Romania

Report – PBL at Romanian national level GRUP SCOLAR TEHNIC DE TRANSPORTURI CAI FERATE IASI

EUCLIDES – Enhancing the Use of Cooperative Learning to Increase Development of Science studies 134246-LLP-1-2007-IT-1-COMENIUS-CMP Grant Agreement 2007-3434/001-001 This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Transition in Romania includes higher education structure. Introduction of problem based learning is a key factor, to better serve the needs of society. Students have to gain practical skills, like defining and carrying out projects with multidisciplinary aspects, and learn to present to, and communicate with a non-expert audience. Generally the method problem based learning is used in universities, but since few years ago different Romanian schools developed some European project to experiment this didactical method. By introducing a science shop at university, students can gain the practical skills mentioned above, and in the same time help civil organizations and institutions from outside university to analyze and solve their problems. Project-Based Learning (PBL) method organizes learning around projects. It overlaps with other active learning

models such as group work, guided design, work-based

learning,

learning by doing and case studies but is distinguished by solving complex and realistic problems

that reflect the decisions and dilemmas people face every day. The projects are

complex tasks, based on challenging questions or problems, that involve students in design, problem-solving, decision making, or investigative activities; give students the opportunity to

work relatively autonomously and culminate in realistic products or

presentations. The PBL method has specific features: students participate actively in the education by changing one-way lectures to group-work projects; a larger freedom regarding the schedules and the approaches to solve a problem are ensured to students; they are responsible of their own learning activities and are free to study those topics that interest them the most to develop a solution; working in group, a learning community is developed in which the students are held accountable for their

actions by group members; (project – based learning in assistive

technology education Kari Vehmaskoski, Mariana Brumaru, and Dan Mândru)

PBL is a student learning centered method. In this method a scenario is presented to the students to be solved in groups. Groups are formed by a random selection of students. This scenario is a non structured situation that involves elements close to student reality and that have a wide open variety of explanations, process and solutions. The aim of PBL is to engage students on the situation and to guide their efforts of solutions to write the problem and its solutions in a formal manner. The evaluation of the PBL scenario is done by a presentation and a report. The report and presentation are evaluated using a rubric that is handled to the students along with the scenario. There are different ways of working a PBL scenario, but most of them follow these steps: 1. The teacher presents to the students the PBL scenario along its evaluation rubric and the steps students should follow to solve the scenario. 2. Groups work on the scenario with the presence of the teacher. 3. Students do individual research on topics related to the scenario. 4. Students share with their group the research they have done, and they establish the problems to solve. Students work collaboratively and cooperatively with their team members to propose a solution to the problems they stated. 6. Students do a presentation to their classmates and handled out its report. 7. The teacher will comment on the similarities and difference between the groups work, and will pull out their presentations the main concepts involved in the problems and their solutions. 8. The teacher will grade the report using the PBL rubric. The main difficult for a teacher when applying PBL scenarios is to guide the students to the process avoiding to give answers or to accept o refuse a problem statement. Sometimes the teacher have to restrain himself from telling on the group members “you are right”, when a group discussion is taken place and it seems that they are not listening or seriously

considering to the group member that have the right proposal.

The Ministry of Education from Romania implemented in the schools a program AEL. The Ministry of Education, Research and Youth in Romania is responsible for the regulation of education in a country with 256,000 teachers, and more than 3.5 million students enrolled in primary and secondary schools. The ministry faces a huge workload in preparing students to face the challenges posed by globalization, educational modernization, and the needs of the labor market. Remus Pricopie, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Education, Research and Youth, says: "Probably the greatest challenge is modernization, the

correlation between the educational system and the labor market, the infrastructure, the quality of teaching, not only the quality of the teachers, but also the quality of schools and of the facilities that pupils have." The previous IT infrastructure for schools had several weaknesses: •

Complex network models, a lack of servers, and high maintenance costs

•

A diverse range of technologies that compounded support and manageability of the environment

•

Complex operations management and no automation of administrative tasks

•

Slow implementation and computer deployment speed

•

700,000 students and 62,000 teachers have access to the AeL platform and to electronic lessons;

•

20,000 trained teachers;

•

43 worker-years implementation effort in high schools;

•

1,510 IT labs in which AeL has been implemented;

•

530 multimedia lessons;

•

40% coverage of the curriculum with multimedia educational materials;

•

500 individual interactive moments;

•

800 simulations of phenomena studied in school;

•

30,000 electronic tests;

•

16 generic electronic dictionaries;

•

3 multimedia encyclopedias;

•

7 interactive PC-use tutorials.

For more information, visit the IT-based Educational Portal.

The Learning Management System AEL is built based on modern educational principles. Mainly, it conforms to the three successive stages that generally define the educational process: - Acquiring basic knowledge - Development of tactical thinking - Development of strategic thinking The innovative feature is the capacity of the system to be permently extendable, an open system, dynamic, information being stored according to existing standards. Moreover, the system creates

in Romania a format that has become a starting point in the educational arena widely recognized by the market. The AEL system offers support in four areas: - Teaching - Evaluation of students - Management of organizational structure - Monitoring of the educational process The AEL project – Advanced e-learning by using problematization – case study



AEL offers the entire range of technology - from the basic to the most advanced



In 2001, SIVECO Romania released ADLIC – Secondary School Admission and Distribution. The project has received the e Government label and it ranks amongst the very best practice of e Government in Europe. In the same year, Virtual Manual was released, with subsequent developments for AEL (Educational Assistant for Undergraduate Studies).

AeL (from Advanced e Learning) is the core of the SEI program, offering support for teaching and learning; evaluation and grading; curriculum design and content management. It also assists process management and monitoring and administration, and provides tools for communication and synchronization between the local solutions within the national SEI framework. Tens of training sessions for experts teachers and inspectors were held. All high-schools were included in information campaigns which included direct mailing, visual, audio and printed media. Contests and other activities for pupils and teachers were organized. AEL's work is integrated by focusing all work on four constituent-identified areas of need relative to low-performing schools and the contexts within which they operate: developing school capacity, improving teaching quality, promoting school-community connections, and providing policy-relevant information services. AeL and its eContent came as a new way of learning based on PBL , complementary to the ones we already knew and practiced. It helped us get a better picture of what we were being taught, allowing us to virtually “touch” and “hold” molecules, atoms, function machines, function graphs or parts of human cells. No more of the “it’s like I’ve previously stated and you’ll have to take my word for it”. Learning by using problem based learning, by doing has replaced learning by listening and believing. And what’s best AeL gave me (and others) the opportunity to find out how it feels to build educational e-content instead of just using it. For our project EUCLIDES we have some information in a few interviews done by the experts from different arias : sciences, mathematics and informatics, army, chess. The experts presented their experiences in the projects or activities which have like methodology : PBL – case study

EXPERTS

PROJECTS

Tufescu

Experimentation the AEL program for teaching ICT Subject Secondary school

Lacramioara

XI, XII

Ungureanu Vlad The project has like target the students from Europe which play chess in the school by using the computer at highest level Sadoveanu

Using AEL program in teaching the informatics subjects for the structure of a

Georgeta

calculus system –Secondary school IX

Trupina Carmen The simulation of the alkenes chemical reactions by using the computer Monica Dumitras

“ Together for the nature” and “Not for the Nuclear Arms” – developing the

Daniela Mihaela skills of the UE ecologists citizens to protect the environment “14 March is a PI Day”- World Day of the number PI . In the schools from of Gherghelas Liliana

all world, the students and the teachers discover the beauty of mathematics in a contest “Mister PI-3,14” By using problematic and others methods the students discover the mathematics fascination and the proprieties of the numbers illustrated in the movement stars , world of the plants, music, economy and other arias .(they receive some problem situations to discover their ability in mathematic )

Dumitrescu

“ Free persons circulation in the space of the European community” Working

Costel

on the team with students to find the best solutions for some problematic cases in the free circulation of citizen

On of the experts presented an important experiment : PBL in chess contest : The project had as target group the students from all over the country and from Europe who play chess .Were involved schools, chess federation and The Education Minister “ The project for the first step was a success , so it will continue with a second phase with students from Germany, France, Greece, Bulgaria and from The East with Russia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus The project has like objective a chess contest on four sections at highest level by using the computer : - practical chess – long time

- chess blitz (5 minutes) - fast chess - chess > solve problems The project has an important contribution because it helps develop the students’ mental capacities : memory, attention, creativity They basically use PBL, in all the phases of the project; after the contest the students will meet the experts (masters) chess from Europe to see exactly the solution. They will have the possibility to find the solution at home and to correct them online

The expert gave us some strong point of experiment: -the project originality -developing the students’ capacities, memory, attention, -intelligence, creativity for each student participant > good -results in the best school or universities in Romania or Europe -using English language -problem based learning method for all sections -the efficiency of PBL leads to very good results at school and in daily life -promoting the moral values -problem based learning method for all sections -developing the spirit of team working

Conclusions – Project Based Learning •

PBL is still quiet new method for most of the European universities. It seems interesting and attractive not only for the students, but for the teachers and companies as well.

•

Self management, solving real tasks, working in real environment, team work, leadership-that are some of the main advantages of that method.

•

Optimal members in a group are 4. What would be the educational level of the other students in the team seems to be quiet important for most of the young people.

•

Difficulty of the projects is supposed to increase with the years of Education. A little bit more difficult topic

than the expected level of the students is

preferred. •

Supervisors from both companies and universities were also suggested.

•

Topics given from the companies would be always preferred from the students, but the aim of this tasks would be mainly getting knowledge not only solving companies problems.

•

Almost all of the students are not sure that this method could be evaluated properly and enough fair.

•

Fees for PBL could be the same as for traditional education. Big advantage of that method is that it could be supported from other institutions besides the universities.

Bibliography : www.edu.ro www.google.ro http://portal.edu.ro Professional teaching standards – Lucia Gliga – Bucharest 2002, Tehno Media Sibiu

Mihaela Poroch – coordinator for Romania – Grup Scolar Tehnic de Transporturi Cai Ferate Iasi

Together for Nature

By Team ECO-X-CHANGE

♦ Maftei Tatiana ♦ Suditu Florentina ♦ Zabulică Ionuţ

Coordinator: prof. dr. Daniela Dumitraş Grup Şcolar Agricol ,,Vasile Adamachi” Iaşi - Romania

TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1. Introduction 1.1. Argument; aim; objectives

1.2. Methods and procedures 1.3. The elaboration period; final products Chapter 2. Theoretical notions 2.1. What is nature? 2.2. What is pollution? 2.3. What are the main forms of pollution? 2.4. National / International organizations involved in the protection of the environment 2.5. International days when the environment is celebrated Chapter 3. Our contribution – final products presentation 3.1. Essay 3.2. Layout 3.3. Drawing 3.4. Slogan 3.5. Project logo 3.6. Printed T-shirts 3.7. Wall calendar 3.8. PowerPoint presentation 3.9. The Decalogue of the environmentalist 3.10. Questionnaire 3.11. How could I protect the environment? 3.12. Photo gallery: What I like/ what I don’t like about my town.... Chapter 4. Bibliography

Motto: If you worry about tomorrow – buy something to eat, If you worry about the next year – plant a tree, And if you worry about the next century – educate the children! 1.1.Argument The man, like all the other beings on our planet, can only live in an appropriate environment which is that thin layer of the Earth – the ecosphere, made from soil, water and air. The man has also the power to permanently change this environment and often these changes aren’t good. Most of the times, the man hurts the environment unwillingly, being motivated by selfish interests or indifference, and his actions lead to environmental disasters with longterm effects or even irreversible effects. We have chosen this theme, “Together for the Nature”, because the protection of the environment is always an up-to-date issue. In the 21st century we can’t afford anymore to be wasteful. We are confronted to a lot of issues that are directly linked to the comfort of the modern life and there is just one solution: we have to change our lifestyle. We want to change the world a little, to give an example of good practice and to let everyone know that ,,....... it is despicable to behave disrespectfully towards those who aren’t born yet. And all of this happens because we want to feel comfortable.” Jacques-Yves Cousteau Aim: Develop skills and attitudes to become environmentalist E.U. citizens, by knowing, communicating and protecting the environment. We’ll be the direct beneficiaries of the protective attitude towards the gifts that Mother Nature has so generously offered us. Objectives: 1. To become an active part in the environment protection 2. To improve teamwork abilities, computer skills and the relationship to the environment 3. To develop a theoretical environmental conscience in order to to achieve good environmental practice 4. To raise awareness about the need to protect the environment

1.2. Materials and Methods: -

Questionnaires,

drawings,

personal

computer,

Internet

connection,

cleaning

materials, camera, layout, and substances needed to simulate industrial pollution, filters needed to diminish the pollution, etc. -

Teamwork and individual work,

-

PROBLEMATIZATION,

-

Proper documentation,

-

Cleaning activities,

-

Raising awareness and propaganda activities,

-

Tree planting – March 12th - ,”Millions of people, millions of trees” – organized by the Environment Guard - partners: The Iaşi Town Hall The Police County Inspectorate Iaşi Grup Şcolar Agricol V. Adamachi Iaşi

- Competition about the environmental protection – forms 9 A, 9 B, and 9 C 1.3. The duration - 6 weeks Final products: -

Essay, layout, drawing, slogan, project logo, printed T-shirts, wall calendar, PowerPoint presentation, the decalogue of the environmentalist, questionnaire (“How can I protect the environment?”), photo gallery: “What I like/ What I don’t like about my town...”, poem ,,Essay”, photo gallery of the cleaning activities.

Cap. 2. Theoretical notions 2.1. What is nature? Nature, a word that gives hope. Nature shows peace, the thoughts of a person who is in trouble. Nature helps us get over the hard times in our lives. Nature offers us a lot of wonders, but we give nothing back. We owe Nature the strength to live. We have to take care of it, feed it, give it water. What do we offer Nature? A lot of litter thrown everywhere, waters polluted with oil and chemical substances, polluted air. We must change the course of life, both ours and nature’s. Will we give Nature the chance of a better and cleaner life? You have to decide! Make the right decision! 2.2. What is pollution? Pollution, this is a word that we hear from a very young age. We find out from our parents and teachers and from TV and radio shows that air, water and soil pollution is a negative phenomenon that affects our health and that of animals and plants. When we wait for the bus and a car passes leaving behind a thick black smoke, we feel that we choke. That is air pollution. If we walk by a lake and we see fish on its surface, it is a sign that they are affected by toxic substances. That is water pollution. When we see on the news that an oil pipe was broken by thieves and the oil spread on a wheat field and destroyed the plants, that is soil pollution. The man is the main cause of the pollution of the environment but it is the man also who suffers its negative effects. The pollution can sometimes cause the death of thousands of people. Let’s just remember some terrible cases: the catastrophe from Bhopal - India, the chemical disaster from Seveso - Italia, the catastrophe from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the killing smog of London, the nuclear disaster from Chernobyl - Ukraine. 2.3. What are the main forms of pollution? The air is one of the environment factors which are very hard to be controlled, because the polluting substances, once in the atmosphere, dissipate very quickly. There are a lot of chemical substances in our atmosphere that become very aggressive when coming in contact with the oxygen. The gases released into the atmosphere as a result of human activities, form a real screen between the Sun and the Earth. These gases produce a series of phenomena which are specific to the air in the atmosphere, and some of these phenomena are: the greenhouse effect, the global warming, the hole in the ozone layer and the acid rains.

The Greenhouse Effect The Earth temperature is determined by the balance between the Sun radiations and the Earth radiations. The gas layer of the Earth contains a series of gases, result of the human activity, which just like the glass of a greenhouse lets most of the solar radiation pass. The Earth has infrared and thermal radiations and a small amount of them is absorbed by the gas layer. Most of them come back to the surface of the Earth, thus heating it. The gases that are part of the Earth atmosphere have the power to catch the infrared radiations. These are greenhouse gases and they are: CO2, CH4, N2O and NO2, O3, ClFC, and CFBr. The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon which prevents the loss of the Earth warmth. Without this phenomenon, the average temperature of the Earth atmosphere would be too low, about -150C instead of +150C. So, the greenhouse effect is good for the life on Earth. But, it also has negative effects. The greenhouse gases The main greenhouse gas, the carbon dioxide, is a dangerous gas, which is a result of the burning of fossil fuels. These fuels are used especially for industrial purposes, transportation and lighting. The results of these burnings are millions of tons of carbon dioxide and water vapours released into the atmosphere. The normal concentration of CO 2 in the atmosphere is 0.030.04%. When this concentration doubles, the carbon dioxide becomes a disturbing climatic element. Acid rains Acid rain appears when the sulphur dioxide and the nitrogen oxides (all of this being the result of industrial pollution) mix in the atmosphere with the water vapours. The acid rain destroys plants and animals. Entire forests disappeared because of the acid rain. These rains get into rivers and lakes, destroying even the smallest organisms. Smog The word SMOG is made of two words smoke and fog, so, the smog is a mixture of solid or liquid fog and smoke particles which appear when the humidity is high and the air is so still that the smoke stays near its source. Smog appears in the urban areas where there are a lot of cars, when the nitrogen dioxide is decomposed by the sun, thus releasing the ozone

Smog can cause severe medical conditions, reducing sight acuity, irritating the eyes and the respiratory system and is the cause of thousands of death every year. 2.4. National / International organizations involved in the protection of the environment There are several organizations at national level whose main purpose is raising people’s awareness about environmental protection: -

The Ministry of Waters, Forests and Environmental Protection,

-

The Commission for Natural Monuments’ Protection (Romanian Academy),

-

Ecosens (Bucharest),

-

Albamont (Alba Iulia),

-

Ecotur (Sibiu),

-

Marenostrum (Constanţa),

-

Prietenii Pământului (Galaţi),

-

The Carpato – Danubian of Geoecology Centre (Bucharest)

-

People and the Environment (Tg. Mureş),

-

Focus Eco Center (Ploieşti),

-

Eco – Life (Bacău). Since a lot of environmental tragedies took place in the 20 th century, several

countries have established laws meant to repair the harm done by the uncontrolled pollution and to prevent future contaminations of the environment. In the USA, The Clean Air Act was created in 1970, and it established the significant reduction of certain types of air pollution such as the sulphur dioxide emissions. The Clean Water Act (1977) and The Safe Drinking Water Act (1974) set several norms for discharging polluting substances in the waters and a series of standards for the quality of the drinking water. The Toxic Substance Control Act (1976) and The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (1976) were created to monitor and control the dangerous wastes. The international agreements played an important role in the reduction of the global pollution. The Montréal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (1987) established some deadlines until the emissions of chemical substances, such as CFC, must be reduced. The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal (1989) is an international treaty that was designed to

reduce the movements of hazardous waste between nations, and specifically to prevent transfer of hazardous waste from developed to less developed countries. Since 1992, the representatives of more than 160 countries regularly meet to discuss the reduction methods of polluting substances that cause the greenhouse effect. In 1997 The Kyoto Protocol was created, demanding the other countries to reduce by 2012 the gas emissions with 5% below the 1990 level. By the end of 2000, this protocol hadn’t been ratified; the negotiators were still trying to reach a common ground concerning the rules, the methods and the penalties that should be used. Greenpeace is an activist organization that focuses the international attention on the industries and the governments that pollute the soil, the waters and the air. Nowadays, we have two options: either we continue with the same lifestyle towards an economical and social disaster, or we adopt a new economical model which takes into consideration the environmental realities.

2.5. International days when the environment is celebrated International

Day

of

Wetlands,

02 February

-

15 March - 15 April

-

Forest Month

22 March

-

International Water Day

27 March

-

International Water Day

01 April

-

Bird Day

15 April

-

Forest Day

22 April

-

Earth Day

10 May

-

Birds and Trees Day

24 May

-

European Bird Day

05 June

-

Environment Day

8 June

-

International Day of the Ocean

21 June

-

Sun Day

11 June

-

International Day of Population

09 August

-

Zoo Day

16 September

-

International Day of Ozone Layer

01 October

-

International Day of the Habitat

04 October

-

International Day of animals

08 October

-

31 October

-

International Day of the Black Sea

08 November

-

International Day of the Urban Areas

29 December

-

Biological Diversity Day

The

Ramsar

Convention

International

Day

for

the

Natural

Reduction

Disasters

Cap. 3. Our contribution – final products presentation 3.1. Essay 3.2. Layout One of the major polluting factors is

the

industry

substances

which,

released

through into

the the

atmosphere, causes major problems to the

environment.

Once

into

the

atmosphere, these substances can’t be singled out to be removed. These gases produce a series of phenomena which are specific to the air in the atmosphere, and some of these phenomena are: the greenhouse effect, the global warming, the hole in the ozone layer and the acid rains. We simulated a factory that releases different oxides into the atmosphere during the process of burning substances. The sulphur burns releasing the sulphur oxide that in combination with the water produces the acid rain. The role of the chemist is to analyze these polluting factors and to determine their origin. In the big cities, there are automatic stations that take air samples every 15 minutes and truck-laboratories that are ready to intervene in case of emergency. Toxic gases that can’t be directly recycled are collected and burnt into huge tanks. They are used for central heating which is actually the transformation of the matter into energy. There is also need for special filters to filter the waste. The noise pollution is also a problem caused by the factories, but it can be solved by planting trees around the factories. The trees filter the air, preventing the spreading of the factory noise.

3.3. Drawing A

product

is

considered

biodegradable

when

it

transforms, decomposes and eliminates itself. The leftovers from our meals, the paper and the materials having animal or plant origin, such as cotton or wool are biodegradable. But, there are a lot of plastic materials which are not biodegradable. These materials need to be recycled. Some plastic

materials

are

torn

apart

and

used

to

make

construction materials or asphalt. Other plastic materials that do not release dangerous gases while burning are used for the heating system. 3.4. Slogan If you worry about tomorrow – buy something to eat, If you worry about the next year – plant a tree, And if you worry about the next century – educate the children! 3.5. Project logo

The World Wide Fund for Nature logo

3.6. Printed T-shirts The T-shirts are made according to the project theme. We printed the project logo, which is the World Wide Fund for Nature logo next to the name of our team Eco-X-Change, and to the project theme – TOGETHER FOR NATURE 3.7. Wall calendar We made a wall calendar which includes all the important dates when the environment is celebrated around the world. We also included information and pictures concerning the environment. 3.8. PowerPoint presentation - Background music: Michael Jackson - Heal the world, Eurhythmics - I Saved the World Today

3.9. The Decalogue of the environmentalist 1. Avoid waste 2. Reduce the amount of everything you use 3. Re-use things instead of buying new ones 4. Fix broken things instead of throwing them away 5. Recycle all you can 6. Plant a tree so you can live forever 7. Water sources are not inexhaustible. Stop making waste! 8. Buy environmental friendly light bulbs; they last longer 9. Walk, use the bike or public transportation. 10. The change of the environment is in your power. CHANGE YOURSELF! 3.10. Questionnaire 21 students in the 9 B form, from Grup Şcolar Agricol Vasile Adamachi, Iasi, specializing in Natural resources, answered this questionnaire. It was intended to determine the awareness degree of the students about the protection of the environment and their willingness to get involved in solving environmental problems. QUESTIONNAIRE 1. Do you think that pollution has a negative effect on our life? a) Yes;

b) No;

c) I don’t know;

d) I’m not interested

2. Do you think that the town you live in is clean? a) Yes;

b) No;

c) I don’t know;

d) I haven’t noticed

3. The people in your town contribute to the pollution of the environment? a) Yes;

b) No;

c) I don’t know;

d) Just some of them

4. Would you be willing to get involved in activities concerning the fight against the factors that affect the environment? a) Yes;

b) No;

c) I don’t know;

d) I’m not interested

5. What measures do you think should be taken so that your town could be clean? ............................................................................................................................. Data of the interviewed person:

AGE................ SEX.......................

90% of the interviewed consider that pollution has negative effects on our life, while

10% do not know, which proves that there should be a campaign informing about these negative effects. 95% of the interviewed think that their town is not clean and aren’t happy about it. In chart 3 we can see that 62% of the interviewed students think that the people in their town contribute to the pollution. In chart4 we see that only 86 % of them would like to get involved in activities concerning the fight against the factors that affect the environment.

Consideraţi că poluarea mediului are efect negativ asupra vieţii ?

Consideraţi că oraşul în care locuiţi este curat ?

2; 10%

1; 5% 1

1

2

2

19; 90%

20; 95%

Chart 1. Do you think that pollution has a

Chart 2. Do you think that the town you live

negative effect on our life?

in is clean?

1- Yes; 2-I don’t know.

1. No;

Aţi fi dispuşi să vă implicaţi în acţiuni de diminuarea, combaterea factorilor care afectează mediul?

Locuitorii oraşului contribuie la poluarea mediului înconjurător?

7; 33% 13; 62%

1; 5%

2.I don’t know

1 2 3

3; 14%

18; 86%

1 2

Chart 3. The people in your town

Chart 4. Would you be willing to get involved in

contribute to the pollution of the

activities concerning the fight against the factors

environment?

that affect the environment?

1.Yes; some of them

2.No;

3. Just

1. Yes;

2. I don’t know;

The answers to the question “What measures do you think should be taken so that your town could be clean?” showed more what the others should do and not those interviewed. In conclusion, even though the topic of environmental protection is present in our lives thanks to the media, we believe that any campaign on this subject is always welcome.

3.11. How could I protect the environment? Creation of the nature, the man has always transformed nature according to his own interests, becoming the creator of his environment, of his lifestyle and that led to the development of his intelligence. Using his ability to discover, invent and create, the man proved to be able to achieve large and fast changes, transforming the environment in his and his fellows’ favour, causing immense damage to Mother Nature that its laws, respected by the plants and animals and neglected by Homo Sapiens. Treating nature as an inferior and thinking he doesn’t need it, the man caused immense damages to him and to the entire human society. Human activities have changed the Chemistry of the Earth in such ways that it can lead to incredible economical and environmental consequences for the present and the future generations. The last decades, a lot of alarming messages were sent from all continents concerning the continuous degradation of the environment. Alarm signals come from everywhere. Forests are cut down faster than others are planted, ocean waters are polluted with oil and toxic substances, rivers and lakes are poisoned with industrial waste, atmosphere is full of gases and powder, and there are a lot of endangered plant and animal species. Questions about the state of our planet appear more and more often. How long can it be inhabited? Will we enough have air to breathe? How long will we have drinking water? How many plant and animal species will be seen only in pictures? There is still hope, but we need a real crusade of human assistance for the endangered planet. Governments, scientists, journalists are already trying a common action of nature protection at international level. It doesn’t mean that YOU cannot be useful. If each of us changed his/ her behaviour, our actions would have a positive impact on the environment. What can you do? - How about planting a tree in your garden, in the school garden or in your neighbourhood? Five trees assimilate a ton of CO2 during their life. - Stop throwing litter on the ground, especially the plastic bags. A plastic bag needs more than 200 years to decompose. - You want some tea? Then use only the amount of water that you need, don’t fill up your kettle. - Cars produce 10% of the CO2 emissions in the E.U. How about using the public transportation? Or, why don’t you ride the bike or walk? These are healthier options. - Avoid buying goods that have excessive wrapping. A lot of energy is used to make

the packages and to recycle them. - Isolate your house: find the holes at doors or windows and make sure that the attic is well isolated to keep the heat inside your house. - Use domestic appliances that do not require too much electric energy. 3.11. Photo gallery: What I like/ what I don’t like about my town... Nowadays, we have two options: either we continue with the same lifestyle towards an economical and social disaster, or we adopt a new economical model which takes into consideration the environmental realities. In the photo gallery, we presented a series of photographs that show beautiful areas of our town, Iasi, and polluted areas of our town. Essay The Earth is crying, hurt under our feet…. It

The earth is left behind

hurts!

Burnt, poisoned and ruined.

Our cruel indifference hurts

There is one more chance to save it,

Our betrayal hurts.

It’s my and your sacred duty.

I’m begging you, wait!

It cries all the time, its pain is unbearable,

While it’s not too late, think well

People, save it, this is

Of tomorrow.

My ardent prayer!

Cap. 4. Bibliography

1. www.copaculdehârtie.ro 2. Mediul înconjurător- bulletin informativ, nr. 2, 2007 3. www.fundatiacorona.org 4. www.ecosemnal.ro 5. www.greenpeace.ro 6. Agenda Europa - E alegerea ta- Împreună din 1957, 2007-2008. 7. Alexandrescu E,Manual de chimie clasa aXII-a, Ed LVS Crepuscul,2003 8. Neacşu Ion ,Educaţia pentru stiinţă,Rev. de pedagogie 7-1990

Photo gallery – Cleaning activities issues

- Environmental projects presentations

- Competition on environmental