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Our Environmental Footprint - Transportation Situation

Elementary

Description

“Transportation Situation” is one of a series of lessons that uses active learning to teach young children concepts associated with understanding their ecological footprint.  Students explore how people move around their community and consider how travel choices may impact the environment.  The dynamic learning approach provides an educational experience where pupils will:

  • Identify transportation methods 
  • Identify “green” travel types
  • Survey their community and observe how citizens travel
  • Describe personal goals for reducing their transportation “footprint”

General Assessment

What skills does this resource explicitly teach?

  • Observation
  • Communication
  • Brainstorming
  • Analyzing ecological footprint

Strengths

  • Well organized with worksheets included
  • Includes an outdoor component
  • Students examine the issue at a local level

Weaknesses

  • Minimal background information
  • Does not include any formal assessment strategies
  • Does not include a specific action project

Recommendation of how and where to use it

This resource supports science and social studies outcomes related to exploring human impacts on the environment, stewardship and global issues.

The wrap-up activity, "Count Yourself In" could become the basis of a citizenship project where students expand their learning beyond the classroom.  In conjunction with Earth Day, the class could organize a "bike/walk" event that involves classmates, school staff and parents in pledging to not use vehicles to travel to school that morning.  The class could calculate how many cars were off the road and announcing the results on a community web site.

Relevant Curriculum Units

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        • Exploring connections strengthens our understandings of relationships to help us make meaning of the world
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        • Local Communities:: We shape the local environment, and the local environment shapes who we are and how we live.
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        • Science 1: Living things have features and behaviours that help them survive in their environment
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        • Local Communities:: We shape the local environment, and the local environment shapes who we are and how we live.

Themes Addressed

Citizenship (1)

  • Ecological Footprint

Energy (1)

  • Energy Use

Land Use & Natural Resources (1)

  • Transportation

Sustainability Education Principles

Principle Rating Explanation
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives Good

The activities support the development of new learning where students are able to link how transportation methods impact the needs of plants and animals.  Thus the important connection between responsible natural resource use and ecological sustainability is made.

Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
  • Satisfactory: absence of bias towards any one point of view
  • Good: students consider different points of view regarding issues, problems discussed
  • Very good: based on the consideration of different views, students form opinions and  take an informed position
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions Good

The issue is explored from both an environmental and human health perspective as students learn how alternate transportation sustains clean air, physical health and mental health.

Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions:

Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.

  • Satisfactory: resource supports the examination of  these dimensions
  • Good:  resource explicitly examines the interplay of these dimensions
  • Very Good:  a systems-thinking approach is encouraged to examine these three dimensions
Respects Complexity Satisfactory

The resource presents an age appropriate and balanced view of individual sustainability choices that can collectively result in significant global change.

Respects Complexity:

The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected.

Acting on Learning Good

The culminating activity, "Count Yourself In" encourages student engagement by offering a forum for discussions about individual choices.  The student objectives from this activity can be easily translated into broader conservation goals that involve the entire school and local community.  One effective strategy for reaching a wider audience could be the development of a school to school environmental footprint reduction challenge.

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

  • Satisfactory: action opportunities are included as extensions 
  • Good: action opportunities are core components of the resource
  • Very Good: action opportunities for students are well supported and intended to result in observable, positive change
Values Education Good

This resource uses a varied and interactive approach to provide an introduction to the environmental footprint concept. The emphasis on the understanding basic principles rather than actual footprint calculations develops closer connections to the topic in young students and provides them with an opportunity to achieve personal conservation goals.

Values Education:

Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values.

Empathy & Respect for Humans Poor/Not considered
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 outdoor survey involves describing natural features of the community that would be missed if students were in a car, thus fostering a deeper awareness of nature.

Personal Affinity with Earth:

Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.  

  • Satisfactory: connection is made to the natural world
  • Good: fosters appreciation/concern for the natural world
  • Very Good: fosters stewardship though practical and respectful experiences out-of-doors 
Locally-Focused Learning Good

The topic is explored from the perspective of the local neighborhood which will result in a much more meaningful experience as students recognize that personal conservation goals will have a direct impact on their community.

Locally-Focused Learning:

Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community. 

  • Satisfactory: learning is made relevant to the lives of the learners
  • Good: learning is made relevant and has a local focus
  • Very Good: learning is made relevant, local and takes place ‘outside’ , in the community 
Past, Present & Future Satisfactory

Student driven strategies for reducing environmental impact support looking towards the future and increases the likelihood of long-lasting changes in the way they think about sustainability.

Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future.

Pedagogical Approaches

Principle Rating Explanation
Open-Ended Instruction Good

The teacher role is to support and guide, rather than direct student discussion and reflection. This strategy ensures there are many opportunities for self discovery which facilitates active student involvement in the learning outcomes.

Open-Ended Instruction :

Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer.

Integrated Learning Satisfactory

Although developed as a science resource the vehicle survey does involve using math skills such as counting and tallying data.

Integrated Learning:

Learning brings together content and skills  from more than one  subject area

  • Satisfactory: content from a number of different  subject areas is readily identifiable
  • Good:  resource is appropriate for use in more than one subject area
  • Very Good:  the lines between subjects are blurred 
Inquiry Learning Satisfactory

The hands-on aspects of the lesson actively involve students in new learning to support independent decision making.

Inquiry Learning:

Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.   

  • Satisfactory: Students are provided with questions/problems to solve and some direction on how to arrive at solutions.
  • Good: students, assisted by the teacher clarify the question(s) to ask and the process to follow to arrive at solutions.  Sometimes referred to as Guided Inquiry
  • Very Good:  students generate the questions and assume much of the responsibility for how to solve them.  . Sometimes referred to as self-directed learning.

 

Differentiated Instruction Satisfactory

The variety of activities complemented by a walk in the neighbourhood will appeal to a wide  range of learners.

Differentiated Instruction:

Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.

  • Satisfactory:  includes a variety of instructional approaches
  • Good: addresses  the needs of visual, auditory &  kinesthetic learners
  • Very Good: also includes strategies for learners with difficulties
Experiential Learning Satisfactory

The lesson includes an local evaluation of the types and relative abundance of alternate modes of transportation.  This provides an opportunity for very young students to examine the issue beyond the classroom and make connections with their own community,

Experiential Learning:

Authentic learning experiences are provided

  • Satisfactory: learning takes place through ‘hands-on’ experience or simulation
  • Good: learning involves direct experience in a ‘real world context’
  • Very good: learning involves ‘real world experiences’ taking place’ beyond the school walls.
Cooperative Learning Poor/Not considered
Cooperative Learning:

Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.

  • Satisfactory:  students work in groups
  • Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught and practiced
  • Very Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught, practiced and assessed
Assessment & Evaluation Satisfactory

Open-ended questions and personal goals to increase alternative transportation provide opportunities for formative assessment of new learning.

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 Poor/Not considered
Peer Teaching:

Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.

  • Satisfactory: incidental teaching that arises from cooperative learning, presentations, etc.
  • Good or Very Good: an opportunity is intentionally created to empower students to teach other students/community members. The audience is somehow reliant on the students' teaching (students are not simply ‘presenting')
Case Studies Good

Climate change is an issue of immediate concern that requires concrete action to reduce emissions.  Learners will recognize that change begins at a local level to alter the future of our planet.

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

Students have a great deal of choice in the decision-making process where they identify strategies for lowering their environmental footprint.

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.

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