Energy Education Professional Development: Assessment of Teacher Satisfaction

Abstract

The Wisconsin K-12 Energy Education Program (KEEP) was created to promote energy education in Wisconsin. KEEP is the product of an innovative public private partnership between educators and energy professionals. The Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education (WCEE) launched this effort in 1995. KEEP receives its primary funding through the Focus on Energy Residential, Business, and Renewable Energy Programs. Focus on Energy is a public-private partnership offering energy information and services to energy utility customers throughout Wisconsin. Due to the longevity of the program and multiple stakeholders, KEEP has placed importance on course evaluation. Because of its status as first in a set of courses, the NRES 603/730: KEEP In-service Course was chosen as the focus of this evaluation study. This study used a survey and two sets of interviews to assess teachers’ perception of the quality of a professional development experience in energy education as it affects the practice of energy education and students’ understanding of energy concepts. The results show that teachers are satisfied regarding quality of the course, application in the classroom and students’ understanding of energy concepts. Although these respondents were self-selected and are therefore not representative of the entire population of course graduates, KEEP views the data as informative and insightful.