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Kevin Lindauer, John F. Kennedy High School, Denver, Colorado
Class: Mr. Lindauer's class consists of freshman high school students. The Physical Science class consists of 32 students representing a wide range of abilities and backgrounds. John F. Kennedy High School is located in southwest Denver and is part of the Denver Public Schools.
School year: Fall 2001
Curricular Areas & Goals: As part of a physical science class, the main emphasis of this unit was on energy, energy production, and energy conservation. State and District standards addressed are 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7.
Technologies Available: John F. Kennedy High School has three full computer labs available for classroom use. Students completing this project utilized a computer lab specifically configured for engineering and science applications.
Length of Unit: 1.5 weeks
Project: The project began with intoductory articles about recent power issues. Students were divided into groups, each with several different articles. Topics ranged from energy production and pricing to rolling black-outs in California. Once a background based on current events was established, students were asked to proceed at their own pace through the lesson pages in order.
In addition to lessons found on these pages, class time was used for student pairs to search the World Wide Web for information regarding energy efficiency and conservation. Extension activities were conducted on two separate days: 1) the Lighting Lab allowed collection of data related to light output versus energy usage, and 2) appliance power usage comparisons were made using "Watts Up" devices as a measure of power. Both activities successfully supplimented learning from the student pages and from the World Wide Web with real data making a clear connection between learning and life for the students.
Student projects were completed incorporating classroom learning with the home energy audit. Students audited their own homes on the basis of energy consumption and proposed a variety of measures to reduce energy usage. Projects were presented to the class in teams of two. Recommendations for reducing energy consumption were required from each group along with analysis of actual energy conservation numbers. Methods of presentation varied from posters and written papers to power point presentations and demonstrations.
Evaluation of student learning was based on daily observations of student progress, lab reports for inquiry-based activities, and final presentations. Primarily, the teacher facilitated students learning by explaining difficult topics, connecting student pages to class content, and guiding students to useful internet information.
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Created for the Fermilab LInC program sponsored by Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory Education Office and Friends of Fermilab, and funded by United States Department of Energy, Illinois State Board of Education, North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium which is operated by North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), and the National Science Foundation.
Authors: Sue Emmons, Powell Middle School, Littleton, CO; Kevin Lindauer, John F. Kennedy High School, Denver, CO; Linda Lung, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO; John Sepich, Scott Carpenter Middle School, Westminster, CO; ; Janet Stellema, Monarch K-8, Louisville, CO; Edited by Marge Bardeen NTEP II Project PI.