| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of the project is to develop, initiate, and evaluate a grade 6 energy
education program for the Midwest Renewable Energy Association's solar energy trailer,
Sun Chaser. During these times of limited educational budgets and financial cutbacks it
is almost impossible for a teacher to independently develop or purchase large scale
instructional materials. This project offers an energy education program that is a scaled
down version of energy saving and renewable energy devices one would find in a home.
The Sun Chaser educational program was created to perform two tasks. First, the
Sun Chaser educational program could be used with a group of high school student
instructors. This method proved successful for both the sixth grade students and the high
school students involved. Scores on tests taken by the sixth grade students indicated an
increase for understanding the intended learner outcomes of the program. Second, the
Sun Chaser educational program can be used in conjunction with the user manual The
user manual gives directions for the set-up of all the equipment included in the program
package and has an energy lesson plan section that helps teachers develop an energy unit.
The program can be improved in several ways. There could be the acquisition
and implementation of equipment that would allow the Sun Chaser to be used for long-term
experiments. This would require a computer, sensing equipment, and the
appropriate software. Once the equipment is in place, experiments monitoring light
intensity and solar panel output could be conducted. Also, it is important that a vehicle is
dedicated for pulling the Sun Chaser. At times it was difficult to get the Sun Chaser to
locations due to the lack of a vehicle. Finally, it will be important to expand the Sun
Chaser educational program promotions will be necessary. Because of the high level of
satisfaction with the program from the teachers involved I feel that the program will be a
success once it develops a following. | en_US |
