Covid-19 and Our Environment
“Dan janganlah kamu berbuat kerusakan di muka bumi sesudah (Allah) memperbaikinya dan berdoalah kepadanya rasa takut (tidak akan diterima) dan harapan (akan dikabulkan). Sesungguhnya rahmat Allah amat dekat kepada orang-orang yang berbuat baik”
Al A’raf Ayat 56-58
“Sesungguhnya Allah mencintai orang yang taubat dan mencintaiorang-orang yang menjaga kebersihan”
Al Baqoroh Ayat 222
MEET THE RESEACHERS
MEET THE MENTORS
Step 1 – Identifying Significant Global Issues
(Exploring, Wondering, and Questioning)
Covid-19 (Research Background)
The outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) causing novel coronavirus-infected pneumonia (NCIP), has affected the lives of 71,429 people globally. Originating in China, the disease has a rapid progression to other countries (Ali, Baloch, Ahmed, Ali, & Iqbal, 2020).
According to WHO, there are 1.306.141 confirmed cases in Indonesia. An epidemiologist at Griffith University in Australia predicted the surge in cases based on various indicators, such as mortality rates, hospital occupancy rates and active cases, and noted that Indonesia was currently in a crisis. While most people can’t wait to start a new year and leave this tough year behind, an epidemiologist has warned of a possible surge in COVID-19 cases in Indonesia at the beginning of 2021. “We will need to [stay alert] when entering 2021, as there is a risk of a surge in cases,” Dicky Budiman, an epidemiologist at Griffith University in Australia, told kompas.com on Saturday. Dicky predicted the surge in cases based on various indicators, such as mortality rates, hospital occupancy rates and active cases, and noted that Indonesia was currently in a crisis. While he did not mention specific possible triggers of a rise in cases, Dicky urged the government to intensively carry out the so-called 3T program of testing, tracing and treatment (isolation), while the public was encouraged to implement the 3M health protocol, which covers mask wearing, handwashing and physical distancing. Indonesia recorded increases of between 69 and 93 percent in its daily and weekly averages of new COVID-19 cases 10 to 14 days after the long Idul Fitri holiday in May (Retrieved from Jakarta Post, 2020).
On the other hand, most countries also facing another caused by COVID-19. Philadelphia has struggled to keep up with trash and recycling collection during the coronavirus pandemic, leaving residents waiting for days as garbage, bottles, cans, and boxes pile up. But it’s not alone. Other cities, including Baltimore and Atlanta, have faced similar challenges. Others have suspended yard waste or bulk trash pickup in order to not fall behind on regular household waste collection. (Retrived from Philadelphia Inquirer, 2021).
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Students’ Prior Knowledge of Covid-19
What have we already known?
Through our first virtual meeting, students shared their prior knowledge about Covid-19. Students are aware with the current pandemic situation; how and where Covid-19 happened, what causes Covid-19 and how can we avoid Covid-19. In this case, they are aware that Covid-19 is all around them and they need to protect themselves but they have also learned that Covid-19 is damaging our environment if we are not responsible for our own action. In this case, if people is not responsible on they way they are protecting themselves from Covid-19, then we can be damaging our environment.
What do we want to learn?
As students already have prior knowledge about Covid-19, they want to know deeper about which mask, soap or hand sanitizer that is effective to prevent Covid-19. Additionally, as they want to know how to protect ourselves from Covid-19 but also protecting our environment.
Step 2 – Determining Time and Time Frame
(Making Connections Between Previous Learning and Current Learning)
In step 2, students formulated time frame and also Central Idea and Lines of Inquiry using their previous inquiry questions.
Step 3 – Engaging Support from the Learning Community
(Collecting Data and Reporting Finding or Researching and Seeking Information)
Virtual Interview with Dr Addie
In order to collect data, students did a virtual interview with Dr Addie. She was an active researcher who studied environmental geochemistry and a professor at the University of Manitoba in Canada.
Dr Addie firstly explained about the background of Covid-19. In this case, students learned what a virus is, how does Covid-19 get into the human body and how can we protect ourselves from Covid-19, which is the focus of their exhibition. Moreover, Dr Addie also mentioned about the effectiveness of mask and how long can a virus stay in objects.
Through the interview, students have learned that virus is a microscopic organism, it cannot reproduce on its own or survive long without a host and infects host cells to reproduce. Virus enters our bodies through mouth, nose, and eyes. It moves into sinuses, mucous membranes in throat, down bronchial passages (airways), towards lungs. In order to protect ourselves from Covid-19, we have to remember that virus cannot spread without people and to decrease transmission, we have to limit contacts, keep physical distance, wear a mask and not sharing the air. In addition, she also mentioned that virus can stay on hard surfaces (examples: metal, wood, plastic, ceramics) for 2-5 days (except copper, aluminum) for 2-8 hours and on soft surfaces (Examples: cardboard, fabric) for 24 hours.
At the end of the interview, Dr Addie shared about how disposable mask can affect the environment because it creates a lot of waste, can endanger animals and fish and can enter the food chain.
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Slides from Dr Addie’s Interview
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Students’ Reflection on Dr Addie’s Interview
Virtual Interview with Dr Vidya
To have deeper understanding about Covid-19, students did another virtual interview with Dr Vidya. She is a Cardiac Surgeon from Harapan Kita hospital.
Through the interview, students have learned about the symptoms of Covid-19, how to wear a proper mask, how to wash their hands properly, types of mask which are effective and most importantly, how to dispose mask properly.
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Slides from Dr Vidya’s Interview
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Students’ Reflection on Dr Vidya’s Interview
Step 4 – Organizing the Learning
(Experimenting and Playing with Possibilities Solving Problems in a Variety of Way)
Online Questionnaire / Social Experiment
The students have acquired new knowledge related to Covid-19 from their previous online interviews. Connecting through their current ideas, the students then expanding their research by doing online questionnaire. The purpose of their online questionnaire is to find out people’s awareness of Covid-19 and the environmental damages which caused by Covid-19. For the online questionnaire, the students have succeed to get 212 respondents.
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Online Questionnaire
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Online Questionnaire Result
Soap vs Hand Sanitizer Experiment (Bella & Arran)
After we interview the experts, students have learned another way to protect ourselves from Covid-19, which is regularly washing hands and keep them clean. Bella and Arran want to find out which one is more effective to clean our hands, hand sanitizer or soap, through an experiment. In this case, students apply fake germs to Bella’s hand using glow in the dark paint. If we see through the picture, Bella’s hands look clean after we apply fake germs, but when we put Bella’s hands inside the black box, it can be seen that the fake germs are all over Bella’s hands. This condition shows our everyday situation that our hands look like clean but it is not, that is why frequently wash our hands is important. According to their understanding from the experts, the hypothesis of the experiment is that soap is more effective to protect ourselves from Covid-19 compared to hand sanitizer.
Experiment Result
After conducting the experiment, the students found out that soap is more effective to clean our hands from germs compared to hand sanitizer. However, it is important to note that soap can be effective if we clean our hands for at least 25 seconds. Hence, it can be concluded that the result of the experiment is in line with the previous hypothesis.
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Mask Experiment (Daru & Justin)
After we interview the experts, students have learned ways to protect ourselves from Covid-19 and one of the keys is to use mask. Daru and Justin want to find out which mask is more effective to avoid Covid-19 through experiment. In this case, using petri dishes which filled with Agar (to see how many bacteria arises), students compared 3 areas: no mask, disposable mask and reusable mask. According to their understanding from the experts, the hypothesis of the experiment is that disposable mask is more effective to protect ourselves from Covid-19 compared to reusable mask. Furthermore, students compared the 3 areas by doing talking, sneezing and coughing to the petri dishes and wait for 7 days to get the final result.
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Experiment Result
After conducting the experiment, the students found out that no mask petri dish has the most green spots compared to the disposable and reusable masks. Then they did another comparison between disposable and reusable mask, which showed that reusable mask has the least spots in the petri dishes. In summary, it can be concluded that disposable mask is more effective than reusable mask to protect ourselves from Covid-19. In other words, the result of the experiment is in line with the previous hypothesis.