UWAFT Partners with GM for Earth Week Presentations

For Earth Week, the University of Waterloo Alternative Fuels Team (UWAFT) partnered with Dan Mepham from General Motors (GM) to conduct a series of presentations to high school students at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Secondary School in Mississauga, Ontario. Over 150 students and teachers were present across a total of three presentations, where a PowerPoint presentation was conducted by UWAFT’s Outreach Coordinator followed by a demonstration session of a 2012 Chevrolet Volt by Dan Mepham.

Students from grades 9-12 gathered in the school’s automotive shop where they were taken through a presentation about UWAFT, EcoCAR 2, hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) technologies, the team’s vehicle architecture and the importance of science, math and technology as well as types of careers available in the automotive industry; both technical and non-technical oriented.

Mark Goody, Outreach Coordinator, presenting to students

At the beginning of each presentation, a poll was taken to establish students’ baseline knowledge of HEVs. Across all three presentations, an average of only 15 percent of the students confidentially knew what a HEV was. However, after being polled at the end of each presentation, a whopping average of 80 percent of the students confirmed that they then knew what a HEV was, illustrating that the presentation was effective. It is important to measure before and after change in knowledge to determine whether or not the presentation taught the students and if any changes need to be made for future presentations. Altogether, UWAFT is extremely happy with the amount the students learned!

Students then gathered around the Chevrolet Volt where Dan Mepham performed a demonstration of how the car works, what features it has, and how the battery is recharged by a standard wall outlet. Students were very engaged and asked plenty of questions relating to the vehicle, how it works and the benefits of driving electric. Doors of the Volt then opened and students had the opportunity to sit inside to view the interior design and features of the sleek vehicle.