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New faces

  • Key Stage 3
  • Popular Activity
  • Topical

Type: Activity
Learning Strategy: Group discussion
Topic: Tissues & organs

Scientists plan to carry out full face transplants by the end of the year - they will cut faces from donors and sew them onto those whose faces have been damaged by accidents. This activity explores the science and ethics of face transplants - how are the operations performed, and why must recipients take immunosuppressant drugs for the rest of their lives? Who deserves face transplants - just those who have suffered in accidents, or those who simply feel like a new image?

Published: 22nd January 2005
Reviews & Comments: 9

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Learning objectives

Students will learn about the role of antibodies in the body's defence system, and how immunosuppressant drugs can stop them working. Students will consider the ethical issues involved in performing face transplant operations

Try the activity


You will need Acrobat Reader installed to open the activity sheets.

11 - 14 (KS3)
Microbes and disease QCA 8c - the body has natural barriers to infection; the production of antibodies is part of the body's defence system
Scientific enquiry, including ethical issues Sc1 - the positive and negative effects of scientific developments; others' views and why opinions differ
Cells QCA 7a - organisms are made from cells; cells are grouped together to form tissues, links between the environment and the type of farming that is desirable

Running the activity

Suggested time: 20 minutes

Suggested starter: Show page 1, which sets the scene and informs students that face transplants may well be medically possible by the end of the year. Ask students to vote on the questions at the bottom of the page - would you have a face transplant? Would you donate your face after your death? Page 1 can be projected or printed onto transparency.
Main activity: Students read page 2, which describes how face transplants are performed, and explains why those who receive face transplants need to take immunosuppressant drugs. You could ask students to interview each other in pairs (one is a surgeon, one a radio interviewer) to help them to understand the functions of antibodies and immunosuppressants in this context. Page 2 can be projected or printed onto transparency.

Students then do the task on page 3 in groups of 4 or more. The purpose of this task is get students to consider the ethical issues involved in face transplants. In each group, two students take the roles of ethical expert and surgeon. The others represent potential face transplant recipients, and try to persuade the ethical expert and surgeon why their patient should receive a face transplant. You could make this activity more challenging by stating that there is only enough money for 3 of the 6 potential patients to get new faces. Each group needs a copy of page 3, and a pair of scissors to cut this into cards.

Possible plenary:
One or two students explain the role of antibodies and immunosuppressant drugs in face transplants, possibly in the form of a radio interview. Each group then states which patient they think is most deserving of a face transplant, and why.

News links

BBC Health News
Summary of the news story
BBC Health News
Another summariy of the news story
New Scientist
How to transplant a face

Reviews & Comments

Write your online review to share your feedback and classroom tips with other teachers. How well does it work, how engaging is it, how did you use it, and how could it be improved?

Great Lesson

Nov 24th, 2009

5 Star

This worked really well with a top set year 9 class. The pupils were engaged an on task through out the lesson and we had an excellent pupils lead class discussion at the end.

Reviewer: Faye Hardy

New faces

Oct 23rd, 2008

4 Star

Worked really well with a Y8 group.

Reviewer: Kelly Draper

New faces

Oct 23rd, 2008

4 Star

Worked really well with a Y8 group.

Reviewer: Kelly Draper

New faces review

Jul 11th, 2008

5 Star

In running a free choice open ended investigation one group chose to do this activity and used this as a starting point to develop their own ideas. They produced a very well thought out poster which was good enough to be entered in the Authority finals. One of their major findings was that while the majority of pupils in the year group had no problems with heart or kidney transplants very few of them would either donate their face (postumously) of could imagine being willing to accept a new face.

Reviewer: Barbara Stewart

Face transplants

Jun 7th, 2008

5 Star

I have not had the opportunity to use this activity in a classroom yet since I am out for the summer, but can't wait to use it next fall. The activity fulfills some of our state standards requirements and I believe 7th grade students will be intrigued by the subject matter and highly motivated to participate. I also like that students will have to apply critical thinking skills to complete the activity.

Reviewer: Denise Evans

knew faces

Feb 24th, 2008

5 Star

highly interesting and informative i like the idea of pupils playing different roles.

Reviewer: Susan Ajetunmobi

New Faces - excellent

Dec 15th, 2005

5 Star

Had a great lesson today using this. Started with a quick explanation about the film face off, pupils decided it was not possible to swap faces.
Showed bbc clip about the recent partial face transplant.
Discussed whether they would have a face transplant or donate their face - lots of excellent discussion.
Used the patient info - and asked for 6 pupils to be in the hot seat and explain why they wanted the face and deserved it. Then pupils had a vote.
I really enjoyed this lesson - and we continued it by finding out what else is going on in science at the moment using the internet.

Reviewer: Stacey Whitehead

NEW FACES

Dec 1st, 2005

5 Star

A brillian activity for my year 7 class. They were facinated with the possibility of a face transplant and the activity was particularly helped by the input of one student who's mother had had a kidney transplant.The student resources were well written. It was a very timely lesson for me to teach as the news has now been announced of the first fact transplant.

Reviewer: Heulwen Howells

Cells

Sep 18th, 2005

4 Star

Really good activity for class discussions. Gets pupils engaged! Not only that they enjoyed it!

Thanks

Reviewer: Divya Nakarja

'Wikiedscience

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