Sep 24th Entrance slip: teaching and learning gardens

The first thing that made me stop when reading this article was the idea of an alterglobal movement as I had never heard of this term before, but I really resonate with the idea of giving more agency to individuals and communities, especially with the goal of environmental justice. Particularly in today’s world that is filled increasingly with climate change doom, it can be incredibly hard for students (and really anybody) to feel a sense of hope. Doing something like incorporating a learning garden that employs collaboration and an appreciation for the outdoors can be a really great way of mitigating that helplessness. It is incredible what cooperation and seeing the fruits of your labour can do for morale. A second thing that made me stop was the mention of having the learning gardens be co-teachers, as I think this is a really excellent way to frame that. It’s easy to think about the location in which you are learning to be just that – a space. But it plays such a big role in how we learn, especially when it is an outdoor environment, that it definitely can be considered another instructor. I think this is incredibly relevant with how important it is that we focus on learning from place, and showing respect for the land we inhabit, especially since most of us are settlers here. It is an excellent opportunity to have some real hands-on experience with local environments and first peoples ways of knowing (depending on where you go and what you discuss with that). 

In terms of applying these concepts to my own subject areas at a high-school, I think Vancouver is the perfect place to do so. In my experience, there is such an emphasis on green spaces in this city, that no matter what school you teach at, there is a good chance that the school has access to a greenspace/garden, or is a short walk from a park or community garden. I think it would be really beneficial to incorporate that into teaching both biology and math. This can be through ways that we have done so in this class, with moving the learning space outdoors even if we don’t always discuss what is around us. I can say that my own experience has taught me that this can make a real difference in mood and appreciation for the environment without even really needing to discuss it. Even doing something like the sit spots activity we did last week can help centre students in the midst of what is undoubtedly a really busy time in their lives, making a big impact on their happiness and ability to focus on future tasks in the class. Moreover, especially for biology, it would be really cool to base your activities and content matter in the space you are in. For instance, running an experiment on different soil qualities impacts on plant growth in your learning garden as a way of exploring environmental science and its implications for agriculture. There is a lot of value in doing hands-on learning experiences with science, and having the opportunity to do so outdoors can be even more influential in having students understand the actual applications of the things they are studying. 

There are of course some challenges to this, the biggest one being if the school you are at does not have access to a garden. I think there are some ways you could try to work around this, possibly by working with like-minded colleagues to petition the school to use an empty space for a small garden, or some other little changes that could contribute to the same ideals of teaching in and with living organisms. Even if it is having a collection of plants along your windowsill, it's worthwhile. Of course, this needs to be within the bounds of your administration, but it is remarkable what can be accomplished when you work with people with the same goals. 

Ultimately, I think it is valuable to do what you can with what you have, as really any small step towards community cooperation and learning in a green space is a meaningful one. I am eager to see where I will be teaching to think of some actionable steps I can take to incorporate learning gardens into my classroom.