Chris Wyland on Place-Based Learning and Education for Sustainability

"... the other aspect in terms of educating for sustainability, is that, it just makes sense. As an educator, from seeing the impact it has on the authenticity of the student learning, but also, the impact is has on student engagement in society. Too often we expect kids to sit and receive, and not enough do we bring them in to the decision-making process. It's not fair to give them this world that has climate change and has all of these negative aspects going on around them, and to not give them the skills and the chance and the opportunity to make changes for a more sustainable future." - Chris Wyland on Place-Based Learning and Education for Sustainability

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Merging Math and Project-Based Learning in a Virtual Environment

repost from: greenschoolsnetwork.org By: Sanch Lawrence, Sep 29, 2020

I vividly remember my last in-person class before COVID-19 upended school as we know it. It was March 13, 2020, the day before Pi day.

I was teaching a lesson on simplifying a rational expression to my eleventh-grade Algebra 2 students at Clara Barton High School in New York City.

Students were casually discussing a Facebook post about COVID-19 as they worked in groups practicing problems in preparation for the upcoming Algebra 2 regents exam. Meanwhile, my coworkers and I were discussing the possibility of school being canceled for a few weeks or possibly the rest of the school year.

No one fully understood the health implications of COVID-19 and the impact it would have on in-person learning. And no one could’ve anticipated how the shift to remote learning would change the landscape of education, specifically how educational technology (ed-tech) would become essential to learning. Like water shapes itself to a vessel, educators had to transition from the traditional “chalk and talk” way of instruction to become smart-board, tech-savvy teachers. While challenging, this transition provided an opportunity for educators like myself to experiment with synchronous and asynchronous methods of teaching, as well as test out a host of ed-tech tools. For example, Zoom became a favorite among educators because of its breakout rooms, polling, and security features. Ed-tech tools quickly transformed the laptop screen into a classroom, where teachers, students, and parents could co-create a productive and collaborative online learning community.

I faced a couple of key challenges in transitioning my math classroom to a remote learning environment. My top priority was establishing a virtual classroom that accommodated multiple learning styles to ensure all my students had access to and could complete their assignments. Then came the challenge of covering what remained of the eleventh-grade math content for that year. I was personally challenged to find a way to deliver that content so it connected students to current events. The death of George Floyd, coupled with COVID-19, touched a nerve in students and stirred up strong feelings that needed to be expressed. Many of my students are aware of police violence in their neighborhoods and have experienced it themselves. How could I give my students an opportunity and an outlet to explore these issues while teaching math and meeting their multiple learning styles? The answer was project-based learning (PBL). PBL was a natural way to address these challenges; however, I had never used PBL in a virtual environment before.

I became a PBL Practitioner after attending hours of training offered by the New York City Department of Education’s Academic Integration Network and the Cloud Institute for Sustainability Education. I turned to these organizations again as I began to think more deeply about how I could facilitate authentic learning experiences in a virtual classroom that were personalized, interest-based, student-designed, and self-directed, all components of good PBL. Together, we designed interdisciplinary projects with themes that were designed to offer student choice. My class ultimately… [continued at: greenschoolsnationalnetwork.org/merging-math-and-project-based-learning-in-a-virtual-classroom]

Sustainable Lessons for Schools During Covid19

John Henry and Jaimie P. Cloud discussed why short-term, unsustainable thinking during #COVID19 could lead to long-term unsustainable schools. Einstein once said, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved with the same level of thinking we used to create them”. Now, more than ever, is the time to think about #reopeningschools with the long term health of our school communities and every system and function of the school in mind. We know that sustainable actions create healthier schools at lower operational costs. Taking courageous steps now and solving problems by thinking differently, instead of taking actions driven by fear, could make a big difference in the health and well-being of our students and schools.

Educating for Sustainability: Case Studies from the Field, PreK-12

The Cloud Institute and The Derryfield School contributed to the newly released Educating for Sustainability: Case Studies from the Field, PreK-12.  Jaimie Cloud and Brentnall M. Powell were two of the authors selected for the e-book, which showcases inspiring stories of Education for Sustainability (EFS) in action across the country. The case study, Inventing the Future: The Teaching of Environmental Studies, features Jaimie's work with Powell, the course instructor and Dean of Faculty and Academic Programs at The Derryfield School in Manchester NH. The two worked together to "sustainablize" Derryfield's year long, humanities based environmental studies course.

“When we were first growing the field of Education for Sustainability, all we had were aspirations,” states Jaimie.  “Now we have case studies, research and student work as evidence. It is joyful work and it improves lives. Not bad.”  

Educating for Sustainability: Case Studies from the Field, PreK-12 is a publication of Shelburne Farms, Shelburne, Vermont. Shelburne Farms is a nonprofit organization educating for a sustainable future. The Farm collaborates with educators, schools, and other partners to advance education for sustainability in Vermont, nationally, and internationally. Shelburne Farms’ campus for learning is a 1,400-acre working landscape and National Historic Landmark. Shelburne Farms serves over 150,000 program participants and visitors annually on-site alone.   

To access the FREE e-book, Educating for Sustainability: Case Studies from the Field, PreK-12 please visit Shelburne Farms website. 

Photo Credit: The Derryfield School: A digital poster made by a student as part of the Consumption/Waste/Design Unit. 

Embracing Education for Sustainability (EfS) with Jaimie Cloud

This post, written by James Gast, was originally published on The Willow School website, 9/9/16.

“What kind of future do we want?” That’s the central question that Jaimie Cloud poses to educators and students.

As president of The Cloud Institute for Sustainability Education, Cloud has since 1993 worked with schools to “sustainable-ize” their curricula. It’s her contribution to the kind of future she wants – one where human beings thrive all over planet Earth, without undermining the fundamental support systems of Nature and Society.

On August 30 – 31, 2016, Cloud worked with Willow’s teachers to align elements of their curriculum with the “enduring understandings” associated with educating for sustainability and its nine core content standards: Cultural Preservation & Transformation; Responsible Local & Global Leadership; The Dynamics of Systems & Change; Sustainable Economics; Healthy Commons; Natural Laws & Ecological Principles; Inventing & Affecting the Future; Multiple Perspectives; and Strong Sense of Place.

Over the coming school year, Cloud will continue to consult with Willow and to coach faculty to deepen our understanding and delivery of sustainable education, and to more effectively document and map the curriculum as a whole.

“We had two goals in bringing Jaimie in this summer,” said Willow’s Head of School, Jerry Loewen. “One was to become more focused and more effective in our delivery of sustainability education. The other was to provide the entire faculty with a totally shared experience and totally shared definitions and expectations.”

The workshop marks Cloud’s third round of work with Willow in the last decade. Over that time, she has noticed a maturing of the school and a deepening sense of grounded-ness.

“I am glad to be back,” said Cloud, who collaborated closely with Loewen and Assistant Head of School Amy Swenson to customize her two 2-day workshop for Willow’s needs.  “I look forward to working with Jerry, Amy and the faculty to build a regenerative curriculum to match the buildings!”

For Willow’s veteran teachers, the workshop offered a chance to more fully map their courses in relationship to one another, and to document what’s been working. For new hires, it was a chance to learn more about the Willow brand of education.

“Jaimie Cloud’s work on developing the whole child through a lens that appreciates the interconnectedness of all things is incredibly inspiring,” enthused Willow’s new third grade teacher Amy Arnold. “The EfS curriculum is just one more reason I am thrilled to be part of Willow. I cannot wait to see our students in action—working together toward their greatest purpose!”

Throughout the coming school year, teachers will document and map aspects of their curricula online.  Cloud will serve as a coach, visiting Willow monthly to work with teacher-leaders as they embed appropriate knowledge, skills and dispositions of Education for Sustainability into exemplary curriculum units to share with their colleagues.

“The habits of mind we are developing for our students through these efforts are vital not only for them and their future, but for the broader community,” explained Loewen, “so we are examining ways to spread this work much more widely this year.”

The end goal of all this effort is to truly teach our students in ways that make them agents of effective and sustainable change for themselves, and ultimately for the world.