Placed-Based Education

The importance of the environment lies in the belief that children can best create meaning and make sense of their world through environments which support complex, varied, sustained, and changing relationships between people, the world of experience, ideas and the many ways of expressing ideas. The pre-schools tend to be filled with indoor plants and vines, and awash with natural light. Classrooms open to a central piazza, kitchens are open to view and access to the surrounding community is assured through wall sized windows, courtyards, and doors to the outside in each classroom.

In this paper I will show my research on how theories of education have changed thought the years and how teachers and students adapt to these changes. With the changes in multicultural classrooms and how students with disabilities have rights in public education.

Equipment and Environment: The lesson will take place in a large area outside of the school free of any obstruction. There will be bright orange place markers so the children know not to wonder out of the designated areas.

When you picture a classroom, what do you think of? You more than likely picture a chalkboard, desks for all the students and teacher. A new way of teaching has developed that removes students from the stereotypical environment and places they in a new and engaging environment. This is experiential education.

The use of outdoor settings for learning, enables children to achieve further progression in their ‘mastery’ of Mathematics skills.

For this course we received a hands-on opportunity to view science in an outdoors setting at Nixon County Park. I attended a training session to learn more about the practices and procedures of nature education and assisted two grade levels of children that visited the park. I helped first graders on a nature walk and fourth graders on an indoor lesson about animals. Both were unique experiences that helped me learn to become a better teacher of science.

Botanicals are an appealing way to introduce science to children while pleasing and engaging the senses. At all ages, it is important to orientate children towards native plants and wildlife. Learning about the importance, function, and preservation of native species not only teaches science concepts, but also encourages environmental stewardship. The Botanical Gardens walking and hiking trails are an opportunity to exercise while studying diverse flora and fauna. In addition to nature education opprotunities, Chicago Botanical Gardens has model train exhibit.

This week’s article by MacQuarrie, Nugent and Warden (2015) looks at nature-based learning across several countries. It highlights key aspects and concerns of nature-based learning voiced by the participants of the study. When reading this article I took the stance that relationships are an important element when learning with nature and with others (MacQuarrie et al., 2015). I took this stance, as I believe that relationships within early learning are the key foundation to building a supportive and engaging learning environment that includes children, families, communities and educators.

Among other things, British author and philosopher Aldous Huxley introduced the world to the unsettling power of early learning and development through his novel Brave New World. Rather than learn from the wisdom of a mother, children are fed state messages through subconscious sleep-learning, enabling mass control. Aside from Huxley’s dark depictions, Brave New World reveals how susceptible to manipulation the developing human mind is. Superimpose these effects onto the real world. How nations and their educators raise the next year’s children, greatly influence, or more effectively, wholly define Generation Z. Signed by 71 countries, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights lists the right to

Outdoor education can be used for multiple age groups and multiple subjects. Generally, outdoor education used for science studies such as biology, ecology, astronomy, and geology; however it can be used in many other subjects as well. For English and reading, taking students outside would bring a peaceful atmosphere that could make focusing on a book or writing easier. Real world examples could be used for math problems outside. Education opportunities are numerous outside, so long as the teacher keeps their mind open. Studies have been done on students to see whether or not learning outside increases

Real life situations should also be incorporated into the learning experience. By doing this, children will be exposed to cultural experiences that they would otherwise not be opened to. Children should not sit in the classrooms all year; they should be allowed to fully discover themselves while benefiting from real life situations. These outdoor trips and hands on experiences will greatly enrich the learning experience. Education should begin at an early age, be constructive and consistent.

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” - Nelson Mandela. Without education, there is simply no telling of what this world would be like. There wouldn’t be doctors, lawyers, businesses etc. Life and everything around us would be fatuous. Schools and education give us a plan in life and help guide us. Throughout the years education has changed tremendously. It had its improvements throughout the decades, and it also has had its falters as well. Education in America is an issue in this country and it definitely needs to be tweaked and improved. Education is what makes us people who we are and what we will be. Nelson Mandela had it right, there is no weapon more powerful than education.

Hence, Hennessy (1993) affirms that situated cognition recognizes the important role played by the social and physical aspects of learning environments. In these environments, students collaborate with one another and their teachers to cultivate a culture of learning within a community of practitioners. Learning is seen as a process of acculturation brought about by individual participation in socially organized practices through which specialized local knowledge, rituals, practices and vocabulary are developed in the learner. (Hennessy, 1993).

As education progresses into the 21st century, the dynamics and methodologies of teaching and learning have evolved as well. As a result of this evolution, educational trends and best practices of yesteryears have witnessed a transition to accommodate said changes. Pulliam and Van Patten suggest (2013), “The era of electronic communications, cybernation, the Internet, and mushroom scientific discovery is upon us” (p. 5). Therefore, educational leaders need to stay abreast of these changes and develop professional development (PD) opportunities that promote 21st century teaching and learning and foster professional learning communities (PLCs). It is essential that educational leaders be versed in these education trends to successfully implement PD that will increase student achievement and promote the mission and vision of said school district. Kousar (2010) suggests, “In order to teach effectively, the teacher must have sufficient knowledge about the students, as well as the knowledge about the subject and appropriate methods of teaching” (p. 99). Conversely, educational leaders form this foundation through on-going support and training to staff to facilitate successful implementation. Although 21st century learning entails a plethora of methodologies and instructional best-practices, direct instruction (DI) and its use in alternative programs continues to see success in schools across the nation and abroad. However, can this methodology be integrated into general

Throughout the history of civilization, education has been an important tool in shaping an individual as well as the society that the individual is a part of. In the older civilizations, only the elite upper class had access to education. This kept these people at the top of the social ladder, and suppressed the common people who did not have access to the same education as the nobles. We have come a long way since then, with every child having access to a free high school degree. However, there is still some inequality in this modern education system that has similarities to the old injustices. In this day and age, a college degree is a great start for a young adult starting to enter the work force. According to a study conducted by Pew