Submitted by: Frank Lane
School: J.R. Tucker High School
Summary
This project involves real-world skills and tasks. Energy and natural resources are a hot topic, oil prices, the cost of gasoline, hybrid cars, etc. are things we hear about constantly. We are a society of advertisers, from major national ad campaigns, rating of Super Bowl commercials, to promoting fund raising for a local group.
Students will choose a topic or issue from our Natural Resources unit. Examples would include use of fossil fuels, energy conservation, recycling, alternative “green” energy sources, hybrid cars etc. They are to research further on the topic, establish a position on their chosen issue, pro or con, advantages, disadvantages, supporting a positive position or detracting from a negative one. They will then design an advertising campaign to promote their opinion.
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APPROACHING – Students had to use a variety of methods and sources to research a chosen natural resource issue (books, Internet, databases, NetTrekker, etc.) They had to have at least one book and one database. Their sources should not be websites only. They had to maintain and submit a works-cited page for their sources.
After initial research determining the advantages and disadvantages of various natural resources, they had to evaluate and conclude whether their use should be encouraged or discouraged.
Once they had information to base their position on, they were to focus on an energy source of their choosing and promote their opinion with an original product to be used in public Students had the opportunity to select a delivery method for their message that best suited them and the situation. (Ex. commercial, billboard, artwork, etc.)
As students chose their theme and their material they had to evaluate the information and decide whether their position was defensible based on their research. They had to reach a logical conclusion.
APPROACHING – The “pitching “ of the ad campaign to a small group of students with the teacher as a facilitator for the discussions allows for collaboration and provides the students with the real world experience of using peer review and feedback to improve the presentation. The opportunity to share the final product with any interested elementary school and possibly show an “advertisement” on the Henrico Education Channel expands the learning possibilities outside our walls and into the community.
IDEAL/TARGET – The question of wise resource use presents many difficult issues to be dealt with in the real world. In completing this project students are focusing on how to use resources to gather reliable information. They are asking themselves open-ended questions that our society does not have the answers for. The students in our classrooms now will have to find these answers to secure their future. Examples: How do the alternative sources we have today compare to the time-tested sources (fossil fuels) we are using? How can we meet the energy demands of our technological world using only “green” environmentally friendly resources? How do I evaluate an energy source such as nuclear power, which has compelling strengths for future energy needs, but also weaknesses that cause grave concern? Can the problem of resource use be approached regionally, or is it a greater problem that must be solved on a global basis? In what ways could we persuade the nations of the world to agree on what proper usage is?
The students need to develop a realistic appraisal of who they are trying to influence and why they are trying to reach this audience. They must ask the question “How can I generate an effective campaign and what is the most effective medium for this?”
APPROACHING – To complete this activity dealing with the real world issue of resource use and our world, students had to: research effectively, think critically about, develop a logical well-supported opinion for or against, and create an original work designed to promote/discourage the development or use of them in some form.
Students were able to work independently to create a product using methods that utilized their strengths. They could then collaborate with others to see how their unique perspective could most effectively reach others. They were able to use a variety of resources and presentation methods to facilitate this and influence others with novel concepts that characterize the “ad campaigns” we see in our society every day. They had the potential to reach outside our school to have an impact on other members of the community.
Student Artifact
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Contents:
- Lesson Plan
- 2 Student Artifacts
