AVID: Clean Energy Unit

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Lesson Title: Clean Energy Unit

Lesson Authors: Jessica Vargas

Audience/Course: 9-12 Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID)

Time/Duration: 4-6 hours

Context: Environmental health research with social justice focus-aim to explore careers/majors to support clean energy initiatives.

 

Goals and Objectives

Goals

Students will:

  • Understand what clean energy is
  • Learn about the pollution in their communities
  • Be provided with sites to research how to find the pollution that exists in their community
  • Research the history of the pollution they find in their community

Objectives

Students will research:

  • How lower income and households of color experience disproportionately higher rates of energy insecurity
  • How to be change makers in their communities (utilizing SanDiego350 and their activities/activism) and how they can provide change through the major they choose and career choice

 

Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, Resiliency Focus

 

In an effort to ensure all students are aware of what clean energy is, the use of this site:

https://ccst.us/an-overview-of-californias-energy-transition/

Graphic organizers could be used for comparison purposes, t-chart for historical aspects. Ideas like, how did we get to this point with clean energy? What was it like before and what is it like now? Where do students fit in the process of clean energy in order to see how they can be change makers?

Is there a problem regarding energy (specifically their community) and how can they solve or work towards solving this problem?

 

 

Clean Energy Workforce Connections

 

Focus will be on “problem/solution” from above.  Potential to brainstorm issues that surfaced from research. A brainstorm of careers can include monitoring, advocacy, policy making, law and justice systems with support from this local organization: 

Environmental Health Coalition. 

 

Design thinking option here regarding creating solutions to problems brainstormed from research. (Video explaining design thinking)

 

Climate Change/Climate Justice Connections

 

These site will be used for researching energy in students’ community:

 

 

Evidence of Student Learning (assessments) 

 

Students will:

  • Complete the anticipatory set started at the beginning of the unit
  • Participate in a class activity sharing what was learned in pairs and as a whole class share-out (options to present design thinking, slides of research done, creation of visual to demonstrate learning)
  • Participate in a Socratic Seminar with questions stemming from anticipatory guide and “objectives” section above

 

 

 

Instructions for Learning Activities

 

  1. Start with this anticipatory set. 
  2. Read through this article in anticipation of a class discussion (possibly guiding questions will be provided to ensure focus on the purpose of the reading). 
  3. Use this website and those in the above “climate justice connections” box for researching their neighborhoods. 
  4. A Socratic seminar will be the culminating activity, guided with these questions.

Resources and Materials

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