The purpose of Project Energy is to support, facilitate, and extend the efforts of organizations and agencies within the state of Alabama in the development of energy literacy through energy education. Project Energy professional development workshops and resources are designed to help Alabama teachers to create exemplary energy/science/technology education models for K-12 classrooms in schools at eight sites throughout Alabama. Professional development will focus on enhancement of science knowledge related to energy, the new Alabama science state standards and national science education standards, science-related educational technology, and the science teaching skills of teachers in eight state regions underserved in science/energy education inservice and resources.

    The project's goal is to increase understanding of the impact and opportunities of energy research and development among underrepresented and underserved students. The eight leadership Project Energy sites will provide models for the long term development of science/energy/technology education for other teachers and schools in the state. In addition, Project Energy leadership teams will strengthen the energy literacy of Alabama's youth by conducting numerous professional development activities for other Alabama teachers, students, and parents.

    Formation of partnerships, professional development, and dissemination of energy science knowledge, materials, and instructional methods are the principal processes of action in this project. Organizations and people with energy science information and expertise are being linked to Alabama's teachers of science. Expertise, materials, support or a forum for presenting workshops will be provided by numerous organizations. Primary organizations include the six Alabama DOE/EPSCoR research universities; the Science, Technology, and Energy Division of the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs; the Alabama Science Teachers Association; the Alabama Economics Education Center, the Alabama Regional Inservice Centers; the U.S. Department of Energy Research Laboratories, the Exxon Corporation; and numerous Alabama School Districts.

    Project Energy is designed to help support an important reform initiative, the development of scientific literacy. Reform is part of the educational process in the State of Alabama. Project Energy will support this initiative through enhancing communication among teachers, students, energy science researchers, business and industry, and DOE laboratories. It will utilize opportunities for communication to foster partnerships among these groups that will lead to the development of exemplary classrooms in energy education. The Alabama State Department of Education has embarked on a new initiative, the enhancement of science education for all students in the state. It has introduced new goals and guidelines for science teaching. Project Energy will help promote a major strand of this new priority, energy literacy. Strengthening partnerships and building collaborative support for enhancement in energy science education by existing agencies and groups throughout the state is a significant part of this project.

    Project Energy, years 4 and 5, is a continuation of the work accomplished in years 1-3. This work established baseline changes in energy education in Alabama during the years 1994-1996. These changes involved establishing energy priority school sites with leadership teachers, providing professional development in energy research for these teachers, and creating innovative changes in leadership classrooms, and collaboration among teachers and state organizations. The purpose of Project Energy during year 3 (1996-1997) was to support, facilitate, and extend the efforts of agencies and organizations within the state of Alabama. This was accomplished through continued emphasis on professional development in energy literacy with an increased priority on technology education in classroom learning of energy science. The goal of Project Energy in years 4 and 5 (1997 to 1999) will be to expand, enhance, and institutionalize energy education first, in activities leading to the involvement of organizations and businesses and second, in additional state regions where schools are underserved or underdeveloped in energy education resources and teacher inservice opportunities.

    The project will focus efforts on the energy education standards in the Alabama Course of Study - Science and the National Science Education Standards. It also will focus on increasing the understanding of the impact and opportunities of energy research by students who are typically underrepresented and underserved in science education. This focus will involve a multidisciplinary approach including science, mathematics, and the social sciences. The state leadership teacher sites will provide the models and the means for long term development of energy science education reform in the state.

     The elementary teachers in feeder schools and supporting secondary teachers in each group will create and demonstrate model classroom programs in each of the state's eight regions. Each leadership site will be composed of several schools. The sites will be located in the following Alabama regions: south, southeast, southwest (2), central (2), west, and northwest. Each Project Energy leadership team will consist of four to eight elementary and secondary school teachers for a total of about 45 lead teachers. The leadership team's responsibilities will be to:

* increase energy literacy in their students,

* personally create classrooms demonstrating effective integration of energy education into the
   curriculum, and

* provide coordination and inservice energy education opportunities for other teachers in the state.

    The project will provide professional development workshops and technology support experiences to enhance the communication, partnership, expertise, and leadership of about 45 leadership elementary (K-6) teachers and secondary (7-12) teachers in energy education. These Project Energy teachers will have an important role in implementing model energy education activities in their classrooms and will have dissemination responsibilities for 300 to 400 other inservice teachers in their home districts and to other teachers throughout the state.

    The elementary teachers will join with and provide support to lead secondary teachers in each group. The Project Energy elementary teacher's role will be to demonstrate appropriate classroom energy learning strategies, provide expertise for implementing effective student learning strategies in energy activities, and provide a general pedagogical support function to secondary teachers in their regional center.

    The secondary teachers will demonstrate models for implementing energy education activities in their classrooms. These teachers will join with and provide support to lead elementary teachers in each group. The Project Energy secondary teacher's role will be to help translate science/energy knowledge, provide expertise in implementing energy activities, and to serve as a supportive content for elementary teachers in their region of the state.

    The focus during years 4 and 5 will be on continuation and extension of efforts already begun with Project Energy. The project will work to establish an expectation and a tradition of energy literacy, energy career exploration, and partnerships between key players in the energy enterprise in the state of Alabama.

    Project Energy will have the following impacts:
    1)  enhancing and extending partnerships between students, teachers, researchers, and
         personnel in state agencies, business and industry.
    2)  increasing access and the skillful use of technology in order to increase communication and
         resources for students and teachers in energy education.
    3)  continuing teacher professional development efforts to build teacher knowledge and skills in
         order to develop exemplary energy classrooms for students, using more appropriate
         instructional strategies and materials.
    4) disseminating and collegially mentoring other teachers to expand the exemplary classroom
        model to other students and other schools throughout the state of Alabama.

    Project Energy will complete year 5 leaving leadership sites throughout Alabama with:

a)  experienced leadership teachers in energy education,

b)  self-sustaining collaborative business and organization partnerships with teachers, schools, and
     classrooms,

c)  ongoing professional development programs,

d)  connections to the world through Internet and the world wide web,

e)  technology enhanced teachers, and

f)   numerous other self-sustaining actions.

(ENERGY STATS - Exploring New Energy Resources for Getting Your Students Turned Around To Science)

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