Texas Administrative Code › Title 19 - EDUCATION › Part 2 - TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY › Chapter 112 - TEXAS ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS FOR SCIENCE › Subchapter C - HIGH SCHOOL › Section 112.48 - Astronomy, Adopted 2021 (One Credit)

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a)
				  General requirements. Students shall be awarded one credit for successful
				  completion of this course. Prerequisites: Algebra I and Integrated Physics and
				  Chemistry or Chemistry.
(b)
				  Introduction.
(1) Astronomy. In Astronomy,
				  students focus on patterns, processes, and relationships among astronomical
				  objects in our universe. Students acquire basic astronomical knowledge and
				  supporting evidence about sun-Earth-Moon relationships, the solar system, the
				  Milky Way, the size and scale of the universe, and the benefits and limitations
				  of exploration. Students conduct laboratory and field investigations to support
				  their developing conceptual framework of our place in space and time. By the
				  end of Grade 12, students are expected to gain sufficient knowledge of the
				  scientific and engineering practices across the disciplines of science to make
				  informed decisions using critical thinking and scientific problem
				  solving.
(2) Nature of science.
				  Science, as defined by the National Academy of Sciences, is the "use of
				  evidence to construct testable explanations and predictions of natural
				  phenomena, as well as the knowledge generated through this process." This vast
				  body of changing and increasing knowledge is described by physical,
				  mathematical, and conceptual models. Students should know that some questions
				  are outside the realm of science because they deal with phenomena that are not
				  scientifically testable.
(3)
				  Scientific hypotheses and theories. Students are expected to know that:
(A) hypotheses are tentative and testable
				  statements that must be capable of being supported or not supported by
				  observational evidence. Hypotheses of durable explanatory power that have been
				  tested over a wide variety of conditions are incorporated into theories;
				  and
(B) scientific theories are
				  based on natural and physical phenomena and are capable of being tested by
				  multiple independent researchers. Unlike hypotheses, scientific theories are
				  well established and highly reliable explanations, but they may be subject to
				  change as new areas of science and new technologies are developed.
(4) Scientific inquiry. Scientific
				  inquiry is the planned and deliberate investigation of the natural world using
				  scientific and engineering practices. Scientific methods of investigation are
				  descriptive, comparative, or experimental. The method chosen should be
				  appropriate to the question being asked. Student learning for different types
				  of investigations include descriptive investigations, which involve collecting
				  data and recording observations without making comparisons; comparative
				  investigations, which involve collecting data with variables that are
				  manipulated to compare results; and experimental investigations, which involve
				  processes similar to comparative investigations but in which a control is
				  identified.
(A) Scientific practices. Students
				  should be able to ask questions, plan and conduct investigations to answer
				  questions, and explain phenomena using appropriate tools and models.
(B) Engineering practices. Students should be
				  able to identify problems and design solutions using appropriate tools and
				  models.
(5) Science and
				  social ethics. Scientific decision making is a way of answering questions about
				  the natural world involving its own set of ethical standards about how the
				  process of science should be carried out. Students should be able to
				  distinguish between scientific decision-making methods (scientific methods) and
				  ethical and social decisions that involve science (the application of
				  scientific information).
(6)
				  Science consists of recurring themes and making connections between overarching
				  concepts. Recurring themes include systems, models, and patterns. All systems
				  have basic properties that can be described in space, time, energy, and matter.
				  Change and constancy occur in systems as patterns and can be observed,
				  measured, and modeled. These patterns help to make predictions that can be
				  scientifically tested, while models allow for boundary specification and
				  provide tools for understanding the ideas presented. Students should analyze a
				  system in terms of its components and how these components relate to each
				  other, to the whole, and to the external environment.
(7) Statements containing the word
				  "including" reference content that must be mastered, while those containing the
				  phrase "such as" are intended as possible illustrative examples.