The Bridge, the journal of the National Academy of Engineering, features essays on engineering research, education, and practice; science and technology policy; and the roles of engineering in society. Each issue is available for reading online, or in downloadable pdfs.

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Tags: Publication, Research on Learning

The Doing What Works (DWW) Website, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, translates research-based practices into practical tools to improve classroom instruction. The goal is to create an online library of resources to help teachers, schools, districts, states and technical assistance providers implement research-based instructional practice.

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Tags: Curriculum, Education Policy, Research on Learning, Teacher Training

Students work in small teams to design a heat- and water-conserving “green roof” of plant material for an urban apartment building. This is a multimedia project for grades 9-12, involving Web and library research, hand drawings, creation of exhibit boards with text, photos and data graphics, and a final presentation of findings.

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Filed under: Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | 3 Comments »

Tags: Environmental Engineering, Green Technology, Materials Engineering, Research on Learning

Move over, NASA. Remy Dou’s high school students are developing plants that can survive in space. They are learning to master aeroponics, an engineering process in which a nutrient-rich mist is sprayed on the roots. Requiring no soil and very little water, the plants can grow even inside the International Space Station, though Planet Earth is also an option.

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Tags: Biotechnology, Competitions for Students, Environmental Engineering, Research on Learning

An attractive website offering teacher resources for grades 6-8 to study green roof and related environmental technology. Includes interactive online presentations and downloadable lesson plans and activities, a student workbook, and teacher guide.

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Tags: Environmental Engineering, Green Technology, Materials Engineering, Research on Learning

Ever touch a metal object on a hot day? The heat burns your fingers. But the ground is cool enough to walk on barefoot. Different materials have a different heat capacity, something engineers consider in designing everything from houses to hair dryers. In this lesson for grades 3-5, students compare the heat capacities of different materials and learn why heat capacity is an important property of thermal energy.

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Tags: Materials Engineering, Research on Learning

Kevin Cieszkowski sounds like a glutton for punishment. “Students hit me with a sledge hammer, watch a bowling ball swing towards my face and see me lie on a bed of nails,” says the Richardson, Tex. physics teacher. “And that’s only the first semester.”

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Tags: Research on Learning, Technology for Learning

Frustrated by gridlock? Traffic engineers feel your pain. Using math, they devise ways to improve the flow of vehicles at busy intersections and on highways. Here is an example of the kind of problem they might try to solve. Designed for advanced high-school algebra students, it can be worked out most easily using Microsoft Excel.

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Tags: Research on Learning

Craig Kohn has an outside-the-box approach to education. His students take on real-world agriscience challenges, like converting algae to biofuel. “If our students walk away memorizing facts but are unable to use them, we have failed,” he says.

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Tags: Environmental Engineering, Green Technology, Research on Learning, Technology for Learning