Pictured above are the internal organs of a pregnant female dogfish shark. Contained in this image is the spiral intestine, pancreas, rectum, and oviduct.
Throughout this project, collaboration was required in order to ensure a successful thorough dissection of the shark. For the most part, it was my role to take pictures and document every organ or organ system before we detached it from the inside of the shark. The 3 others in my group were ones making the actual cuts. After taking all of these pictures, it was then my job to share them with the group so we could use them for our presentation. I did this by putting all of the videos and images into a folder, and then shared this folder with them on OneDrive. The creation of this folder also meant that others could share any pictures or videos that they took. Something I would improve on next time would be to take more videos of the actual dissection process, so there was more authentic footage to use in our final presentation.
These images are of the pig mid dissection. The picture on the left shows the tying of the umbilical vein, while the one of the right shows the internal organs of the fetal pig.
Communication
I can take on roles and responsibilities in a group; I do my share. The ways I communicate at school are far different than how I communicate at soccer or any other extra curricular activities I participate in. In groups at school, I always assume a leadership role, no matter the subject. This group was no different. I communicated with my partners very well, and they were alright with me being the group “leader”. Though this was the case, I probably had the scalpel blade in my hand for the least amount of time. My groupmates wanted to do the cuts, and I assisted them and directed them on where to cut and how deep. I asked my groupmates to text or call me if they had any misunderstandings or questions regarding the lab.
Thinking
I can analyze my own beliefs and consider views that do not fit with them. When you have multiple members of a group, the group will always have differing ways of tackling issues. In this scenario, this is where it’s important to be understanding of the wide spectrum of beliefs and thoughts that every group member will have, and find a happy medium so all members of the group are satisfied. This happened when we were taking out the digestive tract of the pig. Everyone had different opinions on where we wanted to cut the esophagus in order to maximize the length. After a few harsh words and a mini-argument, we eventually came to an agreement. I always have an open mind while working with my peers.
Personal Social
I can be kind to others, and support others when they need it. Throughout this lab I kept a cool head with my lab partners and even if I disagreed with something we were doing, I stayed composed and suggested that maybe we try something else instead. Seeing as I’d already done this lab once before, many of my classmates approached me in need of guidance with their own labs. I created time for everyone that asked for my help and assisted them with their dissection. Helping others when I know I can offer positive insight is something I will always do, no matter who the people are in need.
The artifact that I chose to show is my making a solution activity that I did with a partner. We had to come together and communicate who was doing what. In this activity, we had to describe how to create a particular solution and then carry out the procedure in the lab. My partner and I over the course of this lab had to communicate who was going to get what materials and who was going to do what steps of the procedure. We split the work evenly, and we were able to finish the activity very quickly. After we completed the lab, there were calculations and questions that we needed to answer. Outside of school, my partner and I texted to make sure our answers were similar, but not the same. I learned in this lab how to make a solution, and learned how to better communicate with a partner to ensure the best results.
For our fetal pig lab, we had to pair up with a partner and share a pig to dissect. Being a grade 11 in a grade 12 course, I didn’t know many of my peers coming into the class. Thankfully Dylan was willing to be my partner on this one. When working on the exterior features portion of the lab, Dylan was the one taking initiative and keeping me in line, doing the majority of the work. By the time we started the physical dissection of the pig, we had started to get to know each other a little better, and splitting the work relatively evenly. Neither of us had much experience with a scalpel, and we fell behind the majority of the pack on the first day. The next day wasn’t much different, so we decided that we were going to dedicate flex blocks, lunch blocks, and after school time to finish it. It took a lot of our time, but we were able to get everything done except stretching out the digestive tract on the last day of class. We stayed after school for an hour and even though I made a few wrong cuts to the intestine, we got full marks for it. This lab taught me that communication and being on the same page as your partner all the time will enhance your results and if you split work evenly, you don’t have to do as much. I also learned how to properly use a scalpel blade and how to properly identify basic parts of a mammal. This lab was the most informative and most interesting to me over the course of the semester.
This is a picture of a script I had to write with my partner, Matthew.
This artifact demonstrates my ability to collaborate because I worked very well with my Matthew. We had to come together to fill in some missing lines in a spanish story. We achieved 13/13 on the assignment. Matthew has been my partner in almost all of our group assignments and projects and I have never had a problem with working with him.
My artifact: A picture of a script that my group of 3 did debating about if Coke or Pepsi is better.
This artifact connects to my core competency because as a group, we had to come together and collaborate to come up with original and entertaining ideas. In only a matter of a few hours, we put our heads together to make the best script possible, and in the end we achieved our goal and received a very good mark. I was a leader in the scriptwriting as I wrote the script that was turned into Ms. Ciardullo. Throughout the scriptwriting, members in my group had many ideas that others disagreed with, and we never had a problem with what and what not to include. In a group setting, I never want to be the one doing all the work and this time my group all equally contributed to the scriptwriting.