OUTSIDE45
OUTSIDE45
Let us learn as fully and accurately as we decently can. But let us at the same time abandon our superstitious beliefs about knowledge: that it is intrinsically good; that it can be used objectively or disinterestedly.
Wendell Berry
A NEW CHOICE PROGRAM
outside45 will embrace the principles of inquiry-based and place-based learning to enhance students’ engagement, academic achievement and development of critical thinking skills so that they can develop an ethic of care in relation to the environment.
AGENDA
Summary
Goals
Influences on Design
What it Looks Like Day to Day
Context
Costs
Thoughts, Further Discussion
PROGRAM BUILDER
WHO? WHAT? WHEN?
Year#1: Based on Grade 6 Science/Socials curriculum strands
Year #2: Based on Grade 7 Science/Socials curriculum strands
Open to students in Grade 6 or 7
1 class (limited registration)
1 Teacher
Implementation: September 2012
Board approval process
INSPIRATION
Trek
Environmental focus at BICS
Community school – access to resources
Natural setting on Bowen
Outdoor Learning Classroom
http://vimeo.com/31826460
GOALS
Develop a deep understanding of the overarching and topical enduring understandings embedded in the prescribed curriculum through an inquiry-based approach;
Develop “a disposition toward behaving intelligently “
Be an engaged learner, including active involvement in goal setting and assessment, gaining more awareness of their interests and abilities;
Develop and apply critical thinking skills
GOALS
Acquire outdoor skills that build leadership and social responsibility;
Students have a greater understanding of who they are, both as a learner and community member, and more awareness of their place in their local community (Bowen Island) and the larger communities they are a part of
Develop an ethic of care for themselves
PLACE-BASED LEARNING
Fosters students’ connection to place and creates vibrant partnerships between schools and communities
Boosts student achievement & increases student engagement
Helps students learn to take care of the world by understanding where they live and taking action in their own backyards and communities
INQUIRY-BASED
UbD Framework
Big Idea = Relationships
Strands from the Grade 6 and 7 Socials and Science curricula provide the framework
Other subjects integrated as appropriate
Authentic Transfer Tasks
Capstone Project – end of year
HABITS OF MIND
16 attributes of what human beings do when they behave intelligently (Art LaCosta) Persisting
Managing Impulsivity
Listening to Others – With Understanding and Empathy
Thinking Flexibly
Thing About Our Thinking
Striving for Accuracy & Precision
Questioning and Posting Problems
Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations
Thinking & Communicating with Clarity and Precision
Gathering Data through All Senses
Creating, Imagining & Innovating
Responding with Wonderment & Awe
Taking Responsible Risks
Finding Humour
Thinking Interdependently
Learning Continuously
ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION
Based on UbD framework
Enduring Understandings / Essential Questions
Foundational Skills embedded & assessed in context
Ongoing formative assessment (digital portfolio)
Student-Led Conferences 4X year (setting goals with parents)
Individualized “Flight Path” -
If required, letter grades generated at conference based on progress tracked on student’s Flight Path
PARADIGM SHIFT
Inside
Classroom-Based
Community comes to school
Discipline-based (subjects)
Environmental ed – add on
Rigid schedule/fixed calendar
Report cards
Learning anchored to PLO’s
Outside
Place-based
Linked to enduring understandings
Students learning in the community
Curricular integration across disciplines
Environmental ed –through this lens
Flexible schedule
Individual Learning Plan – Digital Portfolio
Experiential learning – inquiry based
CONTEXT
QUESTIONS? COMMENTS?