Hosted by OSOS , contributed by DeustoLearningLab on 30 January 2018
In many towns and cities, lighting systems have not been updated over the last few decades; on the other side, technological improvements have been huge. In this activity, we propose to create or improve a lighting system in the school milieu with the aim of improving energy efficiency, while teaching the importance of optimising society's electricity consumption (with all the consequences this implies) and making a greater use of public resources.
The first question we can ask our students is if there is any place in the school environment where the use of lighting systems can be optimised. For example, a sports field or a public park. If the answer is yes, we can ask them to work as a team to try to propose a system that improves the environment.
This activity proposes to interact with different stakeholders, such as the Local Government (specifically, with the department in charge of the management of public places, or energy) with whom our students can discuss about the lighting systems or about the level of improvement, or with experts (professionals, university departments) in lighting systems (to know the latest technologies available in lighting) or technological companies (to know which technology can be used to create a system like this one).
Once the problem of the activity has been raised (How can we improve the lighting of public spaces in the school environment?), we propose to start with a gathering information phase (via the Internet or by consulting experts such as those mentioned above) and, after that, a work phase to propose solutions. In the best scenario, in a classroom there will be as many different solutions as number of workgroups.
Finally, we propose to present the conclusions achieved both to families and neighbours of the school surroundings and to the Public Administration, inviting them to implement them in a real scenario.
Learning Objectives
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Learn how to create a class project which can develop a solution to a real problem.
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Be informed about the different options that can give a solution to a real problem, and know how to choose the most appropriate for us.
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Improve the society around us.
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Raise awareness of the correct use of electricity and the need to optimize energy consumption.
RRI principles
One of the key aspects of OSOS is the inclusion of RRI — Responsible Research and Innovation — principles (more information at RRI-Tools.eu). This is how this Accelerator fits into the RRI model:
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Governance |
Students could share information and results with stakeholders, establishing a lasting, two-way relationship with the aim of ensuring better project results. I.e.: students will exchange information with stakeholders in their community at various stages, and debate with them on how to proceed in the project. |
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Public Engagement |
Stakeholders from public bodies will be involved in each of the phases of the project, in a partnership with students who can get feedback from them during different stages of the activity to find innovative solutions. I.e.: local government will evaluate the progress made by students; local experts could give feedback to the students throughout the project. |
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Gender equality |
Students will be able to contact female stakeholders with a scientific career during the project. I.e.: experts involved could be both men and women, in order to show the female perspective of the scientific profession. Female models in science will be a reference for students. |
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Science Education |
Science will be used in this activity to improve a public space, and therefore their community. This can help students become better citizens with the help of science. I.e.: science is addressed by students who study the types of lights, compare their differences and measure the number of elements needed to improve the environment, according to the area, location and its specifications. |
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Ethics |
Students will share responsibility while moving forward with the project, in compliance with the research integrity and the social values of Science. I.e.: students will be responsible for installing or improving the lighting installation of a public space through a scientific process, so that residents will benefit directly from the impact of the project. They should reflect on the environmental and societal impact of their project. |
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Open Access |
All materials should be shared open and free on the Internet, so that they can be re-used by other people interested in the topic I.e.: students can develop their own blog for the project, where they can share their resources, materials and progress publicly open and free. |
Resources needed
Nothing special. Computer to search things, paper, pens, etc.
Other suggestions
- The more diverse the spaces with which one works in this activity, the richer the results will be.
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We think that it is important for students to be able to carry out real projects, and for example it would be ideal if the public administration could study them for implementation in the real environment.
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Enogés Consultores can provide technological support for the project. You can contact them at desarrollo@enoges.com.
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As a reference, some lighting systems are proposed, although it is recommended that students look for those according to each problem they want to solve:
- https://www.trilux.com/en/applications/outdoor/smart-city/smart-city/
- http://www.lighting.philips.com/main/education/led-street-lighting
- http://www.lighting.philips.com/main/company/beyond-illumination/smart-cities/smart-city-trends
- https://www.osram.com/ls/light-for/smart-city/public-lighting/index.jsp
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LED_street_light
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligent_street_lighting
- https://www.silverspringnet.com/solutions/smart-cities/smart-cities-street-lights/ and http://www.silverspringnet.com/wp-content/uploads/SSNI_SmartCity_Infographic_10022017_Final.pdf
- https://intelilight.eu/intelligent-street-lighting-control/smart-city-platform/
Organization in charge of this Accelerator
This Accelerator has been developed by Maria José Vicente Neira, from Enogés Consultores. Here is her contact information:
María José Vicente Neira - desarrollo@enoges.com
Enogés Consultores S.L. - http://www.enoges.com/
Pase de Belén, 9ª, CTTA, 47011, Valladolid - Spain
Feel
Session 1
Expected time: 50 minutes
We propose that the first session serve as an introduction to the problem. In this session, the teacher can ask students questions about the topic: For example, have you ever thought about how lighting systems work in public places, such as parks, sports grounds, etc.? Individual or team work can also be carried out, in which the students can define a list of these nearby spaces in which the use of current lighting systems could be optimised in order to extend the hours of use without wasting energy.
Session 2:
Estimated time: 50 minutes
Students can visit some of the public places they have been working on before (parks, sports grounds, etc.) to check the state of the lighting systems. Ideally, they should write down their observations with information such as the number of problems encountered, the apparent age of the lighting systems, or if there is anything that catches their attention. This fieldwork can be done individually or in teams, and there can exist even several reports for the same place (a team can develop one or more reports). Ideally, they should visit different places with different lighting systems in order to be able to know the differences between them, trying to achieve different solutions and conclusions for each case.
Imagine
Session 3
Estimate time: 50 minutes
Back in classroom, students c
an present their reports to share with their classmates. Brainstorming can be used to get ideas for improving the reports, as well as interviewing expert stakeholders to get more technical information. These conclusions can be saved on digital form to prepare the report of the project, and to know its evolution.
Session 4
Estimate time: 50 minutes
During this and the following sessions, we suggest that students contact the experts so that they can get more information in order to improve the lighting system they are focusing on. We encourage the students to contact at least two types of stakeholders: (1) someone from the local government, and (2) someone technically specialized in lighting equipments, although other professional profiles can also be considered.
Try to record all information about the interviews: the person contacted, his or her position or position, department and job and the company or administration to which he or she belong. Also, try to transcribe the different interviews (questions and answers) and take photographs of the people involved.
Session 5
Estimate time: 50 minutes
Second interview session with the expert(s). In both these and other interview sessions, it is important that students can choose whom they think should be interviewed, always with the support of the teacher who can offer guidance and recommendation.
Session 6
Estimate time: 50 minutes
The students can consult as many experts as they wish. For example, they can talk to technology professionals (so that they can propose systems or mechanisms to customize daylight hours as much as possible), or even reserve a session to conduct interviews with neighbors to get their impressions or conduct a survey among school students and their parents, with the help of the parents' association of students to detect the interest and need in changing the current facilities.
Session 7
Estimate time: 50 minutes
Once the interviews have concluded (remember: there may be as many as the students consider), we propose to carry out a retrospective work on what they have learned. On this task, they need to propose the main conclusions of their research; these conclusions will be the seed to elaborate the final work.
Create
Session 8
Estimated time: 1 hour and 50 minutes
With the work done in previous sessions, students must develop the final document with the conclusions of their work: try to develop a document that explains how we can improve a lighting equipment in order to improve its use and the energy consumption. This task involves both a decision (among the team) of which mechanism to select, as well as detailed final conclusions on the report, proposing alternatives for each of the public places that have been analyzed. We encourage to share this document both on the Internet and with the stakeholders involved in the project, who can provide feedback.
Also, we suggest to create a more visual presentation (PowerPoint, Prezi or similar) with a summary of the project, a useful content for the final exhibition.
Share
Session 9
Estimated time: 1-2 hours
Finally, we propose to organize a small party or show in which the pupils who have carried out the project can present it to their schoolmates and to the experts consulted, inviting the neighbours and other stakeholders (i.e., local government) to attend. This party/show can be organized in the parks, sports grounds, etc. in order to be more representative for the local environment.
