BHS AP Environmental Science Program - A Model of Project-Based Learning

For the last seven years, students in Ms. Mardi Mertens' AP Environmental Class have been designing architectural models of solar homes based on Solar Energy Education Program design principles.  These models are planned, designed and constructed with the guidance of Ms. Mertens and local architects who visit the classroom and consult with students on their projects.

I had the pleasure to visit Ms. Mertens' class at the end of last semester as her students worked in groups to construct their solar homes from their own original plans (including drawings showing 3-4 separate elevations).  Their homes were required to consider building orientation and include design features such as more South facing windows and fewer North and Western windows, thermal mass, shading, weatherization, ventilation and solar electric array.

Local architects Cate Leger and Greg Van Mechelen then visited the class to offer critiques, and students had the opportunity to make necessary adjustments.  Finally, students were required to compose a museum-quality commentary that accompanied an exhibit installation in the BHS library.

According to Ilse Rueda, a student in the class who now attends San Francisco State University, "I don't think a lot of high school students have ever really studied this in depth - it was fun and also taught us a lot - it's a new idea and it's out there, but we didn't really know how important it was until we had the hands-on experience.  It was valuable to me because now, after the project, I realize that it's really important to conserve energy,  find ways to renew energy that is all around us, and put pressure on our government to make renewable energy sources a priority. It also motivated us to take part in a social issue by engaging us so deeply in the learning and allowing us to take ownership of the project."

Ilse's comments underscore the benefits of the kind of rigorous project-based learning experiences students at Berkeley High enjoy throughout all our small learning communities.  We would like to commend Ms. Mertens for making learning so meaningful for her students.

Would you like to share a best practice or an example of powerful teaching and learning?  If so, email me and I will feature it on this blog!

Data needs, etc.

Hi everyone!  Thanks for a productive meeting today.  I wanted to share the questions from our microlabs so that people could post their thoughts to this blog (and perhaps revise their responses after reading the chapter).

1.  Thinking ahead to June, what would a culture of effective  assessment and reflection look like in your department or SLC?  How might classroom instruction be different?

2.  What data would you see your program accessing and/or using at this time (January - March - June)

3.  What actions will be required of your leadership to bring about these changes?  Identify the actions or skills that you will need to develop.

Also, please note that if you want to attend Glenn's workshop on the 13th, there are only five spaces left as of today.  See announcement on the right for more details.

One more thing:  did you know that a small group of us are embarking on an instructional coaching pilot at BHS?  Do you want to be involved, or would you like a coach?  See the article Glenn shared with us, linked at the bottom of this page - "Personal Best," written by Atul Gawande and published in the 10/11 issue of the New Yorker.