Abstract
This chapter describes a case study of place-based education in action called the Bennett’s Millpond Environmental Learning Project. The work sought to engage high school students and teachers in place-based, collaborative research experiences related to environmental sustainability. Results from a formal evaluation of the project are discussed. Several themes related to science teacher education and professional development that emerged from the data are presented, including teacher development as researchers, teacher development of collaborations with the community, and teacher use of technology to facilitate learning and outreach. An argument is provided for the importance of technology as a mediator that allows both teachers and students to easily move between local place-based environmental sustainability issues and global worldviews.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Avery, L. M. (2013). Rural science education: Valuing local knowledge. Theory Into Practice, 52, 28–35.
Birmingham, D., & Calabrese Barton, A. (2014). Putting on a green carnival: Youth taking educated action on socioscientific issues. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 51, 286–314.
Bowers, C. (2002). Toward an EcoJustice pedagogy. Environmental Education Research, 8, 21–34.
Calabrese Barton, A., & Tan, E. (2010). We be burnin: Agency, identity and learning in a green energy program. Journal of Canadian Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, 10, 207–222.
Chinn, P. W. U. (2007). Decolonizing methodologies and indigenous knowledge: The role of culture, place and personal experience in professional development. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44, 1247–1268.
Clark, J. V. (2014). The road to excellence: Promoting access and equity to close the achievement gap internationally. In J. V. Clark (Ed.), Closing the achievement gap from an international perspective (pp. 307–315). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
Corney, G. (2006). Education for sustainable development: An empirical study of the tensions and challenges faced by geography student teachers. International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 15(3), 224–240.
Cross, R. T. (1998). Teachers’ views about what to do about sustainable development. Environmental Education Research, 4(1), 41–52.
Endreny, A. H. (2010). Urban 5th graders conceptions during a place-based inquiry unit on watersheds. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47, 501–517.
Feinstein, N. W., & Kirchgasler, K. L. (2015). Sustainability in science education? How the next generation science standards approach sustainability and why it matters. Science Education, 99, 121–144.
Ferrieira, J. A., Ryan, L., & Tilbury, D. (2007). Mainstreaming education for sustainable development in initial teacher education in Australia: A review of existing professional development models. Journal of Education for Teaching, 33(2), 225–239.
Gil-Perez, D., Vilches, A., Edwards, M., Praia, J., Marques, L., & Oliveira, T. (2003). A proposal to enrich teachers’ perceptions of the state of the world: First results. Environmental Education Research, 8(1), 805–811.
Goralnik, L., & Nelson, M. P. (2011). Framing a philosophy of environmental action: Aldo Leopold, John Muir and the importance of community. The Journal of Environmental Education, 42, 181–192.
Gruenwald, D. A. (2003). Foundations of place: A multidisciplinary framework for place-conscious education. American Educational Research Journal, 40, 619–654.
Gura, T. (2013). Citizen science: Amateur experts. Nature, 496, 259–261.
Jickling, B., & Wals, A. E. J. (2008). Globalization and environmental education: Looking beyond sustainable development. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 40, 1–21.
Karl, C., Haase, D., & Day, J. (2004). Bennett’s Millpond: An environmental learning project strengthens the involvement of students in their community. The Science Teacher, 71(5), 36–37.
Kilinc, A., & Aydin, A. (2013). Turkish student science teachers’ conceptions of sustainable development: A phenomenography. International Journal of Science Education, 35(5), 731–752.
McInerney, P., Smyth, J., & Down, B. (2011). ‘Coming to a place near you?’ The politics and possibilities of a critical pedagogy of place-based education. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 39, 3–16.
Skamp, K. R., Boyes, E., Stanisstreet, M., Rodriguez, M., Malandrakis, G., Fortner, R., Kilinc, A., Taylor, N., Kiran, D. S. C., Abusaidi, A., Cheong, I., Kim, M., & Yoon, H.-G. (2011, June). Secondary students’ belief and willingness to act to reduce global warming: An international study related to transport options and its consequences for science education. Paper presented at the Australasian Science Education Research Association conference, Adelaide, SA.
Smith, G. (2002). Going local. Educational Leadership, 60, 30–33.
Spiropoulou, D., Antonakaki, T., Kontaxaki, S., & Bouras, S. (2007). Primary teachers’ literacy and attitudes on education for sustainable development. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 16(5), 443–450.
Stevenson, R. B. (2007). Schooling and environmental education: Contradictions in purpose and practice. Environmental Education Research, 13, 139–153.
Tal, T., & Abramovitch, A. (2013). Activity and action: Bridging environmental sciences and environmental education. Research in Science Education, 43, 1665–1687.
Tilbury, D. (1995). Environmental education for sustainability: Defining the new focus of environmental education in the 1990s. Environmental Education Research, 1, 195–212.
Zeidler, D. L., Berkowitz, M. W., & Bennett, K. (2014). Thinking (scientifically) responsibly: The cultivation of character in a global science education community. In M. P. Mueller, D. J. Tippins, & A. J. Stewart (Eds.), Assessing schools for Generation R (Responsibility) (pp. 83–99). Dodrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
Zoller, U. (2012). Science education for global sustainability: What is necessary for teaching, learning, and assessment strategies? Journal of Chemical Education, 89, 297–300.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by Howard Hughes Medical Institute Grants #52006933 and #52005882 at North Carolina State University.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gardner, G.E., Karl, C., Ferzli, M., Shea, D., Haase, D., Day, J.B. (2015). The Bennett’s Millpond Environmental Learning Project: Place-Based Education with Student-Teacher Research Teams. In: Stratton, S., Hagevik, R., Feldman, A., Bloom, M. (eds) Educating Science Teachers for Sustainability. ASTE Series in Science Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16411-3_14
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16411-3_14
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16410-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16411-3
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawEducation (R0)