Teaching Sequence

20 minutes – Part A: Where Do I Stand on Organ and Tissue Donation?
30 minutes – Part B: True Stories – Jigsaw
10 minutes – Reflection

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Part A: Where Do I Stand on Organ and Tissue Donation?

Step 1.

Explain to students that they will now participate in a 'Stand on the Line' activity that can be used as a barometer to test students' prior knowledge of the topic of organ and tissue donation.

Read the following statements to students. Use the additional notes to engage students in further conversation around each point:

I know what organ donation is.
Suggested answer: Organ donation is a life-saving and life-transforming medical process. Organ donation involves removing organs (including the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, intestine and pancreas) from someone who has died (a donor) and transplanting them into someone who, in many cases, is very ill or dying (a recipient).
I know what tissue donation is.
Suggested answer: Tissue donation is a life-transforming medical process. Tissue donation involves removing tissues (including heart valves and other heart tissue, bone, tendons, ligaments, skin and parts of the eye such as the cornea and sclera) from someone who has died (a donor) and transplanting them into someone who, in many cases, is very ill.
Many people receive tissues and organs from donors.
Suggested answer: Donation rates in Australia are currently fairly low, with 20.7 donors per million people. More information about these rates can be found here: https://donatelife.gov.au/about-donation/get-facts/facts-and-statistics.
Anyone can register as an organ and/or tissue donor.
Suggested answer: Almost everyone can be an organ or tissue donor. The main issues are where and how a donor dies and the condition of their organs and tissues. Age and history of a donor is considered, but donors can be young or old and of varying degrees of health. All major religions support organ and tissue donation for transplantation. For those who die in hospital, only 1–2% can be considered for organ donation because they must die in specific circumstances. The opportunity to become an organ donor is rare; therefore it is important that we consider and talk about our wishes regarding organ and tissue donation.
Not many people want to donate their organs or tissues.
Suggested answer: In Australia, 69% of people are generally willing to become organ and tissue donors.
Organ and tissue donation is an individual issue, not a community issue.
Invite students to extend their position in response to this statement by asking “Why do you think that?” Explain to students that they will explore this topic further in this lesson.

More information about organ and tissue donation in Australia can be found here: https://register.donatelife.gov.au/.

Step 2.

Explain to students that later in this lesson they will be exploring how organ and tissue donation can save and transform lives in more detail; however, before they do they will need to ensure they understand some of the key terms used in these topics.

Break the class into pairs or small groups and invite each group to undertake research online into each of the following terms (also available on the Student Worksheet). Groups need to create a definition in their own words for each term (suggested definitions provided):

Donation – Suggested definition: The act of presenting something as a gift or contribution.
Donor – Suggested definition: A person who gives or donates.
Organ – Suggested definition: A structure made from cells and tissues that performs some specific function in an organism; for example, heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas and liver.
Tissue – Suggested definition: A collection of cells in an organism that have similar structure and function; for example, bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, heart tissue, and skin.
Transplant – Suggested definition: to move something from one place or person to another.
Donation register – Suggested definition: The "national register for people to record their decision about becoming an organ and tissue donor for transplantation after death" (source).
Living donation – Living donation is when someone donates a kidney or partial liver to another person who has end-stage kidney disease or liver failure. Find out more here: Living donation.

Part B: True Stories – Jigsaw

Step 1.

Explain to students that they will now work in groups to watch and analyse a series of clips from the documentary Dying To Live.

Number each student in the class as 'one', 'two', 'three', 'four' or 'five'. Invite students to form groups of five (each group should be made up of a 'one', a 'two’, a ‘three’, a 'four' and a 'five'). Assign each group one of the Dying To Live clips listed below:

Kate – (https://youtu.be/jr3eracx_Kk)
Holly – (https://youtu.be/9T7PytohLYU)
Henry – (https://youtu.be/dpbwaVzVkFY)
Woody – (https://youtu.be/NaJUbRT345U)
Zaidee – (https://youtu.be/cuZafGNh_hk)

Groups need to watch the clip they have been assigned and work together to answer the following questions about their clip (also available on the Student Worksheet). Groups need to work together to research and discuss the answers to these questions; however, each student is responsible for completing their own set of answers to all of these questions. Remind students of your ground rules when sharing ideas.

What is this clip about? Summarise the clip in 30 words or less.
How does this clip relate to organ or tissue donation? What is happening?
Who are the main people featured in their clip and what is their relationship to organ or tissue donation?
What does this clip have to tell us about organ and tissue donation being a community issue or an individual issue?

Step 2.

Once students have had enough time to discuss and record their answers about the clip they watched, invite them to form new groups in order to share their learning. You could coordinate student movement by asking students to form new groups where each group has a 'one', a 'two', a 'three', a 'four' and a 'five'. Encourage students to take turns to recount their initial group's discussion with their new group. Ensure that the new concepts are learned in a self-guided manner by encouraging students to take their own notes about all the clips and to ask clarifying questions about these stories and the ideas being shared.

Step 3.

Once complete, invite students to participate in a class discussion to share their thoughts about the clips they watched. Remind students of your ground rules for sharing, then consider the following points in your discussion:

In what ways are the stories presented in these clips similar?
How are they different?
What stages of the organ and tissue donation process do these clips represent?
In what ways is organ and tissue donation an individual issue?
In what ways is it a community issue?
What were the most interesting or surprising things you found in these clips?
What did these clips make you think about?
How do these clips make you feel about organ and tissue donation?
What would you like to know more about organ and tissue donation?

You could record student thoughts and use some these ideas to guide further discussion or inquiry.

Reflection

Invite students to create an image on the Student Worksheet (or using a desktop publishing program) to describe their thoughts in response to the following questions:

How was the information presented in this lesson connected to what I already knew?
How did the information presented in this lesson extend my thinking?
What is still challenging to me about the information presented in this lesson?

Once complete, you could invite students to share their images with the class and engage students in a class discussion around their responses.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?

Dying To Live - Tuning In to Organ and Tissue Donation

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