Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Introduction
Place-based education is something that has become more relevant in modern
education, yet it is still without its issues and drawbacks. With the push worldwide for a less
traditional form of education, the fact that many people still struggle with some forms of place-
based education is astounding. There are a lot of common misconceptions when it comes to
place within education that seem to deter many teachers from incorporating aspects of it
within their own classrooms. However, to me, using place in education is a natural part of
moving towards less traditional classrooms and more student-centred learning environments
that are vital in educating our students. There are certain aspects that have drawn to me that I
have full intentions of implementing in my own teaching career that I will explain in detail
through this defence paper. They include experiential education of place in general, project-
based learning, environmental justice, and formative assessment. Each of these are topics and
part of place-based education that I have developed a true passion for and would easily defend
Place/Experiential Learning
One of the most obvious benefits to place-based education comes from place itself.
Leaving the physical classroom, no matter where the student’s go, allows for a direct
connection to the real world. Simply leaving the classroom to go to a park or some sort of
business offers students the chance to engage with society from an educational perspective
and take on a critical lens that wouldn’t necessarily occur outside of the school environment. As
Smith (2007) explained, place in education allows students to “deepen their affiliation with
human and natural environments” in such a way that would not always be possible. Place-
Defence of my Practice 3
based education is very non-traditional method that can explicitly be used to address
decolonization and reinhibition (Smith, 2007) which are key aspects in modern education. One
of the greatest benefits that arises from place and experiential learning in getting the student’s
involved directly with significant issues that pertain directly to their own communities. Smith
(2007) highlighted three different case studies of schools and teachers that fully incorporated
place into their classrooms and used their abilities and knowledge to make vital changes within
their community where it was greatly needed. If students simply are told about issues
surrounding them, they often go undealt with, but when they are given the chance to directly
get involved, they experience these issues first hand and are actually given the chance to make
positive changes. Scogin, Kruger, Jekkals & Steinfeldt (2017) described experiential education,
including situations like this, that lead to “concrete experiences and abstract conceptualization”
that can not be reached in a traditional classroom setting. They went on to describe research
that was conducted on STREAM schools that heavily focused on experience and real-world
applications. The findings of the research showed how much student engagement increased
when they had an increased control in their education process and more realistic experiences.
They were able to share quotes from students that expressed how much this program changed
their interest in school. Students were overall more engaged in their education and enjoyed the
learning that took place (Scogin, Kruger, Jekkals & Steinfeldt, 2017). Using place and
experiential learning in modern education has allowed for students to be directly exposed to
Project-Based Learning
Defence of my Practice 4
the ability to take learning into their own hands and often focus upon topics that are of interest
to them. Bell (2010) described this form of education of students displaying a “transition from
passive observers to active learners” in which these students are in charge of their own learning
often through research and exploration. In using projects and inquiry, students are free to
explore topics to the extent in which they choose to. They are able to engage in the type of
learning that offers more options and choices rather than the more explicit requirements of
traditional teaching and learning. Projects and inquiry also permit students to develop more
skills that are more real-world applicable to the twenty-first century (Bell, 2010). These skills
are the kind that are not measurable through the common standardized tests that are used in
many educational establishments. As Bell (2010) further described, this form of learning has the
knowledge acquisition and an improvement in technology usage. Each of these skills are vital to
a successful future in modern society but are not able to be measured on the common tests
that are presented in schools. Allowing students to conduct projects or inquiry will build upon
these skills that have a much more practical use moving forward in student’s lives. Project-
based learning can be used in any subject and in any age group and provides a consistent
benefit.
Ecological Justice
One of the benefits to getting students outside of the classroom comes from the ability
to engage them with large scale issues that pertain all of society, such as ecological justice
issues. Through my previous degree in biology with a focus ecology, I developed a passion for
Defence of my Practice 5
the environment and working towards sustainability. This is a topic that I have full intentions on
sharing with my own students, and using place is an easy and applicable way to do so. Students
are given the chance to experience and see the societal issues that are present and work
towards making a positive change where able. Hill (2013) stated that using place allows for
engagement into ecology and the issues involved while also “educating for a sustainable
future.” With students being exposed to the environment and its issues, rather than simply
seeing images, they are able to interact in unique ways and see the issues for themselves, with
Formative Assessment
The final aspect of place-based education that I will be using in my own teaching is
formative assessment. To be successful as a teacher, one must be able to learn from and adapt
to their students. Formative assessment allows teachers to do just that as they provide
feedback and ways of improvement to their students, while also learning how to be flexible and
make changes to their own teaching dependant on their student’s abilities. There are a variety
Questioning is a way that can increase some students thinking ability and knowledge as it
incorporates and promotes conversation and extended inquisition (Wiliam, 2007). Effective
feedback also provides the potential for improvement using explicit instruction instead of just
handing out grades (Wiliam, 2007). When students are given a grade, many focus on that grade
rather than the feedback and therefore do not make any improvements in their overall work.
Through this form of assessment, students are able to “assess their own performance
Defence of my Practice 6
objectively” (Wiliam, 2007) and improve upon their own work and assist their peers in
improving their work as well. These three forms of formative assessment are easily
implemented in the every day classroom and used to make improvements to teaching and
learning based directly off of the abilities of the students within the class. Formative
assessment involves students “thinking more often than they are trying to remember
My Classroom
In my future classroom, each of the four previously described aspects of place-based will
be used regularly. I want students to engage in as much of the real-world and community as
possible. I plan on spending as much time as possible outside or in a variety of locations that
can allow for experiential education in a multitude of ways. I want my future students to learn
as much as possible outside of the classroom so giving them the opportunity to be a part of
society is vital to me. Even just being outside will also allow the students to gain knowledge
about the environment and its issues, therefore leading to ecological justice education. Project
based learning and inquiry will be used whenever possible and applicable. To me, providing
students with the chance to take control of their own learning through projects is a way to
allow them to be more engaged in their learning and focus on what is of interest to them.
Project-based learning can be used in any subject for any topic and with any age, so it is
something that I will be using as often as possible within my classroom. Finally, formative
assessment is something that I have found to be extremely vital in both student and teacher
allow my own students to grow while also allowing me to improve upon my own teaching.
Defence of my Practice 7
Questioning, feedback and peer and self-assessment will be used with every lesson to ensure
positive change.
Conclusion
A reformed classroom is one that is becoming more applicable and used in our school
systems. Place-based education has created a way to incorporate a more student-centred form
of education that increases engagement and learning. Through place-based learning, students
are given more control of their own education which in turn leads to more knowledge
inquisition and higher achievement. There are certain aspects of place-based education that I
have chosen to defend and will be using in my own teaching practice. Firstly, place and
based learning is a form of experiential learning that gives the student’s control of their own
education in the form of inquiry. Formative assessment also gives learners the ability to engage
and perform ecological justice based on the knowledge they receive. Finally, place-based
education involves the heavy usage of formative assessment throughout day to day lessons.
This can take many forms, but I have focused on the use of questioning, feedback, and peer and
self-assessment to allow for improvement in a student’s abilities and skills. Each of these parts
of place-based education are something that I have developed an interest in and plan on using
within my own teaching. Each create possibilities in education that a traditional style classroom
often lacks and give students the chance to expand upon their knowledge in more engaging and
applicable ways.
Defence of my Practice 8
References
Bell, S. (2010). Project-Based Learning for the 21st Century: Skills for the Future. The Clearing
Hill, A. (2013). The Place of Experience and the Experience of Place: Intersections Between
Scogin, S., Kruger, C., Jekkals, R., & Steinfeldt, C. (2017). Learning by Experience in a
Wiliam, D. (2007). Keeping learning on track: Formative assessment and the regulation of
Criteria Specifics
Instructor
Assessment Codes:
M = met the expectation
I = some improvement needed in the future
DN = did not meet the expectation
Self
NA = not applicable
E = exceeded the expectation
Formatting Ideas are organized M
and Thoughts are expressed fluently and coherently M
Language Grammar and language mechanics are correct M
Use APA format is used properly for all citations and quotes M
Student name and number is clear and easy to read on a front title M
page
Information Clear explanation of why and how you feel that place matters in M
education
Research is identified and used effectively to support your M
explanation of why and how place matters.
Clear identification of which teaching pedagogies you intend to use M
in your teaching practice.
Clear and brief description of how you are going to use these M
pedagogies in your practice.
Clear and detailed explanation of why you are going to use the M
pedagogies including:
1. Clear description of the positive outcomes for students that M
result from the identified pedagogies
2. Clear description of what things in the pedagogy facilitate M
those positive outcomes
3. Research is identified and used effectively to support your M
explanation of why you are going to use those pedagogies.
WORD copy A copy of the paper saved in Word is emailed to the instructor M
The Word copy is named using the student’s last name at the M
beginning followed by the paper’s name
Length The paper is a minimum of 1500 words M
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