When I am going to teach anything, I need to answer the question, “Is this real, and does it matter?” As a teacher, if I am not answering this question, am I really providing the best learning experience for my students?!
See how Cheryl Douglas uses inquiry-based learning, to teach Human Impact on the Environment in Grade 11 Life Sciences.
We wanted our learners to gain knowledge and skills that will help them, not only with the content to be covered in the curriculum, but also to consider what and how individuals can find solutions to environmental problems and through collaboration and allow them to learn new ICT skills.
Human impact on the environment: Current Crises for Human survival: Problems to be solved Within the next Generation
Causes and consequences of the following (relate to conditions and circumstances in South Africa):
(Covered in Grade 11 but examined in Grade 12)
Learners from 12 schools participated in an investigation into ways we all can reduce negative human impact on our environment.
Participating schools were taken on a field trip to see the problems/solutions at the source. The groups visited the Coastal Park Landfill site, The Blaauwberg Nature Reserve, the Oranjezicht Urban Farm , the Westlake River to see water management in action or visited the Eskom Resource Centre in Bellville.
Groups met on 3 Saturday afternoons to plan, set up social media accounts to communicate and plan their research and create a video storyboard, and then to put their final video together with much help from Sally Wilson head of Bishops ICT department and ICT educator extraordinaire. All videos are available on the BiologyZA YouTube channel
Bishops students worked collaboratively in groups of 3-4 to research one of the topics described above and create a way (e.g. Website, PowerPoint, business cards, QR code, eBook) to present their research. In class, they had to lobby for their share of ‘’funding’’ for their solutions (1 Fizzer sweet = R100 000.00).
In this project learners from 12 schools have been exposed to real-world problems and had to collaborate to research and find solutions. They have learned content knowledge and also how to deal with other people in groups, how to share information and resources through social media, and how to plan and make a video or in the case of the Bishops boys, a website. The boys from Bishops also had to share the resources developed with their classmates to use as study aids.
A requirement of the curriculum is that they do a project on one aspect of Human Impact on the Environment that is relevant to their community and this project has ensured that they have done this in a valuable, authentic, and fun way.
As a teacher, we need to reassess the term ‘teaching’. We are in an age where we don’t need to stand in front of the class reading the curriculum to our students. It is our role as learning architects, as teachers, to take some control. We can look at the curriculum, but we all teach differently. The curriculum is designed to meet everyone’s needs but we don’t teach everyone. We know the context of our own kids, we know what is relevant to them, we know what their concerns are, and if we reach them with those things, learning is more impactful. For example, the curriculum covers food wastage and on the other end food security. If you teach in a school where students are on a feeding scheme, it will be very different, from a school from affluent backgrounds.
The biggest takeaway is that when I am going to teach anything, I need to answer the question, “Is this real, and does it matter?” As a teacher, if I am not answering this question, am I really providing the best learning experience for my students?!
Video editing software
Google Sites
Youtube
Being involved in this project, working with all the individuals, teachers, and students from the 11 schools involved in this pilot study was a wonderful experience. The enthusiasm, commitment, involvement, and hard work gave us hope for the future, and what a wonderful group of young people who gave up so much of their free time to throw themselves into research and movie making. It was wonderful reading the tips and comments on Facebook and watching the collaborative spirit develop over the course of this project. When learners come together to deal with real-world issues such as reducing the impact of humans on the environment allowed learners to gain knowledge and skills that will help them, not only with the content to be covered in the curriculum, but also to consider what and how individuals can find solutions to environmental problems and through collaboration, allowed them to learn new ICT skills. The most important thing is to try and work with others. This is truly future-focussed education.
