Air Today, Air Tomorrow is a comprehensive unit of 3 lessons on air quality. Students can become enlightened about the many aspects and issues surrounding air quality as they complete the various exercises.
In Lesson 1, "Take a Deep Breath" students are sensitized to the importance of indoor air quality by examining many aspects of air pollution. Students are first asked to indicate how they feel about clean air rights and responsibilities in response to an air pollution demonstration. Students are then asked for definitions of smog, allergens and other phenomena. Then there is an activity on interpreting EPA air quality reports. Following that, students are asked to form 4 groups and develop presentations on either ozone, particle pollution, CO2 and SO2.
In Lesson 2, "Start Cleaning the Air", students are sensitized to invisible and deadly air pollution through a brief case study and quick write. Then they are asked to embark on a community clean air action and information dissemination program . To fulfill their action project, students are asked to collect funds in their school to enable them to purchase radon testing equipment to distribute among the community.
In Lesson 3, "It's Never Too Late", students are asked to devise ways that companies and government can act together to improve air quality. Students are asked to break into groups and answer the following questions: What are some of the things being done to control the amount of pollutants that enter the atmosphere? Are there career opportunities available to create better standards for air quality in the future?
Taught are the skills and knowledge to analyze indoor air quality issues as well as the ability to organize a campaign to support the purchase of air quality monitoring equipment.
The following tool will allow you to explore the relevant curriculum matches for this resource. To start, select a province listed below.
Principle | Rating | Explanation |
---|---|---|
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives | Good | |
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
| ||
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions | Good | |
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions: Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.
| ||
Respects Complexity | Good | |
Respects Complexity: The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected. | ||
Acting on Learning | Very Good | |
Acting on Learning: Learning moves from understanding issues to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community, or for the planet
| ||
Values Education | Satisfactory | In the early activities of Lesson I using a demonstration, there is an attempt to have students to consider their positions vis a vis clean air. |
Values Education: Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values. | ||
Empathy & Respect for Humans | Satisfactory | Lesson 2 within the unit attempts to sensitize students to the air quality needs of seniors and families. |
Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.). | ||
Personal Affinity with Earth | Satisfactory | The role of the atmosphere as part of the earth's life support system is made clear. |
Personal Affinity with Earth: Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.
| ||
Locally-Focused Learning | Good | |
Locally-Focused Learning: Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community.
| ||
Past, Present & Future | Very Good | |
Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future. |
Principle | Rating | Explanation |
---|---|---|
Open-Ended Instruction | Good | |
Open-Ended Instruction
: Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer. | ||
Integrated Learning | Very Good | |
Integrated Learning: Learning brings together content and skills from more than one subject area
| ||
Inquiry Learning | Satisfactory | |
Inquiry Learning: Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.
| ||
Differentiated Instruction | Satisfactory | There is some appeal to affective domains through a demo. and various questions. Most activities address cognitive domains. There are no accommodations for students with learning difficulties. |
Differentiated Instruction: Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.
| ||
Experiential Learning | Good | Although the unit uses mostly simulations, lesson 2 , "Start Cleaning the Air" provides an authentic experience for raising monies to help protect the indoor air quality. |
Experiential Learning: Authentic learning experiences are provided
| ||
Cooperative Learning | Satisfactory | |
Cooperative Learning: Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.
| ||
Assessment & Evaluation | Good | |
Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc. | ||
Peer Teaching | Good | It is explicitly said to students that they will be graded for their cooperative role in the group in addition to their individual work. |
Peer Teaching: Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.
| ||
Case Studies | Good | |
Case Studies: Relevant case studies are included. Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore concepts in an authentic context. | ||
Locus of Control | Satisfactory | Opportunities are provided for groups to choose program content. There is not much opportunity to choose the medium to work or to go deeper into a chosen issue. |
Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue. |