Going Green: Alternative energy workshop
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It was a workshop teaching teachers to teach their students about alternative energy resources, like wind turbines.
“We have a group of teachers from around New York here all week for an alternative energy conference. Today they are designing their own wind turbine. We're going to do a wind challenge to see who can get the most power out of their wind turbine,” said Neal Abrams, SUNY-ESF.
This is the laboratory portion for hands-on curriculum development and they will take this kit into the classroom this fall.
“Not only a wealth of information on the science and the politics of this but also the mechanical aspect, the laboratory aspect including the electronic devices that we've learned how to use and these kits for demonstrations. I'm looking forward to getting them into my classroom,” said Matt Clayton, Springville Griffith Institute, Buffalo.
Part of this program is funded by NYSERDA, which is the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. They are very interested in getting renewable energy into the classroom like solar, wind power, fuel cells, biomass and overall thoughts about energy and how much we really have.
Fifteen teachers are participating in this workshop.
“We will be starting a renewable energy program this fall and everything that we've learned here will be directly tied into my curriculum,” said Meg Gardner, Herkimer BOCES.
Working in teams, they design and construct a wind turbine then, put it in the wind to see how much power it produces.
It's fun but it will also deliver an important message to the high school students.
“It will not only give them a gut awareness of the process to create this energy but also the political ins and outs of alternative energy resources. Also, the fact that we need to go toward this energy is something that I hope they get out of it. This is something in their lifetime they're going to have to deal with whether they want to or not,” said Clayton.