CTI to present conversation on global energy and education

January 25, 2016
Categories: General News Tags: College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Community Engagement

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) teachers will share bright, new ideas for teaching and learning about energy at a Charlotte Teachers Institute (CTI) event scheduled for 5:30 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 4, at the Discovery Place in Uptown Charlotte.

The “Teachers as Scholars” program, which is free and open to the public, will highlight innovative curricula developed by CMS teachers who focused on the topic “The Global Energy Challenge.” Durwin Striplin, professor of chemistry at Davidson College, will share his energy expertise at the Feb. 4 event. He will address “The Global Energy Challenge.”

Sponsored by Duke Energy, the program begins with a reception and viewing of the CTI-generated, energy-related curricula from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., followed by presentations and a panel discussion with Striplin and CTI fellows. Space is limited, so registration at www.charlotteteachers.org is recommended.

Featured topics and teachers include:

  • “Energy Explorations” by Lisa Lewis, first grade, Mountain Island Lake Academy
  • “Efficiency and Availability: Designing an Energy Self-Sufficient Community” by Kory Trosclair, science, Bailey Middle School
  • “Creative Verve: The Merging of Metaphor and the Scientific Mind” by Gloria Brinkman, art, North Mecklenburg High School
  • “A Good Planet Is Hard to Find: Climate Change, Energy and Global Sustainability” by Jeanne Cooper, earth and environmental science, Mallard Creek High School

This event is an outgrowth of an intensive, seven-month CTI seminar Striplin led for CMS teachers in grades K-12, where they explored various forms of energy, the history and science behind its conservation, as well as what new technologies can improve the global energy crisis.

“We are so proud to showcase teacher-written curricula focused on energy sciences for K-12 students,” CTI Executive Director Scott Gartlan said. “These CTI fellows are on the front lines inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers.”

Thirteen sets of extensive, energy-related curriculum units for grades K-12 were developed by teachers in Striplin’s seminar and designed specifically for their own students. All 13 are published on the CTI website, along with 500 other teacher-created curricula from CTI. Currently, CTI is offering another eight seminars for 2016.

The Charlotte Teachers Institute is an educational partnership among Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), Davidson College and UNC Charlotte initiated to strengthen teaching and learning in CMS. CTI provides intensive, seven-month-long seminars led by Davidson and UNC Charlotte faculty where CMS teachers learn new content, work collaboratively with other district teachers and develop curriculum units for their own classrooms. Teachers serve as leaders in the institute and choose seminar topics they deem most important and engaging for current CMS teachers and their students. Since CTI’s inception in 2009, more than 350 CMS teachers with 76,600 students have participated in CTI seminars. The institute also reaches out to the larger community with its “Exploding Canons” cultural collaboration series.

CTI is made possible by a joint commitment of resources from all three Institute partners, with additional support from Duke Energy, Wells Fargo and the Belk Foundation. The institute is housed at UNC Charlotte within the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.