Woody Morris, Wewoka High School, Wewoka, OK POST-NUCLEAR WAR SURVIVAL Appropriate for grades 7-12. OVERVIEW: This unit sets up a hypothetical dilemma and asks students to offer solutions based on their own reasoning and problem-solving skills. The unit begins with a scenario of nuclear war and requires students to make decisions which may affect the survival of humans on Earth. PURPOSE: The purpose of this unit is to have students work together to reach consensus of a controversial issue. It helps them realize that sometimes there are no right and wrong answers. OBJECTIVES: Students will be able to: 1. Evaluate various types of information and decide what traits and other factors are of most importance for long-term survival in an emergency or crisis situation. 2. Effectively present their opinions and arguments either orally or in writing. ACTIVITIES: Three days ago, nuclear war broke out around the world with massive attacks in all heavily populated areas. For the first 24 hours, radio broadcasts reported tremendous damage and loss of life in all areas, including the total annihilation of most of Earth's population. For the past 48 hours, there have been no broadcasts. Fortunately, the people listed below were able to reach a fallout shelter in time to take cover and survive the initial devastation. You must assume that those in the shelter are, as far as you know, the only survivors of the war. Here is the dilemma: There are twelve people in the fallout shelter, but there is n‹•¹½Õ¡™½½±º…ѕɱand other supplies to keep them all alive until the atmosphere is safe. To survive, the people must stay inside the fallout shelter for at least three months. The problem is that if all of them stay in the shelter, all of them will starve to death or dehydrate. There are supplies enough to allow seven of the twelve people to survive. Your task is to decide, based on the information given, which people will be allowed to remain (and live), and which people will be required to leave the shelter (and probably die). We will assume that those who are selected to leave will do so peacefully. At issue is the survival of humans on Earth. The bottom line is that if human beings are to repopulate the Earth, such repopulation will begin with those survivors chosen be you. Carefully evaluate all information about each of the twelve persons. Consider their health, experiences, age, sex, and intelligence. Then decide which seven will be allowed to stay in the shelter and which five must leave. On a separate sheet of paper, list the seven people you would have survive and repopulate the Earth, stating your reasons for keeping them. Then list the five you would have leave the shelter and state the reasons for not keeping them. After you have made your decisions and formulated your reasons, you will be placed with a group of other students (four to five per group). Each person in the group should present his or her decisions to the rest or the group. The task is to reach a consensus among the group as to who should stay and who should go. PEOPLE: 1. James Stanley 7. Gerald White age: 43 age: 35 IQ: 112 IQ: 98 health: good health: fair education/training: education/training: 2 yrs college, 2 yrs military. high school diploma. work experience: 15 years work experience: 4 years farming, successfully. Army (infantry), 10 years general construction laborer. 2. Janie Stanley 8. Martha Gray age: 13 age: 25 IQ: 120 IQ: 142 health: excellent health: good education/training: education/training: middle school student. PhD in music theory. work experience: none. work experience: 2 years teaching on college level. 3. Wanda Brice 9. William Gray age: 50 age: 8 IQ: 140 IQ: 150 health: fair health: good education/training: education/training: Master's degree in psychology. elementary school student. work experience: 15 years as work experience: none. mental health case-worker; 10 years director of local mental health counseling service. 4. Bill Waters 10. John Davis age: 27 age: 33 IQ: 104 IQ: 125 health: excellent health: fair education/training: education/training: tech school graduate college degree in chemistry work experience: 10 years work experience: 12 years heavy construction and high school chem teacher welding. 5. Michelle Patterson 11. Marjorie Blaylock age: 19 age: 39 IQ: 105 IQ: 133 health: fair health: poor education/training: education/training: high school graduate. medical school graduate. work experience: 3 years work experience: 10 years experience in retail sales. general family medical practice. 6. Ray Wilson 12. Fred Fredrick age: 60 age: 54 IQ: 127 IQ: 132 health: good health: excellent education/training: education/training: 4 years college, majored in highly trained in business. electronics. work experience: bank work experience: teller 10 years, financial 25 years US Navy advisor and bank president electronics technician; 10 20 years. years private electronics repair. RESOURCES/MATERIALS NEEDED: None needed. TYING IT ALL TOGETHER: The balance between objective and subjective evaluation should be carefully considered by the teacher. Subjective evaluation should also take into consideration the differences between individual students (ability, etc.).