Why place-based education?
There are numerous benefits to designing an educational experience for students that is grounded in a place-based educational design. A few are highlighted below to support each of the key benefits of designing an educational experience for students grounded through the lens of place.
PBE deepens learning.
Ample evidence and research exist supporting the benefits of a place-based education that includes “boosting student achievements, but also improving the quality of the community’s environmental, social, and economic welfare simultaneously” (Powers, 2004). Instruction of courses with place-based teaching methods “has a higher impact on the achievement of participating students compared to students receiving traditional instruction.”
Above is an example of deepening learning in our local community. UCS Teacher Carla Egbert is seen with a megaphone in Downtown Livingston as she leads her students to various businesses and storefronts to identify which ones are goods and which ones are services. This often abstract concept is made tangible and applicable through this walking field trip opportunity. Students then use their learning to create their own goods to sell as a fundraiser to put towards supporting a community need.
PBE invites students to become active citizens.
Not only are students improving academically, but they are also improving their communities by engaging in opportunities to become actively involved. These opportunities are created by teachers to allow students to utilize their growing knowledge and skills in applicable, real-world settings. Students learn more about their communities and learn ways to make them even better.
After reading Animal Farm, middle school Civics students organize a public Town Hall event to educate the community about the importance of voting. Students also included representatives who could register attendees to vote so that the community could be more represented in democratic elections both at the local, state, and national levels.
Pre-K students meet with a UWA professor to learn more about the overpopulation of animals in the community. Pre-K students then launched a Coin War to collect money to donate to the professor's philanthropy of caring for stray pets in the absence of an animal shelter int he community.
PBE empowers and energizes teachers.
Teaching is a difficult profession, and many school settings stifle a teacher’s level of autonomy and creativity. PBE energizes teachers to use their creativity and artistry to create meaningful learning experiences for students – not just learning already crafted for them from a textbook.
Below are pictures from 6th Grade's annual "The Hatchet Experience," which is a two-day extreme survival journey mimicing the plot and conflicts of the novel. Students can only bring two personal items with them as they spend two days and one night in the woods learning how to survive like Brian did in the novel, including rescuing the black box from the downed airplane. Students look forward to this unforgettable experience each year which has been developed by teachers passionate about thinking outside the box in order to bring literature to life.
PBE transforms school culture.
Place-based schools become thriving communities where learning is active. Students are more engaged and productive in their learning, and teachers are more satisfied with their careers. Learning develops not only academic competencies in students, but they are developed as productive and capable citizens and future leaders responsible for stewarding our present and future. All faculty, staff, and students belong to one of three smaller communities (“houses”) named after our three core values. Recognitions, incentives, and competitions build camaraderie within and across these smaller communities so that everyone can feel a sense of belonging and connectedness to being a Trailblazer.
UCS is an Alabama State School of Character as well as a National School of Character. UCS is one of just a handful of schools in Alabama to earn both of these prestigous recognitions. UCS' dedication to character education and youth development in all facets of the UCS experience have led to these recognitions.
All faculty, staff, and students are sorted into one of three character houses based on the school's core values of compassion, integrity, and perseverance. Each house has a symbolic animal, color, and name derived from other cultures. Students earn points for their work as a leader with the houses competing against each other for the title of House Champion each year.
PBE connects schools and communities.
On any given day, you can find groups of students off-site on walking or transported field trips, or will find visitors giving their time to the school to work with students on a particular topic or concept. Students are exploring their communities, and community members are spending time in classrooms with students so that this mutually-beneficial synergy can help students get the most out of their learning, and so that the community can get the most out of its students.
The pictures below show various snapshots of UCS' celebration of Arbor Day in conjunction with our annual Field Day (or May Day). Students were able to rotate through various groups to learn more about the significance of Arbor Day through the lens of our place. Students participated in a healthy soil lesson with the Soil and Water Conservation district, planted trees with The Westervelt Company, learned about logging and its significance of this industry to our area thanks to Hutch Trucking, and also participated in a carpentry project (where students made a large-size UCS sign) with local contractors. These four rotations symbolized the life cycle of a tree, from planting, to growing, to harvesting, to using it for everyday use.
