry Questions.
    What is the Three Gorges Dam Project?
    Should the Three Gorges Dam Project be completed?
     
Materials.
    This student booklet (Acrobat 127kb) contains most of the following materials.
         Optional Internet Access
         Textbooks
         TR-1: Issues Analysis Model
         TR-2: Procedures for Analyzing a Controversial Issue
         TR-3: Map of China and the Three Gorges Dam region
         SR-1A: The Three Gorges Dam Project (Pro)
         SR-1B: The Three Gorges Dam Project (Con)
         SR-2: Graphic Organizer
     
Teacher Background/Preparation.

    The Three Gorges Dam (TGD) will be—if completed—the largest dam in the world. The question is, “Will the TGD be a great economic leap forward for China, or the most destructive dam in the world’s history?” This lesson provides a framework for student analysis of the issues that make completion of the dam controversial. It requires groups of students to make a decision regarding the controversy and each student to express an informed opinion based on the investigation. The lesson could be taught near the end of a unit on China, after students have acquired knowledge of the country’s geography, history and culture.

    Students are, or should be, presented with problematic geographic, cultural, and/or historical questions on a frequent basis during their middle school careers. Examples include: Did the Industrial Revolution do more harm than good? Was Germany responsible for the start of World War I? Should all countries be required to have democratic governments? Should people in developing nations be allowed to move freely from rural to urban areas? Should government or industry assume financial responsibility for cleaning up environmental pollution? Every unit of study suggests issues that require gathering, interpreting, analyzing and synthesizing information to draw conclusions, make decisions and express informed opinions.

    There are many models to assist teachers and students in the process of analyzing problematic questions. TR-1 provides research-based information on issues analysis and some ground rules that can be used or modified to meet the needs of any group of learners. TR-2 offers procedures for analyzing a controversial issue based on work published by teachers in Region 15 Public Schools in Southbury, CT.

    If you decide that an issues analysis approach is not appropriate for the students you teach, a different type of lesson can be based on the Geographic Skills, Inquiry Questions and on the Student Resources attached. SR-1A and SR-1B both provide the same basic information about the TGD project in the first two paragraphs. Beyond that point, SR-1A offers reasons for building the dam while SR-1B cites arguments against it.
     

Getting Started.
    Begin by establishing rules for discussing problematic questions (TR-1), then introduce the Inquiry Questions to be addressed and answered. Inform students that they will work in groups and teams to complete an investigation, then make a group decision and respond to the second question on their own and in writing. Discuss vocabulary, i.e. “dam” and “gorge.” Use a transparency of TR-3, the map of the TGD region, or a map from a different source, to familiarize students with the location of the dam project, as well as the physical and human characteristics of the region. The September 1997 edition of National Geographic includes photos and a map. Several Internet sites contain both maps and photos (see Selected Bibliography) that will allow students to familiarize themselves with the project and the region.

    Discuss the types of information students would need to respond to the question, “Should the Three Gorges Dam Project be completed?” and list these on the chalkboard or on a transparency. Examples include reasons for building the dam, cost of the project, expected benefits and drawbacks, and effects on the land and people.
     
Activities.
  1. Use TR-2 or your own method of assigning students to groups of four and teams of two. If students are highly able and Internet access is available, you may have teams conduct an independent investigation to gather information and prepare for a presentation. Average and low ability students can use SR-1A (arguments for) and SR-1B ( arguments against).
     
  2. Follow the procedures listed on TR-2 to have teams within each group present information and to switch positions and summarize the other viewpoint. Then, have each group complete the graphic organizer, SR-2, to reach a decision.
     
    Closure: Have two groups of students meet to share their graphic organizers, decisions, and support for those decisions. Poll the class to determine how many groups favor completion of the dam and how many favor stopping construction. Discuss some or all of the following:

    What types of assurances would be needed in order to change the minds of any student, team, or group?

    What world events might have an impact on construction, either positive or negative? (e.g. the World Bank or International Monetary Fund deciding to fund the project, a world-wide financial crisis, an earthquake, etc.)

    What events in world history, other than wars, have led to the movement of large numbers of people? (e.g. diseases like the Plague, the Holocaust, drought or famine) Why would environmental groups in different parts of the world oppose completion of the Three Gorges Dam project?

    Which of the following might support/oppose the building of the dam and why? A tourist? a construction worker? A factory owner in a city scheduled for flooding?

    A tug boat operator? A government worker? An archaeologist? An elderly person forced to relocate?

    What specific actions should the Chinese take to protect the environment during and after construction of the dam?
     
Evaluation Suggestion.
    Students complete a writing activity using the following prompt:

    The Three Gorges Dam is currently under construction on the Chang River in China and is scheduled for completion in the year 2009. Should construction continue on this largest dam in the history of the world, or should it be stopped? Using what you have learned, write a position paper that could be used to persuade other students to agree with your decision. Be sure to state your position clearly, and provide an explanation for each reason given to justify that position.
     
Extending the Lesson.
  1. Have students consult the textbook they use on a regular basis to determine what information it provides on the TGD Project and the controversy involved. Discuss other information that could or should be included in the textbook, and why. Examples include Prentice Hall’s 1996 edition of World Cultures: A Global Mosaic, p. 327 and Globe Fearon’s 1997 edition of Focus on East Asia, p. 14.
     
  2. Have students work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to investigate other dam projects and compare them to the TGD project on topics such as reasons for building the dam, cost of the project, expected benefits and drawbacks, and effects on the land and people. Examples include the Aswan Dam, the Gezhouba Barrage project, and the Itaipu project

    3.  
Selected Bibliography.

    Berkman, Patience. “The Three Gorges Dam.” Education About Asia, vol. 3, no. 1, Spring 1998, pp. 27 - 35.

    Zich, Arthur. “China’s Three Gorges Before the Flood.” National Geographic, vol. 192, no. 3 September 1997, pp. 3 - 33.

    _______, 1994. Geography for Life: National Geography Standards. Washington, DC: National Geographic Research and Exploration

     
Selected Internet Sites.