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Climate Change: Study Task

Through the reading and work on this module I have become more aware of the factors that our effecting my carbon foot print in my day to day life and […]

Through the reading and work on this module I have become more aware of the factors that our effecting my carbon foot print in my day to day life and what are consequentially affecting global warming when looked at across the world as a whole. From completing the survey my carbon footprint was outlined at being 71% however I was slightly surprised at some of suggestions that the site made to reduce my carbon foot print. It is easy to forget that simple things such as buying more locally produced produce and just less items in general can reduce my footprint as things have become so easily accessible and readily available within our society it is easy to forget how far they have been transported or where they have been imported from and the effect that must be having on the environment. It was also surprising just how much goes into calculating my carbon footprint I hadn’t realised quite how many factors of my life contribute towards calculating it.

It also reminded me that I should be more mindful of throwing food away with the World Wide Fund for Nature stating that “one third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted”. However the survey did also remind me of what I am now doing to help the environment our flat has recently begun ensuring that we recycle more by using the recycling bins provided and making trips to places such as bottle banks so that our glass is reused. Therefore one value is definitely in reminding you of the bigger affect every little thing that we can do can have on the environment.

Learning about climate change in school is vital so that children take responsible for the environment and are more aware of the damage we can cause to it from an early age. It also allows linkage to other aspects that will help improve children’s lives such as encouraging them to walk to school or to use more public transport as not only will this lead to them reducing their carbon footprint but in the case of walking or cycling it could lead to them having a more active life style.

I was also intrigued to learn that the government had such long term goals in place to be completed by 2050 to reduce Scotland’s carbon footprint with the government’s legislation stating that by 2050 Scotland’s emissions will be 80% lower than the baseline. It will be interesting to see if by 2020 they are on track with their target of 42% lower as it is going to take some fairly drastic steps to lower Scotland’s emissions so dramatically. The document in general made for quite an interesting read to show more what the government has put in place to deal with climate change although ideally it looks as though some stricter rules and targets would be better for the planet however they would be a lot harder to implement and stick to. 2016-09-27

The Environment Learning Log

The environment itself could be defined according to Kemp, D (2004) as the surrounding area and everything within it, although it is most commonly thought of in terms of nature. […]

The environment itself could be defined according to Kemp, D (2004) as the surrounding area and everything within it, although it is most commonly thought of in terms of nature. Our interest in environment stems from an early age from our want to become aware of and then to start exploring our surroundings. Spatial awareness plays a big part in this. As when a child is first born it depends on taste and touch to engage with its surroundings but as it develops it begin to be able to focus on and see objects with in its environment and then as of about the age of ten months the child is capable of crawling and hence able to begin to explore its environment for itself. The environment itself could be defined according to Kemp, D (2004) as the surrounding area and everything within it, although it is most commonly thought of in terms of nature.

With regards to the environment Scoffham (2010) claims that “Our sense of identity, it seems, derives in some part from the social and physical environment in which we spend our childhood.” This means that our environment plays a part in how we learn to interact with others and how we feel towards certain tasks. In interacting with their environments children gain essential survival skills, life skills and learn to accept the consequences of their actions. This prepares them well for developments in later life however it can now be suggested that current generations of children are not fully engaging with the outside world and although schools cannot hope to take the place of the child’s own self-discovery it is important that we take the steps to encourage a child’s interest in nature and their environment through data collecting activities, field work or even school trips. This in turn allows us to encourage children to be more active learners and discover things in their environment for themselves rather than simply being passive learners.

A lot of my own attitudes towards the environment probably come from growing up in the countryside and having a very large garden meaning that there was always plenty for me to explore and lots of adventure to be had. I have also been left with plenty of positive memories of the outdoors through having a family that is very keen on hill walking and cycling whilst also being a part of the scouts and duke of Edinburgh.

Fridays session allowed me to see interesting examples of how we could encourage pupils to become engaged with the natural environment. Personally I found the tree identification task the most interesting and feel it would be easiest for pupils to undertake as unlike wildlife and birds trees are less likely to wander off or remain to elusive for the pupils to survey. I found the bug survey task to be the least engaging however I can see how pupils might have more luck as they would probably be more willing to dig around the mud for beetles where as we found very few. I also like the example used in the Andrews workshop of giving the class plants to grow. This educates pupils in plants and their needs whilst teaching pupils responsibility and getting them excited and interesting in plants and the environment around them. It also helps move pupils away from being in the bubble wrap generation that Scoffham by letting get involved and become active learners so that they can experience things first hand for themselves and learn not just from the lesson itself but from their mistakes.

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Session 1: 20/9/16

Considering the conditions to which several pieces of artwork was made was a useful eye-opener as I was not previously aware of just how much of an impact teacher intervention can be. One piece of artwork that stood out for me was a Primary 3 pupil’s oil pastel rabbit created on black paper as shown … Continue reading “Session 1: 20/9/16”

The steps to creation are evident as careful sketching of an outline can be clearly seen followed by the layers, tones and highlights which the pupil clearly had a good understanding of. This led me to realise the significance in the role of a teacher in not limiting the choices of material available as I remember constructing a silhouette on black paper in primary school which would not be possible on white paper. The pupil’s artwork benefits from the use of black paper to demonstrate the white highlights where necessary. By not limiting the conditions in which children can work, this provides ample opportunities for expression.

Moreover, this stage was deemed the scribbling stage by Lowenfeld and Brittain (1987) which made me think of how often it is overlooked as nonsensical, nonrepresentational, random marks on a page which I do not agree with just because adults may be unable to decipher a young child’s drawing. Furthermore, I felt this stage was the most significant as although children may not be at a stage where they can fully represent their thoughts and ideas, they are able to symbolise through their own creations a meaningful message that evokes a strong feeling within them, such as what I assume the pupil’s subject matter was evoked from a personal and appreciative feeling that led to the choice of a rabbit.

In regards to music education, although this is not one of my strongest subjects, it was incredibly helpful to see the plethora of opportunities music provides and how easy it can be integrated with subjects such as literacy which I previously would not have thought to combine it with. The session allowed me to critically observe how music combined with other subjects can bring together many skills which can afford every pupil some success even if they are not musically talented.

As Eisner (2002) established in his principles towards an effective arts educator, I should aim to stimulate these same emotions and personal connections to allow children to demonstrate self-expression in their artwork. I think the main issues arise when children are limited to observing from a particular artist or famous painting to be left to create their own reconstruction of it as this takes away from the creative process, children may appreciate and enjoy it less because of such a restriction, they are not free to explore or develop their own artistic skills as following an artist’s particular techniques may be compulsory.

In addition, Fleming (2012) further widened my view on justifying teaching the arts as my own opinions remained within the arts providing a different medium from where children can learn through, as well as it being a thoroughly enjoyable experience to divulge children in. This view was challenged by Fleming (2012) which caused me to question and think deeper as I have come to understand the equal importance of the arts to other more academic subjects. Also, through McAuliffe (2007), the variety of media that can be incorporated within each discrete section in Lowenfeld and Brittain’s (1987) stage theory that is both progressive and scaffolded led me to feel enlightened that the arts provided so many opportunities.

Lastly, my understanding of children’s development throughout the stage theory needs to be deepened as well as how different teaching approaches has impacted children at different stages, especially in less visual arts such as music and drama education, whether teacher intervention has proven successful or not.

References

Eisner, E. (2002) The Arts and the Creation of Mind, In Chapter 4, What the Arts Teach. London: Yale University Press

McAuliffe, D (2007) Foundation and Primary Settings. In Teaching Art and Design 2-11 (Edited by Sue Cox, Robert Watts, Judy Grahame, Steve Herne and Diarmuid McAuliffe) London: Continuum.

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Learning Log- The Environment

Theme: The Environment Key Learning: After this week I now have a more in depth knowledge on what sustainability is and understand why we need to educate and show children just how important it is. Although the overuse of resources … Continue reading →

Theme: The Environment

Key Learning:

After this week I now have a more in depth knowledge on what sustainability is and understand why we need to educate and show children just how important it is. Although the overuse of resources has improved living standards in many countries, it is also damaging our living systems. We need to find a way where people can live a good quality life without damaging the quality of life of future generations. (Scottish Government, 2012) This really made me think about how our actions today can impact peoples quality of life years from now.

Learning about the environment, has made me see how big a topic this is and how many different issues it covers. Before when I thought about the environment I immediately associated it with nature and recycling. I now understand that it is so much more than this and focuses not just on our surroundings but also the community, people and human’s relationships with nature.

Studying the urban environment highlighted to me how harmful these large cities can be. They not only account for 70% of carbon emissons but also keep buliding on more and more of our natural landscape. However whilst reading the EEA Extract on Urban Environment I realised that although urban environments cause a lot of damage they also have many benefits. Cities are the centre of Europes economy and where the majority of our wealth comes from. Also the ‘proximity of people, businesses and services provides opportunities to build a more resource- efficient Europe.’

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

I enjoyed the outdoor activities we completed during one of our workshops as it is not something I would normally do. It made you look up and examine the world around you and see things that you would normally miss. After this week I now see the benefits of children learning about the environment. I think it would be beneficial to children as it would allow them to explore their local environment and develop natural curiosity about places. Aswell as helping them to build positive attitudes and a global perspective. This topic is now an area that I would want to teach whilst out at schools as I think its very interesting and has so many possibilities of different activities and ways to teach it.

The Environment – Sustainable Development

Reflective log The environment I recently studied both on campus with the two workshops and the study task I completed recently. The first workshop I attended included searching the […]

Learning Log- Urban Environment

Key Learning- After this weeks input on the Urban Environment, I feel I have a much better appreciation for the environment around me. Before the lecture on the urban environment I had always just related environment to nature and wildlife, I had not thought if it as being much more about you’re interaction with where … Continue reading Learning Log- Urban Environment →

Key Learning-

After this weeks input on the Urban Environment, I feel I have a much better appreciation for the environment around me. Before the lecture on the urban environment I had always just related environment to nature and wildlife, I had not thought if it as being much more about you’re interaction with where you are, rather than just the location.

I learned a lot about the harm Urban environments are creating, such as being responsible for 70% of carbon emissions, overcrowding, traffic and social inequality. However these big cities also have advantages such as consuming less energy, as many of the high rise flats and multi-family houses use up less heating and less ground space.

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

I enjoyed the workshops we did outdoors, it made me so much more aware of what is around me everyday that I would normally overlook; such as the different species of wildlife and plants surrounding the campus. It also gave me a better appreciation of outdoor learning and made me realise the benefits of letting children explore what is around them.

There are many activities to do with the environment topic which simply could not be taught as effectively in a classroom as they could outdoors, such as the identifying different animals, trees etc activities that we did. This gives children an opportunity to be independent learners and gives them a more hands on experience. This often helps them to engage better in the topic if they get a hands on activity, rather than textbook work.

Areas of interest to explore further/develop:

After learning about the effects urban environments are creating, such as being responsible for many environmental pressures, made me want to look into ways in which we can reduce these environmental pressures in more depth and how to be more eco friendly, such as using more public transport, not overusing central heating etc. After enjoying the outdoor workshops we took part in, I’d also like to look into more ways and which types of lessons could be adapted to be taught outdoors.

Learning Log: The Environment

Theme: The Environment Key Learning: After the input on the environment, I have became much more aware of how important it is. I have always been somewhat aware that the environment is an important issue that we need to address … Continue reading →

Theme: The Environment

Key Learning:

After the input on the environment, I have became much more aware of how important it is. I have always been somewhat aware that the environment is an important issue that we need to address more, but this input has helped to put into perspective that we can not continue to rely on fossil fuels to sustain us. It is important to find other, more environmentally friendly ways of sustaining ourselves before we damage the world beyond repair.

Previously, when I thought of the environment I thought of nature, and of mountains and greenery. I now understand that it encompasses so much more than that-that everywhere around us-towns and cities-are also part of the environment.

When previously thinking of the impact cities can have on the environment, I always assumed they were all negative and that it was the people who lived rurally that were acting in favour of the environment. However, after reading the EEA Extract on Urban Environment, I have learned that cities also have positive connotations. While factors such as over-crowding and social inequality are still rife in cities, ‘the proximity of people, businesses and services provides opportunities to build a more resource-efficient Europe’. As people in cities live closer to everything, they often consume less energy than people who live rurally.

Impact on my views/ lifestyle/ practice:

I’ve always spent a lot of time outdoors and have never been bothered with the cold or poor weather stopping me from doing something. To get the chance to have classes outside and to physically interact with the environment rather than sit inside and imagine it has helped to change my views regarding the way topics on the environment should be taught.

In terms of my lifestyle, as I live in a fairly rural town, I will try to decrease my carbon footprint by walking more instead of just driving out of ease.

In practise within a classroom, the outdoor classes have made an immense difference to the way I would want to teach topics regarding the environment. It would be a topic I would enjoy teaching and would aim to make it as interactive as possible.