ECO 180: Citizens, Energy and Sustainability – Spring 2013
Tues/Thurs 12:30-1:45pm
Nutting Hall 100
COURSE BASICS
Instructor Contact Information
Caroline L. Noblet
School of Economics (SOE)
207 Winslow Hall
(207) 581-3172
Sharon Wagner
SOE
305C Winslow Hall
(207) 581-3174
Office hours:
Monday 10am-12pm
305 Stevens Hall
Tues/Wed 2-3pm
Email: Blackboard Mail System
Teaching Assistant Contact Information:
Michelle Debartolo-Stone, Graduate TA.
Office hours: Wednesday 10am-2pm; Thursday 2pm-4pm – 305 Stevens Hall
Dylan Bouchard, Undergraduate TA
Office hours: Monday 12-1pm, 2-3pm & Tuesday 12-2pm – 305 Stevens Hall
Email: Blackboard Mail System
Course Description:
This course introduces the political, human and environmental implications of energy use and production.
This course is intended to provide students with a broad understanding of energy issues by focusing upon
current energy use and mandates as well as alternative energy production options. We will discuss how
citizens play a vital role in determining the direction that energy policy will take. In the course of our
lifetime each of us will be asked to vote on an energy-related circumstance. This course will give you a
place to start in understanding the complexities of energy.
Course Learning Objectives:
This course meets the University of Maine’s general education requirement for the areas of Population
and the Environment, and Social Context and Institutions1. The main objective of this course is to expand
your understanding of the historical and current social, economic and environmental circumstances that
impact energy use and production decisions.
1
(1) The stated objectives address the learning outcome goals for the University of Maine’s general education requirement for the area of
Population and the Environment: (In brief)
Courses included in the Population and Environment sub-category help students to understand how humankind interacts with our
finite physical and biological environment by addressing: (a) The role of both local and global environmental change on the quality of
human life; (b) The pervasive role of human population growth on environmental quality and the quality of life, both in industrial and
developing countries; (c) The influence of cultural, religious, economic, educational and political factors on population growth and
environmental quality; and (d) Possible solutions to the population/environmental problems, which may include the role of
technological advancements, a re-examination of educational and political institutions, enlightened reassessment of traditional
religious and economic conceptions, and rethinking contemporary Western conception of “the good life”
(2) The stated objectives address the learning outcome goals for the University of Maine’s general education requirement for the area of Social
Context and Institutions which state: Courses included in the Social Contexts and Institutions category focus upon the ways in which social
contexts shape and limit human institutions. The specific focus may be upon ways in which social contexts and institutions interact with human
values, the role of institutions in expressing cultural values, or the social and ethical dimensions attendant upon particular academic disciplines.
-
ECO 180
Citizens, Energy and Sustainability
Page 1
Spring 2013
Course Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the semester you will be able to:
1) Use the basic units and vocabulary used to describe energy consumption and production.
2) Identify existing patterns, policy and targets associated with energy consumption and production.
3) Identify options and constraints associated with various methods of alternative energy production.
4) Discuss the role of the citizen, the consumer and the individual business owner in local, state and
national energy policy.
5) Discuss the tradeoffs inherent in selection of energy production techniques, and policy support for
the production.
We will work to measure these learning outcomes throughout the semester with components of the course
(discussions, exams) but will also use a pre/post course survey to gather information on the impact this
course has had on your learning.
Readings and Course Technology Materials:
Readings (free!)
Readings will be assigned and posted on Blackboard free of charge. Reading assignments are due the day
they are listed on the course outline. We will heavily use the free e-book Sustainable Energy: Without the
Hot Air by David MacKay.
Course Technology Materials ($20)
We will be using the class room participation software known as Top Hat Monocle. This software works
with your cell phone or computer to allow for classroom participation. Read the Student Guide on
Blackboard and *Register for Top Hat Monocle at: https://www.tophatmonocle.com/e/693266.
CLASS PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS
1. How will I (the student) be graded?
Grading Percentages:
Online Discussions:
In-Class Discussions & Attendance:
Average of three highest exam grades:
20%
20%
60%
** Please note that Exams will be based on both readings and materials discussed in class and online.
Online Discussions (20%)
This class is a lot more interesting and fun when students are prepared and ready to be involved in class
discussions and reflect on the topics presented. Due to the fact that preparation, discussion and reflection
are such crucial components of this course, you will be asked once a week to participate in an online
discussion. Each student will be assigned to a group and will be required to lead a discussion one week
and respond to a discussion the next week, alternating each week throughout the semester. These
discussions will be about the assigned readings for that week. Satisfactory completion of these
assignments will be used to compute 20% of your course grade (we will drop the lowest two). Failure to
complete the assignment on time, and unsatisfactory assignments, will be marked as zeros. It is the
student’s responsibility to frequently check Blackboard to make sure their assignment was
properly credited within a week of the due date.
ECO 180
Citizens, Energy and Sustainability
Page 2
Spring 2013
Credit will be given for satisfactory completion of discussion, based on:
1) Leader:
a. Read all assignments for the following week and post 3 discussion questions to
Blackboard by 11:59pm on Thursday. For example, Group 1 must post their
discussion questions by 11:59pm on Thursday, January 17th for the readings that will
be covered in class on January 22nd and 24th.
b. Discussion questions should be open-ended and demonstrate that the student
completed the readings and thought about how they relate to aspects of this course, a
different course, or life in general.
c. Discussion questions must have satisfactory writing (grammar, punctuation, etc.) and
reference to the pertinent class readings (or other resources used to prepare). Each
question should cite the appropriate class reading(s) and any other sources.
d. Discussion questions will be used to begin an online discussion, so they must be
meaningful.
e. Please see Blackboard for sample Leader discussion questions.
2) Responder:
a. Read all assignments for the following week and post responses to 3 discussion
questions posed by your classmates. The responses must be posted to Blackboard by
11:59pm on Monday. For example, Group 2 must post their discussion responses by
11:59pm on Monday, January 21st for the readings that will be covered in class on
January 22nd and 24th.
b. Responses should demonstrate that the student completed the readings, understood
the material, and reviewed the Leader posts.
c. Responses must have satisfactory writing (grammar, punctuation, etc.) and reference
to the pertinent class readings (or other resources used to prepare). Each response
should cite the appropriate class reading(s) and any other sources.
d. Responses may be used during in-class discussion, so they must be thoughtful.
e. Please see Blackboard for sample responses.
Here are some questions to help you think about preparing your discussion questions or responses:
 How does this reading relate to other material in this course or in another course you have
taken?
 What is controversial or surprising about the readings/discussion questions? What are key
points that you ‘took’ away from (or want to share)?
 Are there selections in the readings/discussion questions or material you disagree with? Why?
 Is there new information that challenges your pre-conceived notions of energy use and
production?
In-Class Discussions & Attendance (20%)
It is expected that you will attend class and participate. We will cover A LOT of material that is not
available elsewhere. We will take attendance everyday during the semester, often through participation in
Top Hat Monocle (THM) questions. Missing more than 3 classes will result in a grade reduction. Your
best bet for success is to attend every class. There will be 4 Article Discussion Days during the semester.
On these days, you must come to class with 1) a printed article pertinent to the current topic, and 2) a
written reflection on the article. The article reflection should be typed, with proper grammar, and should
summarize key points in the article as well as your thoughts. These reflections will be used to start a
discussion in class. They should be approximately 1 page in length (single-spaced).
ECO 180
Citizens, Energy and Sustainability
Page 3
Spring 2013
Exams (60%)
There will be four exams. We will drop the lowest exam grade; therefore you can miss one exam without
penalty (for illness, car not starting, sporting/other event). We recommend taking all exams if you can- so
you can drop a ‘bad day’ exam. We will not be offering makeup exams because of the dropped exam
policy. If you will miss more than one exam while representing the University of Maine (i.e. athletics,
academic conference, etc.), you need to speak with us BEFORE the exams you will miss.
 Exams will be multiple choice and short essay.
Final grades
Final grades will be assigned as follows: A (90 or above); B+ (87-89.9); B (82-86.9); B- (80-81.9); C+
(77-79.9); C (72-76.9); C- (70-71.9); D+ (67-69.9); D (62-66.9); D- (60-69.9); F (59.9 or less).
2. How will you (the instructors) communicate with the class?
Blackboard – Class Website
We will be using the on-line course website program called Blackboard. This website will contain all
course materials – including readings, extra credits, announcements, discussion, and grades.
www.courses.maine.edu
It is very important that you make sure you can access our course on Blackboard!
3. What are the course policies?
Emailing Policy
We welcome contact via email with course-related questions and do not want to discourage anyone from
doing so; however, we hope that you will first attempt to use your resources (e.g., your syllabus,
handouts, your peers, office hours, etc.) to address your questions before sending an email. We expect
emails to us from students (and vice versa) to be composed professionally with complete sentences and
proper English writing style with no spelling mistakes or cryptic abbreviations (i.e, an email is not a text
message), a CLEAR subject line and a clear, concise question. We reserve the right not to respond to
emails that don’t meet these qualifications! During the weekdays, we reserve the right to have at least a
36-hour turnaround time for answering emails and on weekends, the time will be 60 hours. Each
professor has a different work schedule, and probably has a personal life as well.
** PLEASE only use the Blackboard mail system when emailing!
Disabilities Policy
Students with disabilities who may need services or accommodations to fully participate in this class
should contact Ann Smith, Director Disability Services in 121 East Annex, (voice) 581-2319, (TTY) 5812325 as early as possible in the semester.
Academic Integrity Policy
Academic honesty is very important. It is dishonest to cheat on exams, to copy term papers, to submit
papers written by another person, to fake experimental results, or to copy or reword parts of books or
articles into your own papers without appropriately citing the source. Students committing or aiding in
any of these violations may be given failing grades for an assignment or for an entire course, at the
discretion of the instructor. In addition to any academic action taken by an instructor, these violations are
also subject to action under the University of Maine Student Conduct Code. The maximum possible
sanction under the student conduct code is dismissal from the University.
ECO 180
Citizens, Energy and Sustainability
Page 4
Spring 2013
4. Can I earn extra credit? How?
Extra-Credit opportunities will be offered during the semester and will be posted on the Blackboard site.
Please read the ECO 180 extra credit document in the extra credit folder for complete information [in a
nut shell: you can earn a maximum of 10 points throughout the semester, and these points will be added
to your lowest exam grade at the end of the semester].
5. How can I get extra help?
You can come to get extra help during office hours, including: exam preparation, prepare/discuss
assignments.
ECO 180
Citizens, Energy and Sustainability
Page 5
Spring 2013