Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes	Part A: The context
30 minutes	Part B: The challenge
15 minutes	Part C: The solution
05 minutes	Reflection

Part A: The context

Step 1.

Explain to your class that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change. It was created to

provide policymakers (governments) with regular scientific updates about climate change;
highlight the impact climate change will have on the planet in the future; and,
offer some ideas about how to tackle the challenges of climate change's potential effects on the planet.

In 2021-22, the IPCC released Part 1 of the Sixth Assessment Report. This is the most up-to-date physical understanding of the climate system and climate change.

Step 2.

The report makes a number of important points:

It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land (A1). You might like to take a moment to discuss with students the meaning of the word unequivocal.
Global surface temperature will continue to increase until at least mid-century under all emissions scenarios considered. Global warming of 1.5°C and 2°C will be exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in CO₂ and other greenhouse gas emissions occur in the coming decades (B1). The report describes five possible climate futures, where #1 is not great and #5 is extremely bad. If we want to keep global warming at less than two degrees, which the IPCC says is the best-case scenario, we need to reduce our CO₂ and greenhouse gas emissions significantly and start right away.

Step 3.

Explain that 'net zero' or 'carbon neutral' are terms that refer to achieving an overall balance between greenhouse gas emissions produced and greenhouse gas emissions taken out of the atmosphere. Getting to net zero means we can still produce some emissions, so long as we're doing something else to reduce the greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere at the same time, kind of like balancing a set of scales (more info).

Step 4.

Give students some time to respond to this information. Enable them to share their feelings and discuss their thoughts on the matter, so that they feel validated and reassured about approaching this content.

Acknowledge how hard a challenge this report sets. While this real-world issue is essential for students to understand, there is no doubt it can make them feel sad or anxious about the future is becoming darker and scarier by the day.

So, reassure students that we can have a hopeful and optimistic outlook on this report, rather than one of doom and gloom. Explain that optimism involves looking objectively at a situation and making a conscious decision to focus on the good (more info), and that hope is the belief that you can make an impact (more info). Explain to students that you are going to look ahead, identify what needs to be improved, and then work on the skills and confidence so that they can go out and do it.

If you're interested in learning more about how to approach challenging topics in your classroom through a Hope and Optimism lens, consider our PD course.

Part B: The challenge

Step 1.

Currently, 8 gigatonnes of total annual carbon emissions are emissions from our transportation. If, by 2040, 50% of the kilometres driven (2-wheelers, 3-wheelers, cars, buses, and trucks) on the world’s roads are electric, and by 2050 95% are electric, this alone will reduce these emissions by 5Gt (Source).

Step 2.

As a class, discuss potential solutions to this challenge.

One obvious approach is to reduce our reliance on fossil-fuelled vehicles.

So, do students believe electric cars can help to reduce carbon emissions? Or, are there some challenges or considerations that might make electric cars NOT the perfect solution to reducing carbon emissions?

Discuss students' prior knowledge on the subject. Create a mind map on the board of students' current understandings.

Some pointers to direct your discussion:

Cost. Are electric vehicles (EVs) prohibitively expensive, or at least more expensive than the regular cars we drive now? Why is this the case? Are there incentives to make EVs cheaper so that more people start to drive them? Could there even be disincentives to manufacturers making and selling them in Australia, or people buying them?
Travel distance. How far can you drive an EV before having to refuel? Could you make it from say Melbourne to Adelaide? Are there refuelling stations along the way? The infrastructure involved could be difficult and expensive to implement.
Fuel. Is there really any difference between a petrol car and an EV that charges from electricity generated from coal or petrol power plants? Would charging from solar panels make EVs more appealing?
Waste. Electric cars still use rubber tyres, and brake pads that create toxic-heavy metal dust. These materials still cause a lot of environmental waste.

Step 3.

Independently, students read the following articles (available on the Student Worksheet).

Provisions for Learning Support: You might like to split these articles up amongst individuals or groups across the class and have them report back to the whole class on their findings in order to reduce the workload.

Costly, toxic and slow to charge? Busting electric car myths by Thomas Bräunl (theconversation.com/costly-toxic-and-slow-to-charge-busting-electric-car-myths-21321)
Climate explained: the environmental footprint of electric versus fossil cars by Arif Hasan (theconversation.com/climate-explained-the-environmental-footprint-of-electric-versus-fossil-cars-124762)
Electric cars alone won’t save the planet. We’ll need to design cities so people can walk and cycle safely by Timothy Welch (theconversation.com/electric-cars-alone-wont-save-the-planet-well-need-to-design-cities-so-people-can-walk-and-cycle-safely-171818)
Dave Walker's comics (twitter.com/davewalker)

As students read, ask them to take notes in preparation for answering the following questions:

Was this article in favour of, or against, the use of electric cars, or somewhere in the middle? It might be helpful for students to imagine a scale of 0 (very against the idea of electric cars) to 10 (love electric cars), with 5 (electric cars are good but have some problems).
What pieces of evidence did the writer use in support of this position? Remind students to think about strong and persuasive words and language that might convince a reader.

Step 4.

Discuss:

In the first article, Thomas Bräunl uses the phrases "almost negligible service costs over the years of ownership" and "virtually free of cost".

Why has he used these quantifiers in his article? Thomas is being careful not to make claims that aren't 100% provable. How do students think audiences or critics would react if they found out Thomas was lying to them?
Is this language particularly strong and persuasive? Or does he sound weaker and less convincing? Thomas probably can't be as bold or certain in his writing as he would like to be because of the limits these quantifiers put on his points, which probably limits how persuasive this piece is (although only by a little, and maybe only if you were picky).

Step 5.

The purpose of this lesson is to lead students to the understanding that a topic such as electric cars is a challenging debate. Yes, they will reduce carbon emissions and be good for the environment in a variety of ways, but this also comes with a variety of challenges that means they are not a perfect solution by any means.

Provisions for Learning Extension: While it's a little beyond the focus of this lesson, which is on how different writers present the same issue, Climate explained: the environmental footprint of electric versus fossil cars by Arif Hasan (https://theconversation.com/climate-explained-the-environmental-footprint-of-electric-versus-fossil-cars-124762) is a great article on breaking down the environmental impact of cars in exact detail.

The carbon footprint of electric cars is judged over three phases:

• The manufacturing phase - Mining the ore, transforming that into building materials, manufacturing the components of the vehicle, and assembling them into a car, determines the carbon emissions in this phase.

• The use phase - In 2018, 21% of Australia's electricity generation, and 84% of New Zealand's electricity generation, came from renewables. This is used to determine how much carbon emissions an EV is generating whenever it is recharged - the more renewables in the grid, the smaller the emissions in the use phase.

• The recycling phase - How much energy is spent in dismantling a car, and how much of the materials are recovered, determines the carbon emissions in this phase.

You can see how the environmental impact of electric cars is not just about using solar panels instead of petrol and gas for fuel.

Part C: The solution

Step 1.

Independently, students will write a piece in response to the prompt "Should Australia switch to being an electric car only nation?"

This piece of writing could be:

A persuasive essay, strongly arguing a position on this topic. Remind students about the proper structure for this type of writing and also how to use language persuasively (see our factsheet here)
A more objective essay, discussing both the pros and cons of electric cars. It might be helpful for students to start with a T-Chart to organise the opposing views
A letter to the prime minister or editor of the paper, strongly arguing a position on this topic. The structure of this piece of writing is slightly different to a persuasive essay, but follows many of the same rules.
Another piece of writing of students' choosing. Perhaps they'd like to write a comic like Dave Walker. Comics are an a great way to engage a certain kind of audience, and they can often use humour very convincly. They're harder to do well than students might think!

Reflection

Ask each student to share:

Whether they agree or disagree that electric cars can form part of the solution to working towards net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The most convincing piece of evidence that they have found that supports their claim.

Where to next?

If you're interested in the science behind how electric cars work and how this helps to reduce their carbon emissions, check out our science lesson here.

If the IPCC report has really inspired your students, check out our unit on finding other solutions to our emissions challenges.

Teacher reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

IPCC - Should We Switch to Electric Cars?

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