HS-LS3-2

Make and defend a claim based on evidence that inheritable genetic variations may result from: (1) new genetic combinations through meiosis, (2) viable errors occurring during replication, (3) mutations caused by environmental factors and/or (4) genetic engineering.

Clarification statement: Emphasis is on using data to support arguments for the way variation occurs including the relevant processes in meiosis and advances in biotechnology.

Assessment boundary: Assessment does not include recalling the specific details of the phases of meiosis or the biochemical mechanisms of the specific phases in the process.

Resources

Examples and discussion of resources for the learning, teaching, and assessment of HS-LS3-2.

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Assessment

What assessment of HS-LS3-2 might look like on a NY state exam.

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NGSS Dimensions

Performance expectation HS-LS3-2 was developed using the following elements from the NRC document A Framework for K-12 Science Education:

Science and Engineering Practices

• Engaging in Argument from Evidence
  • Make and defend a claim based on evidence about the natural world that reflects scientific knowledge, and student-generated evidence.

Disciplinary Core Ideas

• LS3.B: Variation of Traits
  • In sexual reproduction, chromosomes can sometimes swap sections during the process of meiosis (cell division), thereby creating new genetic combinations and thus more genetic variation. Although DNA replication is tightly regulated and remarkably accurate, errors do occur and result in mutations, which are also a source of genetic variation.

Crosscutting Concepts

• Cause and Effect
  • Empirical evidence is required to differentiate between cause and correlation to make claims about specific causes and effects.

Page contributors: Caroline Leonard, Conrad Richman

Biology | HS. Inheritance and Variation of Traits