EXAM - SAMPLE
E-JaneDoe
Place an “X” by the type of issue you believe you know the most about:
Economic

Environmental
X
Social

Issue Literacy
For each issue, identify at least one current problem involving the issue as well as a
corresponding strategy for addressing the problem.
Enter a G, R or L in the first column to indicate whether you think the problem you identify
is global, regional, or local, and state why.
Section I: Issue Literacy
Issue
Problem
Raising livestock requires a lot
Agriculture-G
Agriculture takes
place all over the
world and impacts
everyone.
of resources and has a
negative impact on the
environment (runoff, methane,
and eventually, transportation
increases CO2).
This problem statement above
identifies three specific,
possible problems caused by
farming anywhere. What is
missing is explanation of why
the problems mentioned
matter. The answer above is
basically good because it
mentions more than one
specific problem. It rates a
high “C” grade. (Low “C”
would be if only one problem
was mentioned.)
In other words the black text
above does not demonstrate
that the writer understands the
reasons why the problems he
or she has identified are
actually problems.
June 2013
Strategy
Having stricter requirements for
land use, such as Best
Management Practices (BMPs),
will help to reduce the water
quality impacts from agricultural
runoff. Also, focusing on buying
local farm products will, over
time, decrease the amount of
product shipped.
This strategy answer identifies
two strategies – BMPs and
buying farm produces locally.
The difficulty with these answers
is their lack of precision. In other
words, this answer is sloppy.
There is some truth in it though
so it would be a “C”.
There are quite a variety of
BMPs. Some reduce water
runoff (erosion). Some others
help contain pesticides and
nutrients on agricultural land.
Other BMPs improve other
agricultural practices.
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EXAM - SAMPLE
If the black text above was
combined with additional
detail such as in the following
black text paragraph it would
be an “A” answer.
Water runoff can cause
erosion of valuable topsoil and
wash pesticides and excess
nutrients like phosphorus and
nitrogen into nearby lakes and
rivers causing algae blooms or
killing aquatic species.
Methane is a gas which is
emitted from numerous
sources including farm animals
such as beef cattle. Methane
is ten times more dangerous
an atmospheric pollutant in
accelerating the “greenhouse
effect” as carbon dioxide.
Transportation of agricultural
products to markets or for
processing releases carbon
dioxide into the atmosphere,
adding to the “greenhouse
effect”. The longer the
distances transported, the
greater the amount of carbon
dioxide emitted.
The writer should clearly state in
this strategy answer which BMPs
he or she is referring to that will
reduce runoff. The writer is not
doing a good job of aligning
specific problems from the
second column with specific
strategies in this column.
Providing three specific
strategies that would resolve or
mitigate the three problems
mentioned in the second
column would result in a grade
of “A”. Presenting one problem
clearly and providing one clear,
detailed relevant strategy
would earn a grad of “B” for this
issue assignment. Providing two
or three -- or more, if brief –
problems would earn an “A” for
the assignment.
The objective in this exam
document is for you to
understand specific problems
and for you to be able to
recognize and describe
appropriate, specific strategies
to use to address them.
The first black text paragraph
in combination with the
second, additional black text
paragraph would be
considered an “A” answer.
Biodiversity
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Biotechnology
Climate
Consumption
Culture
Decision
Making
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Education
Energy
Environmentally
Sound
Technologies
Finance
Forests
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Health
Human
Settlements-G
Urban sprawl is high growth in
areas surrounding a city as a
result of increasing population.
Urban sprawl leads to several
negative environmental
impacts, including traffic
congestion, increased fuel use,
increased nutrient/sediment
pollution, and inefficient land
use.
To combat the effects of urban
sprawl, green infrastructure is
being implemented in some
areas. Green infrastructure can
include rain gardens, wetlands
restoration, tree planting, green
roofs, native landscaping, etc.
These developments manage
stormwater and improve water
quality.
This is a good, specific, concise
list of easily understood
problems. It is a “B” answer
because it identifies many
issues but it is not an “A”
because it does not explain
any of the reasons that make
the items in the list problems.
This is also a good succinct list of
effective strategies. It would be
a “B” answer if the strategies
mentioned aligned with the
problems mentioned in the
column to the left.
However, when we look at the
Problem and Strategy columns
for this issue as a pair we see a
list of “apples” and a list of
“oranges”. The strategies listed
do not relate to the problems
mentioned. The writer simply
threw up a list of stuff he or she
had heard about in the issue
module but gave virtually no
thought to which Strategies
work for which Problems. The
composite grade as written
would be a high “C”.
If either the Problems aligned
with the Strategies or the
Strategies aligned with the
Problems listed, the composite
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grade would be a low “A”.
Good Strategy to Problem
alignment combined with more
explanation would make for a
high “A”.
Justice and
Peace
Land
Mountains
Oceans & Seas
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Population-G
Globally, there has
been a huge
increase in the
population and it
continues to grow.
With increasing populations,
the Earth’s resources are
becoming more strained to
accommodate large numbers
of people. An increasing
population also means
increased consumption and
waste.
All three are good, succinct
problem statements. “A” here.
Sustainability education
becomes more crucial as the
populations rise. While the
numbers of children people
have are not usually limited, the
understanding that two children
should be the maximum is
something that will have to
reach several cultures.
The first sentence is true and is
supported by the study
materials contained in this
module. The writer should
explain why sustainability
education is more critical with
rising population. The second
sentence is personal opinion,
not supported by the study
materials in the module. What
should be written about here is
examples of how sustainability
education is and can actually
be used to bring down
population growth rates.
As written, this is a low “C”
composite grade of the
module.
Poverty
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Public
Awareness
Trade
Transportation
Waste
Water
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Interest in Course
Are you a graduate or undergraduate student? Graduate
What is your major/concentration? Environmental Studies
What was your motivation for this taking this course and what did the course do for you?
Interest in CSOs and the James River, so I felt this course would be helpful in identifying
the problems and possible solutions. This course used a complexities approach, which is
becoming more prominent and practical. I have learned how important many other
factors are on environmental studies and that in order to understand an issue and solve
it, it is crucial to examine the other aspects of inter-related sectors.
What was one thing you wanted to learn or take-away from this class? Did the course
help you? How?
Coming into this class, I wanted to better understand “the aversion to the shift to
sustainable methods, especially in the City of Richmond.” This course has helped me to
accomplish this through its complexities approach, so I now realize that there are other
parts to a problem than simply a problem itself (same for a solution).
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