Place-based education (PBE) is rooted in the environmental education movement and emphasizes problem-solving within both natural and social environments. PBE lessons use the local environment as inspiration for asking and answering authentic questions. The goals are to develop students’ sense of personal and collective agency by leveraging their affiliation to locally-relevant issues, to increase their motivation to learn and protect their environment. Previous research demonstrates that PBE has positive effects on student engagement, increases academic achievement, instills appreciation for the natural word, and fosters a commitment to participate in democratic decision-making. It is less well understood how teachers adapt to and potentially benefit from implementing PBE.
The Communities, Cameras, and Conservation (CCC) collaborative PBE project between Colorado State University, Poudre School District, and the Rocky Mountain Cat Conservancy engages students, teachers, and scientists in authentic PBE through data captured from a network of remote sensor camera traps placed throughout rural and urban areas. Participating middle school teachers (n=12) have been presented camera trap curriculum developed by the CCC. In this study, we are conducting a case study analysis to describe participating teachers’ perceptions of and instructional behaviors related to the PBE curricula. Data sources include: formal and informal interviews prior to and after using the PBE curriculum, informal classroom observations, descriptions of student performance outcomes, and curriculum and assessment materials produced.
Results/Conclusions
Preliminary work, during the 2016-2017 school year, using a camera trap and a locally based food web activity involved 2 teachers and 190 students. Initial data demonstrate high levels of student engagement in learning about local wildlife both near and around the school community. Teachers reported high student curiosity about wildlife (mammalian) dispersal in urban areas. The enthusiasm of one teacher regarding her student motivation to learn prompted her to help develop the standards-based PBE curriculum. Currently, there are 12 teachers and approximately 2100 students using the PBE lessons. Often, curriculum is driven top-down from the state or school district level to the teacher; however, we have discovered that the CCC PBE curriculum has been disseminated laterally by teachers to one another. We posit that when teachers design their own curriculum, they are more enthusiastic about using it, promoting positive PBE and environmental education outcomes.