Hawaiian Electric�s Mobile Lab Program Gives Boost To Renewable Energy Curriculum

Community website by MBC/Ernest Abrams. Call 808-739-9797 for advertising/sponsorship#KaimukiHawaii Community website by MBC/Ernest Abrams. Call 808-739-9797 for advertising/sponsorship#KaimukiHawaii

Kaimuki Hawaii
News Item
Powered by MBC NewsMaker
Hawaiian Electric's Mobile Lab Program Gives Boost To Renewable Energy Curriculum
Tweet

Hawaiian Electric"s Mobile Lab Program Gives Boost To Renewable Energy Curriculum

Hawaiian Electric Company is helping Oahu science educators make learning about renewable energy more accessible, interactive and fun for their students. After finding out there was a real need for classroom tools to support a renewable energy curriculum, Hawaiian Electric designed a mobile lab to provide the educational tools and equipment that teachers can use to facilitate hands-on experiments involving photovoltaic and wind studies. The cost is free to public school teachers who have completed the Island Energy Inquiry (IEI) curriculum training.

"The mobile lab complements the IEI curriculum which encourages students to ask questions and apply their knowledge to real-world solutions," said Cybil Rawlins of Hawaiian Electric"s education and consumer affairs division, which coordinates the mobile lab program. "The lab supports the curriculum while removing the burden for teachers to purchase additional classroom supplies so they can focus their efforts on engaging students in the lesson plans."

The mobile lab is comprised of two 16.5-gallon bins that contain windmill towers, bases and hubs, wood scraps, 5-volt solar panels, an industrial-strength fan, and various supplies and measurement tools, such as wind and light meters, designed to help students construct and test their own small-scale renewable energy experiments. Each kit provides enough equipment and materials for an entire class to build and monitor 20 wind and solar experiments. Before the kits are rotated among schools, each receives a fresh supply of disposable items, such as batteries, dowels, cellophane and glue sticks.

The first teacher to use the mobile lab kits was 7th grade science teacher Debra Gochros of Ewa Makai Middle School who shared it with nearly 200 students. "What a wonderful experience we had with the mobile lab," she exclaimed. "The students had fun putting together the windmills, PV cells and the water pump. It was wonderful and the lab reports are great!"

Most recently, 6th grade science teacher Becky Fardal of Washington Middle School shared the mobile lab kits with 25 students in her gifted and talented class. "With the mobile lab and materials like extra pieces of wood to make wind blades, my students could test all the different variables. And, if things broke, we had extras. For the kids, it made the experiments real, hands-on and cool. Not to mention, they loved going outside the classroom to test their designs. I really appreciated having the mobile lab as kids learn more through hands-on experimentation."

To reserve a mobile lab kit, interested educators can call 543-7511.

# # #

PHOTO -- Attached photo features Washington Middle School students (left to right): Sarah Kwak, Linda Li, Lucy Le, Kenso Kume,(Lucy & Kenso in background) Rylan Yamada, Dinico Coronado in Becky Fardal"s 6th grade science class.

About Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO)

For more than 100 years, Hawaiian Electric Company has provided the energy that has fueled the islands' development from a Hawaiian kingdom to a modern state. Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. (HECO), and its subsidiaries, Maui Electric Company, Ltd. (MECO), and Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. (HELCO), serves 95% of the state's 1.2 million residents on the islands of O`ahu, Maui, Hawai`i Island, Lana`i and Moloka`i.

The energy we use is an essential but limited resource necessary to maintaining our quality of life. In a changing world, Hawaiian Electric has evolved to offer more than electricity.

Today, the company also provides energy solutions to help customers save money and use energy more efficiently. Hawaiian Electric also continues to pursue the use of more clean, renewable energy alternatives to help ensure a sustainable future for our islands.

COMMUNITY COMMITMENT

Hawaiian Electric Company is dedicated to our community in which we live, work and serve. Rooted in Hawaii and one of the largest companies in the State, Hawaiian Electric takes the concept of malama pono -- to care for and serve -- to heart. The company and our employees have a long tradition of contributing with dollars, time and talent. Corporate citizenship is crucial to Hawaiian Electric's overall business plan because strong communities are essential to the success of the company, our employees and our customers.

Company and employee volunteerism is encouraged and every month, employees walk, run or provide manpower to dozens of non-profits throughout the State. Hawaiian Electric's corporate giving philosophy gives priority to projects that help families, promote education and protect the environment.

The company also sponsors robotics programs and events that promote STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) education, as well as the SunPower for Schools program bringing solar electric power to select schools, the Solar Sprint event where students design, build and race cars using solar power, and the Home Energy Challenge, a school-based competition encouraging elementary school students and their families to reduce energy use at home, among other programs.

For nearly a decade, Hawaiian Electric volunteers have provided manpower, bucket trucks and ladders to install Christmas lights at the Kaimuki Community Park and playground before the annual Kaimuki Christmas Parade in December.

Questions? Ready for an appointment?

Like Our Facebook

Kaimuki Hawaii News Item

Hawaiian Electric's Mobile Lab Program Gives Boost To Renewable Energy Curriculum

Kaimuki Hawaii
News Item