Innovation debate

Open your materials, follow the steps, then turn in your work.

Debate which criteria should decide whether a medical innovation is worth pursuing.

1. Open your materials

Use the materials named in the first step below. Open lesson resources.

2. Start the work

Prepare two questions about evaluating a medical innovation.

Show all 5 required steps
  1. Prepare two questions about evaluating a medical innovation.
  2. Draft a CER position on the most important decision criterion.
  3. Debate with peers and record an opposing criterion.
  4. Connect the criterion to your own proposed innovation.
  5. Submit two questions, one CER contribution, and a reflection.

Lost your place? Reopen today's Innovation debate record. Find the last completed evidence ID, check it against the claim ceiling, and continue with the first unfinished step rather than restarting the whole task.

Check your work before submitting

  • You can argue which criterion should drive innovation choices.
  • You can apply the criterion to your own idea.

3. Turn in your work

DueCheck Schoology
Hand in
CER contribution arguing the most important criterion for evaluating a medical innovation, plus two questions and a reflection connecting the criterion to your proposed innovation.
How to submit and name your file

Use the submission route shown on today's today's page.

In Schoology, open your course and the assignment for this lesson. Attach your file, select Submit, and check that it appears in the submission.

PDF upload help

You get two school days for every day you were absent, so this deadline moves with you.

How this lesson connects

Keep using what you learned last class: A CER conclusion links a claim to your own statistical evidence with explicit reasoning, and naming honest limitations bounds that claim rather than breaking it, so admitting what could have gone wrong is what makes the finding trustworthy. Today: A defensible biomedical decision separates scientific evidence from value judgments, identifies who may benefit or be burdened, and states the uncertainty and tradeoffs that remain.

Optional: listen or watch a unit review
Optional unit study notebook
Proposing a medical innovation: spotting a health need, the biomedical design process from idea to prototype, and testing and pitching your idea.
Open the notebook
Optional review video
Video overview
Need help? Warm-up, timing, and directions

💡 Big idea: A defensible biomedical decision separates scientific evidence from value judgments, identifies who may benefit or be burdened, and states the uncertainty and tradeoffs that remain.

  1. 0-10Introduce the innovation-proposal unit: scope, purpose, and how it connects to Problems 1 and 2
  2. 10-25Debate prep: write two questions and draft a CER position on the top innovation criterion
  3. 25-55Structured debate: argue positions and record an opposing criterion
  4. 55-65Connect to your innovation idea: which criterion will you rank highest in your design?
  5. 65-77Submit two questions, CER contribution, and reflection
  6. 77-80Preview Tuesday: you will define your specific problem -- start thinking about a healthcare gap you care about
Mr. Mendoza's 5-minute intro
  • Welcome to the innovation-proposal unit -- an optional asynchronous extra-credit extension of your BI work.
  • This unit asks you to propose a medical innovation of your own, supported by evidence and a full design rationale.
  • Today you open with a debate: what is the most important criterion for deciding whether an innovation is worth pursuing?
  • Your answer will become the top-ranked criterion in your design work for the rest of the week.
Know by the end
  • How to argue which single criterion (feasibility, impact, , equity) should drive a go-or-no-go decision on a medical innovation.
  • How to connect an abstract criterion to a concrete innovation idea you are considering.
  • How the debate outcome will shape the criteria list you build on Wednesday.

PLTW connection and today's work

Open your myPLTW course shell and locate any innovation or capstone activity related to the problem you are pursuing, then complete the debate asynchronously as an extra-credit reserve-unit activity.

Today's stopping point: Problem 2 analysis is fully closed; this reserve unit is an async extension, and by end of today the innovation-criterion CER should be submitted.

PLTW activity titles identify the course connection. If your account will not open, use the posted materials for today and tell Mr. Mendoza. Do not mark an online activity complete unless you completed it.

Course connection

  • Problem 3, Lesson 3.1 Design of a Medical Innovation

The mapping has not been confirmed inside myPLTW.

Use the turn-in directions at the top of this page. Do not create a second submission unless your teacher asks for one.

Show another explanation or a smaller first step

Need help? Choose a starting point

Need a running start
Sort today's statements about Innovation debate into observation, teaching model, and decision before writing a claim.
On track
Complete the assigned CER contribution arguing the most important criterion for evaluating a medical innovation, plus two questions and a reflection connecting the criterion to your proposed innovation., cite at least two evidence IDs, apply the reviewed rule, and name one limitation.
Stuck? Get unstuck
Use the sentence frame: E1 shows ____. E2 helps explain ____. Therefore I can claim ____, but I cannot claim ____.
Push me further
Identify one additional measurement, control, or stakeholder perspective that could change the decision, then explain exactly how it would change the claim level.
Lesson resources: reading, slides, and vocabulary
Socratic teaching slide deck

The deck carries the prior idea forward, lets you inspect an analogy, maps the rule to biology, and ends with the same evidence decision and exit ticket used on this page.

Generated from this lesson's canonical data with a red-team citation check.

Carry forward

A CER conclusion links a claim to your own statistical evidence with explicit reasoning, and naming honest limitations bounds that claim rather than breaking it, so admitting what could have gone wrong is what makes the finding trustworthy.

Daily take-home

A defensible biomedical decision separates scientific evidence from value judgments, identifies who may benefit or be burdened, and states the uncertainty and tradeoffs that remain.

Inspect the analogy

A review board sorts scientific evidence, stakeholder needs, possible benefits, possible burdens, and uncertainty before choosing a policy.

  1. Which statements are scientific evidence?
  2. Which statements express a value or priority?
  3. Who receives the benefit and who carries the burden?
Rule

Use science to estimate consequences, then state the value judgment and tradeoff that determine the decision.

Where it breaks

A review-board model organizes reasoning but does not make one ethical principle automatically outweigh every other principle.

Map the analogy to biology
  • Evidence cards map to source-backed findings.
  • Stakeholder cards map to affected people and priorities.
  • The recommendation maps to an explicit tradeoff with a named uncertainty.
Read this first

Driving question: Debate which criteria should decide whether a medical innovation is worth pursuing.

What you already know: A CER conclusion links a claim to your own statistical evidence with explicit reasoning, and naming honest limitations bounds that claim rather than breaking it, so admitting what could have gone wrong is what makes the finding trustworthy.

New idea: A defensible biomedical decision separates scientific evidence from value judgments, identifies who may benefit or be burdened, and states the uncertainty and tradeoffs that remain.

Visual or model: F1. F1. A lesson illustration or teaching diagram for Innovation debate. Use it with E1-E3; it is a model or context image, not experimental or patient data. What to notice: Trace the labeled system, test, or design relationship and identify which evidence should trigger revision.

  1. Observe or measure the relevant feature in innovation debate.
  2. Organize the observation with a stable evidence ID.
  3. Apply this rule: Use science to estimate consequences, then state the value judgment and tradeoff that determine the decision.
  4. Choose the option the evidence supports and state the limit of the conclusion.

Real biomedical example: Today the biomedical innovation team uses Innovation debate to make a bounded evidence decision. Scientific evidence can inform the options and likely consequences, but it cannot choose a single value-neutral answer.

What the evidence supports: E1-E3 and F1 support the daily take-home when the response meets the stated success criteria.

What it cannot prove: The package does not support claims beyond this lesson's or any real patient diagnosis.

Use it now: Choose one decision option. Cite E1 and E3, then explain how the rule connects the evidence to your choice.

Go further, optional: The source links below are optional enrichment. Every fact required for today's local evidence decision appears in this lesson package.

Evidence set and decision
E1 · Source fact

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is the source this lesson's claim is checked against: The Belmont Report

Limit: Scientific evidence can inform the options and likely consequences, but it cannot choose a single value-neutral answer.

E2 · Teaching model

Use science to estimate consequences, then state the value judgment and tradeoff that determine the decision.

Limit: A review-board model organizes reasoning but does not make one ethical principle automatically outweigh every other principle.

E3 · Task criterion

You can argue which criterion should drive innovation choices.

Limit: E3 defines the classroom product or success criterion. It is not independent scientific evidence and cannot justify a clinical or causal claim.

PLTW-BFH-2027-03-17 · Simulated classroom evidence scenario

Your role: biomedical design team member

Decision: Your team must decide what the evidence from innovation debate supports before submitting the claim-evidence-reasoning response named on today's page.

  • Back the most polished pitch in the debate, because a clear, confident case shows the criterion behind it is sound.
  • Delay your vote until someone estimates how many people the innovation would actually reach, because the debate cannot supply that.
  • Argue for a criterion by naming who benefits, who is burdened, and the tradeoff science cannot settle for you.

Response: State one choice, cite at least two evidence IDs, explain the rule that connects them, and add one limitation. Submit it as the claim-evidence-reasoning response.

Claim ceiling: Today's evidence supports a classroom claim about innovation debate. It cannot prove causation, diagnose a real patient, or justify action outside this room.

Composite case file · PLTW-BFH-2027-03-17

Reason for review: Your team must decide what the evidence from innovation debate supports before submitting the claim-evidence-reasoning response named on today's page.

Context: Today the biomedical innovation team uses Innovation debate to make a bounded evidence decision. Scientific evidence can inform the options and likely consequences, but it cannot choose a single value-neutral answer.

Timeline:
  • T1: Prepare two questions about evaluating a medical innovation.
  • T2: Draft a CER position on the most important decision criterion.
  • T3: Debate with peers and record an opposing criterion.
  • T4: Connect the criterion to your own proposed innovation.
  • T5: Submit two questions, one CER contribution, and a reflection.
Evidence records:
  • E1: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is the source this lesson's claim is checked against: The Belmont Report
  • E2: Use science to estimate consequences, then state the value judgment and tradeoff that determine the decision.
  • E3: You can argue which criterion should drive innovation choices.

Measurements: Use only the measurements, units, graph, or counts supplied in today's task. No additional patient measurement is implied.

Figure finding: Teaching diagram for Innovation debate. Trace the labeled system, test, or design relationship and identify which evidence should trigger revision. This is a teaching model, not patient or experimental data.

Uncertainty: This is a composite classroom scenario. Missing history, measurements, or confirmation tests remain unknown and limit the conclusion.

Math moment
Formula or setup

Rate or percent = part / comparison total x 100%. Percent change = (new - comparison) / comparison x 100%.

Worked parallel example

If 18 of 60 records meet a condition, the frequency is 18 / 60 x 100% = 30%.

Units and reasonableness

Name the comparison total. A percent describes the supplied group and does not automatically predict an individual's outcome.

Try it with today's data

Use today's supplied counts to calculate one rate, risk, frequency, or percent change. Show the denominator and interpretation.

Design record
Criteria
  • The solution must address the stated need in innovation debate.
  • The decision must be supported by E1-E3.
  • The final product must make the success criteria visible.
Constraints
  • Complete the work inside the 80-minute block.
  • Use only supplied or teacher-approved materials and evidence.
  • Do not trade , accessibility, or privacy for speed.
Tradeoff weights
  • and evidence quality: must pass before scoring other criteria.
  • User need and effectiveness: highest scored criterion.
  • Time, cost, and ease of use: compare only after and effectiveness pass.

Test evidence: For each option, record the E1-E3 result that supports or fails each criterion. Do not assign a score without a named observation.

Iteration log
  1. Version or option tested
  2. Criterion met or missed
  3. Evidence ID and result
  4. Revision made
  5. Reason for the revision
Decision record
  1. Need and user
  2. Criteria and constraints
  3. Chosen option and evidence
  4. Test result
  5. Revision and reason
Watch the trap

Students often think A polished answer about Innovation debate is trustworthy even when its evidence source, comparison, or limitation is missing.. The trap: Presentation quality cannot raise the evidence level. Scientific evidence can inform the options and likely consequences, but it cannot choose a single value-neutral answer.

Worked example · a parallel case (guides, does not reveal)
Non-answer evidence and reasoning scaffold
Completes: A blank structure for organizing the assigned response. It contains no claim, ranking, calculation, data interpretation, or recommendation from today's task.

1. Decision or claim I am testing: ____

2. Evidence ID and exact observation: ____

3. Second evidence ID and exact observation: ____

4. Rule that connects the evidence to my claim: ____

5. Strongest alternative or tradeoff: ____

6. Limitation or missing evidence that controls my confidence: ____

7. Revision I would make if the missing evidence changed: ____

Why this matters

This model shows the level of evidence and organization needed to complete: A blank structure for organizing the assigned response. It contains no claim, ranking, calculation, data interpretation, or recommendation from today's task.

Build yours step by step
  1. Write one defensible claim.
  2. Choose specific evidence that supports the claim.
  3. Explain the scientific rule that connects the evidence to the claim.
Change it for a new task

Keep the structure. Replace the question, facts, measurements, and evidence. Then recheck units, vocabulary, and whether the conclusion goes beyond the evidence.

Also due today: Submit your CER contribution, two questions, and reflection on Schoology.

See the full worked example
Portal terms
CER:
Claim, Evidence, Reasoning: make a claim, back it with evidence, explain your reasoning.
SOP:
Standard Operating Procedure, the exact steps to follow (especially in a lab).
Tracker:
Your PLTW progress log where you record completed evidence.
myPLTW:
The PLTW course site where you do the online activities. Find it in Clever with your Microsoft sign-in, right next to Schoology.
Teacher-posted resources

Classroom documents for this lesson are posted in Schoology. Open Clever, then Schoology, and find each one by the name shown on its card.

Extension / challengeFor: Ready to go deeper
BI Activity 3.1.3 Design Innovations assignment page
worksheet/handoutPosted in Schoology
Open in Schoology

Use this for optional reserve or extra-credit work after the required class lesson is complete.

Placement rationale

Matched Medical innovation proposal and independent project by path:Biomedical-Innovations/Problem-3_Medical-Innovation/3.1_Medical-Innovation; keywords:innovation, design. Score 142. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).

Extension / challengeFor: Ready to go deeper
BI Semester Final Skills-Based Assessment Report
worksheet/handoutPosted in Schoology
Open in Schoology

Use this for optional reserve or extra-credit work after the required class lesson is complete.

Placement rationale

Matched Medical innovation proposal and independent project by path:Biomedical-Innovations/Problem-3_Medical-Innovation/3.1_Medical-Innovation; keywords:innovation, design. Score 142. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).

Extension / challengeFor: Ready to go deeper
Project 3.1.3 Medical Innovation Design Process Checklist
worksheet/handoutPosted in Schoology
Open in Schoology

Use this for optional reserve or extra-credit work after the required class lesson is complete.

Placement rationale

Matched Medical innovation proposal and independent project by path:Biomedical-Innovations/Problem-3_Medical-Innovation/3.1_Medical-Innovation; keywords:innovation, proposal, design. Score 142. Visibility: student-schoology (student-facing resource; link through Schoology rather than local path).

Sign in to Clever with your district Microsoft account to open Schoology or myPLTW. Follow today's posted steps. If myPLTW will not open, use the posted alternative and tell Mr. Mendoza. Turn in your completed work through the Schoology assignment.

Practice: try a question, then check your answer

Claim ceiling for this check: Today's evidence supports a classroom claim about innovation debate. It cannot prove causation, diagnose a real patient, or justify action outside this room.

Quick self-check · commit, then reveal

A student makes a certain conclusion about Innovation debate from one classroom result. What must the student add before the conclusion is defensible?

How sure are you?

Write an answer and pick a confidence to unlock the key.

Missed class or ready for more?
🔬 Pre-lab simulation

Run this before you touch the bench. It is built from the real lab procedure, so the decisions you make here are the ones you will make with the equipment in your hands.

Bioethics and the Belmont Report
Open the simulation →
Where this leads: careers
What to do if you were absent
Today was a debate: do this instead

Post a written CER contribution on the most important criterion for deciding whether a medical innovation is worth pursuing, then reply to one classmate.

Use the submission route shown on today's today's page.

If MR. MENDOZA is absent

Class still runs. Complete the online activity above (it's self-guided). Need the concept taught without a teacher? Use this authoritative explainer:

NGSS Engineering Design
How this is graded
For: CER: CER contribution arguing the most important criterion for evaluating a medical innovation, plus two questions and a reflection connecting the criterion to your proposed innovation.
  • Complete
    Every required part of the artifact is present, nothing left blank.
  • Accurate
    The science and the data are correct and match the evidence.
  • Scientific reasoning
    You explain your claim with evidence and reasoning (CER), not just an answer.
  • Professional communication
    Clear, organized, labeled, and written the way a clinician or scientist would.
  • Submitted
    Go to Schoology to turn this in. Submit one PDF. Put your first and last name in the document header. Name the file: FirstName LastName - Assignment Title - YYYY-MM-DD.pdf. If you cannot get in, see Mr. Mendoza. Do not skip the work.