Active learning ideas
This topic examines the journey of engineering materials from the earth to the workshop. Students investigate the environmental and social costs associated with mining metals and producing polymers. In line with NCCA goals regarding sustainability and global citizenship, this unit encourages students to look beyond the physical properties of a material and consider its ethical footprint.
Activity 01
Assign groups different roles: miners, manufacturers, consumers, and environmental regulators. Students must 'trade' resources to build a product while dealing with random 'event cards' like environmental disasters or labor strikes to see how costs and impacts shift.
Where do our engineering materials come from?
Activity 02
Students individually list the materials in a phone, then pair up to map where those materials might be mined. Finally, the class shares findings to create a 'global map' of a single device's environmental impact.
How does material extraction impact local communities?
Activity 03
Post stories of different mining operations around the room, some sustainable and some problematic. Students use sticky notes to identify the social and environmental pros and cons of each site, discussing their observations in a final circle.
What are the ethical considerations of sourcing raw materials?
A few notes on teaching this unit
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Recycling materials solves all environmental problems related to extraction.
Recycling is vital but has its own energy costs and cannot meet total global demand. Collaborative investigations into 'virgin' vs 'recycled' material energy profiles help students understand the complexity of the circular economy.
Material extraction only happens in far-away countries.
Ireland has a significant history of mining, including lead, zinc, and gypsum. Using local maps and historical records in class helps students realize that extraction is a local issue with global connections.
Methods used in this brief
Historical Engineering Milestones
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