★ Project Elements of Research

(Ⅰ)How to Merge the 9-year Consistent Education with the Standard Curricula of Guangfu Primary School with the Project of “Taiwan School CyberFair”?

Using the topic of “Our Glory-- An Infinitely Clean Taipei City” to teach the students who majored in the project, the research design would be organized as follows:

(II)What Skills Have We Learned？

1. Interviewing skill. Before the interview, the background data about the interviewees must be collected and we had to design the interviewing items. At the interview, get ready a recorder and camera. Questions should be made randomly at appropriate timing. In the beginning of the interview, the moderator should deliver the welcoming speech and deliver the grateful speech in the end of the interview.

2. The Skills of Collecting Materials. The data on the Internet was very abundant. How to collect the useful data was very important. In this research we learned the skills to collect the data. We typed the key word and searched for the data on the Internet. The skills we learned to search for the data on the Internet were interesting and useful for us to do the other research later on.

3. Writing the Interview Draft. In this research, we used the methods of interviewing, visiting, observing, investigating and attending the lecture courses. How to edit the variety of materials to be a touching story was a hard test for us. We did our best. First, we recorded the interview content and typed with the record carefully. Second, we decorated the interview draft after discussing with team members. Finally, with the guidance of teacher Miss. Chou, the counselor of the research, the interview draft became more and more vigorous.

4. Applying the Software of E-pen. In the research, we used the software of e-pen to draft the route chart of the garbage trucks around our neighborhood. We filed the draft as a graphic file or as a handwriting file. The software of e-pen made us easy to draft the route chart of the garbage trucks around our neighborhood.

5. Statistics. We sorted the materials of questionnaire and changed them into a percentage. Then, we made the statistics pictures with the shape of circle or rectangle. The outcome was clear and could combine with mathematics. It was very interesting.

6. The Skills of Sorting the Recycling Items. At first, we thought everyone could sort the trash. In the procedure of investigating the research, we learned a lot of skills to sort the trash more clear, rapid and correct.

（III）How Many Cooperating Teams’ Concepts and Methods Had We Realized or Practiced?

1. We were crew of 11 students from different classrooms. The time available for all to get together was limited. Fortunately, we met fixedly two sections every week. In the meeting, the teacher would report the progress of the project and each team would share its working scheduling, too. Every team had at least 3 members.
2. We divided the topic into several units. Each team was responsible for a small unit. Then, they divided the small unit into several parts, too. Everyone had to manage his (or her) own parts. Every team had bodily realized its own link of the entire research program. Missing of any link would foil the program so that every team had painstakingly striven with its utmost effort.
3. Some people were skillful in information collection, some people liked to take photograph, some people had good computer skills and some people were courageous to ask questions. Sometimes one was a leader and sometimes the other was being led. All of us had learned to play a good role in the task and to deeply realize the importance of incorporation.

（IV）How Many Particular Concepts Had We Experienced or Clearly Acknowledged?

1. The Ladder Leading to Success
Mr. Chen Shi Hong, Minister of Environmental Protection Administration Executive Yuan, R. O. C. (Taiwan), told us, in the interview, about the idea of “the ladder change of the social behavior”. He said that we had to design the movement. The clear and definite goal and common consensus would inspire people to participate in the movement, and the social behavior would be formed as a ladder leading to success. Maybe after a year or half a year, people would change like stepping up the stairway. We needed a lot of ladder behavior changes to transform people’s habits in order to protect the environment. Now the citizens in Taipei got used to reduce the garbage by the behaviors of using city-approved trash bags and recycling the trash. That is the ladder theory leading to success.

2. City-approved Trash Bags
A charge of trash bags was a successful policy to reduce the quantity of the garbage. We would thank to the effective recycling policy and the charge of trash bags. We could buy the trash bags at the corner 7-eleven or at the supermarket. We had to pay more money if we bought bigger bags. That is, if you had more garbage you would pay the government more money to treat the garbage. It was a fair way to charge.

3. No Need to Bury the Garbage, to Recycle Totally
「No Need to Bury the Garbage, to Recycle Totally」was the goal of Taipei in 2010.
「No Need to Bury the Garbage」was an idea to make up for the short of the place. There were two ways to manage the garbage in Taiwan. One was to burn and the other was to bury. As everyone knew, Taiwan was an island with less area but more population. The over-development of industry and commerce made a lot of waste. Nobody wants to build the incinerator nearby his (or her) residential district. Moreover, there was a lot of waste gas when burned. The other way was to bury the garbage, but it was difficult to find the space to bury the trash, too. The only way to solve the predicament was to recycle the waste to be the resource, and no need to bury or burn the garbage.

（V）How Many Items of Information Technology Had We Applied in Completing Our Research Program of “Taiwan School CyberFair”?

Application Items	Application purposes
Recorder	During our interviews, paper notes with writing could not catchup so that we used a recorder for assisting us in memorizing the missed portion.
Digital Camera	To record what we did and what we heard. The photos were also selected for using in our web.
DVD Digital Video Recorder	To record what we did and what we heard in the video recorder with audio and video. It was a very good recording for our visit and interviews.
Mono-gun projector	To project the images and photos on a screen for purpose of presentation.
Memory bar	For easy saving of data.
Scanner	To digitize the photos taken with traditional camera.
Internet	To search related photos, information, telephone numbers and addresses available online.
Computer Software	1. Microsoft XP 2. Internet Explorer：to search web information 3.PhotoImpact：to amend and cut digital photo. 4. ACDSee：to browse digital photo. 5. Microsoft Word：To write work schedule, wording report and research report. 6. Dreameaver：Web making. 7.E-pen：Drafting 8.CPMagi6.0：Making cards and envelops
E-mail	To send digital information.

（VI）What Techniques did We Use In Acting the Role “Ambassador” Through Working Online, Personal Contacting or Team Cooperating?

1. Watching the Movies: In the procedure of investigating the research, TDEP gave us two DVDs, “The War of Transforming the Garbage” and “The Clean Park without the Disaster”. It inspired us to be interested in the research through the DVDs. We drafted the research schedule and had clearer ideas to know the procedure of the garbage treatment in Taipei after watching the DVDs.

2. Interviews on the Spot: In the researching procedure, we visited TDEP, County Sanitary Team, the incinerator, the landfill site and Environmental Protection Administration Executive Yuan, R. O. C. (Taiwan). Moreover, we observed sanitation workers recycling the garbage at nights. We appreciated the sanitation workers who were very kind to explain how to manage the garbage in details. Their interpretation made our research go smoothly.

3. Questionnaires on the Street: In order to understand Taipei citizens’ points of view about the trash treatment of City Government, we designed the questionnaires to interview the citizens on the street. We had finished 150 pieces of questionnaires. It was really a splendid achievement.

4. Data Statistics of City-approved Trash Bags: We wanted to find out how much a family had to pay for trash bags in a month. We asked our parents to record the consumption of trash bags for more than one month.

5. Drafting the Route Chart of the Garbage Trucks: When we entered the website of TDEP, we could find out the route chart of the garbage trucks, and we could know the time when and the place where the trash trucks would pass by and stop at. We drafted the route with the software of e-pen and marked the time. The website provided the citizens being aware that there were more than once to throw trash bags onto the trucks in a night.

6. To Put up the Poster: In the procedure of the research, we had written an e-mail to Miss Julia Ross, and we would so glad to receive Miss Julia Ross’s response soon.We cut the article, which was published in Washington Post on December 02, 2007, and posted Ross’s returned e-mail as the poster and put on the bulletin board to let the public know the “ trash miracle” in Taipei and be aware of our research content.

（VII）What Effect And Impact of the Research Program Generated to Us?？
1. When we went to the incinerator plant in Nei Hu County, we found there was so much garbage we made and the smell was so disgusting. After the trip to the incinerator in Nei Hu County, we exchanged our opinions and decided not to make so much garbage later on.

2. Several years ago, when we found our mothers sorting the trash and doing the recycling matter, we always felt impatient and threw the bottles into the trash boxes directly. Our mothers always instructed us patiently, “First, you have to clean the bottles and plastic bags, and then throw into the recycling boxes.” After the research, finally, we knew it was a hard work for the sanitation workers to treat the trash. We hoped it would be soon to reach the goal of “No Need to Bury the Trash, To Recycle Totally”.

3. After visiting the incinerator in Nei Hu County, we really acquainted ourselves with the complicated procedure of trash treatment. We learned the lesson that we should not make so much garbage. To reduce the quantity of the garbage was an urgent matter to protect our environment.

（VIII）How Did Other Local Members Provide Assistance or Voluntarily Participate in the Research Program?

1. The Interviews: In the procedure of the researching program, we interviewed Mr. Chen Shi Hong, Minister of Environmental Protection Administration Executive Yuan, R. O. C. (Taiwan), Doctor Lin Bi Xia, who was in charge of the compost plan, TDEP and Sanitary Team, Shinyi Chiu County.? We visited the incinerator plant in Nei Hu County and the garbage burying place in Shan Zhu Cave.

2. The Lecture Course: Mr. You Zhen Huan, the parent in our school, who was a specialist of environment and technology, provided a lecture course of the recycling matter for us.

3. Interviews on the Spot: We really appreciated Taipei citizens who helped us to answer the questionnaires which made our research more significant.

4. Recycling Experience: We visited the recycling place of Tzu Chi in Nei Hu county, the volunteers told us the exact way to recycle the trash. We had the real experience to do the paper recycling.

（IX）Statement of Intellectual Property Rights of the Research Website.

All written information of the entire website is obtained from the integration of our several practical visits & interviews made to the related institute, the website information and the relevant news. The interview part is the truthful recording of the interviewing we had performed by ourselves.

The photos in the web were selected from around 500 shots taken by ourselves with digital cameras. Some of the photos were from the internet, newspaper and briefing from the related institutes. Some of the photos were from the DVDs provided by TDEP. All the applied photos are stipulated with their sources.

（X）Discoveries, Lessons and Surprises

1. We discovered that the skill of our typewriting was so good and fast.

2. It was hard to catch up on the inspiration in our mind when writing the report. Sometimes, the rate of the typewriting was too slow to write down what we thought.

3. When we visited the incinerator plant in Nei Hu County, we found there was so huge garbage we made. It was terrible to see so much trash in the incinerator, the height of the garbage was nearly the altitude of a seven-story building.
4. It was a big surprise to write to Miss Julia Ross and get her response soon. We were so glad to read Ross’s letter. To our surprise, we could get the meaning of Ross’s letter in English.

5. We found Mr. Chen Shi Hong, Minister of Environmental Protection Administration Executive Yuan, R. O. C. (Taiwan), received us very friendly. Before the interview, we had the monotonous impression about the officers, but Mr. Chen was very kind.

6. In the procedure of investigating, we found that there were six certain spots to gather the garbage and collect the recyclable items in the day. Those certain spots were provided by TDEP.

7. After the policy of “A Charge of Trash Bags”, in most families, the charge of the trash bags was lower than the average value. It showed that the quantity of garbage in Taipei was decreasing. It was wonderful to hear that

 

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