SUPPORTING DIVERSE STUDENTS’ ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE IDENTITIES
Youth from non-dominant groups often face identity-related barriers to participating in both nature activities and science practices. For example, shared notions of “outdoorsy people” and “scientists” may be at odds with some young people’s sense of self and the ways their identities are expressed in where they live, what they do, and with whom they associate. Identity-based obstacles pose a serious challenge, then, if environmental educators want all young people to care about biodiversity. From a social justice perspective, these obstacles are compounded by the fact that youth from non-dominant groups are more likely to grow up in communities impacted by environmental hazards.
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They identified boundary objects, time and space, social supports and collective agency, and knowledge as important factors.
By “boundary objects,” the authors refer to physical tools that helped students try new things and move out of their comfort zones. For example, the use of waders helped students get over their fear of entering the water—an important hurdle to overcome in order to take measurements from snapping turtles. Using cameras to record data also helped some students get closer to the animals, as the students focused more on getting a good photo than how afraid they initially were to approach the wildlife.
“Time and space” refers to the flexible and responsive way in which the program allowed students to gradually increase their participation as they gained confidence. This quality of the program, which stood in contrast to the strict schedules and pacing calendars of many traditional school settings, was crucial for students who were grappling with new ideas of themselves and what they could
This article “young people” by David Suzuki is a persuasive/argumentative article instilling the future of the environment to the young people of the world. David Suzuki also shows us the issues regarding unnecessary and unsustainable waste pollution. David uses young people like a 14-year-old David grassby as an example of how young people can make an impact on society. The article takes a look at the present and focuses on the future. I agree with the statement “Youth speak with power and clarity that only innocence confers and because we love them, adults have to make changes to the way we live” because young youth think they know everything and that they’re always right but they really aren’t. For example, when I was younger I used to think I was old enough to watch rated r horror movies but i really wasn’t, I remember getting really scared and my parents would say “I told you so”, I also used to believe that I didn’t need to go to school, that it was a waste of time but as I got older I realized that school is very important and
RaStereotyping is a way of thinking about groups of people. It ignores the differences of the group, while emphasizing its similarity. One belief, that is a stereotype, is that red-haired people are hot tempered. Another belief is that Scottish people are stingy. Such thinking ignores many even-tempered redheads and generous Scottish people. Stereotyping emphasizes many differences between groups while ignoring their similarities to other people. It ignores that many blond and brown-haired people also lose their tempers. Stereotyping overlooks the fact that many American, Brazilians and French people are stingy.
I have read a book written by Darlene E. Clover, which named Global Perspectives in Environmental Adult Education: Justice, Sustainability, and Transformation. This book outlines theories and practices in environmental adult education that are emerging worldwide. The need for environmental adult education arises not from a deficit platform of andlaquo; lack of awareness and andlaquo; individual behavior modification-but rather from the asset belief in an existing - if sometimes hidden - ecological knowledge of the need for a deeper sociopolitical, race, and gender analysis of environmental problems, and the power and potential of democratic participation and collective action. Authors from Canada, the Philippines, Kenya, India, Mexico, Fiji, Australia, Sudan, and the United States examine areas such as racism and the legacy of colonization, self-governance and community resistance, ecological, women's and indigenous knowledge, international development and globalization, feminist pedagogical and arts-based practices, and participatory research practice.
General Science is a study involving biology, chemistry, physics and environmental sciences. Students from Year 7 to Year 10 are introduced to these various disciplines to gain general knowledge about science and can later develop into deeper concepts. Science is not just fat laboratory coats, Einstein’s equations, mixing chemicals, massive space shuttles, or peeking through microscopes, but involves critical thinking, analysing data and applying understandings of the natural world to solve real problems. Science is an approach to learning what made this world and how things worked decades ago, how they work today, and how they are expected to work in forthcoming years. Some of the social justice issues hidden behind science can have major consequences.
The Pre-K and Kindergarten class studied habitats of various animals and insects. They were given examples and tough how the animals made their homes. The students built a bird house as their project and as something to take home to remind them of what they learned. Finally they went on a field trip to Legoland where they explored and built “habitats” for their families and the Lego people. The first and second grade class learned about marine life and the ocean. They built shoe box dioramas of coral reefs and created art projects depicting sea life as well as learning new facts about the ocean. The students got to go to the Aquarium for their field trip. Finally the third and fourth graders studied the rain forests and their ecosystems. The students built rainforest models and terrariums along with small group discussions on different ideas human intervention and conservation. They finished their week at the zoo where they studied different rainforest inhabitants in
The world of today is a relatively primitive one, even with every advancement that humanity has accomplished we remain primitive in this aspect. There has been progress, even as slow in comparison to that of todays, it is progress.The ignorances and other human flaws are still very existent within every society, regardless of the boundaries between them be it geographical or cultural. Stereotypes and misconceptions exist in the modern society. Stereotypes arise when there is a single radical group who are accepted as the representation of their apparent subculture. Then the ignorant and misinformed take these “representatives’” behavior as a generalization of the entire group. While the less common misconception is made by some incomprehensible anomaly where an entire assumption is based around a single social group, that has never even proved to be true. There is a stereotype that is attached with the College educated community, they are believed to be almost guaranteed success. The fact that they have a degree in their respective field has built a stereotype of the “successful ones.”
The concept of stereotypes is what we have been created in our presumptions of a person without even having an idea of how they are. It is a common thing in our society on which sometimes it can create tolerance or intolerance toward other groups because of different ideas or traditions. The film by Gregory Nava My Family and the book by Victor Martinez Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida are clear examples of the concept of stereotypes. In addition, the film Real Women Have Curves by Patricia Cardoso demonstrates some of the ways stereotypes can affect one’s own ethnic group. Racial stereotypes can be good or bad creating influences toward a group. In this case, stereotypes can create bad influences causing misperceptions, confusion within the same
What is stereotype? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines stereotype as “believing unfairly that all people or things with a particular characteristic are the same.” Stereotypes are everywhere. Stereotypes cover racial groups, gender, political groups and even demographic. Stereotypes affect our everyday lives. Sometimes people are judged based on what they wear, how they look, how they act or people they hang out with. Gender and racial stereotypes are very controversial in today’s society and many fall victims. Nevertheless, racial and gender stereotypes have serious consequences in everyday life. It makes individuals have little to no motivation and it also puts a label about how a person should act or live. When one is stereotype they
Provide opportunities for “learning beyond the classroom” to make learning hands-on and enjoyable (“Cooperative education,” 2000, p.8). Create assignments that utilize field trips, guest lectures, and work experience as sources of information through which students can create their own understandings of the larger world by building upon their existing knowledge.
What is environmental identity? "Environmental identity, is how one views oneself in relation to the natural world. Environmental identity is part of the way in which one forms his/her self-concept and a sense of connection to some part of the nonhuman natural environment, based on personal history, emotional attachment, and/or similarity. This connection in turn affects the ways in which one perceives and acts toward the world. In other terms, a belief that the environment is important to a person and an important part of who that person is" (Freed, 2015). Environmental identity can be broken down into different identities. For example, social identities. Social identity is
Yet, despite a lack of access to multicultural environmental education in formal settings, adults are also changing the way the environment is conceptualized, and the way problems are identified and solved from their cultural subjectivity. For Hill (2003), environmental adult education encompasses activist projects, community building, solidarity, resistance and marshalling networks of knowledge. Environmental adult education positively contributes to environmental justice communication through citizen mobilization, popular activism, and direct actions that are essential for democracy, healthy people, and ecological systems. This education helps minority communities address the confluence greed, white privilege and class advantage as apparatuses that can be measured in environmental
In the modern era, stereotypes seem to be the ways people justify and simplify the society. Actually, “[s]tereotypes are one way in which we ‘define’ the world in order to see it” (Heilbroner 373). People often prejudge people or objects with grouping them into the categories or styles they know, and then treat the types with their experiences or just follow what other people usually do, without truly understand what and why. Thus, all that caused miscommunication, argument or losing opportunities to broaden the life experience. Stereotypes are usually formed based on an individual’s appearance, race, and gender that would put labels on people.
A Perth Primary school participated in research into children’s values and environmental sustainability education. The evidence suggested that through environmental education initiatives children can absorb the values and express their attitudes and intentions to improve environmental sustainability. The teachers, community and parents were not the drivers for the learning initiatives; the students raised the concerns. The findings of this research found that student participation in the entire process, from the creation to the completion, is a pivotal element for reaching environmental sustainability education objectives. It demonstrated that children do have the capacity to see and understand what needs to change, and take action. In addition, it reached the conclusion that values education and environmental education interrelate- build the values and children will participate with enthusiasm and a meaningful approach (Lewis, Mansfield, & Baudains, 2008). Becoming eco-literate could possibly cause some limitations for students and teachers, however, there are ways to overcome
After going through the details on this topic I started realizing the importance of biodiversity and ecosystem. It would not be wrong to say that it has also bought upon a sense of responsibility and maturity in me towards the sensitive issues surrounding us which generally are ignored or are not given much importance by the students of my age group. I do now believe that even our small contribution can make a difference in preserving this great natural gift of God.
The learning environment connects the classroom to the community through a democratic approach. This community based learning brings the world into the classroom so students can implement social change and challenge social inequalities. The curriculum focuses on student experience and taking social action on real problems such as hunger, violence, and discrimination. It is important to instruct students to explore in group settings so they can work together to analyze and develop theories that can help each other and make a real different in the world. As a future educator, it is important to not only to teach my students the issues in our world, but how we can work together to find