InTeGrate Modules and Courses >Regulating Carbon Emissions > Instructor Stories > Sandra Penny
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Initial Publication Date: May 30, 2017

Sandra Penny: Using Regulating Carbon Emissions in Energy and the Environment (SCI-105) at Bard College



About this Course

This is an introductory course for non-majors that meets a general education science requirement.

28
students
Two 80-minute sessions per week.

Course Syllabus (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 144kB Jun20 16)

We spent 4 weeks on this module at the conclusion of a 14-week semester in an introductory course called "Energy and the Environment." The course was new to me this semester, and has previously followed a traditional format, which uses lectures, textbooks, and homework to emphasize the concepts of energy and as well as many specific types of renewable energy. Climate change is tacked on in a week or two at the end with little connection to the rest of the course, following the format of most textbooks. Inclusion of this module is my first attempt to reform the course into a more activity-based environment that recognizes that global warming is a topic of special importance to the students.

The real strength of this unit is that it brings in economics and politics to the discussion of climate change. About half of my students were business and public policy majors, and they welcomed the opportunity to make connections between a topic about which they are deeply concerned – global warming – and the topics that they have already chosen for their major field of study.

These topics are relevant, timely, and constantly changing – a perfect opportunity for student interest and engagement. The Supreme Court's decision to Stay the execution of the Clean Power Plan as well as Scalia's death both occurred while I was teaching this course and have obvious and deep implications for the topics covered in this module. I have no doubt that most students will continue to follow the evolution of climate change regulation nationally and globally as informed citizens.

My Experience Teaching with InTeGrateMaterials

This is a 100-level survey course populated by students who are quantitatively weak and seeking an "easy" route through general education science requirements. To accommodate this type of student, I stretched the module from three to four weeks. I spent extra time in particular with the webDICE model and in explaining the relationship between the Social Cost of Carbon and Abatement.

I passed out the Summative RAFT Assessment, which was assigned as one of two take-home final exam essay questions, in class about halfway through the module. We spent about thirty minutes discussing the assignment, and I found that really helped. The format of the assignment was unfamiliar and initially overwhelming.

Relationship of InTeGrate Materials to my Course

We spent 4 weeks on this module at the conclusion of a 14-week semester in an introductory course called "Energy and the Environment." Prior to the module, the students had seen fossil fuels and the environmental (but not really climate change-related) impacts of fossil fuels as well synopses of a variety of different renewable energy resources.

Assessments

I used all of the assessments and activities of the module. Most of the problems that the students had with the assessments have been corrected in the final version of the model. Some suggestions:

  1. I assigned the RAFT Summative Assessment as one of two questions for a take-home final exam. I passed this assignment about halfway through the module and I think this worked well. The students took the RAFT assignment seriously and many had interesting and thoughtful comments. That they had seen the final exam also likely increased participation in the final weeks of the course.
  2. My students were not used to seeing formal rubrics, and they did not appreciate the extra reading. It would be worth spending some time in class discussing the value of these rubric with specifics. I did explain what the rubric was, but it would've been helpful to give some specific examples to the class.

Outcomes

As this is my first time teaching this course, I don't have any previous data to compare to. I informally surveyed my students in the last 10 minutes of the last day of class on what they thought about the module, and the vast majority really enjoyed the interactive and societally relevant nature of these materials.

I do think that it is difficult to get introductory students to fully learn most of the learning objectives that relate to modeling and uncertainty. While the module does an adequate job, to fully discuss this would take more time than we have allotted.

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These materials are part of a collection of classroom-tested modules and courses developed by InTeGrate. The materials engage students in understanding the earth system as it intertwines with key societal issues. The collection is freely available and ready to be adapted by undergraduate educators across a range of courses including: general education or majors courses in Earth-focused disciplines such as geoscience or environmental science, social science, engineering, and other sciences, as well as courses for interdisciplinary programs.
Explore the Collection »