Generating electricity: Evaluating the sustainability of today's and tomorrow's energy sources

Notes from our reviewers

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• Teaching Tips
  Activity asks students to develop a portfolio for their region so educators need to be familiar with their regional energy portfolios. Record student preconceptions by asking students to list types of fuel used to produce energy and ask whether they are sustainable or not. Comparing different locations is a good way for students to grasp a more global perspective and identify which kinds of energy are predominant. Find an updated glossary of energy terms for students here: https://archive.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/glossary.html
• About the Science
  This is a very ambitious activity that explores electricity fuel mixes for a region, and climate change from burning fossil fuel. In the context of sustainable energy, these energy sources are examined. In this activity sustainability is defined (in the somewhat limited meaning of) sustainable energy. Comments from expert scientist: Scientific strengths: Good references to sustainability. Energy profiles. Uses government data sources. Suggestions: The complex balance of sustainability is not given context. For example, is nuclear energy considered sustainable? It's unclear if the teacher has the resources to guide students in this complex discussion.
• About the Pedagogy
  The context and placement of using the energy profiler grabs the attention of the user and personalizes this lesson immediately. Mostly worksheet and discussion focused. Clear organization of lesson progress. No background information provided.
• Technical Details/Ease of Use
  Lesson cleanly presented. Materials were all downloadable and support the learning process. Link to NEED Energy Infobook broken but available here [link http://www.need.org/content.asp?contentid=197]. Users could work in groups or individually.