Lesson Plan: The Conscientious Consumer (5-8)

Adapted from the California Department of Education

Essential questions: How can we influence people to adopt energy efficiency habits?

Overview

Students rate and calculate energy costs for common appliances. They interview adults for attitudes about electrical appliances, analyze current appliance advertisements, and create their own ads.

Objectives: Students will be able to:

1. Rate appliances as essential, convenient, or unnecessary
2. Survey attitudes regarding electrical appliances
3. Calculate and compare operating energy costs of appliances
4. Discuss the differences between needs and wants
5. Analyze appliance advertisements
6. Develop and present advertisements for specific appliances

Time: 4 class periods

Subjects: Mathematics, Language Arts

Suggested Grade Level: 5-10

Vocabulary: Kilowatt hour, wattage rate

Materials: Pencils, calculator, appliance advertisements, and the following:

LESSON RESOURCES:

• A - Comparison of Ratings
• B - Propaganda Techniques

STUDENT WORKSHEETS:

• #1 – Comparison of Ratings
• #2 – Interview
• #3 – Appliance Calculations #4 – Advertisement Comparison

Advance Preparation: Obtain several appliance advertisements (check magazines, catalogues, newspapers). Duplicate appropriate materials. Optional record several appliance advertisements on a VCR.
 

Background  Information

Wattage Rate

Wattage rate is the amount of electricity used when an appliance is turned on for any length of time. A standard unit of measure for wattage rate is a kilowatt, which is equal to 1,000 watts. Wattage and time are combined to fine the kilowatt hour rating of an appliance. A kilowatt hour is used as the basis for determining the cost of electricity. One kilowatt hour is equal to 1,000 watts of electricity used for one hour. A small portable heater rated at 1,000 watts world use one kilowatt of electricity in one hour, as would ten, 100-watt light bulbs.

Calculations for Yearly Appliance Costs

The formula for determining the kilowatt hour cost for an appliance on a yearly basis is:
Yearly cost = Wattage rating of appliance (expressed as kilowatts) X Average number of hours appliance is used per year X Cost/kWh
For example: How much does it cost to use an air conditioner which has a wattage rating of 860, operates approximately 60 hours per month, and the cost per kWh is 10 cents?

Step 1:

• Determine, as a fraction of a kilowatt, the wattage rating of the air conditioner:
  860 1,000 watts/kilowatt

Step 2:

• Estimate the average number of hours the air conditioner may be used per year:
  60 hours/month x 12 months/year = 720 hours/year

Step 3:

• Calculate the kilowatt hours used per year:.86 (kW) x 720 hrs./yr. = 619.20 or 619 kWh
   

Step 4:

• Determine the cost per year, using $0.15 as the price of one kilowatt hour: 619 kWh x $0.15/kWh = $92.85/yr.
   

Appliances We Own

A recent survey by the Department of Energy showed that over one-half of American house hold have some form of air conditioning, one third have two or more television sets, over one third have separate freezers and 13 percent have two or more refrigerators. Do we really need all the appliances we buy?

Advertisement Tactics

Advertising is a big business. It pays all costs of commercial television and radio broadcasting, as well as two-thirds of the costs of newspapers and magazines. It is the job of advertising to familiarize us with a product and to convince us that we need it. But do advertisers always tell the truth? This issue has been significant enough that the Wheeler-Lea Amendment to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act of 1938 forbids “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in commerce.” Although the law exists, in practice it is not always enforced.

Informed Consumers

It is up to the consumers to become well informed about electrical appliances they want to purchase. Initial cost, longevity, and operating expenses should be considered. Ads should be carefully analyzed and brands compared before a wise purchasing decision can be made.

Setting The Stage

Ask students to identify five electrical appliances used in their home. List these on the board. Have students describe the important features of each one, such as purchase price, size, durability, energy efficiency, ease of use, color, attractiveness. Can they imagine and describe an ideal example for each kind of appliance? What differences are there between the ideal appliances they describe and appliances that really exist? When does the consumer need to make compromises between ideals and reasonable expectations?

Procedure

Rating

•  Distribute Student Worksheet #1. Ask students to explore their own attitudes about electrical appliances by rating the importance of various home appliances and recording these in the “Student Column” of the Worksheet. They should rate the appliances on a scale of 1 to 3, according to how important that appliance is in their lives:

1 = Essential (you can’t live without it)
2 = Convenient (it makes your life easier)
3 = Unnecessary (you can really live without it)

You may want to discuss the meaning of each of the 3 ratings so there is a class consensus before beginning the exercise.

• Use Lesson Resource A to record student ratings. Ask how many students rated “Air Conditioner” as 1? 2? 3? Calculate the class rating as a percent, by dividing the total responses for each rating by the total number of students in the class. Repeat this procedure for the remaining appliances.
• Discuss with students the following question:

1. Which appliances were most frequently considered essential? Why?
2. Which appliances did you think were truly unnecessary? Why?
3.  Which ones get the most use in your homes?
4. Which ones do you think use the most energy?
5.  Which ones do you think are the most expensive to buy or to use?
6. How would your ratings for appliances change if they were all very expensive to buy or use?
7. Which appliances would be “essential” if you were on a camping trip in the High Sierras?
8. Which appliances would you need if you lived in the Sahara Desert? In the Amazon Jungle?
9. What is the difference between “needs” and “wants”?
10. Are appliances rate as “essential” always needed?

Field Survey

• Tell students that they will be interviewing two adults to find out their opinions regarding rating of appliances, and why they bought a particular appliance. Discuss proper interviewing techniques which should include the following: Ask permission to interview each person and schedule a time which is convenient for them. Decide how long each interview will take. Give yourself and your subject plenty of time. Be clear about what you are asking and why you are asking it. In this case, you are asking about attitudes toward electrical appliances and you will be comparing their responses with the responses of other adults surveyed by the class. Be polite. Make your subjects comfortable and ready to respond. Ask questions clearly and wait patiently for answers. Thank your subjects at the end of the interview. Remember, they have done you a favor by sharing their feelings and opinions, and for taking time form their busy schedule to meet with you.
• If necessary, have students role-play an interview.
• Instruct students to conduct a field survey by interviewing tow adults regarding the following: Appliance Rating: Have adult subjects rate the appliances. Record responses in the appropriate column on Student Worksheet #1. Ad Influence: Choose an appliance given an “essential” rating by the adult. It is recommended that the appliance be one that is frequently advertised. Continue the interview using Student Worksheet #2 to discover the adult’s attitude as a consumer toward that appliance and its advertising.
   
• When interviews are completed by the students, discuss the following: How did the adults’ ratings compare with yours? What appliances were considered by the adults as essential, but not by you? What may be reasons for this? What appliances did you think were essential, but the adults did not? What may be some reasons for this? How might the attitudes of your grandparents be different from your attitude or your parent’s attitude about the necessity of electrical appliances (or electricity)? Can it be said that anyone holds the “right” attitude about appliance needs? How would you justify your answers? In our interview on why an appliance was purchased, what was the major feature that influenced people to buy it? How important were energy use considerations? Why? Are there any other answers on Student Worksheet #2 that surprised you? Why?

Energy Use

• Ask students to find the wattage rating of at least 5 appliances in their home and record it on Student Worksheet #3. The wattage rating is usually indicated on the back or bottom of the appliance. If it is not in plain view, students should unplug the appliance before continuing to search for the rating. (Students could volunteer to gather data for specific appliances so that thewattage of all listed appliances can be surveyed.) Have students estimate the number of hours per month the appliance is used and perform the calculations to determine the kilowatt hours used per year. Finally, the cost per year of the appliance will need to be calculated.
• After appliance wattage data has been gathered and calculations have been made, record the wattage ratings on Lesson Resource B, Column A and the calculations in Column C, E, and G. If different wattages for a similar appliance were discovered, have students calculate the average wattage. Compare student figures in Column A to Column B figures derived from the Edison Electric Institute Publication. The figures in Columns A and B may differ because certain brands of appliances are more energy efficient.
• Review Column C and D for estimated average hours used for each appliance. Note that these are averages and that heating and cooling hours can vary greatly based on the climate of an area, as well as the structure, design, size, and age of a home. Compare Columns E and F, as well as G and H. Discuss with students: Which appliances are the most expensive to use yearly? Which appliances use the most energy per hour, yet do not use a lot of energy each year How does the students’ ranking of the appliances (procedure 1) compare with their costs? Which appliances are worth their cost per year? Which are not? Identify appliances whose operational costs could be lowered through use of conservation measures. If a student could only use 9.500 kWh of energy a year, which appliances would he/she choose? Are these appliances considered to be essential? Are they “needs” or “wants”?

Ad Analysis

• Use Lesson Resource B to discuss advertising and propaganda techniques.
• Share a newspaper or magazine ad. Or show a video of TV commercials and discuss the features that were emphasized. Have students identify statements or claims which match one of the propaganda techniques on Lesson Resource B.
• Ask students to find an advertisement that matches one of the two appliances discussed on Student Worksheet #2, and analyze the ad using Student Worksheet #4.
• Have students share the ads with the class and discuss the worksheets. Were the qualities that the adults identified as important in their interview the same as those identified on the ads? How did they differ? What customer attitudes were addressed in the ads? How did the adults opinions of the appliance compare with the image presented in the ad?
• Discuss the following with the class: Most advertisers carefully select their products strongest points to emphasize. Compare the features which advertisers have chosen to emphasize with the ones which you feel are most important? The well-informed consumer understands the difference between “wants” and “needs” Sometimes that means questioning things which most people take for granted. For example, in your opinion, how important is the purchase price, operating cost, or life expectancy of an item regarding needing something or just wanting it?
  Does our culture really need electric toasters? Electric toothbrushes? Electronic games? Electricity? Are there other cultures that get along without electricity? What do they sacrifice? What do they gain? After learning more about the energy efficiency of appliances, would you still buy and use the same ones you used before the study? Why or why not?

Design Your Own Ad

• Have groups of students prepare and present an original advertisement for a real appliance, or its ideal counterpart. For variety, assign the following types of ads to one or more groups: Newspaper or magazine TV commercial Radio commercial
• After each presentation, the class should critique the advertisement for its effectiveness.

Summary

1. Which 5 appliances would you not consider essential? Why? Which 5 are now unnecessary? Why? How do your answers differ from the ones on Worksheet #1?
2. What is the major reason a person might purchase a particular brand of appliance?
3. In considering energy cost of an appliance important? Why? Will it be more important in the future? Why?
4. What is the difference between needs and wants?
5. How do advertisers convince people to buy their product?
6. What things will you consider next time you buy an electrical appliance?

Extensions

1. Compare features of appliances identified in this lesson to criteria used for evaluation in consumer publications (e.g., Consumer Reports).
2. Ask the class to look at advertisements from vintage (20–30 year old) magazines. Some students might like to follow the advertisements for a particular appliance as they developed over the years. They could then see how a company’s advertising style evolved based on the perception of the American consumer. Students can find old issues of magazines in many libraries or in second hand stores.
3. Ask the class to invent, describe, and promote the world’s most useless appliance (e.g., a watermelon seeder or an electric nail clipper). They may want to spend some time embellishing their designs. Rube Goldberg, a cartoonist of the early and mid-20th century, became famous drawing cartoons of absurd mechanical contraptions that performed common, everyday functions. A “Rube Goldberg Award” might be presented to the student whose invention is the most imaginative.

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