NCSR Marine Fisheries Series

The marine fisheries issue is complex and represents an opportunity to approach the nature and management of a natural resource from several different perspectives in courses in natural resource or environmental science programs. Complete coverage of all fisheries-related topics is probably impractical for most courses unless the course is entirely devoted to fisheries.  Instructors may select some topics for coverage and de-emphasize or ignore others.  Thus, these curriculum materials are designed to meet a variety of instructional needs and strategies.  The NCSR Marine Fisheries Series is comprised of the following: 

1.     PowerPoint Presentations

These presentations include PowerPoint slides, lecture outlines and detailed instructor notes on various marine fisheries topics.

• Marine Fisheries Overview
• Marine Fisheries  – Introduction and Status
• Marine Fisheries  – Causes for Decline and Impacts
• Marine Fisheries  – Management and Proposed Solutions
• Declining Expectations – The Phenomenon of Shifting Baselines
• The Role of Marine Reserves in Ecosystem-based Fishery Management

2.     The Decline of Atlantic Cod – A Case Study

This module provides a comprehensive examination of the decline of the Atlantic cod.  Instructional materials include student learning objectives, a PowerPoint presentation with instructor notes, student handouts, suggested resources and assessment.  Brief descriptions of other fisheries for development as case studies are also provided.

3.     Comprehensive Resources for NCSR Marine Fisheries Series

This module provides detailed summaries for six excellent videos that examine various aspects of the marine fisheries issue:

• Empty Oceans, Empty Nets (2002) – an overview of major marine fisheries issues (one-hour) – student handout provided
• Farming the Seas (2004) – an examination of issues associated with aquaculture (one-hour) – student handout provided
• Deep Crisis (2003) – an examination of current research on salmon and bluefin tuna using modern technology (one-hour)
• Strange Days on Planet Earth – Episode 3- Predators (20 minutes)
• Strange Days on Planet Earth – Episode 5 – Dangerous Catch (one hour)
• Journey to Planet Earth – The State of the Planet’s Oceans (one hour)
  

This module also provides a comprehensive glossary of terms commonly used in marine fisheries.

In addition, complete citations and brief summaries of web, print and video resources are provided that can be used to:

• Enhance existing lecture topics
• Develop lectures on new topics
• Develop geographically relevant case studies
• Update fishery statistics
• Select articles for student reading
• Access video and photos for presentation purposes

4.     Activity-based Instructional Modules

• Shrimp Farming – Environmental and Social Impacts - an evaluation of the environmental and social impacts of shrimp aquaculture (one hour)
• Where Does Your Seafood Come From? – students evaluate the sustainability of locally available seafood and the criteria that are used to make that determination (3-4  hours)

The manner in which instructors use the modules in this series will depend upon:

• The course in which the module will be used

The marine fisheries modules are most appropriate for inclusion in undergraduate courses such as Environmental Science, Introduction to Natural Resources, Marine Biology, Introduction to Fisheries and Fisheries Management.  Parts of the modules may also have application in courses with a broader scope such as General Ecology and General Biology.

• The background of the students

The marine fisheries modules assume some understanding of basic ecology including populations, communities and ecosystem structure and function.  The treatment of ecology in either a college-level or high school-level general biology course should be sufficient.  Instructors may need to provide additional background to students who are not familiar with this material.

• The time that will be dedicated to the study of marine fisheries

There is sufficient information and resources in the marine fisheries modules to present anything from a single one-hour lecture to a major portion of a full academic term, lecture-only course.  Instructors may select from the various components depending on course objectives and the amount of time allocated for marine fisheries topics.

Curriculum produced by NCSR. Funding Provided by the National Science Foundation