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| Fall 2006 - Fall 2007: Challenge to Science
Teachers |
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I was inspired to make this challenge by the recent article
in the New York Times by Andrew Postman, who, with the help
of a science advisor, goes on an "Energy
Diet" – to reduce his own energy use at home
by 5%. I found it so motivating that I am trying to do this
myself, though without a science advisor. I believe that you
and your students could do the same thing and at the same
time come to understand very important science concepts. |
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THE CHALLENGE: Can you, using your grade
level science material, links given below, any other current
information you can find, and your state and national standards,
design a fairly comprehensive PBL unit (more details below)
that (a) teaches the science you are supposed to be teaching,
(b) does so in a PBL framework, and (c) gets your students
to answer the driving question: How can my household lower
our energy use by 5%? And what will it cost (in comfort, convenience,
and money)? |
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| Resources |
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Global Footprint
Network. Includes a calculator
of your own environmental footprint. Although this is not
completely up-to-date, it gives you andyour students a motivating
starting place to think about choices. (Another challenge
for advanced science classes: Can you help them update this
footprint calculator and include more things in it that make
it seem like it is possible to actually do something? The
Footprint
Standards page indicates they are working on developing
scientific standards for expanding and improving the Footprint
methodology, and would take input. |
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BBC
News Guide to Climate Change. This site has a set of slides
giving a climate forecast (with vs. without sustainable development)
through 2099, and explaining the greenhouse effect, the carbon
cycle, feedback effects, and potential effects on the Gulf
stream. |
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Natural
Resources Defense Council. How to reduce your energy consumption:
Tips for conserving electricity and cutting your energy costs
(also available in Spanish). |
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U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, with tips for reducing water and energy
use. |
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Sierra Club's Low Carbon Diet
Link to:
-a recent article by Seth Zuckerman called "My Low Carbon Diet"
-an online carbon emissions calculator (Inconvenient Truth website,
with interesting information on how these are calculated)
-summer energy tips
-yahoo discussion group on these topics |
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| Articles on the
Basics of Project-Based Learning |
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McGrath, D. (2002-03, December/January). Launching
a PBL project. Learning & Leading with Technology,
30(4), 36-39.
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McGrath, D. (2003, February). Artifacts
and understanding. Learning & Leading with Technology,
30(5), 22-24ff. |
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McGrath, D. (2003, March). Designing
to learn: A focus on design in project-based learning.
Learning & Leading with Technology, 30(6), 50-53. |
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McGrath, D. (2003, April). Developing
a community of learners:What will it look like and how
will it work? Learning & Leading with Technology,
30(7), 42-45. |
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| RULES FOR THE
CHALLENGE |
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Your unit plan must address each of the 5 major features
of project-based learning, as described in "Launching
a PBL Project" above. And it must address state and
national science and technology
standards. |
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Submit your unit plan by sending it as
a Word document or posting it as a website and sending the
URL to me at: dmcgrath@ksu.edu.
The subject title of the email must be PBL
Challenge. The reason for that restriction is that
I don't want to accidentally delete it along with all the
junkmail! Questions may be addressed to me at that address
as well, with the subject title: Question-PBL Challenge.
Deadline: September 1,
2007. |
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The Results? The best unit plans are likely
going to be the ones that you have tried out in your classroom.
However, I will accept newly designed plans as well. I will
post these best plans linked to this website as the Summer
2007 Links. I also hope to join with the authors of the
best plans to submit them to a conference presentation if
you are interested. |
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| Thanks to www.teacherfiles.com
and pics.tech4learning.com/ for clipart. |
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