Driving Question:
What biomass is the best choice in your community for the production of biofuels to meet energy needs?
Focus on Teacher
Context & Learners:
Driving Question:
What biomass is the best choice in your community for the production of biofuels to meet energy needs?
Focus on Students
Focus on Content
above photo taken from http://ecofriend.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/07/bio_fuel_6648_pcxdd_o9qrf.jpg
Context & Learners:
- Biology I- 9th grade
- 10-30 students/class
- 51% female/49%male
Driving Question:
What biomass is the best choice in your community for the production of biofuels to meet energy needs?
- The driving question is ill-structured because students can begin approaching the question from multiple angles. The students “define” what best means, which will vary from group-to-group. It’s authentic because the world’s energy demands are steadily increasing and everyone will be affected. This research is vital in solving a world crisis. The question is meaningful because it ties into community and environmental ramifications. The issues of energy demands and climate change will directly impact future generations. The project incorporates multiple disciplines like math (data tables, graphing, data compiling), science (molecular structure, energy dynamics, chemical reactions, photosynthesis, and respiration), social studies (geography, climate regions, ethics), english (writing and presentation skills) and, technology (Vernier probeware, Excel, and PowerPoint).
- The driving question relates to the content standards of cellular chemistry, cellular structure, and matter cycles and energy transfer. The underlying concepts will include: ecology, photosynthesis, respiration/fermentation, enzymes, biochemistry, and cell structure. Examples of some of the activities used are an enzyme catabolism lab (enzymes and fermentation) and molecular modeling lab (biochemistry, enzymes).
Focus on Students
- This question is open-ended because students will be able to choose their own learning path. For example, students will be performing experiments with multiple variables that they choose depending on what they want to test. Students have flexibility in their own research design by deciding which aspect of biomass they want to research first. The issue they investigate to start could be economics, climate, energy content, efficiency of conversion to biofuel, availability, carbon footprint, or community feelings. This same process allows students to form their own investigative questions depending on what they have learned and what information they still want to determine to answer the driving question.
Focus on Content
- The students are going to test various enzymes on how well they catabolize multiple biomasses to determine the best source to produce a biofuel. Biofuels are looked at from a molecular (modeling composition of biofuels and biomass), cellular (research on the composition of plant cell walls, activity of enzymes on biomass), organismal (energy content of different biomasses), geographical (location based on climate of types of biomass), and social perspective (GMO’s and land availability).
- Upon completion of the project, students will have determined what they consider to be the best source of biomass for their geographic region which makes it more real life. Student groups will also be motivated by giving a presentation of their findings to a significant figure (city council member) in the community. This will enhance their research presentation skills by showing what they learned from the PBL.
above photo taken from http://ecofriend.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/07/bio_fuel_6648_pcxdd_o9qrf.jpg