This next project is an advanced topic and students will be asked to voice their opinion. First, they need to find background material to support their opinion. They won't find their opinion on the Web so they need to search for facts. Consider using the Student section of the WOW Education Resource page - www.uswestwow.org/nwow/neducation/nresources/student.html as a resource.
Requires students to draw
their own conclusions, search for pros and cons, and look for facts and
images (may substitute any debatable topic).
| 1. | Search for nuclear AND reactor AND safety using one of the search tools. |
| 2. | Start Notepad and leave it running in the background. Copy and Paste into it. Later Cut and Paste into your favorite word processor. Be sure to look for facts that support your view (safe or not). Perhaps you would like to list alternatives to nuclear power. Do a new search. If you find a page in favor of nuclear power, all links from it will be to other pages with the same view, so do look at the other side. Compare and contrast your view. |
| 3. | If data is available, are the methods by which it was gathered provided? Does the process by which the data was collected follow the scientific method? Evaluate the source; is it valid? |
| 4. | Go to AltaVista - www.altavista.com and search for an image of a nuclear reactor. |
| 4. |
You may want to write about antinuclear groups, so do a search for antinuclear AND Greenpeace. |
| 5. | Save all notes to Notepad and plan your argument before going to your favourite word processor. Finally, you are ready. Write it yourself with careful thought and logical ideas to support your conclusion. |
This
project provides a debate opportunity for your class. Can the students
convince their audience that Nuclear Power Plants are safe or not?
University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO