Access to gardens and citizen science projects at school can help students develop pro-conservation behaviors, according to a recent study. Offering youngsters the opportunity to participate in actual scientific ecological work and gardening fosters an interest in plants. Experts discovered that this can affect behavior – such as spending more time gardening or pursuing a botanical career — and foster a good attitude regarding environmental protection.
Dr. Bethan Stagg of the University of Exeter and Professor Justin Dillon of UCL reviewed the evidence for teaching conservation and ecology. According to Dr. Stagg, ecological gardens allow for in-depth observation of ecological interactions, the development of empathy for living things, and a growth in interest in the natural environment and how our actions affect it. Active interactions with plants, such as gardening and planting, are very beneficial at raising plant awareness.
It is important teachers and educators opt for a citizen science project their pupils are likely to have a personal interest in and the self-efficacy to participate, to increase the likelihood of a lasting engagement with the scheme.
Dr. Bethan Stagg
The study calls for more pedagogic gardening practices to be included in teacher training courses. This would help to address a key barrier to school gardening, which is teachers’ low horticultural knowledge and confidence for developing curriculum-relevant garden-based activities, coupled with a lack of time for staff training in-school.
The evidence evaluated suggests that engaging in authentic science inquiry allows students to gain ecological knowledge and investigative abilities with’real world’ application. This results in an increase in positive views about plants, willingness to pursue scientific inquiries, and pro-plant behaviors. However, according to the research, students must be given the opportunity to discuss and assess the results with their peers, as well as share the data with others, in order to grasp the significance of the findings to the class, local community, and society.
Dr Stagg said: “It is important teachers and educators opt for a citizen science project their pupils are likely to have a personal interest in and the self-efficacy to participate, to increase the likelihood of a lasting engagement with the scheme.
“Incorporating citizen scientific involvement into module content and evaluation is an effective method for increasing student engagement and thoroughness in data gathering. Mentoring programs and knowledge-sharing relationships between teachers and university scientists.
According to the study, membership in ecology professional associations should assist teachers gain confidence in teaching ecology while also providing support and contacts.
Dr. Stagg offers a free online course for teachers to discover how to inspire primary-aged students to get interested in plants and outdoor learning.
