Power to the People

Power to the People

Renewable Energy in the Community


An interdisciplinary project week on community energy planning to bridge the Science and English language classrooms

The project week POWER TO THE PEOPLE is an interdisciplinary curriculum connecting the Science and English language curricula and is the latest addition to Going Green. Students are asked to investigate the energy infrastructure in a fictional town, understand the science behind renewable energies, and develop a concept for their community’s future energy supply.


Background

In order to combat the global phenomenon of climate change and the warming of our planet’s atmosphere, different goals of national and international scope are being developed to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that largely cause this effect. Common strategies include the transition toward renewable energy sources and the implementation of energy efficient technologies. But while climate goals like the Paris Climate Agreement are negotiated internationally, it is the responsibility of localities - communities and cities - to put these decisions into action. Their geographic concentration, their complex structures and use of energy for housing, commerce, industry, traffic, and leisure, make communities and cities a major producer of greenhouse gases. At the same time, however, this offers a large potential for reducing these emissions. 


Project week

This is where the project week curriculum for Power to the People starts. Modelled after community energy planning guidelines by the U.S. department of energy and the German Deutsche Energie Agentur dena, it introduces students to the context of the fictional town of Leinwig whose mayor is reaching out to your students to develop a plan for the town’s transition to renewable energy sources. This includes the steps of exploring this fictional scenario, comparing it to real-life case studies and best practices in the U.S. and Germany, and developing an action plan that is economically, ecologically, and technologically viable. As a project outcome, students present their solution in a 3-minute video and pitch their approach to an expert commission. A student competition with awards for outstanding project week outcomes will conclude the project.  

With this approach, we intend to break up the borders between school subjects. The project week addresses contents and competences of both English language and Science instruction. We thus suggest that English language and Science teachers team up to carry out the project together. In preparation to the project week, preparatory science modules can be covered in science classes focusing on the concept of renewable energy sources, their availability and tradeoffs, as well as the science behind the different technologies. 

Here is the project week curriculum at a glance:


Curricular principles

  • Idea: The mayor of the fictional town of Leinwig needs your help! Her town is struggling with the transition toward a renewable energy portfolio and asks you to develop a community energy plan. You have one week to come up with a scientifically-backed and context-sensitive plan and pitch it to an expert commission. 
  • Content focus: renewable energy sources and the energy transition in a transatlantic perspective, especially at the community level
  • School subjects: English as a foreign language, STEM school subjects, social studies; we encourage Science and EFL teachers to partner up for the project
  • Countries: groups from Germany and the U.S. (and of course other countries as well) can participate
  • Duration: 5 school days (c. 6 lessons each day) for the project week curriculum; four STEM-based preparatory study modules on renewable energy are available; curriculum can be adapted to shorter time budgets
  • Target participants: advanced secondary students (10th grade and older)
  • Materials and tools: all materials are available in an online Moodle course and as copy-ready PDF files; internet access and computers or other digital devices are recommended
  • Costs: All materials on Teach About US are available at no cost upon registration
  • Outcomes: Students pitch their community energy plan to an expert commission at their school. They present their concept in a 3-minute video and submit it to a student competition. 
  • Time frame: The project week curriculum can be implemented flexibly (no specific date or week). Check the Virtual Town Hall for this year's submission deadline for the video contributions.

Demo course

Power to the People Moodle course

To learn more about the Power to the People curriculum, visit our demo classroom for this project. 

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