Place-Based Education
Hey Coach!
Why should I incorporate place-based learning into my instruction? Isn’t this mostly for students new to the school
Sincerely,
Community Neighbor
Dear Community Neighbor,
According to Promise of Place, a center focused on place-based education and community engagement,
“Place-based education (PBE) is an immersive learning experience that places students in local heritage, cultures, landscapes, opportunities and experiences and uses these as a foundation for the study of language arts, mathematics, social studies, science and other subjects across the curriculum.”
With PBE, students choose from interdisciplinary lessons, giving them the opportunity to pursue individual goals while utilizing resources created by the teacher.
Students in Roswell High School’s Roswell History course learn about the Cherokee tribe from a National Park Service ranger.
The beauty of place-based education is that learning about the community allows students to use their understanding of issues on a smaller scale and apply them globally. With younger students, the focus is often local, as they are most interested in what is immediately around them. As students progress through school grades, the knowledge they gained from studying local communities can be transferred to larger, global issues and settings.
With the current focus on Social Emotional Learning (SEL), Place-based education can strengthen students’ connections with their community. The community can gain a better understanding of the lives of the students which can provide emotional support for each group. The learning becomes personal to the student, providing a better understanding of diverse communities as well as allowing the students to develop interpersonal skills by working with elected and appointed officials as well as members of the business community. According to Nancy Moeller, who teaches a Roswell History course at Roswell High School in Georgia, “Students have the opportunity to participate in many community projects--’Wreaths Across America’, stream clean up, historic building docents, urban planning tours and zoning debates.” These projects create a sense of community as well as connect students to several other areas of the curriculum: English/Language Arts, science courses, other social studies courses and business courses.
RHS students learn about Bulloch Hall, Birthplace of Teddy Roosevelt’s mother Mittie Bulloch.
PBE fits right in with the mastery dispositions piece of Personalized Learning, which has students reject success and/or failure to focus on personal growth by learning from mistakes and perseverance.” (Lokey-Vega & Stephens, 2018) Learning about community issues is a route for students to gain personal growth and perspective on issues that impact the world outside of their classroom. The students work on community projects that are of interest to them personally and learn through that work which routes are successful and which routes are not.
Possible cross-curricular projects/activities to utilize in a PBE course:
Art projects
Guest speakers
Local field trips
Podcast creation
Virtual field trips
Interviews of community leaders or elders
Map projects
“Staycation” planning-utilizing brochures and/or video
Mentor program
Recycling or other green based projects
We’d love to hear how you could use place-based education in your classroom! Let us know in the comments below.
All the best,
Coach