PHYSICS – 11 UNIT 7 – YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT PROJECT PROJECT GUIDE INTRODUCTION Electricity has become an integral part of our life, in a way that many of us have taken it for granted. How many times have you or someone you know been yelled at for not turning off their lights when they leave their room? And the conversations that follow would be either related to the cost of running the home or environmental concerns. When we were young we may have either taken those words as truth or just brushed it off as parents being parents. As we get closer to the age of independence, we will have to start to look at realistically how electricity usage may truly impact us both financially and environmentally. BACKGROUND In this project, you will be exploring and answering a number of questions, grouped under certain competencies. “…Competencies are sets of intellectual, personal, and social and emotional proficiencies that all students need in order to engage in deep, lifelong learning. Along with literacy and numeracy foundations, they are central to British Columbia’s K-12 curriculum and assessment system and directly support students in their growth as educated citizens.” – excerpt from BC’s Curriculum Perhaps said another way, whereas content-based learning is focused on acquiring specific knowledge comprehension, competency-based learning involves the over-arching skills, strategies and processes of learning such as questioning, processing, analyzing, applying, communicating, etc – which apply to every set of knowledge and skills. PHYSICS – 11 UNIT 7 – YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT PROJECT PROJECT GUIDE THE PROJECT – “YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT” In this project, you will explore your energy footprint and develop competencies by answering the following question: “What Is Your Present Energy Consumption And What Can You Do To Improve It?” HELPFUL QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS Below, you will find a list of questions and suggestions which are grouped under various competency headings. They are here to help you and guide you in answering this question and creating your project. Note: You do not necessarily need to answer or do all of these questions and suggestions in the way they have been phrased. As mentioned, they are here to guide you in calculating the energy footprint you are leaving in this world, and to help you communicate it in your own creative way! Questioning and predicting • • • • If energy is conserved, why do people keep saying “we will run out of energy sources?” In what ways are you personally contributing to the depletion of electrical energy? What are some devices that you use that are more energy draining than others? How much electrical energy do you estimate yourself using every day? PHYSICS – 11 UNIT 7 – YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT PROJECT PROJECT GUIDE Planning and conducting • • • • What are some possible ways to track down your energy usage? Is it more appropriate, in your opinion, to investigate energy usage per day, per week, or per month? How would you estimate energy usage for devices which you are not the sole user of? What are some appropriate ways to organize your data? Suggestion: Pick at least 10 items that are commonly used every day. Record the power rating (in Watts or in some cases given as output: ____V / ____ A) and/or energy rating (in kWh). Track down the amount of time that the device runs in a period of your choice. (8 hours / 24 hours / 3 days / 1 week; do not go beyond one week.) Processing and analyzing data and information (Suggestions) • • • • • For the devices that say something like “output: ____V / ____ A”, convert to power in Watts using the relationship between Power, Voltage and Current in Lesson 5. For all the devices with power outputs, convert to energy usage in the time period using the relationship between Power, Energy and Time discussed in Lesson 5. Look up the cost of electricity in your area. Estimate the amount of money you have to pay your own energy usage in your billing cycle. You may have to extrapolate your data to match your billing cycle. Identify items that use up more energy than others. Compare with a bar graph and/or pie chart. Do they have any similarities in their functions or characteristics? Are there devices you can potentially reduce the energy usage of based on the amount of time they are on? Based on the quality of devices? What are some devices that, due to your living conditions, are necessary and cannot be reduced? Evaluating • • • What were some assumptions you had to make? Do all the assumptions make sense? Explain. (For example, is it reasonable to assume the energy usage in summer is the same as the energy usage in winter? Etc.) Scientists often claim that “no devices are 100% efficient”. In some electrical devices, what are some potential places where energy is “wasted”? Where does your city get its energy from? Are these energy sources considered “renewable” or “non-renewable”? Do you personally buy in on the idea that “energy may be running out?” Justify your answer. Applying and innovating • • What are some realistic ways to improve your energy usage at home? Why would someone be opposed to improving energy usage at home? • We often see, on LED’s, companies advertise about producing “100W equivalent brightness with 18W power rating”. How are LED bulbs more efficient than CFL bulbs or even traditional light bulbs? What are other devices that have improved in energy usage? In what ways? UNIT 7 – YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT PROJECT PHYSICS – 11 PROJECT GUIDE COMMUNICATING YOUR PROJECT It’s time to present your project! Here are some guidelines (these are not optional ☺): • • Organize your findings in a report format, PPT format, video, or other methods of choice. Be sure all infographics are clearly visible and properly labelled. You may wish to show one set of sample numerical calculations so that your reader knows that your data is analyzed properly. Present at least 3 solutions to improve energy usage, from the perspective of an inspection official who is trying to provide suggestions to a household who wishes to make their home more energy efficient. HOW WILL I BE GRADED? It’s always helpful to know how something is going to be graded before you do it. So below is the exact rubric this project will be evaluated on. Keep this in mind as you work through the project. Evaluation Rubric: Category Incomplete Emerging Not Yet Meeting Expectations Developing Meeting Expectations Proficient Fully Meeting Expectations Extending Exceeding Expectations Score 0 4 6 8 10 Creative Thinking Incomplete Solutions or ideas to the tasks or questions show minimal original thought or incorporation of concepts taught. Uses other people's ideas, but does not give them credit. Responses show little effort. Some of the answers or responses to the tasks or questions are original ideas or show incorporation of the concepts taught. Gives credit when using others’ ideas. Responses show some effort. Most of the answers or responses to the tasks or questions are original ideas and/or incorporate concepts taught. Gives credit when using others’ ideas. Responses show strong effort. All answers or responses to the tasks or questions are original and/or incorporate concepts taught. Gives credit when using others’ ideas. Responses show outstanding effort. Critical Thinking Incomplete Critical thought (i.e. analysis, justifications, explanations, The level of critical thought (i.e. analysis, justifications, The level of critical thought (i.e. analysis, justifications, explanations, The level of critical thought (i.e. analysis, justifications, UNIT 7 – YOUR ENERGY FOOTPRINT PROJECT PHYSICS – 11 PROJECT GUIDE questioning, etc.) is rarely evident. explanations, questioning, etc.) is evident but minimal. questioning, etc.) is mostly evident. explanations, questioning, etc.) is clearly evident throughout. Communication Incomplete Some or all of the required work is shown but is difficult to understand, not coherent distractingly messy. Much or all of the required work is show but may be difficult to understand, hard to follow and messy. Most or all of the required work is shown. The presentation and delivery are clear and relatively easy to follow. All of the required work is shown. The presentation and delivery are neat, orderly, clear and easy to follow. Content Incomplete Some or all of the required content is present but shows many or serious misunderstandin gs and/or errors in mathematical processes and thinking. There is little evidence that knowledge on the subject matter has been gained. Much or all of the required content is present but shows several misunderstandin gs and/or errors in mathematical processes and thinking. There is some evidence that knowledge on the subject matter has been gained. Most or all of the required content is present and shows minimal misunderstandings and/or errors in mathematical processes and thinking. There is strong evidence that knowledge on the subject matter has been gained. All of the required content is present and shows no misunderstandin gs and/or errors in mathematical processes and thinking. There is clear evidence that knowledge on the subject matter has been gained. Personal And Social Responsibility Incomplete The content shows a minimal interaction between the student and the tasks or questions, demonstrating no real awareness of the application to the student’s life or the world around them. The content shows some level of interaction between the student and the tasks or questions, demonstrating an awareness of the application to the student’s life and the world around them. The content shows a strong level of interaction between the student and the tasks or questions, demonstrating a personal embracing of the questions and their application to the student’s life and the world around them. The content shows a uniquely distinctive interaction between the student and the tasks or questions, demonstrating a highly personal embracing of the questions and their application to the student’s life and the world around them, in a deep and meaningful way. Total Score: /50 .
