Encountering Ideas of Place in Education: Scholarship and Practice in Place-based Learning [1 ed.] 1032478241, 9781032478241

Table of contents :
Cover
Half Title
Title
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
List of figures
List of tables
List of abbreviations
Foreword
Acknowledgements
About the editors and contributors
Introduction
Part 1 Being in place
1 Bee-ing and feeling of place
2 Country as teacher in the development of cross-cultural Indigenous science environmental education
3 ‘The heart of the forest is here’: reframing children’s disempowered relationships with once-familiar places through Eco-Capabilities
4 Encountering the everyday: place-writing during geography fieldwork
5 Place-based learning initiatives in the Burren
6 A place-based pedagogy for outdoor education
Part 2 Community places, perspectives and experiences
7 Nurturing young children’s emerging sense of place in preschool settings
8 Mapping the importance of place, identity and local ways of knowing
9 Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth: place-based education
10 Young people’s conceptualisations of community at a UK community radio station
11 Place-based education: using enquiry-based learning to answer important questions
12 Possibilities of a radical pedagogy of place: lessons from Kucapungane
13 Developing a virtual sense of place
Part 3 Encountering place in educational spaces
14 Participatory learning in place through young people’s geographies
15 Fostering the Traveller child’s sense of place in early childhood education
16 Interrupting the everyday: students’ photography in reimagining their places
17 Diversity, demographics and sense of place: educational experiences of multilingual students
18 Teaching climate change through an attention to place
19 Exploring the geographical palimpsest of place through fieldwork
Conclusion
Index

Citation preview

ENCOUNTERING IDEAS OF PLACE IN EDUCATION

This book draws together theories, research, and practice on knowledges and pedagogies of place across educational settings. Using empirical research on learning across education systems, each chapter highlights different concepts of place in various contexts such as environmental understandings of place like those experienced by communities and opportunities for embedding place in learning. Chapters are co-constructed by authors working collaboratively across different contexts, tackling key themes, such as justice, mobilities, changes, and sustainability, through place. The book indicates how educators can apply creative approaches to teaching within, through, and about place in education and will therefore be of relevance to a wider range of academics, teachers, and practitioners working in early years settings and other educational contexts. Emma Rawlings Smith is Lecturer in Sustainability and Geography Education at the University of Southampton, England. Susan Pike is Assistant Professor of Geography Education, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.

ENCOUNTERING IDEAS OF PLACE IN EDUCATION Scholarship and Practice in Place-based Learning

Edited by Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

Front cover image: Maisy Summer First published 2024 by Routledge 4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2024 selection and editorial matter, Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike; individual chapters, the contributors The right of Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Rawlings Smith, Emma, editor. | Pike, Susan, editor. Title: Encountering ideas of place in education : scholarship and practice in place-based learning / edited by Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike. Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2024. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2023033819 (print) | LCCN 2023033820 (ebook) | ISBN 9781032478241 (hardback) | ISBN 9781032471426 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003386162 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Place-based education. | Place-based education—Case studies. Classification: LCC LC239 .E64 2024 (print) | LCC LC239 (ebook) | DDC 370.11/5—dc23/eng/20230913 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023033819 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023033820 ISBN: 978-1-032-47824-1 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-032-47142-6 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-38616-2 (ebk) DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162 Typeset in Sabon by Apex CoVantage, LLC

We dedicate Encountering Ideas of Place in Education to our families and all the students we have taught over the years.

CONTENTS

List of figures x List of tables xi List of abbreviations xii Foreword by Eleanor Rawling xv Acknowledgementsxviii About the editors and contributors xix Introduction Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike PART 1

1

Being in place

11

  1 Bee-ing and feeling of place Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton

13

  2 Country as teacher in the development of cross-cultural Indigenous science environmental education Holly Randell-Moon and Nicholas Ruddell

26

viii Contents

  3 ‘The heart of the forest is here’: reframing children’s disempowered relationships with once-familiar places through Eco-Capabilities Nicola Walshe, Zoe Moula and Hilary Cox Condron   4 Encountering the everyday: place-writing during geography fieldwork Emma Rawlings Smith and Kate Otto

39

53

  5 Place-based learning initiatives in the Burren Áine Bird

65

  6 A place-based pedagogy for outdoor education Graham French and Aled Edwards with Ian Martin and John Tatam

78

PART 2

Community places, perspectives and experiences

91

  7 Nurturing young children’s emerging sense of place in preschool settings Córa Gillic and Celine Govern

93

  8 Mapping the importance of place, identity and local ways of knowing Emma Walker and Lily Walker

107

  9 Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth: place-based education Roger C. Baars and Xiaoling Zhang

117

10 Young people’s conceptualisations of community at a UK community radio station Catherine Wilkinson and Samantha Wilkinson

131

11 Place-based education: using enquiry-based learning to answer important questions Briley Habib and Drew Perkins

144

Contents  ix

12 Possibilities of a radical pedagogy of place: lessons from Kucapungane156 Yi Chien Jade Ho and Hui-Nien Lin 13 Developing a virtual sense of place Janine Maddison, Charlotte Foster, David Morgan and Sara Marsham PART 3

168

Encountering place in educational spaces

181

14 Participatory learning in place through young people’s geographies Denise Freeman and Susan Pike

183

15 Fostering the Traveller child’s sense of place in early childhood education Paula Walshe and Nora Corcoran

198

16 Interrupting the everyday: students’ photography in reimagining their places Alex Booth and Mary Biddulph

214

17 Diversity, demographics and sense of place: educational experiences of multilingual students Ellen Bishop and Lucy Manners

228

18 Teaching climate change through an attention to place Catherine Walker and Andrew Vance

240

19 Exploring the geographical palimpsest of place through fieldwork253 Alan Marvell, David Simm, Cyril Clark and Kerry Thompson Conclusion Susan Pike and Emma Rawlings Smith Index

266

273

FIGURES

2.1 Activities using the Mutual Cultural Responsivity framework 35 3.1 Examples of land art produced by the children throughout the artist-led days 44 3.2 Fantastical Map of Bramblefields by Tonka Uzu with images and words from children involved in the Eco-Capabilities project at one school 44 4.1 The extent to which students agreed with ten fieldwork statements 60 5.1 Burren landscape with wildflower meadow in foreground and limestone plateau to the rear 66 7.1 Children construct the village church bell tower 100 7.2 Children reimagine their village through play 101 9.1 Students’ mental maps from Sawathii and Dongbang villages 124 11.1 A typical project-based learning enquiry structure147 12.1 Taiwan’s 400 years of colonial history 160 13.1 A student holding an image of the Hay Wain in front of the Mill Pond 170 14.1 Young people’s geographies, education and learning in place 184 14.2 Students’ senses of their locality via smells and sounds 191 15.1 School leaving age for Traveller and non-Travellers 202 16.1 Mind map of students’ perspectives on ‘Place’ 219 16.2 Example of ‘My Place-Our Place’ curated montage 221 18.1 Artwork inspired by the Young People at a Crossroads project by Maisy Summer 250 19.1 Word cloud of Hessle Road 259

TABLES

5.1 6.1 9.1 9.2 9.3 13.1 14.1 15.1 16.1 20.1

Activities for place-based learning Activities which encourage place-responsiveness Student comparison Sawathii village Student comparison Dongbang village Map categories identified in maps of Sawathii and Dongbang villages Summary of digital solutions and how these were embedded within the place-based fieldwork What is my place in the world? Outline of unit of learning DEI Charter questions on inclusion for Traveller children with examples on how to implement in practice Interrupting the everyday lesson series summary Education and encountering place

73 87 121 122 125 171 189 209 218 268

ABBREVIATIONS

ACARA AHRC Aistear AoLE APIOL ArcGIS

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority Arts and Humanities Research Centre Early Childhood Education Framework (Ireland) Area of Learning and Experience Accredited Practitioner in Outdoor Learning a family of client, server and online geographic information system software developed and maintained by ESRI ASC Australian Science Curriculum BAME Black, Asian and minority ethnic BYOD Bring Your Own Device CCE Climate Change Education CCF Core Content Framework (England) CPD Continuing Professional Development CSO Central Statistics Office in Ireland DEI Charter Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Charter DfE Department for Education (England) DES Department of Education (Ireland) EAL English as an Additional Language ECEC Early Childhood Education and Care ECT Early Career Teacher EDI Equality, Diversity and Inclusion EOL Education and Outdoor Learning ESRI Economic and Social Research Institute EVC Educational Visits Coordinator GA Geographical Association GCSE General Certificate of Secondary Education

Abbreviations  xiii

GCYF GIS HE HEI HoD IB IGU ITE ITT KS

Geographies of Children, Young People and Families Geographic Information System Higher Education Higher Education Institution Head of Department International Baccalaureate International Geographical Union Initial Teacher Education Initial Teacher Training Key Stage, referring to a number of year groups • KS1 – ages 5–7, school years 1–2 • KS2 – ages 7–11, school years 3–6 • KS3 – ages 11–14, school years 7–9 • KS4 – ages 14–16, school years 10–11 • KS5 – ages 16–18, school years 12–13

MAT NCCA NEA

Multi Academy Trust National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (Ireland) Non Exam Assessment (also known as an independent enquiry) for KS5 NEET Not in Education, Employment or Training OD Outdoors OEAP Outdoor Education Advisors’ Panel PBE Place-Based Education PGCE Post Graduate Certificate in Education (sometimes PGDE. D=Diploma) QA Quality Assurance RGS Royal Geographical Society SKE Subject Knowledge Enhancement SLT Senior Leadership Team SM School Member STEM Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics UNCRC United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child UNPO Unrepresented Nations and Peoples’ Organisation VUCA Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous YPAC Young People at a Crossroads

xiv Abbreviations

Ages and descriptions of class levels Age, years

Within this book

England

USA

China

Ireland

Australia

India

3–4 4–5 5–6 6–7 7–8 8–9 9–10 10–11 11–12 12–13 13–14 14–15 15–16 16–17 17–18

Early Years

Preschool Reception Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12 Year 13

Preschool Junior Kindergarten Kindergarten Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12

Preschool Preschool Preschool 1st Grade 2nd Grade 3rd Grade 4th Grade 5th Grade 6th Grade 7th Grade 8th Grade 9th Grade 10th Grade 11th Grade 12th Grade

Preschool Junior Infants Senior Infants 1st Class 2nd Class 3rd Class 4th Class 5th Class 6th Class 1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year 6th Year

Preschool Kindergarten Pre – primary Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12

Preschool Preschool Preschool Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4 Grade 5 Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 Grade 9 Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12

Primary (lower)

Primary (upper)

Secondary or High school (lower) Secondary or High school (upper)

FOREWORD

The term ‘place’ is used in everyday speech as well as being a concept discussed and redefined in academic tomes; it has been the focus of countless scholarly theories and debates in many disciplines; and it has spawned numerous educational methodologies and strategies. In his 2019 book, Maxwell Street, subtitled Writing and Thinking About Place, Cresswell ranges through the complexity of different approaches (e.g. regional, social construction), methodologies (e.g. experiential, community-based, statistical) and ideological stances (e.g. Marxist, post-colonial, feminist) through which place has been considered, concluding that the best way to make sense of all this is see this diversity not as a struggle to find the perfect answer but as a productive dialogue between old and new. This is why this book Encountering Ideas of Place in Education is so valuable for teachers and educators. As the editors explain ‘rather than have early chapters focus on theories of place and place-based education followed by chapters illustrating how to apply those ideas in practice’, they have taken the ‘productive dialogue approach’ by asking teachers and educators to work collaboratively in their different contexts. So, the insights are gained directly from practitioners interrogating the ideas and working with place in different educational settings, from different parts of the world and with experience gained from a variety of disciplines, including geography, ecology, biology and outdoor education. The focus of the book is on ‘place-based’ pedagogy, an approach that requires learners to actively engage with their local place or community, as a starting point for learning. From these beginnings, learning can then draw on any appropriate ideas and methods. I have outlined that there are essentially three broad approaches to the study of place. In descriptive approaches

xvi Foreword

(exemplified by regional geography), the aim is to identify and describe particular places and to draw out the salient characteristics of each distinct place. Social constructionist approaches, represented by a range of different critical approaches such as radical, post-structural, feminist and ­post-colonial, are interested in places predominantly as instances of underlying social, economic or political processes, while phenomenological approaches are focused on recognising place as an essential part of being human. The advantage of taking a place-based focus in this book is that it doesn’t imply a rigid adherence to any one of these three but presents a framework to encompass a range of approaches and strategies tried by teachers and educators. Starting with a ‘place-base’ can allow the processes of finding out and describing in old and new ways (as in Chapter  5, where heritage exploration and discovery are used by the Burren-Beo Trust; or Chapter 3, where children’s art is used to describe and illustrate places in the Ecocapabilities Project). Place-based is an ideal framework from which to consider the social, economic and political processes lying behind community change (as in the community-based radio station project, Chapter  10) or affecting identity (Chapter  9 considers local identities in rural Thailand; Chapter  17 looks at the sense of place amongst multi-lingual students). Chapter 18 makes it clear that a focus on place can also be a good medium for introducing the processes that lie behind important issues like climate change, starting in a local and specific way rather than starting from the global context and abstract ideas. Ways of being-in-the-world (phenomenological) seem to be a natural approach in place-based education as seen in Chapter  1 (introducing children to ancient woodland environments to experience trees, bees and the ­more-than-human world); Chapter  7 (where pre-school children’s sense of place is built on), Chapter 6 (developing outdoor experiences), to mention but a few of the examples considered in this book. It should be noted too that place-based learning as promoted in this volume encourages the use of a range of interesting pedagogies – such as digital tools, using art-based approaches and photography, encountering new kinds of fieldwork and outdoor education experiences. Cresswell (2019, p.  165) asks: How do we theorize place in a way that takes us beyond the opposition between, on the one hand, confining, bounded, reactionary senses of place that focus on rootedness, attachment and singularity, and, on the other hand, a distributed, open, progressive sense of place that focuses on flows, connections and networks? This book provides an inspiring example of one practical way in which teachers and educators, including geographers, have attempted to answer

Foreword  xvii

this question. The result is a volume which provides not only useful strategies for educators but also food for continuing dialogue and debate about place. Eleanor Rawling Reference Cresswell, T. (2019) Maxwell Street: Writing and thinking place. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

An edited book, like this one, is a team effort and the editors would like to share their appreciation with the chapter authors for the time and effort spent in writing and revising their contributions. Any research study requires wider institutional support, and the editors would like to publicly thank the universities, colleges, schools and early years providers in which research took place. Furthermore, we would like to thank funders and ethics committees of all institutions for their support. We would also like to recognise the students, teachers and educators who responded to calls to participate in the research studies, or who were involved in classroom practices which were reported in this volume. Finally, we thank those listed next for granting permission to reproduce the following material: Figure 5.1 © BurrenBeo Trust Figure 11.1 © Drew Perkins, TeachThought Figure 14.1 © Susan Pike Figure 18.1 © Maisy Summer

ABOUT THE EDITORS AND CONTRIBUTORS

Editors Emma Rawlings Smith, University of Southampton, Southampton, England

Emma is lecturer in sustainability and geography education at the University of Southampton. She has worked as an 11-18 geography and environmental science teacher, as well as a lecturer in geography education and has published widely on geography education. Emma’s research interests focus on teacher education, mentoring and professional identity, geography education and place pedagogy. She is an editorial board member for the Geographical Association’s Teaching Geography journal and chair of the Geographical Association’s Teacher Education Phase Committee. Emma is also a Chartered Geographer, trustee and Council member of the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG). Susan Pike, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Susan is assistant professor of geography education at Trinity College ­Dublin. She has worked as a teacher, including as a head of geography, as well as a lecturer in geography education at primary and secondary levels. Her research work includes children’s experiences of and participation in their localities, geography in schools, curriculum design and enactment, and teacher’s professional lives. Susan was president of the Geographical Association and is chair of their Geography Education Research Special Interest Group. As a committee member for the Geography Society of Ireland, she will lead the International Geography Olympiad in 2024.

xx  About the Editors and Contributors

Contributors Dylan Adams, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Wales

Dylan is a senior lecturer in education at the Cardiff School of Education. He worked for many years as a primary school teacher before moving into higher education. His research interests include outdoor education; holistic education; contemplative pedagogies; the expressive arts; and hermeneutic phenomenological approaches. He is vice-chair of The British Education Studies Association (BESA), a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and a fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). Roger C. Baars, Kyoto University, Japan

Roger is a senior lecturer in environmental education at the Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies. His interdisciplinary research investigates the relationships between theories of social change and transformative teaching and learning, particularly as they relate to social orders, values and practices. His research agenda is organised along the three interrelated themes of climate change education, disaster preparedness and sustainable lifestyles and examines the complex processes of societal reproduction and transformation. He has a strong interest in environmental ethics, climate justice and youth activism, as well as inclusive and empowering approaches to education. Mary Biddulph, University of Nottingham, England

Mary is a former senior lecturer in geography education. At Nottingham, she led the Post-Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) Geography course, and taught on undergraduate and master programmes. Between 2006 and 2011, with Dr  Roger Firth, Mary co-led the Young People’s Geographies project (funded by the Action Plan for Geography), the focus of which was recontextualising academic geography research into the lives of young people for the school geography curriculum. Mary was the editor of the journal Teaching Geography and was also president of the Geographical Association in 2017. Áine Bird, Burrenbeo Trust, Kinvarra, Co. Galway, Ireland

Áine has worked with the Burrenbeo Trust since 2012 and is now the organisation manager. She holds a BSc (Hons) in science, an MSc in science communications and an MEd where she focused her research on the primary teachers’ perspective on place-based learning. In 2018, Áine commenced an Irish Research Council-funded employment-based doctoral study in partnership with the School of Geography at University of Galway. This project looks to evaluate the role of place-based learning in community stewardship and share the learnings from Burrenbeo Trust’s work with others. Ellen Bishop, University of Wolverhampton, England

Ellen is a research associate at the University of Wolverhampton working on the ESRC School Meals Service – Past, Present and Future project. She completed her Human Geography PhD at the University of Leicester in

About the Editors and Contributors  xxi

2022/23, researching the educational experiences of and support provision for secondary school pupils who speak English as an additional language (EAL). Following the completion of her PhD, Ellen received funding from the ESRC Impact Acceleration Account to develop societal impact from her PhD research via delivering CPD sessions for teachers through a Postdoctoral Innovation Associate fellowship. Alex Booth, The Ecclesbourne School, Duffield and the University of N ­ ottingham, England

Alex is head of geography at a comprehensive secondary school in Derbyshire, England. Alex also works as a part-time geography PGCE tutor at the University of Nottingham and is currently completing a PhD in education at the Institute of Education, UCL. His research is on the concept of teacher agency and its associations with geography teaching. Alex is an active member of the Geographical Association. Cyril Clark, England

Educated at Riley high school, Cyril achieved his degree at Leicester University and teaching qualification at Hull University. He has taught at schools in Hull and in Lincolnshire as class teacher, head of department, head of humanities and director of Sixth Form. In further education, he taught geography as a classroom teacher in Sixth Form colleges ending his working at Wyke College. He has had a long career as an examiner for AQA exam board as a chief examiner and chief moderator at the general certificate of secondary education (GCSE) level. Nora Corcoran, Galway Traveller Movement, Galway, Ireland

Nora is a community development worker and a keynote speaker on diversity and inclusion. Nora has a degree in business, social enterprise, leadership and management. She was the co-artistic director of the 2023 Misleór Festival of Nomadic Culture. She is the author of several forthcoming children’s books based on traveller traditions and culture. Nora’s books are gender-balanced and show that no matter who you are, or where you live, you are equal. Hilary Cox Condron, Cambridge, England

Hilary is a Cambridge-based community artist and creative producer. Hilary’s activism and passion for social and environmental justice through the arts have informed her participatory practice, and she has many years’ experience of making space for developing conversation, collaboration and the imagination, working with schools, new communities, marginalised groups, museums, cultural venues and local government. Through exploring, sharing and celebrating creativity, culture, stories, heritage and the natural environment, Hilary’s practice celebrates the wonder on our doorsteps and builds community democracy through nurturing a sense of place and identity, building relationships and vision, and empowering long-term, positive change.

xxii  About the Editors and Contributors

Aled Edwards, St. David’s College, Llandudno, Conwy, Wales

Aled works as a teacher of outdoor education. He holds high-level qualifications in several outdoor adventure activities along with a PGCE in outdoor activities and holds APIOL status. A  keen adventurer, he enjoys the journey aspect of the outdoors, be that single-day adventures or multi-day trips, above as well as below ground. During his time at St. David’s College, he has been working towards giving outdoor learning a place at the heart of an integrated whole school curriculum, providing outdoor experiences to a diverse range of young people. Charlotte Foster, Flatford Mill Field Centre, Suffolk, England

Charlotte (she/her) is a senior tutor for the Field Studies Council. Following an initial career in the classroom, teaching secondary and Sixth Form students, Charlotte has worked in outdoor education for over seven years, designing and leading fieldwork for students of all ages. Charlotte is a member of the Geographical Association’s Fieldwork and Outdoor Learning Special Interest Group (FOLSIG), supporting and enhancing the teaching and learning of fieldwork and outdoor learning. Denise Freeman, Oaks Park High School, London, England

Denise is a geography teacher in a large mixed secondary comprehensive school, located in north-east London, where she is responsible for the induction and professional development of early career teachers. Denise has contributed to several educational publications and research projects, writing about geography education especially. Her areas of research interest include youth geographies, as well as experiences and representations of place. Collaborating with other educators, both locally and beyond is very important to Denise. She is an active member of the geographical community and is currently president of the Geographical Association. Graham French, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales

Graham is the deputy head of the School of Educational Sciences. He began teaching at residential outdoor education centres, whilst studying for his first degree at Bangor, and subsequently completed his PGCE in Outdoor Activities and Science. He has worked in a range of schools, teaching a range of ages and subjects. Graham is an accredited practitioner of the Institute of Outdoor Learning, chairs the North Wales region of the Association of Heads of Outdoor Education Centres and is a co-opted member of the Outdoor Education Advisers’ Panel Cymru. Córa Gillic, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland

Córa is an assistant professor of early childhood education at the Institute of Education. A  geography graduate, and trained Montessori early childhood educator, Córa has a keen interest in young children’s representations of space and how they see themselves within their chosen spaces. Her MEd

About the Editors and Contributors  xxiii

research focused on developing young children’s spatial awareness and sense of location using a progression continua approach. Córa’s PhD studies are in the field of early childhood mathematics education. She has contributed to literature reviews to update Aistear, Ireland’s Early Childhood Curriculum Framework (NCCA, 2009) and Ireland’s literacy and numeracy strategy. Celine Govern, The Village Preschool, Moynalty, Co. Meath, Ireland

Celine is the owner/manager of The Village Pre-School. She holds a degree in early childhood education. Celine graduated from Mater Dei Institute of Education, Dublin, with a degree and an MA in post-primary teaching. She also teaches childcare in Colaiste Bride, a second-level school in Clondalkin. Her doctoral journey began in Dublin City University in 2016. Celine has a keen interest in child-led play and seamless transitions. The Village PreSchool is an extension of the community; the children view the community as their space and see themselves as active and valued participants. Briley Habib, British International School, Istanbul, Turkey

Briley is a geography teacher who trained in Great Britain and is currently teaches internationally in a private international school in Istanbul. Passionate about enquiry-based learning, Briley actively seeks out opportunities for her students to engage their geographical education in community-based activities. She has taught many international examinations including A-levels, Advanced Placement and now the International Baccalaureate. Briley is an active member of the Geographical Association. Chantelle Haughton, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff, Wales

Chantelle is a principal lecturer in Early Years Education in the Cardiff School of Education and Social Policy. Chantelle established the Outdoor Learning Centre at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Her research interests include outdoor play and learning; race equity and holistic education. Chantelle is the founder and director of Diversity and Anti-Racist Professional Learning (DARPL), a national teaching fellow and a senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). Yi Chien Jade Ho 何宜謙, Simon Fraser University, Canada

Yi Chien Jade Ho is an education PhD candidate. Jade has worked as a community-based researcher at various place-based education projects in Canada, Belize and Taiwan. Jade teaches courses including social and educational issues, curriculum theories, philosophy of education, and community organising in the Asian and Asian diasporic communities. Jade is also a housing-justice and labour organiser in organisations based in Vancouver. Her doctoral work centres on developing a radical pedagogy of place through the lens of decolonisation in cross-cultural contexts and the connection between place, land and identity in marginalised communities in Taiwan and Vancouver.

xxiv  About the Editors and Contributors

Rob Lewis, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Wales

Rob is a senior lecturer in education in the Cardiff School of Education and Social Policy. He has considerable experience and success teaching A  level psychology and has also worked for many years as a senior examiner and trainer in psychology for assessment qualifications alliance (AQA). He is the programme director for education studies and early years and teaches introductory psychology and other modules on the Education Studies degree. Hui-Nien Lin 林慧年, National Pingtung University, Taiwan

Hui-Nien Lin in an associate professor in studies of Indigenous Cultural Development Program. She has worked with Indigenous communities closely for many decades, especially with the Rukai Nation. Her research focuses on traditional ecological knowledge, resilience and post-disaster recovery. She is also an activist working with Indigenous communities, calling in question government policies in forced relocation after Typhoon Morakot in 2009 to fight for disaster justice and Indigenous human rights. Janine Maddison, Newcastle University, Newcastle, England

Janine is a postgraduate researcher, researching the pedagogic benefits of the virtual world to enhance fieldwork. She is passionate about the role of technology in supporting fieldwork to become a more inclusive learning environment for all learners. Previously education development officer with the Field Studies Council, Janine worked teaching and developing geography fieldwork alongside working with exam boards and subject associations providing fieldwork support, training and resources to the geography teacher community. Lucy Manners, The Roundhill Academy, Leicestershire, England

Lucy is a geography and business teacher at a secondary school in Leicestershire. Lucy studied her PGCE at the University of Leicester after an undergraduate degree in Tourism at the University of Derby. Sara Marsham, Newcastle University, Newcastle, England

Sara is a reader in marine biology at the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences. Her research focuses on engaging students with assessment and feedback, understanding how students engage with academic reading, the links between teaching and research in HE and the role of virtual provision in delivering fieldwork. As acting dean of education for the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering, Sara leads the development and delivery of an education portfolio for all undergraduate and postgraduate taught students across five academic units. Ian Martin, St. David’s College, Llandudno, Conwy, Wales

Ian is the head of outdoor education. As a qualified International Mountain Leader and Winter Mountaineering Instructor, he has a strong interest in expedition travel and adventurous journeys. During his time at St  David’s

About the Editors and Contributors  xxv

College, he has helped to develop the extensive expedition programme and the personal development rationale behind it. From local explorations to challenging worldwide journeys, he has organised, led and facilitated expedition experiences for a wide range of student groups. He also holds a degree in Outdoor and Environmental Education and a PGCE in Outdoor Activities and is an APIOL. Alan Marvell, University of Gloucestershire, England

Alan is a senior lecturer and course leader for the doctorate in business administration. His PhD is in geography and he has an interest in pedagogy and experiential learning. He has served as a director and trustee of the Geographical Association, is an active member of the Geography and Education Research Group of the Royal Geographical Society, and is on the editorial board of the Journal of Geography in Higher Education. Alan is a senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE, UK) and was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship in 2021. David Morgan, ESRI UK, Aylesbury, England

David has over 20  years’ experience in geographical education, teaching and developing geography fieldwork with the Field Studies Council. Previously education technology officer at Field Studies Council, David has a long-standing interest in how technology including GIS can support teaching and learning. David now works as an education GIS Consultant at Esri UK, where he works to help teachers and students maximise the value of GIS, maps and data in (and outside of) their classrooms. Zoe Moula, UCL Institute of Education, England

Zoe is a lecturer in mental health, and former research fellow at Imperial College and University College London. Her research is focused on the impact of arts therapies and arts-in-nature on children and young people’s wellbeing and connection with nature. Zoe is the editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Art Therapy, and the lead editor of the Routledge-commissioned book Arts in Nature and Outdoor Spaces for Children and Young People: A Guide towards Health Equity, Wellbeing, and Sustainability. Zoe is also a member of the Royal Society for Public Health – Arts, Health and Wellbeing Steering Group. Kate Otto, Barton Peveril Sixth Form College, Eastleigh, England

Kate is a teacher of A-level geography at Barton Peveril College. Additionally, she is an examiner for the AQA Examinations Board, author, PGCE subject mentor and contributor to the Tutor2u A-Level geography programme. Kate has been a chartered geographer since 2016, the same year she received the Society’s Ordnance Survey Award for Excellence in Geographical Teaching at Secondary Level. She has been a chartered geographer assessor for the last three years. Kate has been a geography teacher since 2009 and has taught at a variety of institutions for students aged 11–18 years.

xxvi  About the Editors and Contributors

Drew Perkins, Founder and Director of Teach Thought PD, USA

Drew is TeachThought’s director of professional development and co-host of the TeachThought Podcast. A graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in political science, he has 15  years’ experience in the classroom and leadership in Michigan, California and Texas. His most recent work in Kentucky spanned middle and high school, special education to advanced placement and basketball and golf coaching. Formerly with the Buck Institute for Education and the Collaborative for Teaching and Learning, he has designed and contributed to several PBL models, including the TeachThought PBL Model. Drew continues to deliver professional development and speak internationally. Holly Randell-Moon, Charles Sturt University, Australia

Holly is a non-Indigenous senior lecturer in the School of Indigenous Australian Studies. She uses critical race and whiteness studies theories to situate her Anglo-Celtic family and settler ancestors within the social and built landscapes of settler colonisation. She has published widely on the knowledge economy, open-space classrooms and gamification. With Nicholas Ruddell, she has co-authored work on cross-cultural science in the edited collection Indigenous Engineering for Enduring Culture (2022). Along with Ryan Tippet, she is the editor of Security, Race, Biopower: Essays on Technology and Corporeality (2016), and she edits the journal Somatechnics. Nicholas Ruddell, Charles Sturt University, Australia

Nicholas is a lecturer in Indigenous education at the School of Indigenous Australian Studies. He has worked with Indigenous Australian people and their communities, through the lens of his upbringing. He has been the recipient of an Australian Postgraduate Award Scholarship. His PhD examined innovative middle school science teaching and learning that included both Indigenous and western knowledge systems. Critical Indigenous studies remains his area of interest. David Simm, Bath Spa University, England

David is a senior lecturer in physical geography. He has interests in ­problem-based and experiential learning, designing international fieldwork that involves student peer-led teaching and learning. He has served on the committee of the former Higher Education Research Group (HERG) of the Royal Geographical Society and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Geography in Higher Education. He is a senior fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE, UK) and was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship in 2020. John Tatam, St. David’s College, Llandudno, Conwy, Wales

John has worked in Outdoor Education since 1992 in North Wales, Scotland and New Zealand. He has a PGCE in Outdoor Activities and holds a variety of outdoor qualifications which include WMCI, APIOL, RYA DI, BCU

About the Editors and Contributors  xxvii

Coach Level 3. He is a multi-disciplinary teacher and practitioner, who has worked with children, young people and adults. He has experience planning and teaching a wide range of courses including winter skills, GCSE rock climbing, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Land and Expedition modules at degree level, BTEC qualifications, as well as delivering curriculum outdoor education to secondary school pupils. Kerry Thompson, Wyke College, England

Kerry is the head of geography department, where she has taught for 11 years. She previously taught at Withernsea High School and Kingswood High School after completing a degree in physical geography at the University of Hull. Andrew Vance, University of Melbourne, Australia

Andrew is an environmental educator who works in Melbourne as a secondary school science teacher and at Melbourne Graduate School of Education preparing graduate teachers in environmental science. He is part of the International Pacific Marine Educators Network (IPMEN) as well as local community and school networks. Andrew is committed to seeking and creating opportunities for students to network and share their personal experiences with climate change. With IPMEN, he had the opportunity to travel to the Pacific Islands to share and develop pedagogical resources and was inspired by educators making connections between Traditional Knowledge and modern scientific investigation. Catherine Walker, University of Manchester, England

Catherine is a social science researcher based in the Department of Geography. Catherine’s research interests span geography, education and sociology and centre on diverse youth and environmental/climate education. Catherine seeks to research in collaborative ways that generate pedagogic moments. Catherine’s research has taken her to India, Brazil and, most recently, Melbourne, Australia, where  – as well as conducting parallel research in Manchester, UK – she interviewed young people and educators for the UK Economic and Social Research Council research project Young People at a Crossroads. Emma Walker, York St John University, York, England

Emma is the associate head of the School of Education, Language and Psychology. Emma teaches across a range of programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels and supervises doctoral researchers. Emma’s research develops the use of narrative methodological approaches to explore a range of areas concerning education, children, young people and families, through a cultural geographical lens. She has an interest in qualitative research methods, in particular narrative and ethnographic approaches; the politics and ethics of co-production; place, space and landscape; geographies of community and belonging; and place-based education.

xxviii  About the Editors and Contributors

Lily Walker, Aylward Academy, Edmonton, London, England

Lily is the head of geography department. Her undergraduate and postgraduate research specialism is geographies of dance. Her master’s thesis centred on the gendering and queering of contemporary dance practice and performance. Other research interests include cultural geographies, geographies of identity and embodiment, personal geographies and decolonising the curriculum. Nicola Walshe, UCL Institute of Education, England

Nicola is pro-director of Institute of Education, University College London’s Institute for Education and Society, and executive director of the UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education. Her research is predominantly in the field of high-quality teacher education practices in climate change and environmental and sustainability education; her recent AHRC-funded projects, Eco-Capabilities and Branching Out, explore the process by which arts-in-nature practice supports children’s connection with the environment and, thereby, their wellbeing. Nicola is co-convenor of the Environmental and Sustainability Education Research network of European Educational Research Association and a UCL Climate Hub Community Expert. Paula Walshe, Early Childhood Education and Care Trainer, Ireland

Paula is an assistant lecturer, published author and PhD student at Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT). Her PhD research focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Maths (STEAM) in early childhood education and is co-funded by the Higher Education Authority Technological Universities Transformation Fund and DkIT. Paula holds an MA in leadership in early childhood education and care (ECEC). She has extensive experience in ECEC pedagogical practice and leadership and sits on the committee of Professional Educators and Managers Ireland (PEMI), the professional body for ECEC in Ireland. Catherine Wilkinson, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, England

Catherine is a reader in childhood and youth studies. Prior to her Readership conferment, Catherine was a senior lecturer in education and at present continues to teach across the education and early childhood studies subject area. Catherine previously worked as a lecturer in children, young people and families in the Faculty of Health and Social Care, Edge Hill University. Catherine completed her PhD in environmental sciences at University of Liverpool, funded by an ESRC CASE award. Catherine’s primary research interests are children, young people and identity; young people and community radio; and children and young people-friendly research methods.

About the Editors and Contributors  xxix

Samantha Wilkinson, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, England

Samantha is senior lecturer in childhood and youth studies. Samantha teaches and leads a range of modules from foundation to master’s level. Samantha is an interdisciplinary researcher and has undertaken research on a diverse range of themes including young people’s alcohol consumption practice and experiences; Airbnb; home care for people with dementia; and university students and conceptualisations of place. Samantha completed a PhD in human geography at The University of Manchester. Samantha has published extensively on the use of novel, participatory and ethnography methods with children and young people. Xiaoling Zhang, Namba Junior High School, Osaka, Japan

Xiaoling is currently a field officer at Osugidani Nature School, a local centre that offers activity-based environmental education in Mie Prefecture, Japan. She has a master’s degree in environmental management from the Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies, Kyoto University. She is eager to motivate and inspire youth’s consciousness about their living environment through educational activities rooted in the local community. To have a better on-the-ground understanding of community-based education, she is currently working on environmental education programmes that help children learn about environmental issues as well as cultural values locally and regionally.

INTRODUCTION Encountering ideas of place in education Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

Introduction

Place is central to all our lives. From the moment we are born, we experience and interact with people and places in the world. Place is ubiquitous, it is everywhere. Memories and emotions, such as our feelings of belonging and safety, are tied to place (Ma, 2003). As Cresswell (2015, p. 18) argues, place is not only a meaningful location but ‘also a way of seeing, knowing and understanding the world’. Since the cultural turn in the social sciences, greater attention has been paid to place as an object of study. This body of work explores people’s perceptions, meanings and experiences of place and focuses significantly on how places are represented, experienced and imagined (Anderson, 2022). Place has been conceptualised in multiple ways. Most succinctly, Agnew (1987) outlines place as a space with meaning with a location you can find on a map, a locale (a material setting for social relations that mark it out from other places) and a sense of place (the subjective and emotional attachment people have with place). In her book The Power of Place, Hayden (1995, p. 15) describes place as ‘one of the trickiest words in the English dictionary, a suitcase so overfilled one can never shut the lid’. Importantly, she argues that educators must unpack and make visible the socio-historical forces that shape place if learners are to make sense of the power dynamics at work and develop rich understandings of the place in which they live. In this introductory chapter, we outline why it is important for children and young people to have opportunities for experiential place-based learning in new and unfamiliar places. We then set out the case for collaborative writing and how this has strengthened the relationship between theory and practice in each of the book’s chapters. Following this, we present DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-1

2  Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

an overview of the three parts of Encountering Ideas of Place in Education: (1) Being in Place; (2) Community Places, Perspectives and Experiences; and (3) Encountering Place in Educational Spaces. Developing the place experience of children and young people

Place is central to the lives of children and young people. It is recognised that they are social agents constructing their own everyday life in local places (James et al., 1998; Qvortrup et al., 2007). When exploring local surroundings and venturing further from home, children and young people encounter new and unfamiliar people and places. Through these interactions, they develop a sense of place and understanding of the place in which they live – as a global citizen of the world. Through their lived experience, children and young people recognise that their own experience of place is managed by others, and that they may be encouraged or restricted in using places by adults (Holloway and Valentine, 2000). Writing in 1977, Tuan suggests that ‘space and place are basic components of the lived world; we take them for granted’ (p. 3), even though contemporary issues and challenges such as globalisation, mobility and the ecological crisis ‘threaten the existence of, and connection to, places important to us’ (Scannell and Gifford, 2010, p. 1). For example, half of the parents in a British Lung Foundation (2019) survey said that they drove their children to school even though air pollution from traffic is a pressing threat to the health of their children and the planet. Travelling by car or bus also means that children are less likely to notice, encounter or connect with the human and non-human aspects of their local neighbourhood as they pass on by. Yet, children will seek out the affordances of places (Gibson, 1979) and value-rich opportunities for place-based activity (Kyttä, 2002). Through such activity, children and young people develop views and opinions on place, valuing some over others (Fjørtoft, 2004). Only occasionally have such experiences been richly drawn on in schools and society. For example, in the 1930s, in Ireland, all schoolchildren in the relatively newly formed state collected folklore from their immediate locality (Creedon, 2022). Today, this now digitized record of the richness of the people and places in their localities is still available. Children develop an affective bond (mental, emotional and cognitive ties) through all their meaningful environments (Tuan, 1977). Several chapters pick up on the benefits of children and young people being and learning outside and in nature and how this is good for their mental and physical health and wellbeing, as it improves mood and reduces stress, anxiety and fatigue (Ettema and Smajic, 2015). However, it is not just within nature that being in place is valued. Children and young people in rural areas will seek out the urban, such as a shop, and those from urban areas will seek out the rural, such as parks (Nairn et al., 2003). Evidently, learning in and through places is valued by children and young people as a positive experience (Pike, 2011).

Introduction  3

Children and young people’s learning experiences in place

Place-based learning is a powerful pedagogical approach that connects learning with the physical place in which it happens and seeks to connect learners with the local context, cultures and environments (Smith, 2002). It is experiential and incorporates the meanings and the experiences of place in teaching and learning, and as Vander Ark et al. (2020, p. xii) suggest, ‘if we pay attention, place has much to teach us’. As educators, there is an extra dimension to this, as we must be prepared that there are differences between adult and young people’s views of and uses of places (Punch, 2002; Nairn et al., 2003) and use these as a learning opportunity. The COVID-19 pandemic brought many challenges to the education sector worldwide. Yet, as schools physically closed, place-based education gained significant attention as schools embraced ‘alternative learning environments, including teaching and learning outdoors, and learning from home’ (Yemini et al., 2023, p. 1). Even when schools reopened, lessons that were exclusively taught inside, such as drama and music were taken outdoors. Through active learning and enquiry, educators can offer opportunities for children and young people to experience, to question, to enquire and ultimately to learn about and from the people, places and processes that surround them (Roberts, 2023). These opportunities can support children and young people to gain familiarity with place and develop a relationship with people and places (Scannell and Gifford, 2010). The active learning process enables children and young people to build and deepen connections with their own context; their homes, education settings (crèche, early years centre and/or school), their community and their local environment. As well as other environments they use repeatedly, such as the locality of their carer, friends or other family members. Importantly, when educators draw on the school’s community to make place-based education a reality for students, they are also facilitating the development of togetherness, social relationships and community identity. This is particularly important for students new to an area and school. By learning in and with the community, children and young people also come to appreciate the impact of others on their meaningful places  – that places are controlled and developed by people beyond their community. Massey (2005) describes this outward orientation of place as a global sense of place and argues that our actions in one place can affect people and places elsewhere. Hands-on pedagogy and youth-led action projects can result in positive change, as is seen in Briley Habib’s chapter reporting on how her students learn about global ecosystems and food production while growing produce in their school vegetable patch to supply a community food bank. As is evident through the chapters of this book, educators who regularly use place-based pedagogies can ensure that learning is meaningful and children and young people’s lived experiences are valued and, crucially, built upon by those who teach them.

4  Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

Encountering ideas of place in education as a collaborative book project

Encountering ideas of place in education does two things; firstly, it engages with ideas about place drawn from the literature and empirical research, it then considers how these ideas can be applied in education. Rather than have early chapters focus on theories of place and place-based education followed by chapters illustrating how to apply these ideas in practice, our plan was for chapters to be co-written by colleagues working in different contexts. We saw how collaborative thinking and writing about place would strengthen the relationship between theories and practice, develop research-informed practice and support practitioners to write for publication. Our call for chapters attracted great interest, and it has been a joy to work with and learn from a diverse range of authors who collaborated to write 19 distinct chapters on a range of place-based themes. Each chapter makes explicit the theories, research and practice of how we should be mindful, curious and wise about the experiences in place of those we teach. The book’s editors identify as geography educators who were both school teachers before becoming lecturers in higher education institutions, but we did not want the book to be bounded by our discipline nor our experiences as place-based educators in formal education settings. Instead, we hope that this book has wide appeal, to educators with an interest in place working in diverse contexts, disciplines and phases of education. We know that geographers will find this book of interest, as place is the most important concept for the discipline, but as Cresswell (2015, p. 1) reminds us ‘place is not the property of geography – it is a concept that travels quite freely’. We are delighted that our author team is multi-disciplinary and includes geographers, marine biologists, environmental educators, early years educators, science educators and outdoor educators, all who conceive of place from different views. We also recognise that our author team includes representation from diverse contexts (including pre-schools, schools, colleges, universities and educational charities), phases (including early years, primary, secondary, tertiary and the life-long learning sector) and places (including Australia, England, Ireland, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam and Wales). Furthermore, each author has their own story of connection to place and education, some of which are shared here. This diversity brings a richness of perspectives and experiences which will be of interest to educators with an interest in place working internationally across contexts, disciplines and phases of education. It will also be of interest to policymakers, academics and students wanting to understand how place-based education can be used to support students to develop a sense of belonging and flourish in their school community.

Introduction  5

Encountering ideas of place in education chapter summaries

The book comprises 19 chapters organised into three key parts, each of which explores a theme relevant to Encountering Ideas of Place in Education. Within the first part, Being in Place, authors explore scholarship relating to the experiences and perspectives of learners, from early years through to university levels who (re)connect with natural landscapes and develop an understanding of place, its history, characteristics, culture and traditions. The six chapters in this part present subjective experiences of learners in real places such as ancient forests, hills, karst landscapes and protected places, and focus on how we can learn about place while situated in place. In the opening chapter, Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton consider how experiences in ancient woodlands can be used to enhance children’s understandings of trees, bees and the more-than-human world. Thus, providing young learners with a sense of awe and wonder as well as an augmented experience of place and an expanded understanding of self. Their underpinning theory is inspired by philosophies of Indigenous cultures through ‘slow pedagogy’ (Payne and Wattchow, 2009) for an embodied experience of place. In the second chapter, Holly Randell-Moon and Nicholas Ruddell draw on the concept of ‘Country as teacher’ to illustrate how cross-cultural Indigenous science environmental education has been developed within the Australian curriculum. They argue that the inclusion of First Nation perspectives in policy enables education to operate between Indigenous and Western knowledge systems and this has meant that Indigenous approaches to placebased education and First Nations sustainable practices are now embedded in the school curriculum. In Chapter 3, Nicola Walshe, Zoe Moula and Hilary Cox Condron outline how the AHRC-funded Eco-Capabilities project enabled children to identify places within their school grounds which they felt disconnected from and were then supported to engage creatively with these places through arts-in-nature practice. The authors argue that ‘Artscaping’ can help places to be reimagined as sites of wonder and curiosity and can support children to develop agency to want to belong in, be part of, and protect their school grounds. In the following chapter, Emma Rawlings Smith and Kate Otto evaluate the method of list writing, a form of creative writing they used to encourage Sixth Form students to pay attention and notice what happens during fieldwork in everyday places. In her chapter, Áine Bird explores the ways learner-led heritage exploration and discovery initiatives are used by educators at the Burrenbeo Trust to support place-based education. She highlights how all places and communities, including all ages, interests and learning settings, can build agency and empower communities, including schools, to take their own and act for their own place. In the final chapter in this part, Graham French, Aled Edwards, Ian Martin and John Tatam explore the relationship between place

6  Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

and outdoor education and how outdoor experiences can allow an encounter of place in teacher education. They demonstrate how their place-responsive programmes are designed to raise awareness of place as well as help students to make connections to specific places in the locality. They also recognise that place-responsiveness can allow children and young people to develop their own cultural awareness of who, and where, they are in the world. The second part, Community Places, Perspectives and Experiences, comprises seven chapters that explore connections between education, people and places within communities. From an ideographic stance, communities are the setting for everyday life; they are sites of meaning developed as memories are made in place through activities and experiences with others in a locale. The way people feel about places and their sense of belonging is affected by their identity and these experiences can be understood quite differently. Chapters in this part present subjective experiences of place in particular communities. Córa Gillic and Celine Govern begin this part with a chapter that focuses on nurturing young children’s emerging sense of place in preschool settings. They recognise that young children’s connection with and sense of place develops early in life through active first-hand, meaningful experiences. This experiential learning includes observing and developing an understanding of local places through being outdoors as well as block play, map-making, drawing and discussion. In the next chapter, mother and daughter team, Emma Walker and Lily Walker, describe the impact of the erasure of space and place as an academy trust takes over an English school and seeks to both regulate and colonise. Drawing on empirical research, they question whether the national policies of school ownership and curriculum can enable space for local connections and landscapes of place to be formed. Moving to Thailand in chapter  9, Roger Baars and Xiaoling Zhang illustrate how place-based education programmes in rural Thailand help to foster strong place attachments to their village among local youth. Using participatory tools with students, their research found significant differences in levels of place attachment between participating and non-participating students in terms of affect, cognition and behaviour. In their chapter, Catherine Wilkinson and Samantha Wilkinson describe young people’s conceptualisations of community who are no longer in education and volunteer at Knowsley Community College-based radio station. Drawing on their research, the authors advance debates that shift notions of community away from static place-based understandings to more networked approaches. This is significant because conceptualising community in this way lends itself to networked approaches to learning that involve ­co-operative, collaborative and community aspects. In the following chapter, Briley Habib and Drew Perkins describe how place-based learning through enquiry can be used in secondary education to promote student agency and equity. They explore the intertwining of classrooms with outside agencies to

Introduction  7

immerse students in local heritage, cultures, landscapes, opportunities and experiences to better understand the complexities of the world around them. In the final chapter of this part, Yi Chien Jade Ho and Hui-Nien Lin turn their attention to the possibilities of a radical pedagogy of place. They engage critically and radically with place history and the collective imagination, to ensure that learners are enabled to act for a just and flourishing future. In the context of government decisions to move communities, they describe cultivating pedagogical spaces, to ensure nuanced understandings of place, reciprocal relationships to each other and land, and responsibilities to healing and justice. Within the third and final part, Encountering Place in Educational Spaces, authors explore scholarship that connects young people, place and the school curriculum. The six chapters have a greater focus on teaching and learning about place within and beyond the classroom. Bringing learning back to the school and its locality, Janine Maddison, Charlotte Foster, David Morgan and Sara Marsham begin this part by exploring the potential use of digital tools, particularly interactive maps and digital collaboration tools, to develop students’ virtual sense of place and address challenges experienced by students during residential field courses. The authors argue that digital tools provide a range of valuable opportunities to collect, present and analyse field data, supporting students to learn new digital and geospatial skills and enhance their geographical understanding. In the following chapter, Denise Freeman and Susan Pike outline a story of collaboration relating to place across geography education, across their different places and phases of education. Drawing on the literature, they present a framework for connecting young people’s geographies in place to the theory that informs their work. They explore learning through places within this framework, at times of transition. In their chapter, Paula Walshe and Nora Corcoran draw on their work in early childhood education in Ireland to consider how traveller children experience the education system. The authors argue that Irish traveller children experience a sense of exclusion and a dearth of representation in school, therefore for socially just world, teachers should nurture their sense of identity, representation and belonging in the education system. In Chapter 16, Alex Booth and Mary Biddulph consider the connection between young people, place and pedagogy as interruption. The authors show how teachers can interrupt students’ understanding of the familiar in daily life through the creative method of photography and montage-making, supporting students to reimagine place and develop a geographical understanding of how their identities are built through interactions in and with the world. In the following chapter, Ellen Bishop and Lucy Manners explore diversity, sense of place and the educational experiences of multilingual students, arguing that teachers should pay attention to students’ lives and experiences when making curriculum decisions about the people and places they

8  Emma Rawlings Smith and Susan Pike

teach about in school geography. In the face of political, emotional and practical challenges, Catherine Walker and Andrew Vance’s chapter focuses on young people, place and climate change and offers a hopeful message for educators that their teaching on climate change can be enhanced by attention to place. Drawing on insights from a research project in the UK and Australia, the authors show how using place to make sense of climate change can bring an abstract and potentially overwhelming topic to life in different contexts. Alan Marvell, David Simm, Cyril Clark and Kerry Thompson conclude this part by exploring the importance of encountering place through fieldwork, drawing on a palimpsest approach which offers a geographical understanding of place and instils in students a natural curiosity in the wider world. References All websites last accessed 31 May 2023 Agnew, J. (1987) Place and politics: The geographical mediation of state and society. London: Routledge. Anderson, J. (2022) Understanding cultural geography. London: Routledge. British Lung Foundation (2019) Travel to school survey. https://swnsdigital.com/ uk/2019/09/the-british-lung-foundation-launches-world-car-free-day-to-raiseawareness-on-toxic-air Creedon, J. (ed.). (2022) An Irish folklore treasury: A selection of old stories, ways and wisdom from The School’s Collection. Dublin: Gill Books. Cresswell, T. (2015) Place: An introduction. 2nd edn. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Ettema, D., and Smajic, I. (2015) Walking, places and wellbeing, The Geographical Journal, 181(2), 102–109. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43868634 Fjørtoft, I. (2004) Landscape as playscape: The effects of natural environments on children’s play and motor development, Children, Youth and Environments, 14(2), 21–44. Gibson, J. J. (1979) The ecological approach to perception. Boston, MA: Haughton Mifflin. Hayden, D. (1995) The power of place. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Holloway, S. L., and Valentine, G. (2000) Children’s geographies: Playing, living, learning. London: Routledge. James, A., Jenks, C., and Prout, A. (1998) Theorizing childhood. Cambridge: Polity Press. Kyttä, M. (2002) Affordances of children’s environments in the context of cities, small towns, suburbs and rural villages in Finland and Belarus, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 22(1–2), 109–123. Ma, X. (2003) Sense of belonging to school: Can schools make a difference? The Journal of Educational Research, 96(6), 340–349. https://doi.org/10.1080/ 00220670309596617 Massey, D. (2005) For space. London: Sage. Nairn, K., Panelli, R., and McCormack, J. (2003) Destabilizing dualisms: Young people’s experiences of rural and urban environments, Childhood, 10(1), 9–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0907568203010001002

Introduction  9

Payne, P. G., and Wattchow, B. (2009) Phenomenological deconstruction, slow pedagogy, and the corporeal turn in wild environmental/outdoor education, Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 14(1), 15–32. Pike, S. (2011) “If you went out it would stick”: Irish children’s learning in their local environments, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 20(2), 139–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2011.564787 Punch, S. (2002) Research with children: The same or different from research with adults? Childhood, 9(3), 321–341. Qvortrup, J., Wintersberger, H., Alaanen, L., and Olk, T. (2007) Childhood, generational order and the welfare state: Exploring children’s social and economic welfare. Odense: University Press of Southern Denmark. Roberts, M. (2023) Powerful pedagogies for the school geography curriculum, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 32(1), 69–84. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2022.2146840 Scannell, L., and Gifford, R. (2010) Defining place attachment: A  tripartite organizing framework, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30(1), 1–10. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2009.09.006 Smith, G. A. (2002) Place-based education: Learning to be where we are, Phi Delta Kappan, 83(8), 584–594. https://doi.org/10.1177/003172170208300806 Tuan, Y. F. (1977) Space and place: The perspective of experience. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. Vander Ark, T., Liebtag, E., and McClennen, N. (2020) The power of place: Authentic learning through place-based education. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD). Yemini, M., Engel, L., and Bin Simon, A. (2023) Place-based education – a systematic review of literature, Educational Review, online first, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/ 00131911.2023.2177260

PART 1

Being in place

1 BEE-ING AND FEELING OF PLACE Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton

Introduction

In this chapter, we explore how mindful, multi-sensory activities in nature places allow children and young people alike not only to dwell in a place but also to enable them to feel part of a place. We argue these place-based approaches are counter to the dominant pedagogies of schools and universities because their primary aim is not to progress the learners to a future endpoint of educational attainment. In contrast, these activities aim to connect learners to place through contemplative experiences that facilitate an engagement with the aliveness and beingness of the more-than-human world. This type of engagement is important not only because of the wellbeing benefits that are afforded to the participants but also because of the existential understandings that encompass such experiences. Drawing on underpinning pedagogical theory, we explore how these approaches offer a decolonised perspective that acknowledges Indigenous wisdom and reveres beings in nature as subjects and our relations. We suggest that these understandings are at the heart of an understanding of place and are also much needed if we are to improve our relationship with the more-than-human world. Research has shown that nature is significant for children and young people in many ways, including enhancing social skills and cognitive functioning (Kellert, 2002), improving mental health and physical health (Dean et  al., 2018) and developing a sense of environmental awareness and responsibility (Palmberg and Kuru, 2000). It is claimed however that the many benefits of exposure to nature and an other-than-human world are not being realised and as a result, children suffer from ‘nature deficit disorder’ (Louv, 2011) or what is called ‘the extinction of experience’ (Pyle, 1993). This is due to what DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-3

14  Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton

is referred to as ‘indoorism’ (McDaniel, 2009, p.  196) describing the way children’s time is increasingly spent indoors. There are many reasons for this lack of time outdoors in nature but among them include children’s increasing use of electronic media (Skar et al., 2016), parental overscheduling (Smith et al., 2019) and fear of risks (Harper, 2017). Moreover, it is argued that the encased urbanisation of our lives means we have become a ‘deplaced people’ (Orr, 2013) suffering from ‘placelessness’ (Smith, 2020). According to Evernden (1999), this displacement and disconnect is due to how the natural world is objectified and treated as a resource. It is claimed that this has dire consequences as ‘the redefinition of earth as human-owned space entails the elimination of the concept of place – nothing “belongs” anywhere’ (Evernden, 1999, p. 152). Consequently, the ­other-than-human beings in these spaces become objects to be used, and we become numb to our interdependencies and interrelatedness (Evernden, 1999; Bonnett, 2021). Therefore, we deny places ‘any of the character of worldhood’ and at the same time deny ourselves access to them ‘as a home’ (Evernden, 1999, p. 66). Alternative states of being

It has been highlighted by numerous commentators that in classrooms of industrialised societies, an anthropocentric perspective holds sway within which human beings are subjects and everything else, including other living beings in the natural world, is viewed as objects (Evernden, 1999; Jardine, 2000; Bonnett, 2021). Bonnett (2019) calls for an ecologisation of education that involves an ‘attunement to nature’s occurring’ (p.  254) acknowledging the agency and alterity of the more-than-human world. He explains this as a ‘frame of mind’, a way of being that is currently not encouraged in mainstream schooling in the West. This frame of mind views the m ­ ore-than-human world as being purposive yet full of mystery and spontaneity, thus demanding reverence and wonder (Bonnett, 2019). Ford and Blenkinsop (2018) point out that Western cultures must bear responsibility for the colonial violence and oppression inflicted and sustained not only on Indigenous peoples but also on the more-than-human world. Cajete (1994) argues that Western societies could learn from Indigenous wisdom and, rather than trying to control nature, instead respect and revere their ­more-than-human relations. This involves listening to and valuing the voices of the more-than-human world instead of disregarding them as being insignificant and unimportant (Cajete, 2000). Ingold (2020) draws on Indigenous people’s perspectives to propose that we have two halves to our bodies, the half we can see and an invisible half that is the air that we share with nature. While these ideas may seem discordant to dominant Western cultures, we suggest they may be less so to children. Children have

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had less time to be enculturated into the dominant culture of society than adults (Cajete, 1994). As such, a child’s view of the world is less predetermined and more open-minded (Cajete, 1994). By embracing Indigenous perspectives, one can begin to understand Abram’s (1996) concept of the ‘more-than-human’, experiencing ‘other-than-human’ life as an expanded expression of life rather than being perceived as less-than-human. In this view, ‘human life and other-than-human life are part of one web of life’ (Kumar, 2009, p. 15). Such perspectives challenge the idea of humans being apart from, and superior to, other life on our planet. Alternative ways of knowing

Another example of mainstream education unwittingly promoting a separation between children and the more-than-human world is the way that the body is removed from most pedagogical thinking. Hart (2017, p. 300) criticised the way the body has been largely excluded from the classroom, arguing that an emphasis on ‘objectivity’ or ‘seeing what is on the outside’ has meant that ‘sensing what is on the inside’, or subjectivity, has been forgotten. Thus, the prioritisation of objectivity ‘has left us in our heads, outside or above the world and our bodies, searching for a way back in’ (Hart, 2017, p. 300). Hart called for the ‘return of the body in education’ as we are always embodied in our physical bodies and ‘embodied in the world’ (2017, p. 300). Damasio (1994) showed how our bodies and feelings are never divorced from logical, rational thought. Moreover, it is argued our bodies, feelings, and intuitions provide ways of knowing that are additional to rational thinking (Miller and Nigh, 2017). Cajete (1999) argued that bodily and affective knowings are neglected in mainstream education and consequently these ways of knowing the natural world are discouraged. He contends that ‘biophobia’, a fear of nature, underpins the mindset of education in the West. He asserted that, in contrast, Indigenous education maintains a ‘biophilic sensibility’, a love of nature, as a guiding paradigm as humans come to know themselves and the world through their ‘relational existence’ with the other-than-human world and each other. This biophilic motivation, the ‘innate human urge to affiliate with other forms of life’ (Wilson, 1984, p. 85), cultivates a deep connection with place and the land. These knowings are not built on rational logic that tends to dominate mainstream education but is felt and experienced through the body and affective domains (Cajete, 2015). Pulkki et al. (2017) similarly insist that Western education needs a ‘biophilic revolution’ encompassing bodily and sensory ways of knowing as ‘human alienation from nature is seen as closely related to alienation from one’s body’ (p. 214). It is claimed that this deep affiliation with the more-than-human world involves an openness to the wonder of otherness that can be experienced through the body (Cajete, 2015).

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The body as a place of reciprocity

Bonnett stated that this biophilic attitude requires an appropriate attentiveness to receive what is offered and ‘a dialogical openness that incorporates a sense of the well-being of things themselves’ (2007, p. 716). Bonnett (2007, p. 7) described this as a ‘dialogical openness’ and a ‘receptive sensing’ rather than the relentless categorising and objectivising of the more-than-human world that dominates in mainstream schooling. This chimes with Jardine’s (2000) call for an ‘ecologic’ to replace the ‘egologic’ (pp. 92–93) of schools. An ecologic welcomes uncertainty and wonder, acknowledging ‘a deep and mysterious interdependency and wholeness that embraces and sustains our efforts to understand’ (p. 93). It is argued that what is necessary is an open, caring attentiveness towards the wonder of the more-than-human world, a letting-go that enables children to experience their interrelatedness with this wonder (Bonnett, 2007; Jardine, 2000; Pulkki et al., 2017). This letting-go can be described as a re-focusing of attention. Instead of focusing attention on what is going on inside one’s head, attention can be focused on our bodily ways of knowing. Abram (2010) explains the body as a kind of place, not solid but permeable, ‘a terrain through which things pass and in which they sometimes settle and sediment’ (p.  230). As such, it can be perceived as a ‘travelling doorway’ through which aspects of the ­more-than-human world ‘are always flowing’ (p. 230). Abram (1996) draws on the phenomenology of Merleau-Ponty (2012) to explore the participatory nature of perception. The body is conceptualised as a place of reciprocity – a ‘means of entering into relation with all things’ (Abram, 1996, p. 47). This resonates with Buber’s (1958) philosophy of dialogue where humans and other beings in the world exist in a dialogic ‘I-thou’ relationship of subject to subject rather than a subject to object, ‘I-It’ relationship. Buber (2000, p. 23) uses the example of a tree and explains that we can experience meeting a tree as an object, categorising, analysing and objectifying it or we can meet a tree as another being and experience the meeting as dialogic and of existential significance as we ‘become bound up in relation to it’. Abram (1996) similarly suggests that with the appropriate attentiveness, we can experience a ‘direct, pre-reflective perception’ that is inherently participatory (p. 130). Our sensory abilities mean that we are ‘tuned for otherness’ (Abram, 1996, p. 181) and when we focus on our senses, we can tune in to our participation with the more-than-human world. Slowing down

To focus on our senses, a slowing down is required. Here we enter the time of kairos or cosmological time, a temporal existence that is beyond the confines of the clock (Smith, 2020). The time of kairos is concerned with quality rather than numbers, it is the ‘wild time’ of the more-than-human world, ‘opposed to the constructed house of clock-time’ (Griffiths, 1999, p. 277). It

Bee-ing and feeling of place  17

is a time experienced as stillness or even eternity when we are truly immersed in a moment. When we allow our students to slow down and engage with their senses, we afford them the opportunity to become attuned with the time of kairos and a sense of place. Place therefore entails ‘a pause in movement’ (Tuan, 2001) as the pause enables ‘a locality to become a center of felt value’ (p. 139). It is only by pausing or dwelling in spaces for more than fleeting moments, and acknowledging our embodied existence, that we are able to feel a sense of place and ‘to receive meaning from that place’ (Payne and Wattchow, 2009, p. 16). By slowing down, we can take in multi-sensory and affective engagement with a place. Payne and Wattchow (2009) describe this approach as a ‘slow pedagogy’ or ‘ecopedagogy’ to counteract the incessant fast pace of education in industrialised cultures thus allowing students to ameliorate ‘time poorness’ and experience place through their senses and through the body. As described earlier, this can perhaps be best thought of as an experience of time that contrasts with the clock-time that usually dictates much of daily activity in education and forces an incessant fast pace all in the name of progress (Adams and Gray, 2023). It encompasses deliberately dwelling in the moment and experiencing oneself and one’s surroundings through one’s senses, feelings and intuitions. This involves knowing a place not through categorisation or any rational, logical thought, but through one’s feelings and senses, without any expectations or thinking of the future or the past. Dwelling in this way allows one to listen to, and be willing to learn from, the multivocal utterances of the more-than-human world. Therefore, one feels part of a place and experiences enhanced in the moment understandings of one’s interrelationship with the more-than-human world. Cynefin in practice

Having a strong feeling of place is encapsulated in the Welsh word cynefin (Adams, 2022). Cynefin is a keyword in the current curriculum for Wales (Welsh Government, 2022) yet cannot be easily translated into English. An understanding of cynefin provides insight into ways of knowing and states of being that are alternative to the dominant discourses in education. It speaks of having a relationship with the land and a strong sense of place. Cynefin acknowledges that a sense of identity is enmeshed with a sense of place and is of existential significance (Adams, 2022). In our work as lecturers at Cardiff Metropolitan University, we aim to incorporate slow, place-based pedagogical approaches and a sense of cynefin in our ancient woodland on campus. As previously discussed, these place-based approaches allow for ways of knowing and states of being that are often counter to the mainstream pedagogical approaches in industrialised societies. In the following two accounts of workshops that take place at the woodland, we outline key themes that resonate with the underpinning theory presented. The first describes a typical visit to our apiary where primary-aged children engage with resident honeybees in

18  Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton

the hives that live in the woodland. The second describes mindful activities that enable students and children to feel part of the living ancient woods. Meeting the bees Key aim

The aim of a visit to our apiary is ostensibly to learn about honeybees and other pollinators, the important role they play in our natural world and what humans can do to help. While our young visitors no doubt leave having learnt something about honeybees, the benefits of the experience go beyond mere knowledge gain. Content

1. Exploration of Beekeeper equipment, an empty beehive, and role-play activities 2. Workshops at the apiary Learning activities

The children arrive at the outdoor learning centre exactly as you might expect them to be – having bundles of unspent nervous energy and excited at being out of school. While this positive energy is obviously nice to see, it is alas less than helpful in the context of a visit to a beehive! It is also potentially an obstruction to the children’s sense of embodiment with their surroundings. The first part of their visit therefore involves helping the children to focus their attention more mindfully on their upcoming meeting with the bees and to engage their bodily ways of knowing. Whilst sat in the log circle a little distance from the apiary, their visit is put into context and the children are directed to visually take in their surroundings. Safety is the key first message. Many children will arrive with an already-developed caution or fearful response to flying, buzzing insects and sometimes, unfortunately, nature more generally. Great care must be taken with these messages about safety and careful behaviour to reassure rather than arouse anxiety. The discussion then turns to bees and other pollinators, their importance and our interconnectedness in a worldwide ecosystem. Props are employed, including images of the principal pollinators, jars of different kinds of honeys for tasting, drones in specimen bottles, solitary bee homes and an empty beehive. The children are directed to explore these props through their sense of touch, smell and sight, and to discuss their feelings and responses. When the discussion turns to honeybees, it is emphasised that they are not domestic animals like sheep and chickens, but wild creatures, and it is important to be respectful of this.

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All we are doing as beekeepers is giving the bees somewhere safe and warm to live, and in return, the bees might let us safely enter their world and occasionally allow us a share of their honey harvest. A hive visit is an invasive activity, disturbing bees from their usual business. Bees are averse to sudden movements and strong vibrations, including those created by loud voices. Bees also do not care greatly for human breath, so heavy anxious breathing is best avoided. Needless to say, then, beekeeping is fundamentally a quiet, calm and contemplative activity, and it is important prior to a hive visit to instil some of this in the children. To this end, as a group, they copy and practise simple slow movements with an emphasis on breathing, not dissimilar to tai chi exercises. This focus on breathing helps to relax and re-orientate attention, introducing a sense of calm and further slowing the children down. From this point on, they are told that it is important to talk calmly and quietly and not to make sudden movements because this is what honeybees prefer, and when they inevitably slip, they are reminded of how they should behave. Honeybees are respected just as people would be respected and the children are encouraged and guided to consider honeybees empathetically as living beings, just like humans, that need respect and care. Now is the time for role play. They are given bee suits to put on, a process that can quickly become chaotic but is helped somewhat by their exercises and gentle reminders. They work with an empty beehive, slowly, quietly and calmly working together deconstructing and reconstructing the hive, removing, exploring and replacing frames of wax and comb. As they do this, they are learning about the hidden life of a colony of honeybees inside a hive. Playing the role of a beekeeper seems to absorb children in a new, if temporary, identity, and they appear contemplative and consumed by the present moment. The role play comes to an end, however, and, with a further reminder about safety and the beekeeping skills that they have already practised, the group walked to the apiary where they will experience the ‘real thing’. The main group of children, as many as 20, remain accompanied by their teachers at a safe distance from the hives. Everyone is told what to expect – bees will fly out, they will buzz around, they will land on suits, but nothing bad can happen as long as you remain a beekeeper – stay calm and quiet, move slowly and wear a beekeeping suit. Children are given an ‘escape’ option  – if they are in any way uncomfortable then they can simply walk away from the hive to re-join the main group. This occurs rarely, and when it does happen the child often joins the next visiting group, seemingly emboldened by observing the positive outcome for their peers. Smaller groups of six to eight children are escorted to the hive, stood in a safe place and the inspection begins, slowly and calmly, without noise and heavy breathing. Having been lightly smoked beforehand, the bees are engrossed in eating their honey and a frame full of hundreds of pre-occupied bees can be removed and

20  Dylan Adams, Rob Lewis and Chantelle Haughton

handed to the children who, using their new-found skills, pass it around for closer inspection. Anxiety is inhibited in a state of calmness, their natural curiosity surfaces and the children become consumed by the activity. Bees always alight on the children’s suits, and whilst there might occasionally be a moment of mild consternation, this quickly passes, replaced by children openly whispering for bees to land on them. Although they are there for less than thirty minutes, time passes very quickly for the children and, always reluctantly, they must depart the hive the same way they arrived, calmly, quietly and slowly. The sound, smell and the sheer volume of life in a hive presents a mesmerising, unique experience. A safe and secure hive visit can be a very impactful experience for a child, and there is every chance of creating some of those lifelong childhood memories that can do so much to shape emerging adult attitudes. Feeling the beings in the woods Key aim

The following mindful activities have taken place with primary school children, undergraduate students and postgraduate students. The aim of the activities is to afford the participants a deliberate slowing down and sense of immersion in the woodland. Content

1. Mindful activities in the woodland Learning activities

We begin with a mindful listening exercise that takes place in an outer log circle on the outskirts of the woods. This enables the participants to attune to the surrounding woodland. It also serves as a sensory barometer of comparison when the same exercise is repeated in the inner log circle, located in the heart of the woods. The participants are shown how to sit in a relaxed but upright posture and undertake gentle shoulder rolls, forward and back, to help ensure that the shoulders are relaxed, and the back is straight. Hands may be placed on knees or thighs. Guided breathing exercises follow. The participants are asked to close their eyes and breathe in gently through their nose for five seconds, then gently out through their mouth for seven seconds. They are encouraged to notice how the air going in may feel cool in comparison to the warmer air going out. After the group has undertaken between two and four rounds of breathing exercises (depending on their age

Bee-ing and feeling of place  21

and focus), they are asked to bring their attention to the sounds they can hear. It is important that the sounds are not judged or analysed. Instead, the participants are guided to listen, observe and experience the sounds. They may notice where the sounds are coming from or whether they are near or far away, but to aid a lack of judgement the participants are intermittently brought back to focus on their breath going in through their nose and out through their mouth. This exercise allows the participants to get into an open receptive state of mind focused on their senses and the present moment. It also helps to slow down their state of being so they may enter the woodland in a calmer and more careful frame of mind. In addition, it recognises the voices of the ­more-than-human world as being worthy of being heard and valued. On the walk into the woods, the participants are introduced to individual trees. The names of distinct species are used such as ash, birch, oak and hazel. Depending on the time available, the group may be told some of the legends associated with distinct species and their associations with storytelling whilst being given opportunities to observe the shape, colours, size, smells and touch of different parts of individual trees. Participants are told of Simard’s (2021) research into how trees communicate with each other and care for each other. The point is made that in Indigenous cultures and ancient wisdom traditions, this knowledge has been taught but that previously Western scientists considered the ideas fanciful. However, recently the work of Simard (2021) and others has proved what these ancient cultures have known all along. The participants are told that trees connect with each other under the ground through a mycorrhizal network. This is described as the wood-wideweb. It is important that the participants are encouraged to imagine what is going on under the ground they are standing on but also to acknowledge that despite the research of Simard (2021), ancient wisdom traditions teach us that humans need to be aware of the mystery and wonder of the more-thanhuman world is beyond rational explanation. The lack of rational understanding, however, does not impinge on our ability to understand through other ways of knowing and feeling our connections with our plant relations in the woods through our senses. Once at the inner log circle, the participants undertake the same mindful listening exercise they undertook in the outer log circle. After this has taken place, they are asked if they noticed any differences with the experience in the outer log circle. The woodland’s density around the inner log circle means there are far fewer audible human-made sounds. There are also usually more individual birds that can be heard singing and chirping. Participants are told that they are sharing their existence with the birds and the trees in the woods. This is explained in the way that we share the same breath with the ­more-than-human world, what the Lakota people refer to as ‘Niya’, the life breath of all living beings (Cajete, 1994, p. 142). They are asked to consider

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that they are constantly in participation and in a state of reciprocity with the more-than-human world. The participants are then asked to wander around the woodland and find a tree they are drawn to. When they find their tree, they are asked to think about how they are ‘bound up in relation’ (Buber, 2000, p. 23) to the tree, to view the tree as another being, a subject rather than an object and be aware of how meeting the tree in this way makes them feel. They are then asked to gently touch the tree’s bark, close their eyes and feel gratitude towards her by saying thank you to the tree (in their heads) and sending a feeling of gratitude towards her. They are asked if they can feel the life energy of the tree, if they can sense themselves as in connection with the tree and how they felt during that experience. Implications for practice

The previous discussions and activities outlined have various potential implications for practice. 1. Learners can engage with place through their senses, their bodies and their feelings (their emotions and intuitions). These ways of knowing may be different to the rational ways of knowing that tend to dominate classrooms but are no less valid. 2. Accessing these ways of knowing requires a ‘slowing down’ so that place may be experienced and felt through the body. 3. When learners slow down and engage with their senses and bodies in these mindful ways, they can become more attuned to a sense of place. 4. Encouraging learners to meet other beings in nature as ‘more-than-human’ allows for a sense of awe and wonder to be part of these experiences. 5. These ways of knowing places have long been practised by Indigenous peoples and yet have not generally been practised in mainstream schooling. Therefore, exploring these pedagogical approaches is a way of decolonising the curriculum.

Conclusion

The above activities facilitate an understanding of place usually absent from mainstream schooling. These contemplative, slow pedagogical approaches require the participants to embrace the present moment and experience the uncertainty and wonder of the more-than-human world. This is a world beyond the control of clock time encountered in the time of Kairos, the everlasting now. Place is experienced not as a space for performance, resources to be utilised, or as property as part of some manufactured identity. Rather, place becomes ‘the necessary condition for sacred understanding’ (Smith,

Bee-ing and feeling of place  23

2020, p.  368). Place therefore has existential significance as the students and children explore the more-than-human world mindfully through their senses and focus on their interconnected existence. The activities enable the participants to encounter beings in nature as subjects rather than objects and experience how their enmeshed existence with the more-than-human world affects their feelings about nature and themselves. By acknowledging the body as a place of reciprocity, the children and students become mindful of our interdependence with the more-than-human world. They experience not being in a place but feeling part of a place. In doing so, they develop their awareness of ways of knowing and states of being that are not usually prioritised in schooling in industrialised societies. Feeling part of the m ­ ore-than-human world helps to cultivate a sense of relationship that not only benefits future human and planetary wellbeing but also fosters enhanced existential understandings. References Abram, D. (1996) The spell of the sensuous: Perception and language in a ­more-than-human world. New York: Pantheon. Abram, D. (2010) Becoming animal: An earthly cosmology. New York: Vintage. Adams, D. (2022) Exploring cynefin-being in place, Holistic Education Review, 2(1). https://her.journals.publicknowledgeproject.org/index.php/her/article/view/ 2000/2052 Adams, D., and Gray, T. (2023) An exploration of how the disruption of mainstream schooling during the COVID-19 crisis provided opportunities that we can learn from so that we may improve our future relationship with the more-than-human world, SN Social Sciences, 3(1), 18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43545-022-00588-1 Bonnett, M. (2007) Environmental education and the issue of nature, Journal of Curriculum Studies, 39(6), 707–721. Bonnett, M. (2019) Towards an ecologization of education, The Journal of Environmental Education, 50(4–6), 251–258. Bonnett, M. (2021) Environmental consciousness, nature, and the philosophy of education: Some key themes, Environmental Education Research, 29(6), 1–11. Buber, M. (1958/2000) I and thou (R. Smith, trans). New York: Scribner. Cajete, G. (1994) Look to the mountain: An ecology of Indigenous education. Durango: Kivaki Press. Cajete, G. (1999) 10 reclaiming biophilia lessons from indigenous peoples, in G. A. Smith and D. R. Williams (eds) Ecological education in action: On weaving education, culture, and the environment. New York: State University of New York Press, 189–206. Cajete, G. (2000) Native science: Natural laws of interdependence. Sante Fe, NM: Clearlight Publishers. Cajete, G. (2015) Indigenous community: Rekindling the teachings of the seventh fire. Saint Paul, MN: Living Justice Press. Damasio, A. R. (1994) Descartes’ error and the future of human life, Scientific American, 271(4), 144–144.

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Dean, J. H., Shanahan, D. F., Bush, R., Gaston, K. J., Lin, B. B., Barber, E., Franco, L., and Fuller, R. A. (2018) Is nature relatedness associated with better mental and physical health? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(7), 1371. Evernden, L. L. N. (1999) The natural alien: Humankind and environment. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Ford, D., and Blenkinsop, S. (2018) Learning to speak Franklin: Nature as co-teacher. Journal of Outdoor and Environmental Education, 21(3), 307–318. https://doi. org/10.1007/s42322-018-0028-3 Griffiths, J. (1999) A sideways look at time. London: Penguin. Harper, N. J. (2017) Outdoor risky play and healthy child development in the shadow of the “risk society”: A forest and nature school perspective. Child & Youth Services, 38(4), 318–334. https://doi.org/10.1080/0145935X.2017.1412825 Hart, T. (2017) Embodying the mind, in J. P. Miller and K. Nigh (eds) Holistic education and embodied learning. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing. Ingold, T. (2020) Correspondences. Cambridge: Polity Press. Jardine, D. W. (2000) ‘Under the tough old stars’: Ecopedagogical essays. Foundation for educational renewal, incorporated. New York: Peter Lang. Kellert, S. R. (2002) Experiencing nature: Affective, cognitive, and evaluative development in children, in P. H. Kahn Jr and S. R. Kellert (eds) Children and nature: Psychological, sociocultural, and evolutionary investigations. Cambridge: MIT Press, 117–151. Kumar, S. (2009) Earth pilgrim, The Trumpeter, 25(1), 8–21. Louv, R. (2011) The nature principle: Human restoration and the end of naturedeficit disorder. New York: Algonquin Books. McDaniel, J. B. (2009) With roots and wings: Christianity in an age of ecology and dialogue. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers. Merleau-Ponty, M. (2012) Phenomenology of perception: An introduction. New York: Routledge. Miller, J. P., and Nigh, K. (eds). (2017) Holistic education and embodied learning. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc. Orr, D. (2013) Place and pedagogy, NAMTA Journal, 38(1), 183–188. Palmberg, I. E., and Kuru, J. (2000) Outdoor activities as a basis for environmental responsibility, The Journal of Environmental Education, 31(4), 32–36. Payne, P. G., and Wattchow, B. (2009) Phenomenological deconstruction, slow pedagogy, and the corporeal turn in wild environmental/outdoor education, Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 14(1), 15–32. Pulkki, J., Dahlin, B., and Värri, V. M. (2017) Environmental education as a livedbody practice? A  contemplative pedagogy perspective, Journal of Philosophy of Education, 51(1), 214–229. Pyle, R. M. (1993) The thunder tree: Lessons from an urban wildland. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. Simard, S. (2021) Finding the mother tree: Uncovering the wisdom and intelligence of the forest. New York: Penguin. Skar, M., Wold, L. C., Gundersen, V., and O’Brien, L. (2016) Why do children not play in nearby nature? Results from a Norwegian survey, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 16(3), 239–255.

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Smith, D. G. (2020) Confluences intercultural journeying in research and teaching: From hermeneutics to a changing world order. Charlotte, NC: IAP. Smith, S., Hunt, E., O’Brien, M., and MacIntyre, D. (2019) Growing resilience through connecting with nature, in A. A. Donnelly and T. E. MacIntyre (eds) Physical activity in natural settings: Green and blue exercise. London: Routledge, 162–190. Tuan, Y. F. (2001) Space and place: The perspective of experience. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Welsh Government. (2022) Curriculum for Wales. https://hwb.gov.wales/curriculumfor-wales (Accessed 9 December 2022). Wilson, E. O. (1984) Biophilia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

2 COUNTRY AS TEACHER IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CROSS-CULTURAL INDIGENOUS SCIENCE ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION Holly Randell-Moon and Nicholas Ruddell

Introduction

Place-based education and the co-constitution of human and others with place through custodial management are central to First Nations’ science. The mandatory inclusion of First Nation perspectives in the Australian Science Curriculum (ASC) reflects the need to move towards a research, teaching and learning space that can successfully operate between Indigenous and Western knowledge systems. Given the importance the ASC places on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, there is a need for researchers and educators to translate requirements into meaningful, culturally authentic best practice in relation to First Nations. This chapter will provide resources for cross-cultural science and river habitat sustainability capabilities for the primary and middle school years. Using the case site of the Riverina, on Wiradyuri Country in southern New South Wales in Australia, the chapter explains how Indigenous approaches to place-based education can be used to embed First Nations scalable and adaptive sustainable practices into school curriculum and to foster sustainable river management in school communities. This is achieved by centring First Nations expertise to place-based education and fostering reflexive practice on how ­non-Indigenous peoples come to view themselves as placed on Indigenous Country and their responsibilities as a result of this placement. Much has been documented about the alarming declines in school STEM participation over the past two decades in Australia, despite national and state government programmes designed to bolster interest and capabilities amongst students and teachers alike (e.g. the Closing the Gap initiative, New South Wales Education Standards Authority [NSWESA] STEM support). DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-4

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Indigenous knowledges and student capability in STEM are supported by the mandatory inclusion of First Nation perspectives in the ASC. In the most recent iteration of Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA)’s cross-curriculum priorities in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures (ACARA, 2023), country/place is a key organising idea. Mathematics and science are not explicitly linked to this idea, but there is a suggestion under technologies to ‘identify the interconnectedness between technologies and . . . Country/Place’. These curriculum priorities highlight the need for translation of Indigenous knowledges into practice. A review of school science programmes that addressed Indigenous perspectives (2006–2016) found that when implemented in schools, a substantial proportion were not accompanied with training and if they were limited to no support or follow-through was offered (Ruddell et al., 2021). Similarly, it was found that a considerable proportion of the reviewed literature chose not to include any comments on the inclusion of local Indigenous communities and if they did, only 10% included in-school opportunities. It is our contention that more teaching resources and programmes that mobilise contemporary understandings about teaching and learning in the middle ground domain between Indigenous and Western knowledge system are needed to connect mathematics, science and technologies learning areas to country/place. We also argue that cross-cultural educative programmes cannot be sustainable unless local communities and local knowledges are utilised. To that end, this chapter provides resources including an approach for co-designing cross-cultural science curriculum via Mutual Cultural Responsivity and a case study on river habitat sustainability focusing on fish trap engineering and the Riverina. Place-based education and Indigenous science

Facilitating students’ relationship with place has been recognised as having benefits for fostering environmental literacies, responsibility and relevancy of curriculum to students. In their book Literacies in Place, Comber et al. (2007, p. 16) suggest ‘when places are made the object of study, teachers and young people can come to know their environments in complex ways’. They go on to say that engagement with Indigenous Elders is considered one avenue for research for students. An understanding that all learning takes place on Indigenous Country and that all Indigenous learning is always place-based is not commonly recognised in non-Indigenous conceptions of place-based education research. ‘Country as pedagogy’ (Harrison et al., 2017) is central to Indigenous ways of knowing, being and learning. Country is capitalised to emphasise its agency and role in establishing relationships between humans and non-humans. ‘Country and everything it encompasses is an active participant in the world, shaping and creating it. It is fair from a passive backdrop

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to human experience’ (Bawaka Country et al., 2015, p. 270). Books such as Look to the Mountain (Cajete, 1994), Red (Williams, 2001) and Land Education (McCoy et al., 2016) illustrate the ongoing role of Country in sustaining learning relationships as well as Indigenous knowledges, languages, law and cultures. For Gruenewald (2003, p.  3), ‘a critical pedagogy of place challenges all educators to reflect on the relationship between the kind of education they pursue and the kind of places we inhabit and leave behind for future generations’. Place-based education is viewed as lacking ‘a specific theoretical tradition’ (p.  3) and is connected to range of learning traditions such as Indigenous education. Decolonisation is discussed as one approach to a critical pedagogy of place and is not presented in any hierarchal order. A recognition that colonisation is the a priori structure that works to suppress Indigenous understandings of the agency, relationality and liveliness of place would enable a more epistemically just critical pedagogy of place. Further, although Indigenous education is mentioned as part of the ‘critical’ dimension to place-based education, in terms of identifying systemic injustice, it is not positioned as central to theorisations of place-based pedagogy nor significantly connected to its genealogy (or even as an antecedent to place-based education itself). This is because of some of the ontological and epistemological assumptions that must be overcome to enact critical placed-based pedagogy, namely engendering an understanding in students of their connections to the environment and ‘an intense consciousness of places’ (pp. 7–8), runs counter to dominant epistemologies and ontologies of knowing and being in Western and settler colonial contexts. All Indigenous knowledges are placebased education and materialise place-based pedagogies premised on learning ‘to be affected’ by Country and ‘moved’ by non-humans (Bawaka Country et al., 2015, p. 276). This learning to be affected is similar to what Harrison et al. (2017) describe as ‘sensational pedagogies’ where pedagogy ‘is not just something made or reproduced by humans’ (p.  509). Dominant conceptualisations of cognition and learning mean that ‘student capacities to actively listen, sense and feel are often relegated to lower-order skills in education systems in favour of measurable components of cognition (p. 504). Country is therefore ‘revelatory’ (p. 506) when we know how to observe and listen. Relational co-constitutions of space and the decentring of humans is an important strand of the non-Indigenous spatial turn (see Crouch, 2020; Massey, 2006). Many of these ideas and approaches to place and space are fundamentally preceded by Indigenous knowledges. Phillips et al. (2022, p. 177) describe learning from Country as ‘simultaneously a way of understanding the world (ontology), a system of knowledge (epistemology), and a way of being in the world (axiology)’. They further suggest that ‘Indigenous relationality and learning from Country have for thousands of years produced expertise based on the principle of Country being worked with in dynamic

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and active relation’ (Phillips et al., 2022, p. 177). Learning to be affected by Country can also include the fostering of humility and an understanding and acceptance that not everything can be known about the entities that make up Country (Bawaka et al., 2015, p. 276). But even phenomena that are incomprehensible to humans still relate and move through us (Bawaka Country et al., 2016, p. 463). Bawaka et al. (2016, p. 461) note that ‘there is no space that is not full of more-than-human meaning’ because of each of the entities in Country having their own law (e.g. water law and bird law). As Watson (2015) notes, Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies are law-full, literally full of knowledge, meaning and purpose in contrast to non-Indigenous didactic pedagogies which work to fill ‘empty’ students with knowledge and ‘empty’ environments with built infrastructure. Indigenous conceptions of Country as agentic offer a radical embedding of identity, culture and law to a place that consistently changes and in so doing, requires and stimulates human change. Walsh et al. (2013, p. 9) explain this responsivity in the following way: ‘the biophysical environment and its species offer a definitive moral order that calls for responsibility in human actions toward an environment that generates corresponding reactions from characters within the environment’. Similarly, Yunkaporta writes that ‘our Elders tell us stories, ancient narratives to show us that if you don’t move with the land, the land will move you’ (Yunkaporta, 2020, p. 3). In terms of STEM education, Western knowledge systems separate ‘­ science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics, history, and social studies’. In Indigenous knowledges, these areas of learning are considered together as part of a whole way of life in Indigenous knowledge systems (Sumida Huaman, 2019, p. 754) where continuous learning is intergenerational (Walsh et al., 2013). Because First Nations’ science, engineering and design emphasise a whole-of-environment approach, sustainability is not viewed in isolation or separated into different knowledge domains such as culture, nature, technology and society. Within Western knowledge systems, this holistic approach to science and sustainability has been marginalised. Trimmer et al. (2017, p. 217) explain: Despite traditional Aboriginal culture being considered to be primitive in comparison to Western culture, every day in traditional Aboriginal society strongly reflected scientific and mathematical understandings. For example, traditional Aboriginal people used fire to manage their lands; used the stars to navigate and as a ‘sky calendar’. . . to determine seasonal change and availability of food; knew that tides were linked to the phases of the moon; used certain species of plants to cure illnesses, cuts and pain. Learning from Country involves an intrinsically sustainable relationship to the environment through fostering responsible relationships to place

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(Harrison et al., 2017, p. 505). This is the core of what Whyte (2019, p. 769) identifies as Indigenous environmental education, ‘where societal institutions are designed to best suit the changing dynamics of ecosystems’. This centres on what Whyte (2019, p. 771) describes ‘collective continuance’ with learning activities that ‘focus on deepening the relationships between humans and nonhuman neighbours and systems’. This is lifelong learning for collective responsibility and sustainability and has no discrete end (p.  772), because ‘Indigenous environmental education’ is ‘designed to immerse us in our traditions of qualities of moral relationships across generations’ (p.  784) and ‘support our capacity to grow connections to particular places and to adjust ethically and critically when our lives migrate to different places or when we encounter less familiar circumstances’ (p. 785). Because of the role of Western knowledge systems in marginalising Indigenous science and pedagogies, there is a need for cross-cultural frameworks when embedding Indigenous knowledges into the dominant education system. Mutual cultural responsivity

Mutual Cultural Responsivity theory (Ruddell, 2019) is used for a co-design approach that can competently exchange and respect knowledge and perspectives. Mutual Cultural Responsivity is defined as a pathway for communities of culturally competent practitioners to produce learning experiences that satisfy a collective goal. Mutual Cultural Responsivity is a framework for educators to create a cross-cultural space  – a middle-ground  – where Western and Indigenous knowledge domains do not compete, but rather work in responsive dialogue to show how Indigenous science continues to be relevant to present environmental education and sustainability. The framework is divided into three distinct stages: Awareness, Becoming, and Being. Stage 1: Awareness

In this stage, participants reflect on whether they have gained an awareness of culturally appropriate and inappropriate actions and attitudes. Through ‘experiences’, participants arrive at the understanding that there may be a problem with the way in which their research or practice is communicated to, and conducted within, schools and local communities. For example, programmes are typically designed with tight time constraints in ways that frequently conflict with Indigenous ways of doing. That is to say, programmes are completed in a hurry. This is a conflict because the usual social construction of Indigenous Australian groups requires consultation over an extended period. Additionally, outcomes that align with Indigenous peoples’ wants and needs are often forsaken in favour of Western academic or institutional imperatives. This stage thus identifies disconcerting issues that ultimately

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cause the researcher or educator to question their practice leading to a reframing or re-designing of approaches. For the purposes of this chapter, the educator or researcher will realise that in the contemporary world of STEM education and research, guidance needs to be sought from elders and certain protocols need to be learnt and followed when interacting with their communities, while recognising that within any one of these communities, there are multiple social sub-groups, each with their own particular views. Without this consciousness on the part of the educator or researcher, progression to the next stage is not possible. To help develop good reflective practice, some advice and questions have been developed to assist educators and researchers: • Be clear on which First Nation community you need to work with. • Is your project wanted or needed by this community? • Have you identified who the appropriate community members are that you need to approach? • Have you received training in particular language group protocols? • Have you allowed sufficient time for the community to communicate between themselves? • How does the project benefit the community and what legacy will be left behind? • Have you developed a [team] reflective practice that holds members accountable? Stage 2: Becoming

In this stage, actions take place that will ultimately demonstrate a participant’s capacity to operate within a culturally competent cross-cultural science education research programme. Consistent with Nakata’s (2007) Cultural Interface narrative, each participant values the need for multiple points of entry into a project and, appreciates an ongoing exchange of viewpoints and perspectives about both First Nations and Western approaches to place-based STEM education and related research. Participants understand and appreciate the dialogical exchange, knowledge and perspectives generated by two distinct knowledge systems: traditional and contemporary Indigenous and Western science. Becoming stage participants also understand that place-based, cross-cultural projects must be underpinned by the concept of reciprocation. Responses can be offered in the form of services, support or outcomes desired by the community. From a First Nations perspective, inclusion signifies the importance and relevance of place-based cultural knowledge. Becoming stage participants attempt to provide authentic opportunities for heterogeneous First Nations groups to contribute their unique and specific knowledges and practices that can work alongside Western approaches

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to educational programmes and research. This emphasises the idea that cultural knowledge and practices need to be included with direct involvement by the local, on-Country First Nations community. Employing personal and professional perspectives allows the educator or researcher to initiate culturally respectful practices and priorities that recognises both academic and community aspirations. Crucial here is the acceptance that co-designing with communities is a privilege, not a right. The example shows participants operating in the Becoming stage responding spontaneously, generously, and with purpose towards a mutually responsive project. Some Becoming stage reflective questions: • Are you providing professional development involving cultural competency to non-Indigenous stakeholders? • Are you providing the sort of environment whereby cultural knowledge will be freely offered? • Are you providing/donating resources, for example, teaching and learning materials? • Are you allowing time for project collaborators and stakeholders to absorb information? • Have you set up practical communication and consultative practices across multiple platforms? Stage 3: Being

This third stage builds on Stage 2 capabilities of continually reflecting on engaging, waiting patiently, co-designing and reciprocating. Multiple examples of reciprocity that include the giving, receiving and sharing of resources, and training and support are provided from research conducted in the placebased, cross-cultural science education domain (Ruddell, 2019). We have argued that the Being stage is the middle-ground space of cultural confidence. Practice has evolved to where Mutual Culturally Responsivity is commonplace. Ethical, culturally appropriate research, with a high degree of scrutiny by both the researcher’s institution and the community, has to be enacted before, during and after programmes are introduced. Teaching and learning practices are delivered in a collaborative, respectful way that respects First Nations sovereignty. Protocols are known and followed. For example, reciprocity is embedded in the overall research and pedagogical design. Potential outcomes that are beneficial to the community are placed at the forefront. In a move away from the confines of one-truth Western STEM explanations, a fresh pathway to locate and value alternative, place-based knowledge systems exist for both researchers and educators (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 2008). The importance of the ability for both parties to exchange knowledge, perspectives and resources cannot be overstated here.

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Some Being stage reflective questions: • Are First Nations resources and peoples actively and appropriately engaged before and during my project? • Is there clear evidence of participants operating with professional cultural confidence? • Do I see participants sharing resources? • Does my programme reflect my capabilities and professional understandings of ethical, decolonised, culturally appropriate methodologies and approaches? In sum, underpinned by Cultural Interface Theory, we advocate the use of a middle-ground framework to articulate appropriate practices suitable for working in the cross-cultural place-based science education domain. We operate in this space with professional cultural confidence, and by doing so, we employ the Mutual Cultural Responsivity framework to inform our understandings. The following applies this approach to specific learning plans and programmes focused on fish trap engineering in the Riverina. Encountering the Riverina

The Riverina is situated on Wiradyuri Country in south-west New South Wales, and includes the Murrumbidgee River, part of the Murray-Darling basin. This area has experienced degradation as a result of intensive agriculture and grazing as well as previous water management practices. Along with drought, climate change exacerbates these conditions producing further environmental stressors such as prolonged heat and irregular flooding. These conditions impact water health and fish habitat biodiversity. The New South Wales government’s Future Climate Impacts report states: ‘The Riverina region is considered likely to be one of the regions of New South Wales, most severely impacted by climate change’ (NSW Government, 2015, p. 4). The report noted there is ‘high confidence’ (p. 121) that river flows will be reduced due to drought, and this will impact aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity. ‘Australia’s aquatic ecosystems are extremely vulnerable to climate change’ with a reported potential loss of 34% (NSW Government, 2015, p.  121) due to overfishing, invasive species, and habitat destruction and disruption. Research on the Murrumbidgee indicates that native fish river populations are impacted by farming irrigation channels, where fish can be stranded leading to the disruption of life cycles (see Baumgartner et al., 2007; King and O’Connor, 2007). The Future Climate Impacts report notes climate change will impact Indigenous culture and heritage and the current policies constrain their ‘adaptive capacity’ (NSW Government, 2015, p. 128). First Nations’ aquacultural practices and engineering use a holistic and adaptive

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design where balance and reciprocal habitat relationships are maintained (The Gunditjmara People and Wettenhall, 2010). First Nations’ science and knowledge can be used to develop capabilities for scaling, adapting, and evaluating human action and intervention into river environments. First Nations’ science and cultural knowledge provide opportunities and benefits for sustainable river management (Bark et  al., 2015; Humphries, 2007). This knowledge encompasses a holistic design capable of addressing several elements of river environments at once, including water health, fish habitat conversation, and sustainable and adaptive interventions (The Gunditjmara People and Wettenhall, 2010). Focusing on fish trap engineering, our proposed learning plan supports transformative education programmes for schools to increase water health and prevent fish habitat loss by implementing a cross-cultural school science curriculum for years 5 and 6 students. Connecting Wiradyuri knowledge holders with schools through the Mutual Cultural Responsivity framework will enable the translation of New South Wales curriculum priorities noted earlier and address the need for Indigenous/non-Indigenous collaboration in climate change mitigation and adaptation. The lesson plans involve transformative learning (Sterling, 2010) to develop capabilities for students and teachers to co-design river habitat sustainability using place-based, cross-cultural science. Climate change mitigation and adaptation requires knowledge and capabilities to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of human action on the environment (Kutay and Lawrence, 2017). Students and teachers will learn how to scale and adapt fish traps using sustainable engineering to ensure river resources are balanced and managed according to reciprocal habitat associations and relationships. Aligned to an educational context, the learning activities are interactive and immersive, developing students’ problem-solving abilities and applying them to sustainable climate adaptation and mitigation practices. Establishing principles for co-design with First Nations knowledge holders creates familiarity and awareness from students and schools with sustainable river management through place-based learning. Principles for sustainable climate are learnt through scalable and adaptive approaches to managing fish habitats and their relationship to the surrounding environment. This is a holistic approach to sustainability. To illustrate how educational projects might work in the contested third space, the lesson plans use engineering as the context for engaging Indigenous and non-Indigenous years 5 and 6 students in STEM. Students are introduced to, and investigate, river habitat and fish stock sustainability, and basic engineering principals of automated fish trapping. Gaining an understanding of First Nations engineering as technologically sustainable with complex and dynamic design and operation underpins the teaching and learning design. Hands-on activities include working in collaborative learning group teams to design and building mini fish traps using a selection of materials based on local construction methods. A stream table set up with variable water flows will allow students to test their designs in terms

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FIGURE 2.1 Activities

using the Mutual Cultural Responsivity framework.

of strength and ability to function when confronted with fast/slow, high/low water levels. Elder participation, teacher training and community involvement are critical components of the project. The proposed unit of work comprises six weeks of activities: • Week 1: School to work through Awareness stage of Mutual Cultural Responsivity framework to begin engagement with on-Country First Nations.

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• Week 2: Students to investigate river health habitat and sustainability in the Riverina; school to work through Becoming stage. • Week 3: Students learn about Indigenous science and engineering approaches to sustainability and river health habitat; see Further Readings section for resources. • Week 4: Students build a stream table using Lego to model and test water flows and the percentage of fish stock required for sustainable habitat based on Australian Government figures that at least 48% of stock should remain unfished to enable sustainable marine populations (Australian Government, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, 2013). Students will consider design principles to add apertures or holes to the traps to ensure some fish can swim through the traps. • Week 5: Students create a report, video or presentation of the findings from their stream table tests. • Week 6: Schools, students and elders exchange knowledge and stories and work towards the Being stage. Conclusion

Indigenous education makes a significant contribution to environmental sustainability because it is premised on fostering the knowledge and capacity ‘to locate ourselves in relation to each other and to Country in order to imagine ways beyond precarity’ (Phillips et al., 2022, p. 182). Focusing on fish trap engineering with the Riverina as a case site, our lesson plans aim to raise awareness of, and interest in, sustainable river management practices developed by First Nations. The proposed programme links students, the school, the local Indigenous Community and the local environment. The learning supports transformative education programmes that enable First Nations knowledge holders and schools to co-design and develop capabilities to improve Indigenous and non-Indigenous collaboration for climate change mitigation and adaptation. The programme develops student capabilities for understanding the scale and design required for sustainable river management and fish habitat approaches. Moreover, the resources provided in this chapter are a model for the incorporation of sustainable practices into school curriculum and engagement of youth in sustainable activities while increasing engagement with First Nations and recognising knowledge holders as having expertise in science and sustainable river management. Through reflexive and responsive practice, schools, students and communities alike are able to place themselves in Country and continuously learn and adapt to its knowledge. Further readings For middle-school years, engagement with Pascoe’s (2014) discussion of the traps is recommended.

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Kutay and Lawrence (2017) is an excellent source of background information for educators at the middle-school level. Several examples of fish trap engineering remain in Australia, including the Brewarrina fish traps or Baiame’s Ngunnghu (https://brewarrinafishtraps.com.au/ book-a-cultural-tour-around-brewarrina-fish-traps).

References ACARA (2023) Aboriginal and torres strait islander histories and cultures (version 8.4). https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/cross-curriculumpriorities/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-histories-and-cultures/ Australian Government, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. (2013, May). Final report on the review of the Commonwealth Fisheries Harvest Strategy Policy and Guidelines. Canberra: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. https://www.agriculture.gov.au/sites/default/files/sitecollectiondocuments/ fisheries/environment/bycatch/report-harvest-strategy.pdf Bark, R. H., Barber, M., Jackson, S., Maclean, K., Pollino, C., and Moggridge, B. (2015) Operationalising the ecosystem services approach in water planning: A case study of indigenous cultural values from the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia, International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management, 11(3), 239–249. Baumgartner, L., Reynoldson, N., Cameron, L., and Stanger, J. (2007) The effects of selected irrigation practices on fish of the Murray-Darling Basin. Narrandera, NSW: Department of Primary Industries Narrandera Fisheries Centre, 90. Bawaka Country, Wright, S., Suchet-Pearon, S., Lloyd, K., Burarrwanga, L., Ganambarr, R., Ganambarr-Stubbs, M., Ganambarr, B., and Maymuru, D. (2015) Working with and learning from country: Decentring human authority, Cultural Geographies, 22(2), 269–283. Bawaka Country, Wright, S., Suchet-Pearon, S., Lloyd, K., Burarrwanga, L., Ganambarr, R., Ganambarr-Stubbs, M., Ganambarr, B., and Maymuru, D., (2016) Cobecoming Bawaka: Towards a relational understanding of place/space, Progress in Human Geography, 40(4), 455–475. Cajete, G. (1994) Look to the mountain: An ecology of Indigenous education. Durango, CO: Kivaki Press. Comber, B., Nixon, H., and Reid, J-A. (2007) Literacies in Place: Teaching Environmental Communications. Newtown: Primary English Teaching Association. Crouch, D. (2020) Space, lived culture, and affectivities in stirring imagination, in N. van Es, S. Reijnders, L. Bolderman, and A. Waysdorf (eds) Locating imagination in popular culture: Place, tourism and belonging. London: Routledge, 84–95. Gruenewald, D. A. (2003) The best of both worlds: A  critical pedagogy of place, Educational Researcher, 32(4), 3–12. The Gunditjmara People, and Wettenhall, G. (2010) The people of Budj Bim: Engineers of aquaculture, builders of stone house settlements and warriors defending country. Heywood: Em Press Publishing. Harrison, N., Bodkin, F., Bodkin-Andrews, G., and Mackinlay, E. (2017) Sensational pedagogies: Learning to be affected by country, Curriculum Inquiry, 47(5), 504–519. Humphries, P. (2007) Historical Indigenous use of aquatic resources in Australia’s Murray- Darling Basin and its implications for river management, Ecological Management & Restoration, 8(2), 106–113.

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Kincheloe, J., and Steinberg, S. (2008) Indigenous knowledges in education: Complexities, dangers, and profound benefits, in N. Denzin, Y. Lincoln, and L. Smith (eds) Handbook of critical indigenous methodologies. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. King, A. J., and O’Connor, J. P. (2007) Native fish entrapment in irrigation systems: A step toward understanding the significance of the problem, Ecological Management & Restoration, 8(1), 32–37. Kutay, C., and Lawrence, C. (2017) Enduring engineering for our water resources, in 19th Australasian engineering heritage conference: Putting water to work: Steam power, river navigation and water supply. Sydney: Engineers Australia. Massey, D. (2006) Landscape as a provocation, Journal of Material Culture, 11(1–2), 33–48. McCoy, K., Tuck, E., and McKenzie, M. (2016) Land education: Rethinking pedagogies of place from Indigenous, postcolonial, and decolonizing perspectives. Oxon: Routledge. Nakata, M. N. (2007). Disciplining the savages, savaging the disciplines. Australia: Aboriginal Studies Press. NSW Government (2015) Future climate impacts: Local land services. https:// www.lls.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/588777/LLS_Riverina_Future_ Climate_Impacts.pdf Pascoe, B. (2014) Dark Emu black seeds: Agriculture or accident? Broome: Magabala Books. Phillips, S., McLean Davies, L., and Truman, S. E. (2022) Power of country: Indigenous relationality and reading Indigenous climate fiction in Australia, Curriculum Inquiry, 52(2), 171–186. Ruddell, N. (2019) Mutual cultural responsivity: Towards a framework for contemporary school science. Doctoral thesis, Charles Sturt University. Ruddell, N., Danaia, L., and McKinnon, D. (2021) A systematic literature review of school science programs addressing indigenous perspectives: Research approaches and opportunities (1999–2019). World Studies in Education, 21(2), 5–26. https:// doi.org/10.7459/wse/21.2.02 Sterling, S. (2010) Transformative learning and sustainability: Sketching the conceptual ground, Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 5, 17–33. Sumida Huaman, E. (2019) Yachayninchis (our knowledge): Environment, cultural practices, and human rights education in the Peruvian Andes, in E. A. McKinley and L. T. Smith (eds) Handbook of indigenous education. Singapore: Springer Nature, 725–765. Trimmer, K., Gower, G., and Lock, G. (2017) Reinventing another unaipon: Indigenous science leaders for the future, Australian Journal of Indigenous Education, 47(2), 216–225. Walsh, F. J., Dobson, P. V., and Douglas, J. C. (2013) Anpernirrentye: A framework for enhanced application of indigenous ecological knowledge in natural resource management, Ecology and Society, 18(3). Watson, I. (2015) Aboriginal peoples, colonialism and international law: Raw law. Oxon: Routledge. Whyte, K. P. (2019) Reflections on the purpose of indigenous environmental education, in E. A. McKinley and L. T. Smith (eds) Handbook of indigenous education. Singapore: Springer Nature, 767–787. Williams, T. (2001) Red: Passion and patience in the desert. New York: Pantheon Books. Yunkaporta, T. (2020) Sand talk: How indigenous thinking can save the world. San Francisco: HarperOne.

3 ‘THE HEART OF THE FOREST IS HERE’ Reframing children’s disempowered relationships with once-familiar places through Eco-Capabilities Nicola Walshe, Zoe Moula and Hilary Cox Condron

Introduction

Eco-Capabilities is a UK Arts and Humanities Research Centre (AHRC)funded project, situated at the intersection of three issues: a concern with children’s wellbeing; their disconnect with nature and lack of engagement with the arts in school curricula. It builds on Amartya Sen’s human capabilities as a proxy for wellbeing (Sen, 1993), developing the term eco-capabilities to describe how children define what they need to live a fully good human life through environmental sustainability, social justice and future economic wellbeing. Children are significant stakeholders in their environment with an equitable right to participate in its development, and yet frequently experience frustration about the state of the local environment and powerless to effect change (Barratt Hacking et  al., 2007). Seeing this as crucial to the wellbeing of people and planet, eco-capabilities seeks to overcome this issue using arts-in-nature, developing the suggestion of Hicks and King (2007) that art education is well-situated to address environmental problems that emerge at the point of contact between nature and social life. Through Eco-­Capabilities, children aged seven to ten from schools in areas of high deprivation participated in nine days of artist-led sessions, described by the Cambridge Curiosity and Imagination (CCI) charity as Artscaping. The study drew on arts-based research methodologies, providing an inclusive approach to engaging disenfranchised perspectives, such as those held by children. Children were asked to identify places within their school grounds which they feel disconnected from; this appeared significant, given recent social isolation due to COVID-19, creating further need to reconnect children with these once-familiar outdoor spaces within and surrounding their school. Children DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-5

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were then supported to engage creatively with these spaces through Artscaping. Within this chapter, we will explore children’s developing relationship with these places across the project, considering how they became sites of wonder and curiosity for the children, but also places through which they developed agency to belong within, be part of, and protect, both individually and collectively. We will finish by drawing out implications for practice which support both pro-environmental behaviour and children’s wellbeing. Towards a relationship with place: pedagogies and practice

Having a sense of place can be defined as ‘the experience of personal involvement in a system or environment so that persons feel themselves to be an integral part of that system or environment’ (Hagerty et al., 1992, p. 173). Segers et al. (2021) suggest that this is illustrated through two separate elements: place identity and place attachment. Place identity is the process by which, through interaction with places, people describe themselves in terms of belonging to a specific place, which then becomes a component of their personal identity (Stedman, 2002); this assigns significance to a place for developing the self and personal identity. Place attachment on the other hand refers to an affective and secure link with a place; the place can be any place, regardless of size or physical character, which becomes a centre of meaning. In this way, a sense of place strongly resonates with a sense of belonging within a particular place or environment. This is important as a sense of belonging has been argued as being a central mental health concept that relates to social inclusion, as it refers to our deepest need of security through attachment. Despite the importance of having a sense of place for individual wellbeing, this can be difficult to achieve; Tuan (1975, p. 164) notes: ‘It takes time to know a place, the passage of time itself does not guarantee a sense of place’. In this way, it takes time for ‘spaces’ (even familiar ones) to become meaningful ‘places’ to an individual; time which allows the development of affections, meanings (memories and associations) and the activities offered by the place, including social interactions associated with it (Zeisel, 2006). As such, attachment with a place can be regarded as an infinite ongoing process of re-connecting with place(s) within which we live. There is evidence to suggest that children from areas of high disadvantage, particularly poor socio-economic status, can be disproportionately disconnected and disenfranchised from community spaces (Mitchell and Campbell, 2011). This lack of belonging not only can compound the impacts of social isolation (Stanley et al., 2022) but also heightens existing inequalities in mental health and wellbeing. This is of particular concern when recent reports suggest that 18% of children and young people in England suffer a severe mental health illness (National Health Service, 2022), with people from deprived areas or with experiences of socioeconomic and structural inequalities being

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primarily affected (Centre for Mental Health, 2020). Health interventions that use natural environments have been recognised as natural, functional infrastructure that contributes to wellbeing and sustainability, providing cost-effective environmental and socioeconomic benefits (European Commission, 2021). For example, the UK’s government’s 25-year environment plan urges for investments in nature-based interventions, especially in communities whose mental health has been disproportionately affected by health inequities (HM Government, 2018). Natural England (2020) estimates that £2.1 billion could be saved in health costs annually if everyone had good access to green space (defined as green space being within 100 m according to Public Health England, 2020). However, while there are benefits for mental health and wellbeing of simply having access to green space, having a sense of connection to or belonging within those spaces has the potential to significantly increase these benefits. As such, it is important to explore pedagogy and practice which supports connection with place and, therefore, their wellbeing. There are increasingly recognised ways of supporting children and young people’s connections to place; for example, the notion of psychogeography can be used to support their physical and mental exploration of the environment as a mechanism for understanding and engaging with it. This approach acknowledges the relationship between humans and place, such that we are ‘sensitive to the emotional dimensions of living in the world’ (Anderson and Smith, 2001, p. 8) and provides opportunities for spontaneous interactions with a landscape which allows a person to ‘be drawn by the attractions of the terrain and the encounters they find there’ (Debord, 1981/1958, p. 62). More recently, Witt (2017) builds on this to propose that a slow pedagogy approach which invites children ‘to pause or dwell in spaces for more than a fleeting moment’, better enables them to develop place attachments and make meaning within the landscapes they inhabit (Payne and Wattchow, 2009, p. 16). This rejection of relentless pace now common in schools is further reflected in the term slowliness, practised by CCI and defined by Ayliffe et  al. (2020) as a commitment to making time for creative practices and children’s thinking to be fully explored and noticed. Clarke and Witt (2022) argue that this slow pedagogy facilitates a shift towards valuing more relational pedagogies which foreground kincentric worldviews – relationships of reciprocity with more-than-human worlds, bonding humans to other animals and plants, seasons, patterns and processes ‘in a matrix of relational care’ (Rose, 2013). One approach to facilitating this approach is through arts and creative practice outdoors. Arts-based activities offer a powerful way for people to connect to places because they evoke an embodied response that fosters an emotional connection (Muhr, 2020). Aesthetic experiences of nature can enable people to make meaning of their relationship with the world (Rosa, 2019) and develop what Ives et al. (2018) term inner connections to nature based in emotional

42  Nicola Walshe, Zoe Moula and Hilary Cox Condron

and philosophical realms. Recognising this, organisations such as CCI have developed pedagogies that link children, art and nature, known as Artscaping. Refined through creative collaborations among artists, professionals, schools and families Artscaping practice has three key characteristics: to affect and be affected by arts, nature, place and space; to create a response from materials and feelings to express new ideas; and to enhance the environment in ways that delight (Walshe et  al., 2020). CCI describe their practice through five threads (Sapsed, n.d.): • Young people and artists building inclusive communities of collaboration and companionship; • Being generous with space, time, materials and attention; • Recognising the importance of slowliness and the emotional dimension of learning; • Inviting exploration through movement, ideas, art and nature • Reimagining the familiar with powerful imaginations and fantastical possibilities Our Eco-Capabilities project explored the ways in which this arts-in-nature practice has the potential to foster deep connections between children and young people and their local spaces, in doing so supporting their mental health and wellbeing (Walshe et al., 2022). The Eco-Capabilities project

Eco-Capabilities is an AHRC-funded project situated at the intersection of three issues: a concern with children’s wellbeing; their disconnect with nature and lack of engagement with the arts in school curricula. It builds on Amartya Sen’s human capabilities as a proxy for wellbeing, developing the term eco-capabilities to describe how children define what they need to live a fully good human life through environmental sustainability, social justice and future economic wellbeing. Children are significant stakeholders in their environment with an equitable right to participate in its development, and yet frequently experience frustration about the state of the local environment and powerless to effect changes. Seeing this as crucial to the wellbeing of people and planet, Eco-Capabilities seeks to overcome this issue using arts-in-nature, developing the suggestion of Hicks and King (2007) that art education is well-situated to address environmental problems that emerge at the point of contact between nature and social life. The context

Four classes of pupils in years 3–5 (ages seven to ten) from two primary schools in eastern England participated in the Eco-Capabilities project; a total

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of 101 children. Both schools were located in areas with an Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI, which measures the proportion of all children aged 0 to 15 living in income-deprived families) of fourth quintile. Over 40% of children in both schools have registered for Free School Meals (the National Average in 2018 was 13.6%); in this way, the research deliberately focused on children living in areas of high deprivation. Research was undertaken April to July 2021, almost immediately following the third COVID-19 ‘lockdown’ in England, and the second significant period of moving to home learning for most pupils. As such, they had experienced an extended period of learning from home away from the school environment and having had minimal interaction with either their teacher or peers. Artscaping practice in schools

Throughout the Eco-Capabilities project, artists from arts and wellbeing charity CCI spent eight full days Artscaping with children across eight consecutive weeks. Each of the Artscaping days within Eco-Capabilities comprised different activities, but generally immediately following morning registration children went outside with artists for the morning. This frequently started with an activity designed to engage them with the outdoor space, such as lying on the ground with their eyes closed, drawing what they can hear or collecting different sizes and shapes of leaves. The children then moved onto a more focused activity, such as creating land art (Figure 3.1), sunlight photography or painting aspects of the environment. During the afternoon, children often worked in or close to the classroom using a wider range of materials, such as paints, oil pastels, clay, ink made from blackberries and even painting on their hands. These sessions allowed children to build on activities from the morning, reflecting on the colours, textures, patterns and environments they had explored. In addition to the eight project days, a community event was held as a ninth artist-led day, comprising opportunities to share and celebrate the practice and created artwork with the wider community; this entailed parents, caregivers and grandparents in one school, but in the other, the community days were limited to inviting the children from the rest of the school to view the work (because of restrictions of COVID-19). Both schools were ultimately presented with a Fantastical Map of the project (e.g. Figure 3.2), with all children given a smaller leaflet containing both the map and a description of the project to keep. Methodology

We undertook participatory and arts-based methodological approaches to explore children’s (re)connections with spaces within their school, as well as how they articulated their broader wellbeing. Before and after the intervention, we undertook a workshop with children which included asking them

44  Nicola Walshe, Zoe Moula and Hilary Cox Condron

FIGURE 3.1 Examples

of land art produced by the children throughout the artistled days (Photographs by the authors).

FIGURE 3.2  Fantastical

Map of Bramblefields by Tonka Uzu with images and words from children involved in the Eco-Capabilities project at one school

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to imagine a place where they feel happy and draw what it looks like (their ‘happy place’), and ‘walk and talk focus groups’ in which children were invited to walk around the school grounds, to show the spaces that they like most and least, spaces where they felt connected to and disconnected from, and spaces they might be fearful of. During the arts-in-nature days, we undertook participant observation, and then held reflective focus group sessions with artists and teachers after each day. Finally, at the end of the intervention, all artists, teachers and head teachers were interviewed, followed by a focus group with all artists and teachers two months later. All reflections, focus group and interviews were transcribed using Otter. ai software and analysed using NVivo. Thematic analysis was performed on both verbal and visual data which allowed us to reflect on how we were conceptualizing the data, and how this conceptualisation was evolving or growing alongside a deeper understanding of the data. This project followed BERA ethical guidelines (2018) and was awarded ethical approval by the University Ethics Committee. Consent was obtained by children’s parents/guardians, and assent was obtained from children. Where consent/assent was not given, children were able to participate in the Artscaping activities, but no data were recorded in relation to them. Reframing children’s relationships with place

Evidence suggested that arts-in-nature practice contributed towards the development of eight eco-capabilities in children: autonomy; bodily integrity and safety; individuality; mental and emotional wellbeing; relationality: human/non-human relations; senses and imagination; and spirituality. Of note was relationality or connecting children with both human and nonhuman environments. Human relationality described the relationships that were developing over time both between children and between children and adults (including teachers, teaching assistants and artists). Non-human relationality is defined as being able to live with a concern for and in relation to animals, plants and the world of nature. Throughout the project, children were encouraged to reflect on their identity as individuals, but also in relation to nature and place. For example, in one school, children were led through a process of body mapping, a life-size representation of self, using art, slogans and symbolism to articulate one’s life story. This was articulated not only as children gaining a stronger sense of their own identity but also as a sense of security in being themselves. This further supports Hilgers’ (1997) suggestion that when children have a strong conception of relatedness to the earth, there is likely to be a stronger sense of bonding with the self; this can also be defined as the ‘ecological self’ (Roszak, 1995). In the following section, we explore the more specific ways in which the arts-in-nature practice supported children’s relationship with their place.

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Becoming familiar with unfamiliar spaces

When children in one of the schools were asked if they had ever visited a local nature reserve, a five-minute walking distance away from school, approximately one-third said that they had. From the first session, it became clear that most children rarely visit nature and outdoor spaces, either as part of the school routine or with their families. Children’s initial responses to going out and being in nature were mixed; although some children were enthused and excited for a new adventure, for many children, visiting new and unfamiliar spaces was a challenging and often scary process. Challenges included dealing with bugs and insects, or staying outdoors even when it was cold and windy. The support and constant availability of artists and teachers was essential to help children go through this initial discomfort, and gradually feel safe and comfortable to explore unfamiliar territories. At the beginning, engagement with simple arts-based activities was key, so that children did not feel overwhelmed by both the exposure to a new space and new activities. Initial activities included observing nature and noticing small details, such as the shape of clouds, the texture of trees, the smell of flowers or the sound of birdsongs. Observations such as these created a sense of curiosity to learn more about these spaces. Gradually, unfamiliarity transformed into curiosity and excitement to visit new places that provoked mystery and secrecy. For example, in one of the schools, sessions took place in a protected part of the school’s playground that was only accessible by passing through the school’s gates with permission. This offered a sense of freedom to go beyond walls and the boundaries of the class. Children described themselves as ‘we are explorers’, ‘we are travellers’ and being ‘in heaven’. As an artist mentioned, ‘every morning unlocking the big green gate feels like opening our portal to a special place’. Considering slow pedagogies (e.g. Clark, 2022; Payne and Wattchow, 2009; Witt, 2017), we believe that giving children permission to slow down, notice and take as much time as they need to create connection with place on their own terms, was fundamental in the process of becoming familiar with unfamiliar spaces. ‘Genuine friluftsliv’

Part of the transition towards familiarity with new places was what Gelter (2010) defined as ‘genuine friluftsliv’, which translates as ‘open air living’ and refers to the commitment of celebrating time outdoors regardless of the weather. For example, during the first sessions, some children appeared to feel uncomfortable when it was cold, windy or rainy outside. Over time, children became more accepting of cold and inclement weather conditions, with some viewing them as opportunities for inspiration and creativity. For example, a day where we were visited by rain, storms and hail, children described it as ‘it tickled and pierced into my skin’, ‘it felt like World War 3’ and a teacher reflected ‘they begged for it not to stop’. It is worth noting that

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this was not the case for every child, and there were still children who did not enjoy being outdoors in these weather conditions. However, this was still considered a significant step for children to create meaningful experiences and memories, therefore developing their sense of place (Zeisel, 2006). ‘Stories of land’

Another impactful method contributing to children’s sense of place was storytelling. Stories were either real, such as historical facts about a place they visited, or fantastical (e.g. Mannion and Lynch, 2016; Watts, 2020). Children were trying to imagine what might have happened in these spaces, creating new characters and stories. The narrative, drawing or enactment of these stories facilitated the children’s connection with these places, as well as new connections between children who had never played together before despite being in the same class. This was particularly important for children from diverse ethnic communities as being in outdoor spaces reduced some of the boundaries and restrictions that were in place indoors, creating space for new relationships to unfold more naturally. Rituals were another form of storytelling that encouraged connection to place. In a session where children were wondering in the school’s nature resort area, they discovered a dead bee. They then proceeded with organising a funeral and fundraising on their memory. During the funeral, children were pretending to cry to express their bereavement and created a ‘grave’ for the bee writing ‘Rest In Peace’, ‘VIB – Very Important Bee’, and ‘Fuzzy Buzzy – A friend to bees and humans’. When children returned to the classroom, they searched on the internet to find more information about bees. As such, an unexpected story and ritual raised children’s curiosity about what exists in nature, while also contributing to the development of meaningful experiences in nature and connection to place. Another aspect that made the ‘stories of land’ meaningful was sharing. Sharing experiences, emotions and feelings with other children, teachers and artists brought them closer to each other, but also closer to the spaces where sharing was happening. As Zeisel (2006) suggested, the social interactions associated with a place may strengthen the sense of place. Children were also aware that they did not have to share anything verbally, and that they could draw or write their thoughts or emotions as a form of non-verbal sharing. This was particularly important for children who felt less confident to articulate their thoughts or emotions verbally, offering them a new avenue to develop connections with place and with other children. Relationality with the more-than-human world

Throughout Eco-Capabilities project, what started as increased interest and curiosity about plants and animals, soon transformed into increased concern

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and care for the survival of plants and animals. Further, children increasingly appreciated biodiversity; for example, although at the beginning, some children were feeling uncomfortable around bugs or spiders, they naturally learned to ‘co-exist’ by increased exposure to these species. In almost every session, there were conversations between children, artists and their teachers about what actions can be taken to care for and protect animals and plants, such as by making habitats for snails, and stop cutting the grass or flowers. This indicated changes in children’s pro-environmental behaviour, which has been defined as not only caring for the environment but also taking protective actions (Martin et al., 2020). Children were also having sophisticated conversations about socio-­ political issues, such as how to make public spaces more attractive, safe and accessible. During one of the sessions, it became clear that people had trespassed their school’s nature area and left their litter on the schoolgrounds. This sparked conversations around how factors such as litter can make public space feel less desirable and safe. Remarkable was also the children’s frustration with the trespassers’ behaviour, which indicated a real sense of responsibility and ownership towards ‘their’ space. The following quote from their teacher suggests that children were gradually developing a sense of belonging and ‘place attachment’ (Segers et al., 2021; Payne and Wattchow, 2009): Over time, they took ownership of that area. For real, this is our space. . . . At one point, some people had trespassed and left the remains of a party, and the children were really annoyed. There was a real sense of, it’s like they’d gone into their garden. They really didn’t like it. Alongside pro-environmental behaviour, children’s pro-environmental identity was growing over time (i.e. sensing that nature was becoming an important part of their identity) (Stets and Biga, 2003). Children’s quotes suggested that they felt increasingly part of nature, rather than getting ‘into’ nature: It felt like I was not person. . . . It felt like I was the nature. Remember! We are nature! So we don’t destroy it, we take care of it. These examples of relationality with the more-than-human-world highlight the importance of the reciprocal process whereby ‘healing in nature is also healing for nature’ (Rust, 2020). Implications for school practice

Across Eco-Capabilities, through the Artscaping practice of CCI, children appeared to (re)connect with their school grounds through growing and strengthening relationships with each other and the non-human world,

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alongside coming to better understand their own emplaced identities within them. In particular, this seems to have been facilitated through four pedagogical processes (Walshe et al., 2022): • • • •

Time and consistency being outdoors Materiality and embodiment A sense of slowliness Emotional expression

Children reconnected to what had, for some, become unfamiliar school grounds through prolonged time and regularity of engaging with nature. They gradually became more confident and comfortable outdoors, and so developed a stronger sense of agency as individuals within it. The encouragement to self-reflect on their relationship with and in nature led to the development of positive affective responses to these outdoor spaces, and even the formation of what might be termed pro-environmental identities (Stets and Biga, 2003) as they came to want to protect them. This nonhuman relationality was very much developed through slowliness so that children could take time to meaningfully connect with their environment. Finally, Artscaping acted as a way for children to express themselves emotionally; although this was sometimes a difficult process, for example reflecting on the passing of a family member, through this process, some children came to associate more positive thoughts and feelings with nature, as well as for coping with sources of anxiety or unhappiness. As such, through these pedagogies, the arts-in-nature practice of Artscaping promoted children’s connections to their local spaces, particularly at a time when COVID-19 lockdowns had forced their separation from them, by allowing them to develop rich appreciations of the natural world and their unique attachment to it. In a context in which children in areas of high deprivation are nine times less likely to spend time in nature compared to more affluent children (National Children’s Bureau, 2013), there is a clear need for schools to facilitate equity of access to nature to reduce health inequities and support mental health and wellbeing. Using ­arts-in-nature practice to do this supports children to grow in self-­understanding, thereby becoming more inspired to protect the nature within them; this then becomes a reciprocal process whereby children’s healing in nature becomes healing for nature (Rust, 2020). Further readings Landon, A., Woosman, K. M., Kyle, G. T., and Keith, S. J. (2020) Psychological needs satisfaction and attachment to natural landscapes, Environment and Behavior, 53(6). Landon et al. (2000) explore how place attachment arises from the realisation of psychological needs for autonomy, relatedness, and competence, thus creating links

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between place attachment and self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan, 1985) and highlighting the importance of wilderness as a context for self-­determined thought and behaviour. Walshe, N., Moula, Z., and Lee, E. (2022) Eco-capabilities as a pathway to wellbeing and sustainability, Sustainability, 14(6). Within this paper, we reflect more on the impact of the Eco-Capabilities project on children’s wellbeing and sustainability, providing further illustration of how Artscaping practice provides a mechanism to support this. For further information about the Eco-Capabilities project, see www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/ departments-and-centres/departments/curriculum-pedagogy-and-assessment/ eco-capabilities-supporting-childrens-wellbeing-through-participatory-art-nature. For further information about the work of CCI, including a range of resources and videos for teachers, see www.cambridgecandi.org.uk/.

References Anderson, K., and Smith, S. (2001) Editorial: Emotional geographies, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 26(1), 7–10. Ayliffe, P., Sapsed, R., Sayers, E., and Whitley, D. (2020) Artscapers. https://www.cam bridgecandi.org.uk/projects/footprints/artscapers-being-and-becoming-creative# artscapers-being-and-becoming-creative Barratt Hacking, E., Barratt, R. J., and Scott, W. (2007) Engaging children: Research issues around participation and environmental learning, Environmental Education Research, 13(4), 529–544. BERA (2018) Ethical guidelines for educational research. https://www.bera.ac.uk/ publication/ethical-guidelines-for-educational-research-2018 Centre for Mental Health (2020) Covid-19 and the nation’s mental health: Forecasting needs and risks in the UK. centreformentalhealth_covid_mh_forecasting_ may20.pdf(careknowledge.com) Clark, A. (2022) Slow knowledge and the unhurried child: Time for slow pedagogies in early childhood education. Oxford: Taylor and Francis. Clarke, S., and Witt, H. (2022) Field-visiting: Paying attention to a more-than-human world, in M. Biddulph, S. Catling, L. Hammond, and J. McKendrick (eds) Children, education, and geography: Rethinking intersections. London: Routledge. Debord, G. (1981/1958) Theory of the dérive, in K. Knabb (ed and trans) Situationist international anthology. Berkeley, CA: Bureau of Public Secrets, 50–54. Deci, E. L., and Ryan, R. M. (1985) Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. Berlin: Springer Science and Business Media. European Commission (2021) Evaluating the impact of nature-based solutions: A handbook for practitioners. Brussels: Publications Office of the European Union. Gelter, H. (2010) Friluftsliv as slow and peak experiences in the transmodern society, Norwegian Journal of Friluftsliv. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/ diva2:982123/FULLTEXT01.pdf Hagerty, B. M., Lynch-Sauer, J., Patusky, K., Bouwsema, M., and Collier, P. (1992) Sense of belonging: A vital mental health concept, Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 6(3), 172–177. Hicks, L. E., and King, R. J. H. (2007) Confronting environmental collapse: Visual culture, art education, and environmental responsibility, Studies in Art Education, 48(4), 332–335.

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Hilgers, L. (1997) Earth-friendly therapy, Self, 19, 70. HM Government (2018) A green future: Our 25-year plan to improve the environment. www.25-year-environment-plan.pdf(publishing.service.gov.uk) Ives, C. D., Abson, D. J., von Wehrden, H., Dorninger, C., Klaniecki, K., and Fischer, J. (2018) Reconnecting with nature for sustainability, Sustainability Science, 13(5), 1389–1397. Mannion, G., and Lynch, J. (2016) The primacy of place in education in outdoor settings, in B. Humberstone, H. Prince, and K. A. Henderson (eds) International handbook of outdoor studies. Oxford: Routledge, 85–94. Martin, L., White, M. P., Hunt, A., Richardson, M., Pahl, S., and Burt, J. (2020) Nature contact, nature connectedness and associations with health, wellbeing and pro-environmental behaviours, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 68(April), 101389. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S02724 94419301185 Mitchell, G., and Campbell, L. (2011) The social economy of excluded families, Child Family Social Work, 16, 422–433. Muhr, M. (2020) Beyond words  – the potential of arts-based research on humannature connectedness, Eco-Systems and People, 16(1), 249–257. National Children’s Bureau (2013) Greater expectations: Raising aspirations for our children. https://www.ncb.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/files/Greater%2520 Expectations.pdf National Health Service (NHS) (2022) Mental health of children and young people in England 2022 – wave 3 follow up to the 2017 survey. https://digital.nhs. uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-of-childrenand-young-people-in-england/2022-follow-up-to-the-2017-survey (Accessed 19 December 2020). Natural England (2020) The people and nature survey. https://www.gov.uk/government/ collections/people-and-nature-survey-for-england (Accessed 14 February 2022). Payne, P. G., and Wattchow, B. (2009) Phenomenological deconstruction, slow pedagogy, and the corporeal turn in wild environmental/outdoor education, Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 14, 15–32. Public Health England (2020) Improving access to greenspace: A  new review for 2020. PHE Publications. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/ uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/904439/Improving_access_to_ greenspace_2020_review.pdf Rosa, H. (2019) Resonance: A sociology of our relationship to the world. Cambridge: Polity Press. Rose, D. B. (2013) Val Plumwood’s philosophical animalism: Attentive interactions in the sentient world, Environmental Humanities, 3, 93–109. Roszak, T. (1995) Where psyche meets Gaia, in T. Roszak, M. E. Gomes, and A. D. Kanner (eds) Ecopsychology: Restoring the earth, healing the mind. New York: Sierra Press. Rust, M.-J. (2020) Towards an ecopsychotherapy. London: Confer Books. Sapsed, R. (n.d.) CCI threads. https://www.cambridgecandi.org.uk/about/about (Accessed 19 December 2020). Segers, R., Hannes, K., Heylighen, A., and Van den Broeck, P. (2021) Exploring embodied place attachment through co-creative art trajectories: The case of mount murals, Social Inclusion, 9(4), 116–129. Sen, A. (1993) Capability and well-being, in Sen: The quality of life. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

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Stanley, J. K., Hensher, D. A., and Stanley, J. R. (2022) Place-based disadvantage, social exclusion and the value of mobility, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 160, 101–113. Stedman, R. C. (2002) Towards a social psychology of place: Predicting behavior from place-based cognitions, attitudes, and identity, Environment and Behavior, 34(5), 561–581. Stets, J. E., and Biga, C. E. (2003) Bringing identity theory into environmental sociology, Sociological Theory, 21(4), 398–423. Tuan, Y.-F. (1975) Place: An experiential perspective, Geographical Review, 65(2), 151–165. Walshe, N., Lee, E., Lloyd, D., and Sapsed, R. (2020) STEM to STEAM as an approach to human development, in P. Burnard and L. Carluccio-Gray (eds) Why science and art creativities matter: (Re-)configuring STEAM for future-making education. Leiden: Brill. Walshe, N., Moula, Z., and Lee, E. (2022) Eco-capabilities as a pathway to wellbeing and sustainability, Sustainability, 14(6), 3582. Watts, A. (2020) Outdoor learning through the seasons: An essential guide for the early years. London: Routledge. Witt, S. (2017) Fostering geographical wisdom in fieldwork spaces – discovery fieldwork, paying close attention through sensory experience and slow pedagogy, in S. Catling (ed) Reflections on primary geography: The 20th Charney primary geography conference 2017. Sheffield: Geographical Association. Zeisel, J. (2006) A sense of place, New Scientist, 189(2541), 50–55.

4 ENCOUNTERING THE EVERYDAY Place-writing during geography fieldwork Emma Rawlings Smith and Kate Otto

Introduction

Fieldwork is a defining feature of geography. Like elsewhere, for school students studying geography in England, fieldwork is a curriculum entitlement, although the nature and scope of opportunities will vary according to the school context, resource availability and staff expertise. Due to concerns about costs, staff wellbeing, sustainability and travel disruption associated with distant fieldwork destinations (Rawlings Smith and Kinder, 2022), there has been a significant ‘turn to the local’ as educators reassess the benefits of studying the geographies of their own locality and carrying out fieldwork closer to home. This local turn is not without conceptual and methodological challenges as students ‘often find it difficult to appreciate the value of thinking about and attending to the everyday life’ (Latham and McCormack, 2007, p. 25). Yet, observing and collecting ‘real-world’ data in more familiar environments means a more manageable, affordable and inclusive mode of experiential learning for all (Lawrence and Dowey, 2021; Moon, 2004). The decision to stay local may narrow the range of geographies studied, but it does not have to narrow the choice and variety of fieldwork techniques employed. Writing in 2015, Phillips was excited about geographical fieldwork ‘being reinvigorated through pedagogical and methodological innovations’ (p. 617) associated with radical and cultural geography and ideas of experiential learning (Moon, 2004; Tuan, 1975). This chapter argues that ethnographic approaches to fieldwork which are applicable to a range of contexts offer one way to reimagine the local, thus providing students with the opportunity to apply unfamiliar ideas to familiar environments while re-engaging with their own everyday geographies. We DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-6

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report on a study that introduced an ethnographic fieldwork technique to A-level geography students and considered whether this approach to fieldwork does indeed encourage students to reimagine the everyday through a geographical lens. Within this chapter, we consider how the powerful writing exercise of constructing lists of objects and behaviours, inspired by Perec’s (1975) ethnographic observations of street life from a café window in Paris, can help geographers better know and understand a place and how it functions, and can complement more traditional fieldwork techniques used at A-level such as land use surveys, vehicle counts and questionnaires. Finally, we explore the perspectives of teachers and students as they reflect on their fieldwork experience in the everyday of their local urban environment and a contrasting coastal setting. The importance of fieldwork in school geography

Fieldwork contributes to high-quality geographical education by providing first-hand experiences of real-world phenomena, people and places. Advances in the discipline often have a strong fieldwork element and with so much research taking place in authentic, ‘in the field’ contexts (France and Haigh, 2018), fieldwork is recognised as a signature pedagogy and defining feature of the subject at school and university (Shulman, 2005b; Seow et  al., 2019). Signature pedagogies tend to be interactive and in the case of fieldwork are characterised by practical activities that involve observing and collecting data about the world and have the potential to ‘make students feel deeply engaged’ (Shulman, 2005a, p. 22). With advances in virtual reality, there is a growing debate as to the meaning of ‘field’ in fieldwork (i.e. whether it can include classrooms, IT suites and virtual worlds) and the nature of experiential hands-on learning (Kolb, 1984) and whether traditional fieldwork techniques used in school geography reflect the full range of methods used in academic geography. On the purpose of fieldwork, the most recent Subject Benchmark Statement for Geography states that fieldwork can support students to ‘engage ethically, sustainably and respectfully with places that are familiar and unfamiliar’ (Quality Assurance Agency [QAA], 2022, p. 10). The experience of non-local fieldwork can be awe inspiring and develop curiosity about distant places (Phillips, 2015) and fieldwork near or far can extend students’ geographical thinking and helps them to know and understand their world. Furthermore, fieldwork supports the development of soft skills such as communication, independence, teamwork and people skills through collaborative activities with their peers (Phillips, 2015). Through direct engagement and interaction with geographical phenomena, including inclement weather, fieldwork experience can support both cognitive and affective learning (Hope, 2009) and the construction of memories and meaning through experience (Tuan, 1975).

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However, despite its ubiquitous nature, fieldwork practices and culture can create barriers to inclusion (Lawrence and Dowey, 2021) and this causes tensions as not all students want to do fieldwork. Some have argued that fieldwork is ‘one of the most effective and enjoyable forms of teaching and learning for both staff and students’ (Kent et  al., 1997, p.  313), yet others have flagged the risks to safety and wellbeing of minority students and staff (Murphy, 2020). Even without unanimous support, fieldwork remains a compulsory element of geography education. Its place in the A-level curriculum has been fought for, and secured, during every major curriculum reform cycle (ALCAB, 2014). For three-year degree programmes, the requirement is for 15 days in the field and for A-level geography, the requirement is for four days over two-years (DfE, 2014). Considering the place of fieldwork in school and university geography, it is surprising that research on fieldwork and more specifically the perspectives and experiences of teachers and students on fieldwork is limited (Seow et al., 2019, p. 228). During the most recent reforms, there was significant input from academic geographers to revise and rewrite A-level subject content, but discussions on fieldwork focused on its importance rather than stipulating fieldwork knowledge, pedagogy, or locations; these decisions were left for teachers to interpret in their own context (ALCAB, 2014; DfE, 2014). Consequently, schools and colleges commonly utilise a range of traditional fieldwork techniques which often have a closed structure (i.e. teacher-led, narrowly focused and follow a sequential scientific method). This encourages students to test hypotheses, and consequently, they presume to collect the ‘right’ data to fit a theory or model, even when it is recognised that geography in the real world is messy, nuanced and complex (Seow et al., 2019). We argue that this messiness should be foregrounded in fieldwork using data collection methods that value the heterogeneity of geographical phenomena. Furthermore, doing geography, rather than being presented with geographical knowledge as a set of facts and figures to learn and remember, can support young people to develop new place-based knowledge and understanding, engage with the world being studied, gain subject-specific and transferable skills, and enhance personal growth and independence (QAA, 2022). Studies that explore fieldwork in geography identify how experiential learning in ‘authentic’ places beyond the classroom can provide young people with a deeper understanding of the subject, the opportunity to investigate geography through ‘question-driven enquiry’ and elicit largely positive affective experiences through active engagement with the world (France and Haigh, 2018; Roberts, 2013; Scott et al., 2019). Yet, few studies have been conducted about the nature of fieldwork in school, a concern given that fieldwork is conducted and assessed as a key component of a highstakes examination system (Winter, 2017). In an article detailing the development of geography fieldwork in British Schools, Cook (2011) recognises

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that hypothesis-testing and data collection has always been popular, and is increasingly being used alongside more qualitative, student-centred, and heuristic approaches which capitalise on ‘the embodied nature of fieldwork . . . and arguably provide a richer educational experience as a result of engaging with the students’ feelings and emotions’ (p.  73). Although little has been written about the application of ethnographic fieldwork in school geography, it is recognised in the literature that giving children and young people the opportunity to use and learn about their everyday geographies is key to a good geographical education (Brand, 2020; Rawlings Smith, 2021). In stark contrast to the fast pace and pressure of England’s high-stakes examination system, pausing in place to pay attention and record everyday happenings during fieldwork is recognised as a form of ‘slow pedagogy’ (Payne and Wattchow, 2009) which can help children, young people and undergraduates to (re)connect with and attend to the natural and social world beyond the classroom (Adams and Beauchamp, 2021). This has plenty of benefits, especially for health and wellbeing (Tucker and Horton, 2019). Place-writing practices in school geography

The practice of ethnography originates from social anthropology and the qualitative anthropology of the Chicago School and is increasingly used across the social sciences to integrate first-hand empirical studies with social and cultural theory (Madden, 2010). The term ‘ethnography’ means ‘writing about people’ and as ethnographic work involves participating in people’s daily lives to observe, listen and write narratives, it is logical that an ethnographic lens can add value to geography fieldwork. Ethnographic geography fieldwork techniques tend to be expansive, loosely structured and qualitative in nature, therefore can complement more traditional quantitative data collection methods such as surveys, labelling maps or footfall counts to understand social phenomena. When planning fieldwork enquiries, the perception that quantitative rather than qualitative data has more rigour and validity is pervasive in school geography. Yet, qualitative approaches such as ethnographic fieldwork enquiry can support students to develop situated knowledge of a phenomena, drawing on all their senses while being immersed in place (Oost et al., 2011). Consequently, much can be learnt by school geographers from ethnographers and their ways of working. Alongside a humanistic turn in geography, there has been a revival of place-writing which focuses on the complexities of place ‘as assemblage’ (Cresswell, 2019). In her seminal book For Space, Massey (2005, p.  149) asserts that place is a ‘constellation of trajectories’ and it is the ‘throwntogetherness’ or gathering of diverse elements of natural and social that make a particular place unique in the ‘here and now’. Perec (1975) also appreciates the time-space context in which our lives play out. He acknowledges that the

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places we inhabit are a palimpsest of past lives that have been written upon by countless generations. Place writing is therefore important for understanding the vitality and diversity of place, as well as the flows and connections between places. Some geographers have written powerful texts on mundane, ‘infra-ordinary’ and everyday places, which include Hall’s (2012) writing on Walworth Road in South London, Massey’s (1991) text on Kilburn High Street in North London and Cresswell’s (2019) local theory centred on Maxwell Street in Chicago. In 1974, Perec spent a weekend sitting in a café and observing Saint-Sulpice Square in Paris to write an exhaustive list of place, with the intention to describe ‘that which is generally not taken note of, that which is not noticed’ (Perec, 1975, p. 3). Based on findings from a small-scale study, this chapter explores what happened when place writing as an ethnographic approach to fieldwork was introduced and used by A-level geography students. It outlines Perec’s exercise in observation and presents examples of geography students exhausting their everyday ‘home’ locality and a not-too-distant coastal place. The chapter then evaluates how transformative this form of creative writing is for young people carrying out fieldwork in everyday places. Research project design and context

The project was designed to introduce and evaluate an ethnographic fieldwork practice for A-level students studying geography in a Sixth Form college in Hampshire. Here the context is outlined before the fieldwork strategy is introduced and data collection methods outlined. Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, with a population of just over 25,000 at the 2021 Census, it is also the place and context of fieldwork. The town, located to the north of Southampton, was historically well-connected to other Roman towns and continued to grow when the railway arrived in the nineteenth century. The town has several primary schools, one secondary school and two further education colleges which serve the educational needs of local children and young people. Geography is a popular option for A-level students at Barton Peveril Sixth Form College, with 19 classes across both year groups, and over 400 students enrolled in total. With a large cohort, A-level human geography fieldwork often occurs locally, in and around the pedestrianised town centre of Eastleigh. The local field trips support the Changing Places unit. Students visit a variety of residential areas covering the house-building initiatives from 1890 to 2020, they also investigate land use change in Market Street and High Street that have supported local communities since the town was built to support the railway depot and locomotive works at the turn of the century. In addition, students investigate the Swan Centre – a typical British shopping centre that was built to the south of Market Street. This is contrasted with a visit to the local

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coastal area (Meon Shore to Lee-on-Solent) to support the teaching of the Coastal Systems and Landscape unit. Students collect data on pebbles’ size and shape both along and across the beaches, they measure beach angles and make field observations about coastal management. In the summer of 2022, six-year 12 classes participated in local and coastal fieldwork, three of which participated in ethnographic observation and list making. Geography teachers leading the classes provided written and verbal instructions as to what to do and what data to collect during the day. And after the fieldwork visits, students were asked to share their work and invited to complete a Jisc online survey reflecting on their fieldwork experience. The survey was designed with a ten-item Likert scale question focused on the fieldwork technique and four open-structured questions asking for further details. An ethical approach to research was taken following BERA (2018) guidelines, with ethics approval gained through the first author’s institution, and pseudonyms were used so that students were not directly identifiable in the write-up. The project aimed to diversify fieldwork methods connected to the Changing Places unit of work and evaluate whether college staff and students found the technique helpful in developing their geographical understanding of place. Students spent 15 minutes at a named location to complete several tasks. They first took a photo of the view they were looking at and recorded the location, time date and weather. Students then wrote a descriptive list of everyday things that were visible and unchanging, this included a description of buildings, landforms, the ground, and streetscape. They also wrote a long list of everyday things that were changing, including a description of people, vehicles, lights, weather and other things that caught the eye and moved in and out of view (describe what they are doing, which way they are moving, where they are going. Notice fleeting words, letters, symbols, colours, numbers and sounds). Findings and discussion

Students were creative and produced a range of responses to the task. In the first example, Paul writes about the everyday happenings on Market Street (2.51 pm, 7 February 2022) and describes the weather as grey clouds with occasional drizzle. Market Street is a central road with a few pedestrian crossings, trees and benches, shops and graffiti, closed shops, and lampposts. A woman crosses the street and gets into a waiting car. An aeroplane passes. A  blue car drives past. A woman in a grey overcoat and black boots walks by. A man on a mobile slowly drives by. A  car pulls up and puts on its hazards. A woman walks past with a podcast playing out of her phone. A homeless

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man sets up under a vacant shop covering. The wind picks up. An old man takes off his mask and opens the door of his car. A middle-aged woman looks despairingly at her phone. A man in shorts and flip flops is followed by a teenager smoking, a couple natter behind. Students arrive and fill the street with noise, two are eating sausage rolls. A van pulls up and a man in a hi-vis jacket jumps out of his cab and disappears into a local shop. A CCTV camera makes a record of everyday life. The High Street is full of colour – a boy in a grey tracksuit, a girl with an orange jumper, a boy in a red coat, a girl in a green coat. A bus sails past, another stops and a woman with a shopping bag steps out. A security guard looks on. Following the same technique, Hope writes about taking the time to write about Hill Head (11.15 am, 7 June 2022), she describes the weather as grey with an odd light shower. Hill Head is beige. The beach is filled with pebbles that are white, grey, brown, rusty red. There is sand, cobbles, grass  – all different shades of green and bluey green – and bright yellow weeks. Clouds hang low. Beach groynes are slimy made of rotten brown wood. The path to the beach is light grey tarmac, but darker where it is wet. Seabirds fly around and float on the water. The tide ebbs in, slowly. Waves gently lap the shore. There is no surf. The cloud cover lifts to reveal a hint of sunshine. The Isle of Wight comes into view in the distance; its settlements stand out in contrast to the white cliffs. People of different ages mill about. Voices catch in the breeze. Footsteps fill the air as children and adults crunch across the shingle. Birds call out to each other, squawking, tweeting. Sailing boats and power boats, bright and white zip past. A dredger moves beach material, a ferry painted bright red and white sails off into the distance. In the following section, we explore the perspectives and experiences of young people engage with everyday places through place writing. Participants (n=60) were asked to what extent they agreed with ten Likert scale items on fieldwork (see Figure 4.1). Findings indicated that most participants found this fieldwork technique to be easy and useful, and it helped them to notice aspects of place missed with other methods. Students were less sure about the value of this approach as a standalone technique; however, they did think it was important to balance the use of qualitative data with quantitative data in their non-examined assessment (NEA). Building a picture of place

When asked whether spending 15 minutes observing everyday geographies helped to build a picture of place, student responses focused on how the

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FIGURE 4.1 The

extent to which students agreed with ten fieldwork statements.

technique provided ‘a snapshot of behaviour and activity’ and ‘insight about the people that visit’, ‘allowing you to see the character of a place’. One student commented: It allows you to actually take in what you are seeing, and think about it more, compared to if you were collecting quantitative data, for example, just counting the number of people passing by. When asked to evaluate this data collection technique, students flagged a range of issues, including their struggle to write everything down, the issue of bias with subjective writing and 15 minutes being too much or not enough time. One student reflected on the reliability of data and said: Because the technique was performed at a specific time it would not accurately depict that area in different types of conditions such as rain or later in the day. This however can easily be rectified by performing the technique multiple times at the same place but in different conditions. Layering data to form a rich understanding of place

Students focused on issues with the use of qualitative methods (more generally) at A-level, highlighting how the subjective nature of qualitative data

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made presenting it difficult and that it did not produce ‘solid evidence’ which would stand up on its own, therefore ‘it’s true strength is when it is combined with other data’ rather than as a standalone. Indeed, when asked if students would use this technique again, there was consensus that the technique added value to the fieldwork experience, if completed in less time and in combination with other methods. These threads were interwoven in the following comment: I think I  would wish to use this data method in geography as it is very relaxing and very easy to do but also helps you collect more data to prove a hypothesis and when combined with other forms of data and data collection really helps bring together a point or idea. It was evident that list writing supports learning during fieldwork as it provides the opportunity for students to pay attention, think and write about place. The approach was felt to work particularly well after students had practised the technique together in the classroom using live webcam footage of Abbey Road London. This pre-visit preparation meant that students knew exactly what to do in the field and most were engrossed in the task and almost hypnotized while noticing the everyday out in the field. We described this as being ‘in flow’ (Csikszentmihalyi, 1997) and this focused state reflected the students’ enjoyment through engagement in and with place. Implications for school practice and conclusions

Implications discussed here relate to the fieldwork method, conceptual understanding and experiential learning in authentic places. Firstly, the collection of contrasting forms of data was recognised by students as a form of methodological synergism. By collecting qualitative, text-based data alongside more traditional quantitative fieldwork data, students were able to triangulate findings and build a richer description of place than was possible with either qualitative or quantitative data alone. Broadening the repertoire of fieldwork methods used at A-level is an important first step in preparing students for higher education or the world of work, both of which will require attention to detail and processes, team and communication skills. As well as writing lists, Cresswell (2019) outlines how data can also be collected by recording soundscapes, montage, paratactic writing (a flat ontology where thick descriptions are presented side by side), street photography, topopoetics (place-making), creating inventories and mapmaking. While evaluating fieldwork, students discussed issues of reliability, bias and the nature of knowledge along with more practical concerns such as how to present and analyse text-based data. Realising the challenges of working with ethnographic data highlighted the value of mixed methods fieldwork for students’ geographical understanding and skills development.

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This is not the case for ethnographic research in academia, as researchers aim to immerse themselves in societies and cultures over longer periods of time to enable a deeper understanding of specific phenomena to be developed. Secondly, list writing helped develop students’ conceptual understanding of place. Using clearly bounded locations meant that students learn about the unique nature of place and talk with specificity; these are both necessary attributes of high-quality student work. Although the main reason to introduce the technique was to broaden students’ repertoire of fieldwork techniques in preparation for the NEA, its use was also found to deepen students’ understanding of place theory. This was valuable as A-level students can struggle with some of the abstract concepts underpinning the A-level Changing Places unit such as topophilia (Tuan, 1975) and global sense of place (Massey, 1991) which relate to a subjective rather than objective view of reality. Overall, it was felt that students would be able to use the experience to make the Changing Place unit come alive in their NEA choices. The final point to make is that local fieldwork using methods such as placewriting can support students to develop new situated knowledge through direct experiences in real-world places in the here and now (Hope, 2009). Educators such as Catling and Martin (2011) remind us of the importance of developing such place-based knowledge as it builds on the wealth of everyday knowledge that students bring to class. Making connections between young peoples’ knowledge, the school curriculum and experiential learning beyond the classroom is an important element of a liberatory education (Freire, 1994) and expansive learning which helps students to understand the world in which they live and can be transformative, otherwise, education is restrictive with too narrow a focus on the delivery of knowledge from teacher to student.

Further readings Boniface, K., Forsdisck, C., Leak, A., and Phillips, R. (2020) Georges Perec’s geographies: Material, performative and textual spaces. London: UCL Press. https:// discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10083077/1/Georges-Perecs-Geographies.pdf. Boniface et  al. (2020) bring together a collection of essays which explore the geographies of Georges Perec’s work, inspiring the next generation of creative practitioners. Cresswell, T. (2017) Video of lecture: Maxwell Street: Fragments of an attempt at writing place, 26 August 2019. Tim’s blog. https://tjcresswell.wordpress.com/ or via Pratt Institute https://talks.pratt.edu/media/t/1_4av2955s. In this video, Tim Cresswell reads fragments of his 2019 book which seeks to capture the essence of Maxwell Street, a historic Chicago neighbourhood, through historical texts and images.

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References All websites last accessed 30 May 2023 Adams, D., and Beauchamp, G. (2021) A study of the experiences of children aged 7–11 taking part in mindful approaches in local nature reserves, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 21(2), 129–138. https://doi.org/10.1080/1 4729679.2020.1736110 BERA (British Educational Research Association) (2018) Ethical guidelines for educational research. https://www.bera.ac.uk/publication/ethical-guidelines-foreducational-research-2018 Brand, S. (2020) Capturing a ‘sense of place’ through fieldwork, Teaching Geography, 45(1), 37–39. Catling, S., and Martin, F. (2011) Contesting powerful knowledge: The primary geography curriculum as an articulation between academic and children’s (ethno-) geographies, The Curriculum Journal, 22(3), 317–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/0 9585176.2011.601624 Cook, V. A. (2011) The origins and development of geography fieldwork in British schools, Geography, 96(2), 69–74. Cresswell, T. (2019) Maxwell Street: Writing and thinking place. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1997) Creativity: Flow and the psychology of discovery and invention. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. Department for Education (DfE) (2014) GCE AS and A  level geography. https:// www.gov.uk/government/publications/gce-as-and-a-level-geography France, D., and Haigh, M. (2018) Fieldwork@40: Fieldwork in geography higher education, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 42(4), 498–514. https:// doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2018.1515187 Freire, P. (1994) Pedagogy of hope: Reliving pedagogy of the oppressed. New York, NY: Continuum. Hall, S. (2012) City, street and citizen: The measure of the ordinary. London: Sage. Hope, M. (2009) The importance of direct experience: A  philosophical defence of fieldwork in human geography, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 33(2), 169–182. Kent, M., Gilbertson, D. D., and Hunt, C. O. (1997) Fieldwork in geography teaching: A critical review of the literature and approaches, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 21(3), 313–332. Kolb, D. (1984) Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Latham, A., and McCormack, D. P. (2007) Developing ‘real-world’ methods in urban geography fieldwork, Planet, 18(1), 25–27. Lawrence, A., and Dowey, N. (2021) Six simple steps towards making GEES fieldwork more accessible and inclusive, Area, 54(1), 52–59. https://doi.org/10.1111/ area.12747 A Level Content Advisory Board (ALCAB) (2014) Report of the ALCAB panel on geo­ graphy. https://alevelcontent.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/alcab-report-of-panelon-geography-july-2014.pdf Madden, R. (2010) Being ethnographic: A  guide to the theory and practice of ­ethnography. London: Sage.

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Massey, D. (1991) A global sense of place, Marxism Today, 24–29, June. Massey, D. (2005) Space, place, and gender. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Moon, J. A. (2004) A handbook of reflective and experiential learning. London: Routledge. Murphy, V. (2020) Geoscience course stops running Oman fieldtrip to be more inclusive, 3 July. Press release. https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/198915/geosciencecourse-stops-running-oman-field trip/ Oost, K., De Vries, B., and Van der Schee, J. A. (2011) Enquiry-driven fieldwork as a rich and powerful teaching strategy: School practices in secondary geography education in the Netherlands, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 20(4), 309–325. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2011.6 19808 Payne, P. G., and Wattchow, B. (2009) Phenomenological deconstruction, slow pedagogy, and the corporeal turn in wild environmental/outdoor education, Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 14, 15–32. Perec, G. (1975/2010) An attempt at exhausting a place in Paris (M. Lowenthal, trans). Cambridge, MA: Wakefield Press. Phillips, R. (2015) Playful and multi-sensory fieldwork: Seeing, hearing and touching New York, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 39(4), 617–629. https:// doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2015.1084496 Quality Assurance Agency (2022) Subject benchmark statement: Geography. https:// www.qaa.ac.uk/the-quality-code/subject-benchmark-statements/geography. Rawlings Smith, E. (2021) Spotlight on  .  .  .  Maxwell Street. Geography, 106(1), 53–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/00167487.2020.1862594 Rawlings Smith, E., and Kinder, A. (2022) The professional needs and views of teachers of geography: A  national research report by the geographical association. https://www.geography.org.uk/write/MediaUploads/Support%20and%20 guidance/GA_National_Research_Report_2022_WEB_8722.pdf Roberts, M. (2013) The challenge of enquiry-based learning, Teaching Geography, 38(2), 50–52. Scott, G. W., Humphries, S., and Henri, D. C. (2019) Expectation, motivation, engagement and ownership: Using student reflections in the cognative and affective domains to enhance residential field courses, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 43(3), 280–298. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2019.1608516 Seow, T., Chang, J., and Irvine, K. N. (2019) Field-based inquiry as a signature pedagogy for geography in Singapore, Journal of Geography, 118(6), 227–237. https:// doi.org/10.1080/00221341.2018.1561740 Shulman, L. S. (2005a) Pedagogies of uncertainty, Liberal Education, 91(2), 18–25. Shulman, L. S. (2005b) Signature pedagogies in the professions, Daedalus, 134(3), 52–59. Tuan, Y.-F. (1975) Place: An experiential perspective, Geographical Review, 65(2), 151–165. Tucker, F., and Horton, J. (2019) ‘The show must go on!’ Fieldwork, mental health and wellbeing in geography, earth and environmental sciences, Area, 51, 84–93. https://doi.org/10.1111/area.12437 Winter, C. (2017) Curriculum policy reform in an era of technical accountability: ‘Fixing’ curriculum, teachers and students in English schools, Journal of Curriculum Studies, 49, 55–74.

5 PLACE-BASED LEARNING INITIATIVES IN THE BURREN Áine Bird

Introduction

For over 15 years, Burrenbeo Trust (‘Burrenbeo’), an independent landscape charity, has worked to facilitate community stewardship in the Burren region of Counties Clare and Galway, in the west of Ireland. Through a series of place-based learning initiatives for schools and the community, participants learn about, in and for their local places and are supported to carry out projects that enhance and protect their local built, natural and cultural heritage. Place-based learning is focused on using local resources to teach and learn for the benefit of both participants and places, taking a holistic view of place (incorporating the multiple layers of a place and its interconnections), and including learning in formal and informal settings for people of all ages. The focus of this chapter is threefold; firstly, we explore place-based learning from a Burrenbeo context; secondly, we outline some Burrenbeo place-based learning programmes and their impact and thirdly we provide examples of activities which can be applied in education settings based on our experience and learnings. The Burren

This chapter examines place-based learning initiatives developed in the unique Burren landscape. On initial consideration of the Burren, people often ask where the Burren is. And what the Burren is. Neither question is particularly easy to answer and depending on who you ask you may get a different response. A geologist might speak of a karst limestone landscape, an ecologist of the species diversity  – orchids, gentians, invertebrates and more, a farmer of the upland pastures where cattle graze and the stone walls DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-7

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and an archaeologist has much to consider with the vast array of monuments left behind by previous generations. It is a place where writers, artists and creatives find inspiration, but what of the local community living, working and making a living in this place? What, if any, meaning does the place hold for them and do the young people, the future custodians of this place, have opportunities to consider their connection to and role in the future of this internationally significant place? Essentially, the Burren is all these things and more, it is something different to different people and considering the above questions is central to the work of Burrenbeo. At its core, the Burren (from the Irish word Boireann, ‘place of stone’) is a living landscape of international importance with a unique natural, built and cultural heritage, as shown in Figure  5.1. This distinctive limestone region covers approximately 720 km2 of Ireland’s mid-western coast (Burren Programme, 2022). With its mixture of exposed limestone pavements, hazel woodlands, species-rich grasslands and lakes, the Burren is home to over two-thirds of Ireland’s native plant species and is now a refuge for many plant and animal species which are rare elsewhere in Ireland and Europe (Burrenbeo Trust, 2022). Alongside this, the fascinating archaeological record maps almost 6,000 years of human habitation, and the role of traditional farming practices on what is sometimes referred to as ‘the fertile rock’ (Dunford, 2002).

FIGURE 5.1

Burren landscape with wildflower meadow in foreground and limestone plateau to the rear.

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Burrenbeo

The story of Burrenbeo begins in 2001 when Burrenbeo Teoranta was set up by Brendan Dunford and Ann O’Connor, initially as a website to help inform people about the Burren and the role of the local community, particularly farmers, in its care. In 2003, the Ecobeo initiative was introduced to Burren schools, aimed at investing in the upskilling of the future guardians of the Burren. The programme involved up to 12 visits to local primary schools by local geologists, botanists, ecologists, farmers, musicians and others to share their perspective on the Burren with the schoolchildren and their teachers. Up to the end of 2022, a total of 2,113 young people had graduated from Burrenbeo education programmes – representing a significant investment in the future. Further developments followed, including monthly walks and newsletters until it was decided to reconstitute Burrenbeo as a membership-based charitable trust in 2008. This signalled a significant expansion of Burrenbeo’s work to its current 26 programmes, all based around a model of communityled conservation or stewardship. Today, Burrenbeo is a thriving, inclusive organisation dedicated to shaping a brighter future for the Burren, its communities and all those who love this special place. The name Burrenbeo speaks to the approach and aims of the organisation. While the Burren is undoubtedly a place of limestone, biodiversity, monuments, stories, legends, music, art and more, it is a living landscape. Beo is the Irish word for living, alluding to the evolving nature of this place. And just as the first farmers shaped the landscape 6,000  years ago by clearing the trees, establishing pastures for their livestock and building megalithic monuments, the current community continue to shape and influence the place which they call home and are central to the development of their place. Providing opportunities, through place-based learning initiatives in schools and the wider community, can serve to enhance the sense of agency where communities can act to enhance their places into the future. While Burrenbeo was originally established as an information-sharing portal, it has evolved and adapted, and now also has a national reach and programmes which were developed locally have been shared with schools and communities around Ireland. Burrenbeo has also provided training to 192 teachers interested in applying similar programmes in their own setting. Today Burrenbeo is a company limited by guarantee, has a board of voluntary directors, reports to the Charities Regulator and currently has just over 850 subscribed members, comprising individuals, couples, families, schools and businesses who are local, national and international. Burrenbeo and place-based learning

We live in what many are referring to as the Anthropocene (Whitehead, 2014), a period where human activities are exerting increasing impacts on

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our environment, a time of crisis – loss of biodiversity, climate change, persistent institutionalized inequality and the increased risks of war. With these realisations come, for some, a desire to act. While many can feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of the issues we face, Burrenbeo’s approach facilitates local actions to build feelings of empowerment and agency. Working under the theories of community stewardship and place-based learning, a range of programmes have developed to this end. Burrenbeo define place-based learning as learning about place, in the place, for the place. To understand how this definition was arrived at it is useful to consider some of the literature and research around place-based pedagogy. The following discussion will outline some of the benefits to this approach, before outlining ways in which it could be adapted and employed by teachers in a wide range of settings. Combining elements of various theories, academic approaches and educational concepts, place-based pedagogies echo strongly with the thinking of Dewey (1915). He called for schools to function more like communities, rather than places in isolation from the normal lives of students. Dewey felt that as schools lost their local focus, children lost their curiosity or desire to learn the skills of respected adults in their family or community, which was once a primary motivation for learning. Dewey also argued that children should see themselves as individuals with a responsibility in and for their communities, with the ability to engage with others on ideas and options for the enhancement of their futures. Equally, Piaget’s (1973) theory on students’ inner motivation to learn and his contention that children learn best when they are active are key to a place-based approach. These and other theories speak to the ideas behind place-based pedagogy, which has been defined by Sobel (2004, p. 7) as ‘the process of using the local community and environment as a starting point to teach concepts in language, arts, mathematics, social studies, science and other subjects across the curriculum’. While this alludes to a more formal, curriculum-based learning setting, Sobel goes on to speak of how the approach utilises hands-on, realworld learning experiences, something which has been central to the Burrenbeo education programmes. He also mentions that a place-based approach, ‘helps students develop stronger ties to their community, enhances students’ appreciation for the natural world, and creates a heightened commitment to serving as active, contributing citizens’ (Sobel, 2004, p. 7). This is another key feature of Burrenbeo education programmes, as initiatives support wider community engagement and facilitate active stewardship behaviours in schools and communities. As Lewicki (1998) explains, place-based pedagogies can unite schools and communities on a shared journey – considering first local and then building to regional, national and international concerns. Many teachers frequently use local environments and communities as a context for learning (Woodhouse, 2001). However, in Ireland, the conscious adoption of place-based pedagogy and engagement with all elements of the

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concept is not currently widespread (Pike, 2011). Adopting a place-based approach effectively means using a place-based pedagogy to deliver the existing curriculum rather than viewing the local learning elements as an ‘add on’ to the existing provision. In practice, this might mean looking first to learn about history through local stories and monuments or considering the local landscape features first when studying geography. Equally, learning about local plants and animals rather than more exotic species from further afield and taking on locally relevant civic engagement projects would be deemed place-based. There are also opportunities to perhaps read local poetry or prose, use local examples to highlight concepts from maths, physics or other subjects or using local inspiration for art projects. However, as will be considered later in this chapter, for teachers to employ this approach, appropriate support is required. In his 1992 book, Ecological Literacy, David Orr, the political scientist and environmental activist, outlined the important role place could play in reversing the environmental destruction and damaging cultural trends of our time. Orr (1992) argued that we are not currently only putting our environment at risk but also humanity itself. In this respect, Sir David Attenborough said that ‘the wild world is becoming so remote to children that they miss out, and an interest in the natural world doesn’t grow as it should. Nobody is going to protect the natural world unless they understand it’ (Attenborough, 2008, cited in Cassidy, 2008, p. 1). Alongside this, there is increasing literature and documented commentary arguing for children to reconnect with the natural environment through direct experiences outdoors (Louv, 2005; O’Malley, 2014). Through adopting a place-based approach, educators have the potential to enhance future generations’ connection to place and develop future environmentalists and conservationists (Place, 2016). Humans are inextricably linked to, and dependent on our environments (for food, energy and other resources, as well as our own wellbeing) and the balance between the two is finely tuned. Place-based pedagogy plays a role in ensuring this balance is maintained by reinforcing our awareness of this connection. Equally, the role we all play in securing the future of our places and planet more broadly is central to the approach. This brings us to the idea of stewardship, a well-recognised concept, of environmental management. A review of environmental stewardship literature found three key dimensions in successful stewardship initiatives; care, knowledge and agency (Peçanha Enqvist et al., 2018). Essentially, for people to take action locally they need to see relevance and feel some connection to the place i.e. the care dimension. People also need to be supported through knowledge provision that is appropriate to their level and setting, the knowledge dimension. Finally, structures need to be in place to support the actions, the agency dimension. The other element which led to successful stewardship practices was a feeling of collective action, also a key feature of Burrenbeo’s approach. While it could be

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argued that fostering stewardship behaviours in students is beyond the general remit of teachers, with the growing threats to our environment, heritage and places, for many, the potential to impact positively cannot be ignored. To further develop the notion of stewardship and caring for a place, consideration of the concept of place and human relationships with place more generally is useful. The concept of place is covered in literature, from the study of physical place to considerations of place attachment and place identity (Devine-Wright, 2009; Lewicka, 2011). While consensus is hard to come by, it is generally accepted that place is differentiated from ideas such as space or environment as it allows for the inclusion of the range of meanings and emotions that individuals or groups associate with the place (Tuan, 1977). What may begin as merely a space can become a place, as we get to experience and know it and attach emotions in the process. One of the suggested outcomes of a place-based approach is impact on participants’ sense of place and place attachment (Devine-Wright, 2013). As outlined in the opening of this chapter, how people relate to a place varies hugely and this will then have implications for how people want the place to be into the future (Anton and Lawrence, 2014). Enhanced place connection and place identity can be motivating factors for people’s stewardship behaviour, something which can be ignited through education and developed over the years. The Nature Connectedness research group at the University of Derby (Richardson, 2018) looked at humans’ relationship with the natural world and developed methods for measuring a person’s nature connectedness as well as identified ways that this can be enhanced (Lumber et al., 2017). Where this connection becomes important in terms of actions and behaviours is when considered alongside Otto and Pensini’s (2017) study of 255 children which found that while 2% of their pro-environmental behaviours could be attributed to environmental knowledge, 69% was attributed to nature connection, that is, related to feelings, emotions and connections. Similarly, Mackay and Schmitt (2019) found in a review of 75 studies involving 27,120 participants that not only was there an association between nature connection and pro-environmental behaviours but there was also evidence that nature connection causes pro-environmental behaviour. The potential for educators to enhance learners’ nature connection is worthy of further investigation, particularly when the focus is not on knowledge but rather the sense of connection which results in conservation actions. The literature illustrates why Burrenbeo have adopted a place-based learning methodology and makes a case for why other educators might consider taking a similar approach. The intersection of place connection and conditions supporting stewardship are fundamental to the approach and warrant consideration by teachers looking to implement similar initiatives.

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Burrenbeo programmes

Burrenbeo have developed, delivered and coordinated a wide range of programmes over the years. For the purposes of this chapter, three of these will be outlined including some questions and suggested activities which may be useful for implementing similar approaches across a variety of education settings. Heritage keepers

Burrenbeo’s education programme has been through several iterations. It began as Ecobeo, as described previously, before evolving to Áitbheo which had ten school visits, but which were all delivered by the same tutor and saw a move to secondary school settings. Both versions also included a fieldtrip. The newest development and current education programme which Burrenbeo deliver is Heritage Keepers, a free programme for schools or communities to work together to discover their local heritage. The programme is entirely replicable, requires little background knowledge on the place being considered and can be delivered in person or online. Heritage Keepers takes learners on an exploration of their local geology, landscape, archaeology, culture, biodiversity and customs, traditions, land use practices and conservation. Using engaging and interactive learning methodologies and online resources, the programme culminates in a project where participants identify, plan and complete a local action, for example, the development of local biodiversity trails, research and creation of a local heritage map, building a wildlife pond, a large-scale oral heritage recording project and a celebration of a local historic figure. The projects are supported both financially and with mentoring from the Burrenbeo team. As one participant commented, ‘I feel more confident that I  could help make my place better. I  feel more interested in my place and that I  can help out more’. The approach taken through the Heritage Keepers programme is supported by recent research reviewing how education programmes can promote civic engagement (Ardoin et al., 2022), an increasingly important dimension of learning for all young people given the global challenges we face. Walks and talks

Burrenbeo’s heritage walks are held on the first Sunday of every month, in various locations and cover themes on natural, built and cultural heritage of the region. The focus of the walks is on information sharing rather than covering long distances. The walks are often led by the landowner, who is also often a farmer and provides an opportunity for the public to access

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what is generally private land. The story of the place is shared from different ­perspectives  – farmer, archaeologist, ecologist and others. The walks have also resulted in the creation of a community of attendees who come regularly and feel connected to each other and the Burren through attendance. Tea Talks are another long-standing Burrenbeo initiative. These talks are held in a local village hall during the autumn and winter months and bring the community together to meet and share a cup of tea before providing an opportunity to hear a talk. These are always relevant to the heritage of the local area – whether an academic research project, a local artist or musician, or a member of the community sharing their story, the topics provide local insights as well as facilitate a sociable gathering of the community. Up to the end of 2022, there have been a combined attendance of 10,487 people at the walks and talks.

Community celebrations

Burrenbeo’s approach is to focus on celebrating and recognising where positive action is happening rather than starting from a negative and highlighting the fear of obvious issues faced by humanity (Hafenscher and Jankó, 2022). To this end, Burrenbeo facilitate community celebrations, with two major events in the annual calendar – Burren in Bloom and the Burren Winterage Weekend. Burren in Bloom is held in early summer and heralds the return of the Burren’s world-renowned flora and fauna while the Burren Winterage Weekend is held over the October Bank Holiday weekend, coinciding with the ancient pagan festival of Samhain as well as Halloween and celebrates the ancient farming traditions of the region, which continue to this day, and which ultimately have resulted in the Burren’s current biodiversity. Both events include a range of walks and talks aimed at the whole community as well as events for families and other more specialised learning opportunities for young and old. Up to the end of 2022, Burren in Bloom and the Winterage Weekend combined have attracted 21,022 people to learn about, in and for the Burren. When working with Heritage Keepers schools and groups, the potential for similar events in any setting is emphasised – encouraging people to look for the people, places or things that make their area unique and to celebrate them as a community. Groups have undertaken projects researching and celebrating local heroes, learning local songs, revisiting local traditions and folklore and carrying out ‘Place days’ where the unique features of their area are explored and celebrated as a community. Table  5.1 outlines some activities adapted from Burrenbeo programmes which could be applied across a broad range of education settings.

Place-based learning initiatives in the Burren  73 TABLE 5.1 Activities for place-based learning

Questions

Possible activity to answer these questions

How do you feel about your place?

In pairs, students interview each other to identify what they like and dislike about their local place. This not only lets them express their feelings but also consider the perspectives of others. Theme the responses and identify any conflicts, that is, some may love that it is quiet while others may dislike this. Drawing on the work of O’Regan (2008), using either online or paper maps consider a circle of approx. 3 km2 (use a smaller area in urban setting) and identify the landscape features – hills, waterbodies, woodlands, historic sites and so forth. Students list elements they were not aware of before looking at the map. Students could develop this further by creating their own map with places of significance to them. Identify the key elements of your local built (archaeological sites, historic buildings etc.), natural (flora, fauna, related habitats etc.) and cultural heritage (traditions, practices, artistic expression etc.). List any threats (known or potential) to each. Identify possible areas for a local action project which could address some of these threats. Starting within the school community, are there any land or building owners that would be willing to facilitate a visit? Is there anyone that has an interesting story to tell that could be invited into the school? Does anyone in the local community have an interest in built, natural or cultural heritage? Reassure them that their own story and information is all that is required. Work and research to build on the information gained can be done subsequently in class. Starting with a small in class or school celebration, look to share the unique elements with a wider audience. It may be an annual event and broaden by including the wider community. There is great scope for using artistic and creative expression to communicate these stories, for example, through song, music, dance, painting and re-enactment.

What is your ­landscape? How did it come to be?

What are any threats to elements of your place?

What are the ­interesting places or people in your local area?

What are local ­traditions, cultures, events, practices or features, that are unique?

Learnings to date and where to next

While still a relatively young organisation, Burrenbeo has learnt a considerable amount around engaging schools and communities with their local places, and more recently with the conditions needed to encourage action to protect those places. The following observations resulting from the work of Burrenbeo, supported by research engagement, could inform others interested in applying similar approaches in their education programmes.

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Community and collective action

Central to Burrenbeo’s vision for heritage conservation are engaged and sustainable communities. The organisation works to ensure people have opportunities to know, experience and share their local heritage but equally for community sustainability (both economic and social), a healthy landscape is essential. These elements inform each other and underpin the approach taken but this focus on a community approach also has additional benefits as people are facilitated to establish or strengthen their sense of community and connection to their place. There is also the very powerful feeling that engaging with the work of Burrenbeo (and perhaps for some that do not engage, even knowing the organisation exists) provides a sense that there is positive action being undertaken on a wider scale as opposed to dependence on the actions of individuals. This is worth noting from a school’s perspective, where working with networks or existing initiatives around similar projects could be worthy of consideration. The Heritage Keepers programme follows this approach. Supporting the action

Whether working with teachers, landowners, communities, volunteers or any of the other groups Burrenbeo engage with, the need for supporting those that are expected to take actions has been very apparent. This support comes in the form of information (in a format that is most appropriate to particular groups) and where necessary finance. However, finance is often not the limiting factor, rather that people want the confidence to know they are doing the right thing – whether teaching to children or making changes for biodiversity on their land. For teachers in particular, a feeling that they themselves do not have sufficient knowledge to go on to teach about local heritage may impact on their engagement. However, if the purpose of the activity is to enhance people’s connection to their local place (and their positive behaviours in relation to that place) the earlier findings of Otto and Pensini (2017) highlight that providing opportunities for connection and enhancing the connection could be more beneficial rather than focusing on knowledge alone. Care

Based on observations and research over the years of Burrenbeo practice, perhaps the most important consideration for anyone looking to engage in place-based learning initiatives is care, the third element identified by Peçanha Enqvist et  al. (2018). As mentioned previously, their study found that the factors present in situations where stewardship occurred were care, knowledge and agency. The knowledge and agency elements are addressed

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already but the notion of care is one that Burrenbeo is continuing to work on and develop. Essentially, we are asking why and how do people feel love for and connection to their place, can we encourage and facilitate that and once established can this be harnessed so that people protect and improve their place into the future. As previously outlined, schools and teachers can play a very important role in fostering this connection to and love of place in their students at a focal period in their development as both students and citizens. Burrenbeo will continue to work to this end in the Burren and hope that others might look to do the same elsewhere. Note: Parts of this chapter are adapted from Bird, Á. (2023) forthcoming PhD thesis published by University of Galway. Further readings Burren in Bloom website. www.burreninbloom.com. Burren Winterage Weekend website. www.burrenwinterage.com. Burrenbeo Trust website. www.burrenbeo.com. The Heritage Keepers Resource Book, Burrenbeo Trust (2023) outlines all activities from the Heritage Keepers programme and is available at www.burrenbeo.com/ hk-resources. Listen to the Land Speak, Manchán Magan (2022) is a beautifully written exploration of our ancestral connection to places and the lessons which we could learn from this in our modern lives. www.manchan.com. Trailblazers for Whole School Sustainability, by Seydel et al. (eds) (2021) provides a range of practical case studies from different educational settings where placebased learning and sustainability practices have been implemented.

References All websites last accessed 20 May 2023 Anton, C. E., and Lawrence, C. (2014) Home is where the heart is: The effect of place of residence on place attachment and community participation, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 40, 451–461. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2014.10.007 Ardoin, N. M., Bowers, A. W., and Gaillard, E. (2022) A systematic mixed studies review of civic engagement outcomes in environmental education, Environmental Education Research, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2022.2135688 Burren Programme (2022) Burren programme. www.burrenprogramme.com Burrenbeo Trust (2022) Burrenbeo trust. www.burrenbeo.com Cassidy, S. (2008) Attenborough alarmed as children are left flummoxed by test on the natural world, The Independent, 31 July. http://www.independent.co.uk/ environment/nature/attenborough-alarmed-as-children-are-left-flummoxed-bytest-on-the-natural-world-882624.html Devine-Wright, P. (2009) Rethinking NIMBYism: The role of place attachment and place identity in explaining place-protective action, Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 19(6), 426–441. https://doi.org/10.1002/casp.1004

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Devine-Wright, P. (2013) Think global, act local? The relevance of place attachments and place identities in a climate changed world, Global Environmental Change, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2012.08.003 Dewey, J. (1915) The school and society. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Dunford, B. (2002) Farming and the Burren. Dublin: Teagasc. Hafenscher, P., and Jankó, F. (2022) Environmental communication, from engagement to action: Lessons from interviews with environmental experts, Hungary, Environmental Education Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2022.206 8506 Lewicka, M. (2011) Place attachment: How far have we come in the last 40 years? Journal of Environmental Psychology, 31(3), 207–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jenvp.2010.10.001 Lewicki, J. (1998) Cooperative ecology and place: Development of a pedagogy of place curriculum, ERIC Digests, 33. Louv, R. (2005) Last child in the wood: Saving our children from nature-deficit disorder. Chapel Hill: Algonquin Books. Lumber, R., Richardson, M., and Sheffield, D. (2017) Beyond knowing nature: Contact, emotion, compassion, meaning, and beauty are pathways to nature connection, PLoS ONE, 12(5). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0177186 Mackay, C. M. L., and Schmitt, M. T. (2019) Do people who feel connected to nature do more to protect it? A meta-analysis, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2019.101323 O’Malley, S. (2014) (Re)connecting children with nature? A  sociological study of environmental education in Ireland. Galway: National University of Ireland. O’Regan, T. (2008) A guide to undertaking a “landscape circle” Study (in seven easy steps). Cork: Landscape Alliance Ireland. Orr, D. (1992) Ecological literacy. Albany: SUNY Press. Otto, S., and Pensini, P. (2017) Nature-based environmental education of children: Environmental knowledge and connectedness to nature, together, are related to ecological behaviour, Global Environmental Change, 47, 88–94. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2017.09.009 Peçanha Enqvist, J., West, S., Masterson, V. A., Haider, L. J., Svedin, U., and Tengö, M. (2018) Stewardship as a boundary object for sustainability research: Linking care, knowledge and agency, Landscape and Urban Planning, 179, 17–37. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2018.07.005 Piaget, J. (1973) To understand is to invent: The future of education. New York: Grossman. Pike, S. (2011) ‘If you went out it would stick’: Irish children’s learning in their local environments, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 20(2), 139–159. Place, G. S. (2016) Yesterday’s conservationists: How were they educated about the outdoors and the environment? Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 16(4), 359–371. https://doi.org/10.1080/14729679.2016. 1171158 Richardson, M. (2018) Growing our care for nature. Swindon: National Trust. Sobel, D. (2004) Place-based education: Connecting classroom and community, The Orion Society. https://doi.org/10.1093/isle/13.1.238

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Tuan, Y.-F. (1977) Space and place: The perspective of experience. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Whitehead, M. (2014) Environmental transformations. London: Routledge. https:// doi.org/10.4324/9781315832678 Woodhouse, J. (2001) Over the river  & through the ‘hood’: Re-viewing ‘place’ as focus of pedagogy. An introduction, Thresholds in Education, 27(3), 1–5.

6 A PLACE-BASED PEDAGOGY FOR OUTDOOR EDUCATION Graham French and Aled Edwards with Ian Martin and John Tatam

Introduction

This chapter explores the relationship between place and outdoor education, charting a somewhat chequered history where educators have appeared interested in suitably wild and remote backdrops to develop personal and social learning through adventurous activities with little consideration for the specific place (Wattchow and Brown, 2011). As outdoor learning pedagogy has developed over time, an awareness of the importance of, and role played by, specific places has grown, leading to calls for place to feature more strongly and explicitly in outdoor education (Brookes, 2002, 2003a; Nicol, 2003; Sinclair, 2001; Stewart, 2003, 2004, 2008; Wattchow, 2008). The publication A pedagogy of Place (Wattchow and Brown, 2011) brought the relationship between place and traditional forms of adventurous education to the fore in the field of outdoor learning and led to a period of discussion and debate around whether this was a necessary discussion, something inherent in practice already (implying no need for further consideration) or something that would in fact detract from authentic learning experiences in the outdoors. More recently, scholars have revisited and reignited the discussion, applying a post-colonial lens to the importance of place in outdoor education (Barker and Collins, 2022; North, 2020). This chapter presents a case study of a curriculum designed to explicitly engage in encountering place in outdoor education and the rationale behind the design. The place of place in outdoor education

The concept of outdoor education may be familiar to many, but it is a relatively young academic discipline. Whether it is a true academic discipline DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-8

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is still debated (Aylward et al., 2022; Dyment and Potter, 2015; Potter and Dyment, 2016) and as such many of the core concepts have not often been critically considered without such a consideration being seen as heresy undermining foundational principles. While learning in the outdoors has always been a core part of adventure and outdoor education (Williams and Wainwright, 2016, 2019), the specific place where the education process happened was not always considered relevant. Early protagonists from Europe and North America highlighted the need for wilderness and wild places to position young people outside of their comfort zone, so that they could undergo transformative personal and social learning experiences (Mortlock, 1984). The specific place appeared purely to be an appropriate physical space; somewhere with a lake to paddle on, a crag to climb or a river to descend (Brookes, 2002, 2003b). As adventurous activities moved from being expedition centred to residential outdoor education with a fixed base, these locations became more important – as they no longer provided a transient experience of moving through a place – but centred on a place from where, or in many cases at where, transformative learning episodes could occur (Nicol, 2003). This in turn highlighted the importance of specific places for specific activities as well as the place of the residential base (Williams, 2013). Defining the field

One of the fundamental challenges in discussing encountering place in outdoor education is conveying a coherent and succinct definition of outdoor education. A full critical consideration is outside the scope of this chapter, so some brief definitions follow here, to set out the terms to be used forthwith in this chapter. We have deliberately utilised myriad terms previously to highlight the varying semantics and nomenclature. For a fuller critique of the language used, and the cultural and contextual relevance of the terms, see French (2023). • Adventure education is the body of knowledge and skills that relate to undertaking adventurous activities such as (but not exclusive to) canoeing, climbing, orienteering, initiative challenges, ropes courses, hill-walking and expeditions. Some specific skills will involve managing risks, dealing with rescue and resuscitation and listening to, and working with, others, in these adventurous contexts. • Outdoor learning is a pedagogical approach that values direct experience in a similar way to experiential learning, but that takes place mainly outdoors (Anderson et al., 2021). It shares a philosophy that being in a natural environment enhances learning through its ‘special nature’ (Welsh Government, 2009, p. 7) with environmental learning (Ardoin and Heimlich, 2021) but may not be focused on this as an outcome. It values direct

80  Graham French and Aled Edwards with Ian Martin and John Tatam

reflective experience, but as a pedagogy, what is taught via this method is not fixed. • Outdoor education is a term which although in the past had a very broad and undefined deployment can be understood as the application of an outdoor learning pedagogy (from above) to the subject of adventure education (from above). It should be noted that these definitions are culturally specific to the context in which this chapter is written; education in Wales as a distinct nation and culture within a wider British tradition and culture of education seen in the UK. A Welsh cultural context

The Curriculum for Wales 2022 (Welsh Government, 2020) is split into six areas of learning and experience (AoLEs), each with a set of statements of ‘What matters’ as the structure for content. The Humanities section of the curriculum guidance document (Welsh Government, 2020) also has a specific sub-heading concerning opportunities to learn outdoors which implies a consideration of place in this learning. However, the most explicit, yet perhaps nebulous, appearance of place in the Curriculum for Wales, is the concept of cynefin, which is often translated into English, and defined by the Curriculum for Wales 2022 (Welsh Government, 2020, para. 12) as: ‘the place where we feel we belong, where the people and landscape around us are familiar, and the sights and sounds are reassuringly recognisable’. The imprecise nature of the translation comes from a feeling and connection that is more than the above because it can mean any environment or place that an individual occupies or visits more in keeping with Relph’s (1976) understanding of place. While not unique in having difficulty in translating words, Welsh has several concerns with the connection to place. Cynefin is the feeling of connection to the place where one is, and its converse ‘hiraeth’, often translated as ‘homesickness’, has much stronger connotations of grief and loss caused by being away from Wales: literally the grief at losing the connection to one’s homeland that can be acutely felt whilst away. There is a philosophical aspect to the word too, in keeping with Husserl’s ideas (considered by Wattchow and Brown, 2011), specifically Heidegger’s concept of aesthetic experience (Quay and Seaman, 2017). The remainder of this chapter will critically consider each of the themes introduced above, drawing them together in a case study, followed by practical application of the ideas. This will provide an example of how outdoor education curriculum can be designed to positively and explicitly encourage students to encounter place through their adventures and outdoor education.

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Why consider place in outdoor education? From understanding the importance of a place to the importance of the place

Whilst an awareness of place in education has been developing over several years, it has only relatively recently appeared in the consciousness of outdoor educators (Wattchow and Brown, 2011). Seminal work from North America (Miles and Priest, 1990; Priest and Gass, 1997) and Europe (Mortlock, 1984, 2001; Hopkins and Putnam, 1993) did not explicitly acknowledge the place in which education may take place, which may be accounted for perhaps by the relative immaturity of the field as an academic discipline, perhaps as the development of the field was driven by, and focused on, practitioners’ lived experiences rather than a philosophical consideration (French et al., 2022). Thus, place-responsive pedagogy may have been inherent in these early works but with a more developed 21st-century view of how we encounter place in outdoor spaces, this is only implied. The importance of environment

In the UK, Wales specifically, environmental education (beyond practical fieldwork skills) has also struggled to find a place in curriculum, and although outside the scope of this chapter, it could also be said to have been concerned primarily with being in a suitable place to carry out field work rather than carrying out field work with a view to better understanding the place in which it was taking place (Brookes, 2003b; Johnson, 1994; Wattchow and Brown, 2011). In Hopkins and Putnam’s (1993) work, the role the environment played was acknowledged but more in a sense of learning about the environment (generally meaning the physical landscape and latterly developing a care for the physical environment). The authors report on the Dartington conference, an event convened by the UK Department for Education in 1975 to try to define and establish what adventure education was, how it fitted with another slightly nebulous concept ‘personal and social development’, and what might be the relationship between outdoor adventure, the development of self, and the environment (Hopkins and Putnam, 1993). However, the conclusions that were drawn were more skewed towards the personal and social learning that was possible through adventurous activities in the outdoors, as suggested by the title of the book. Challenging a colonial hegemony

As practice drove understanding of the field forward, philosophical issues entered the discussion as to what adventure education was or could be, and this led to a closer examination of learning outdoors. In the late 1990s and

82  Graham French and Aled Edwards with Ian Martin and John Tatam

early 2000s, many of the leading outdoor education academic journals were established, and their global reach facilitated the exchange of ideas which had previously existed in isolated communities of practice (French, 2023). Authors from outside Europe and North America encountered new thinking that sought to embrace pre-colonial, Indigenous-culturally based outdoor education which challenged the personal and social canon, typified by the works of Hopkins and Putnam (1993) or Priest and Gass (1997). One of the key features of this post-colonial philosophy and latterly practice was the foundational importance of place in outdoor learning pedagogy. Stewart (2003, 2004, 2008) and Brookes (2003a, 2003b) asked questions as to the value of traditional personal and social focused outdoor education, and criticised colonists’ attempts to bring European hegemony and homogeneity to the physical landscape and cultural practices, including adventure education (Barker and Collins, 2022). Researchers working in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand called for a refocusing of adventure education towards a more traditional Indigenous view of the importance of place, which lead to the publication of A Pedagogy of Place (Wattchow and Brown, 2011) and Brookes (2003a, 2003b) statements on the importance of place. Brookes tore down the traditional view of outdoor adventure education, castigating colonial era challenges, the pedagogical approaches used (espoused by Hopkins and Putnam, 1993) and at a fundamental level questioned whether the concept of ‘character’ or the personal behaviour traits that are said to be developed in adventure education even existed (Brookes, 2003a, 2003b). In place of the traditional ‘Neo-Hahnian’ form of adventure education (so called after a colonial era pioneer of outdoor education, Kurt Hahn), Brookes (2003b) makes a convincing case for place-responsive pedagogy to dominate outdoor adventure education practice. While his tour de force of criticism (incorporating practice and the methodology employed by much outdoor education research) is eye-opening and incredibly challenging to read from one schooled in the traditional, European/North American philosophy and practice of outdoor education, it must be observed that there is a significant amount of implicit colonial guilt in both his and Wattchow and Brown’s (2011) work, and a yearning to return to pre-colonial days is evident. Moving beyond colonial lament

Although many of the philosophical points highlighted by Wattchow and Brown (2011) resonate with academics and practitioners globally, there is a challenge in extending them to a non-colonial culture. Wattchow and Brown (2011) and Stewart (2003, 2008) support a return to pre-colonial practices and understanding, but this does not acknowledge the importance of place in the original colonising nations or their neighbours that have no obvious pre-colonial history to return to. The challenge is seen baldly in Wales: a

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colonised nation (by England) but without a specific date (such as the treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa New Zealand) or clear colonising period, there is no way to look back to before the colonisation, and no clear cultural distinction to revert to. Wattchow and Brown (op cit.) make a compelling case for placeresponsive pedagogy to function as a vehicle to bring learners back to an implied better time, but this entanglement of understanding the importance of encountering place and an awareness of pre-colonial practices make the case studies presented in their book difficult to transfer to non-colonial cultures. Equally, the value of returning to a previous world view could be questioned, as culture is constructed from what society values and practices now, (implying a western pluralistic view of culture) rather than something that happened in the past (Cohn, 2011). Few authors from cultures and nations without chronological divides have attempted to present place-responsive pedagogical alternatives to that described by Wattchow and Brown (2011). One exception is French and Phillips (2018) who have tackled the issue from a Welsh perspective. The challenge, presented to them, is plain: developing a place-responsive outdoor pedagogy and a series of adventure education learning experiences to apply the philosophy presented by Wattchow and Brown (2011), but concomitantly developing cynefin, a distinctly place-responsive Welsh (and non-colonially located) cultural concept. Designing curriculum – encountering place in outdoor education and a place-based pedagogy Curriculum for Wales

Curriculum reform in Wales presents greater opportunities to engage in adventure education in school or as part of residential visits, and to utilise outdoor learning pedagogy to achieve other curriculum aims such as teaching science, technology, literacy, numeracy or digital competence (French and Howard, 2023). While opportunities to acknowledge place in outdoor education have never been greater, there is a challenge to much of a workforce that has to this point engaged in curriculum design often only at senior school leadership level (Griffiths et al., 2020). However, there are schools in Wales that have long been creating and designing curriculum, and we posit that much can be learned from the place-responsive pedagogical approaches and programmes that are already in existence. Some schools in Wales, classed as independent schools (where fees are charged for attendance), can design their curriculum, as their independence means they are outside of any state requirements. St David’s College, Llandudno, (SDC) where several of us are based, is one such independent school, and as such we have greater freedom to innovate, albeit with accountability to parents who are in many cases paying fees for their children to attend.

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However, with the increased emphasis on individual school-designed curriculum with the Curriculum for Wales, this approach can be transferred to other settings in Wales and beyond. In fact, many of these approaches are transferrable to curricula in other countries, as we have already implemented and evaluated them. We have been able to design a curriculum to suit learners and the ethos of the school, and as such adventure education and a broader outdoor education component are a significant part of our curriculum. Outdoor adventure education programmes such as these have been able to pivot both philosophically and practically to engage with the concept of place, incorporate place-responsive pedagogy and design curriculum experiences that explicitly acknowledge place. As the wider state-school sector in Wales now approaches curriculum design at a much more locally responsive level, we believe that our experiences in creating place-responsive outdoor education curriculum can offer a framework for others to adapt to their context. A place-responsive approach to outdoor education curriculum design

At SDC, Edwards (2015) explains how the motivation to bring ‘wow’ moments into adventure education was initially a challenge by the school chaplain, who wanted everyone, regardless of faith, to develop a deeper connection to place and develop a sense of cynefin. This is made explicit by staff planning activities that allow time for reflection and contemplation amongst the adventurous challenges. Edwards highlights that during these sessions, the place of Newborough beach on the south-west coast of Anglesey, where the sessions were programmed is integral, and inspirational, to the design of the activities. Edwards (2017) expands on the place-responsive work at SDC, describing how he and his students have connected with places by (fell) running through them. He highlights an interesting duality in that a connection with place can be developed over many weeks of visiting the same area, running the same trails and forming an understanding of the environment, or a response to place can develop over the course of one fell race in a new area. The combination of understanding the landscape and topography of an area (using a map) the direct experience of that place (smells, sights, sounds and feelings that come from running through it), and understanding the context of the day (the weather, group dynamic) draw a strong connection to place that is experienced in the relatively short period of a race. Edwards (2017) details how staff at SDC make this explicit with students, so they are encouraged to embrace the place where the event is, as much as their usual training sessions and local routes. The outdoor education department at SDC continues to innovate and develop our students’ sense of cynefin through the regular adventure education programme and specific activity days. New activities include creative work with music, verse, photography and land art, as well as sharing stories

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and food cooked and eaten together in the place. These activities have in turn been introduced to the teacher education programme at CaBan through our partnership work. Outdoor education initial teacher education (ITE) students on the post-graduate certificate in education programme (PGCE), use the same location and follow similar activities to gain both a practical and pedagogical understanding of what is happening and how the theories of teaching and learning in the outdoors function in the real world. The CaBan PGCE programme includes a small-scale practitioner research project and many students who have investigated the impact of a place-responsive approach to outdoor education using intervention sessions such as that delivered by SDC, have generated qualitative empirical evidence of the increase in a feeling of being connected to nature in general and the specific place, through these types of activities. Cynefin and cultural education

Whilst the approach adopted by SDC has been demonstrated as having a positive impact on the children and young people’s connection with place, there are other aspects to a place-responsive pedagogy such as the work of Urdd Gobaith Cymru and its mission to provide specifically Welsh cultural experiences through outdoor education explored by French and Phillips (2018). It does this in a similar way to the planning and place-responsive activities that SDC incorporate into their programme, but also concentrates on the use of the Welsh language as the primary means of communication. Not everyone in Wales speaks Welsh, and it must be acknowledged that there is more to a cultural education than language (although this is still a very important cultural locator for many people in Wales). French and Phillips (2018) identify culturally connected activities that both enhance the language and place connectedness of students, such as telling the ancient stories of Wales that are frequently connected to local landscapes and following the meaning of the names of places. However, they also present the challenge to the young people to decide how the language, landscape and their experiences can define their culture in the here and now. Staff at the residential centre Gwersyll yr Urdd Glan-llyn highlight how culture is not something that is in the past and can be reverted to, or only reflected on, but is being created by the people who live now and can be as unique as each individual. This perhaps answers the challenge set in the antipodean or post-colonial literature by Wattchow and Brown (2011) as to where to relate to, and how this is connected to place. Urdd Gobaith Cymru staff point out that whilst there is much history to the local area, place must be understood as much in the here and now if it is to both connect with, and inspire, the young people who visit the residential centre and take part in the adventure education on offer as they develop their own cynefin.

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Implications for practice

The lessons and activities which we have used to explicitly acknowledge encounters with place have been used by teachers in the outdoors for a long time. However, with a different perspective, or used in a different way, they can be powerful tools with which to develop the roots needed for young people to connect with a place. In an ideal scenario, connections would be fostered over an extended period, giving participants opportunity to develop a strong sense of cynefin (belonging). At SDC, the idea of spirituality, or connection to a place, starts with two dedicated days in Year 7 (students aged 11–12 years) and Year 8 (12–13 years) which explore the ideas of solo space, decision making, sensing their environment, communicating and natural exploring or scavenging. We also explore personal identities and make use of natural art to create memories. In year 9, work for students aged 13–14 years is undertaken towards the John Muir Award, part of which is put aside for seeking to connect with the environment in which the group predominantly works in (e.g. woodland, beach, grassland). In year 10, groups make a choice of activity and so will work towards connecting with an environment based on activity choice (e.g. the canoe group would undertake activities to connect with rivers, lakes and the sea). These activities develop not only practical skills in the outdoors but also a stronger appreciation of, and respect for, the environments that have been explored. At SDC, we have the opportunity of being able to drip-feed these ideas over several years, but we would argue that it is possible to instil the same thoughts on a smaller scale. This could simply be by creating sound maps or natural art in a local park, activities to stimulate interest in local nature (e.g. RSPB surveys, scavenger hunts, signs of life tracking) natural art and natural music. The concept of connecting to a place is hard to put across to pupils, and we have found it best to let them come up with their own connections rather than telling them how they should be connecting. The use of questions and reviews over time can gauge levels of connection as an assessment for learning tool, but if young people are answering questions about looking after a place, or thinking about how they are feeling in a place, then this is a good indication that they are responding to the place they’ve encountered. Table  6.1 outlines some of the activities we have developed and how they have encouraged place-responsiveness with the young people. Conclusion

This chapter has sought to consider the development of the awareness, and subsequent importance of place to outdoor pedagogues working in adventure education. Whilst the dominant literature concerning place and outdoor education has become entangled with post-colonial responses from authors based

A place-based pedagogy for outdoor education  87 TABLE 6.1 Activities which encourage place-responsiveness

Activity

Details

Variations

Journeys with a purpose

Students take journeys through landscapes and create connections. Short journeys with a purpose or longer as part of an expedition. To reach ‘traditional’ learning outcomes, choose a landscape or environment specifically to develop feelings and connections within that place. Games are the most engaging way to quickly get involved in exploring a place.

Walking-scavenger hunts, looking for evidence of animals Canoeing/kayaking Cycling (on/off road)

Games

Solo space

Environmental walks Senses trails Music

Language

Outdoor Art

Students are invited to sit alone and view the world without the filter of a mobile device for 20 minutes upwards. It is wonderful and powerful. It helps to have a camp mat to sit on. Students go on environmental walks to connect with places. Use sound maps and frequently revisit the same place. Students use senses other than sight to connect with a place. Students make music in a place or connecting a piece of music to a place if you do not fancy leading music is a wonderful way to connect. They take it in turns to be the ‘conductor’ or leader. Students write a letter to themselves in the future. This letter can be on any topic, but can also include where they are, how they are feeling, what being where they are means to them right now, who lives here and what they do. Students think of why they are using certain objects and where they may have come from before using them.

Wide games Getting into a bush Hiding behind trees Lying flat out in the grass Doodle kits for those who struggle to sit still

Scavenger hunts Tracking trails Species ID trails Barefoot walking Blindfold trails Round a fire (with hot chocolate is very popular) Use boomwhackers Make or find natural instruments Factual Fictional With animals and plants that can be seen included Poetry models such as acrostics or avenidas Beach art Forest art Creating volcanoes on the beach is effective – art and a fire in one place

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in formerly colonised nations, the examples presented here have highlighted innovative approaches to curriculum design. These explicitly acknowledge and plan time for place-responsive activities as part of adventure education programmes and highlight how place-responsive pedagogy can be relevant to the ‘here and now’ and move beyond a yearning for times gone by. Many of the ideas presented in this chapter are transferrable beyond Curriculum for Wales as they can be applied in different global curricula or used to stimulate other innovative approaches that fit those specific curricula. Urdd Gobaith Cymru, whilst unique in its structure, operation and purpose, highlights that an organisation founded on cultural values and the importance of the place, before adventure education pedagogy was even considered a real discipline worth exploring, thrives in a competitive field of adventure education providers who pay less attention to where they do their activities. The field is still immature in many ways (academically and historically) but programmes like those delivered by SDC in formal curriculum schooling (albeit currently beyond the Curriculum for Wales) and informally in the residential work of Gwersyll yr Urdd Glan-llyn demonstrate that place-responsive programmes are effective in raising awareness of place and connections to specific places, and that place-responsiveness is not a reference to history and days gone by (although these can be informative) but can allow children and young people to develop their own cultural awareness of who, and where, they are. This is perhaps a more complete way of understanding of cynefin. Further readings As outlined earlier, Wattchow and Brown’s (2011) A pedagogy of place is highly significant for its outlook. It is available as a paperback or open access: https:// tinyurl.com/PedofPOEd. With both philosophical foundations and practical advice, Simon Beames, Pete Higgins and Robbie Nicol’s (2012) Learning outside the classroom is another helpful text, published by Routledge. Finally, the articles by Edwards (2015, 2017) and French and Philips (2018) on placeresponsive and culturally based outdoor education in Wales are informative texts, full details in the reference list.

References Anderson, N., Harvey, D., and Crosbie, J. (2021) Professional matters: Describing outdoor learning, Horizons, 94, 19–23. Ardoin, N., and Heimlich, J. (2021) Environmental learning in everyday life: Foundations of meaning and a context for change, Environmental education research, 27(12), 1681–1699. Aylward, T., Farrelly, T., and Coulter, M. (2022) Self-study of practice in higher education; an opportunity for OE. Presentation delivered at the 9th International outdoor education research conference, University of Cumbria, Cumbria, 18–22 July.

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Barker, M., and Collins, C. (2022) Decolonising outdoor education in Aotearoa New Zealand. Presentation delivered at the 9th International outdoor education research conference, University of Cumbria, Cumbria, 18–22 July. Brookes, A. (2002) Lost in the Australian bush: Outdoor education as curriculum, Journal of Curriculum Studies, 34(4), 405–425. Brookes, A. (2003a) A critique of Neo-Hahnian outdoor education theory. Part 1: Challenges to the concept of ‘character building’, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 3(1), 49–62. Brookes, A. (2003b) A critique of Neo-Hahnian outdoor education theory. Part 2: ‘The fundamental attribution error’ in contemporary outdoor education discourse, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 3(2), 119–132. Cohn, I. (2011) Indigenous ways  – fruits of our ancestors, Journal of Adventure ­Education and Outdoor Learning, 11(1), 15–34. Dyment, J. E., and Potter, T. G. (2015) Is outdoor education a discipline? Provocations and possibilities, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 15(3), 193–208. Edwards, A. (2015) Above and beyond . . ., Horizons, 69, 28–29. Edwards, A. (2017) Connecting the environment through fellrunning, Horizons, 79, 28–29. French, G. (2023) Evaluating a pedagogical model for adventure education. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Wales, Trinity St. David, Carmarthen. French, G., and Howard, C. (2023) Developing social capital through outdoor learning, in L. Becket (ed) Child poverty in Wales: Exploring the challenges for schooling future generations. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. French, G., and Phillips, A. (2018) Cultural education through outdoor education, Horizons, 80, 10–13. French, G., Wainwright, N., and Williams, A. (2022) The epistemological challenges of evaluating the effectiveness of a pedagogical model for adventure education. Presentation delivered at the 9th International outdoor education research conference, University of Cumbria, 18–22 July. Griffiths, J., Bamber, S., French, G., Hulse, B., Jones, G., Jones, R. C., Jones, S. W., Maelor, G., Wordsworth, W., and Hughes, J. C. (2020) Growing tomorrow’s teachers together, Wales Journal of Education, 23(1), 209–231. Hopkins, D., and Putnam, R. (1993) Personal growth through adventure. London: David Fulton. Johnson, K. (1994) Creating place and landscape, in S. Dovers (ed) Australian environmental history: Essays and cases. 2nd edn. Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 37–54. Miles, J. C., and Priest, S. (eds) (1990) Adventure education. State College, PA: Venture Publishing. Mortlock, C. (1984) The adventure alternative. Cumbria: Cicerone Press. Mortlock, C. (2001) Beyond adventure. Cumbria: Cicerone Press. Nicol, R. (2003) Outdoor education: Research topic or universal value? Part 3, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 3(1), 11–28. North, C. (2020) Interrogating authenticity in outdoor education teacher education. Singapore: Springer. Potter, T., and Dyment, J. (2016) Is outdoor education a discipline? Insights, gaps and future directions, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 16(2), 146–159.

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Priest, S., and Gass, M. (1997) Effective leadership in adventure programming. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. Quay, J., and Seaman, J. (2017) Outdoor studies and a sound philosophy of experiences, in B. Humbestone, H. Prince, and K. Hendersen (eds) Routledge international handbook of outdoor studies. London: Routledge. Relph, E. (1976) Place and placelessness. London: Pion Limited. Sinclair, P. (2001) The Murray: A  river and its people. South Carlton: Melbourne University Press. Stewart, A. (2003) Reinvigorating our love of our home range: Exploring the connections between sense of place and outdoor education, Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 7(2), 19–24. Stewart, A. (2004) Decolonising encounters with the Murray River: Building place responsive outdoor education, Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 8(2), 46–55. Stewart, A. (2008) Whose place, whose history? Outdoor environmental education pedagogy as ‘reading’ the landscape, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 8(2), 78–98. Wattchow, B. (2008) Moving on an effortless journey: Paddling, river-places and outdoor education, Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 12(2), 12–23. Wattchow, B., and Brown, M. (2011) A pedagogy of place: Outdoor education for a changing world. Melbourne: Monash University. Welsh Government (2009) Foundation phase outdoor learning handbook. https:// hwb.gov.wales/storage/fcb8539c-9be7-4883-8542-35d7b54b56f2/foundationphase-outdoor-learning-handbook.pdf Welsh Government (2020) Curriculum for Wales. Cardiff. https://hwb.gov.wales/ curriculum-for-wales. Williams, A., and Wainwright, N. (2016) A  new pedagogical model for adventure in the curriculum: Part two – outlining the model, Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 21(6), 589–602. Williams, A., and Wainwright, N. (2019) Rethinking adventurous activities in physical education: Models-based approaches, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 19(3), 217–229. Williams, R. (2013) Woven into the fabric of experience: Residential adventure education and complexity, Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning, 13(2), 107–124.

PART 2

Community places, perspectives and experiences

7 NURTURING YOUNG CHILDREN’S EMERGING SENSE OF PLACE IN PRESCHOOL SETTINGS Córa Gillic and Celine Govern

Introduction

Children’s sense of place, identifying with, and belonging to, a particular locality, develops during the early years of childhood (Green, 2013). This chapter details how two Irish village-based early childhood settings engaged young children in thinking about their community space. It details how educators engaged with and reflected on children’s understanding of place and sense of place in their community. The chapter documents how young children became an extension of the community through their active participation and citizenship, being observed by members of the community and through being observers in the village themselves, not only developing their sense of identity but also developing their geo-literacy skills (Brillante and Mankiw, 2015). Drawing on Dunphy’s (2012) contexts for early learning, we demonstrate how adopting an inquiry-based, emergent curriculum approach, using photos of local landmarks as a provocation for extended talk and discussion supports young children in thinking about and representing their emerging understandings of their locality in multi-modal ways. The role of walking in the local environment in developing young children’s emergent sense of place, and identity and belonging to local places is also presented. This chapter provides an insight to children’s personal geographies, their meanings, understandings and knowledge of their locality as gained through their own lived experiences as supported by the adults in their lives. Context

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989) sets out children’s rights to health, education, family life, play and recreation, DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-10

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an adequate standard of living and to be protected from abuse and harm. Article 7 of the UNCRC speaks of the child’s legal right to citizenship, as well as the legal right to a nationality. This conceptualisation of citizenship places emphasis on a child’s sense of identity and belonging within the community and of the importance of the relationships they build as members of their community. The themes of citizenship and belonging are central to many international early childhood curriculum frameworks. For example, both the New Zealand and Australian early childhood curriculum frameworks (Ministry of Education, 1996; ACECQA, 2018) position a child’s sense of belonging to community and place as critical for supporting emerging citizenship skills and community involvement. European curricular approaches, such as the Italian Reggio Emilia Approach, encourage children to explore their community using the ‘Hundred Languages of Children’ (Malaguzzi, 2012) and to use these one hundred languages to represent their ideas about the world in multi-modal ways. In Ireland, both Aistear the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework (NCCA, 2009) and Síolta the National Quality Framework for Early Childhood Education (CECDE, 2006) position young children as agentic, competent and capable beings who have a right to participate in and look after their locality. A central tenet of both frameworks is that of holistic learning. Developing children’s sense of place and belonging supports this premise as cognitive, social and emotional developmental domains are engaged (Brillante and Mankiw, 2015). For example, the theme ‘Identity and Belonging’ forms a core component of both Aistear (NCCA, 2009) and Síolta (CECDE, 2006) where young children’s sense of ‘being in’ and ‘belonging to’ a place and community are emphasised and where young children are encouraged to actively become aware of their role in the community, being and becoming active citizens, recognising places, landmarks and people in their localities (NCCA, 2009). Thereby, forming an attachment with the precise area in which they live (Cresswell, 2013). Both Aistear (NCCA, 2009) and Síolta (CECDE, 2006) advocate for a socio-cultural pedagogical approach where knowledge is co-constructed among participants in the learning community. Children are valued as experts in their own lives and who have valid contributions to make to the way their environments are experienced and maintained. Active participation in the community by an Early Years’ Service can be mutually beneficial for the children, their families and the wider community. Community involvement can take many forms, the most beneficial are when children are valued as experts in their own lives and communities. Contexts for early learning

Dunphy (2012) proposes three contexts for early learning: extended talk and discussion; rich imaginative experiences and first-hand learning. Each

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of these contexts for learning offer opportunities for children to share their knowledge of their localities in multi-modal ways. This chapter presents children’s multi-modal understandings and representations of their local spaces and how these are supported through Dunphy’s three contexts. We describe how the adults in each of the two settings nurture young children’s emerging sense of place and belonging and how they come to understand children’s rich funds of place-based knowledge as well as the spaces which are meaningful and relevant for the children in their care. Extended talk and discussion through photographs

Aistear (NCCA, 2009) emphasises the child’s need to communicate and offers suggestions as to how early childhood educators may support young children in their efforts to communicate their thoughts and understandings of the world. In addition to the strategies of questioning, commenting and modelling thinking aloud, other stimuli, such as photographs, can be used to motivate children to talk, to show what they know and to demonstrate their understanding of concepts or phenomena (Kilia et al., 2015). Kilia et al. (2015) contend that photographs offer a simple form of visualisation to identify local landmarks/amenities and are particularly useful in developing an early ability to reason about space and where landmarks are situated in relation to each other. Young children commit images of threedimensional buildings and objects internally as they journey through places. Children construct mental maps as they travel through the villages with family members. Pictures and maps are external representations of landmarks and objects observed when travelling. Placing pictures of landmarks on a map helps to develop where landmarks are located in relation to each other and to spark conversation about journeys of getting to and from ‘school’. When conversations are further developed by adults, new spatial vocabulary can be introduced and landmarks can be discussed in terms of location to each other. In both settings, photographs of local landmarks were placed at childheight with the aim of stimulating discussion about each of the landmarks. Educators were interested in which of these the children recognised, how they knew them and which were spoken about most often. The second setting, The Sunshine Preschool, provides a scrapbook with pictures of local landmarks to stimulate discussion about local places and to enable children to plan their daily walks. This will be discussed later in this chapter. Perhaps, predictably the photographs prompted discussions around areas that were most relevant and meaningful to the children (Tanner, 2012). In Rainbows Montessori, those landmarks discussed most often were associated with shopping and education. The children wondered why there were no pictures of the playground, skate park or the riverwalk. Staff had not considered these areas of the village as they did not visit them. Two children

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were tasked with finding pictures of areas that were of interest to them and so photographs of the playground, skate park and riverwalk were added to the initial display, reflecting children’s meaningful places within the village. In Rainbows Montessori, discussions around the photographs centred on the activities that took place in each place and showed the knowledge the children had about local amenities. Examples of which can be found next. Community centre

Clare: I do ballet in the community centre Conor: I’m going to have my party there. There’s also a panto, somewhere to go for breakfast, dinner and lunch .  .  . oh, you can do karate there too! Playground

Louisa: the playground is beside my house. I go there every day. Sometimes I see Clare and Lucy there. We play together on the swings. Mark: me and my brother go there (playground) on Saturdays with our mammy. We get sweets after in SuperValu or Centra (supermarket chains). Enda: we go to the playground a lot because its near our house. I really want to go to the skate park again. Food outlets

Lucy:

I lived beside SuperValu for ages and I like to go and get something to eat in SuperValu. They have nice cake. Louisa: I like to get smoothies in Centra. Max: There’s pizza beside Tesco (supermarket). We get pizza to take home from there sometimes. Local primary school

Enda: my sister goes to ST xxxx. I’m going there too. Max: Me too! It’s very big (gestures arms wide), a lot bigger than here! Lucy: I’m going to the National (Primary) School. We’ll come the same way as we come to here. It’s just there (points to the next-door building). (In Ireland, primary schools are often referred to as National Schools.) The photographs prompted rich discussion about various places in the village which held special meaning for the children. Staff also observed conversations between children, which demonstrated a knowledge of local landmarks, and their use in describing journeys to and from the setting. In the vignette below,

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Enda and Emma are looking at the display and talking about shopping in the locality. The conversation turns to Enda giving directions from the setting to home. You see this here, pointing to Tesco (supermarket chain).  .  . you go past that, then turn this way (gestures left), then turn and go straight (hands in front of him – indicating straight). . . you need to turn at the ­roundabout . . . you can see the vets there, do you know where the vet is?. . . there’s my house. (Enda) This observation shows that Enda has developed a strong sense of the location of his house in relation to other landmarks in the locality and that he can mentally and spatially track his route from home to the setting. He is matching his knowledge of the physical environment with his daily commute (Tanko and Adamu, 2004). Conversations with Enda’s mother revealed that they walk to the setting every day and that they talk about what they see as they walk. These conversations serve to enhance Enda’s sense of place and where his family fit into that place (Kullman, 2010), demonstrating the importance of adult support in framing the journey in terms of landmarks (Tanner, 2012). The use of photos enabled staff to access Enda’s place-based funds of knowledge and use of spatial vocabulary (Tanko and Adamu, 2004). To enhance this knowledge, staff provided maps of the village as a stimulus for further discussion about children’s meaningful places in the locality. Extended talk and discussion enable educators to understand children’s personal geographies, their understanding of local landmarks and places and provides an opportunity to explore places that are meaningful and relevant to them. It helps educators to understand young children’s sense of the place in which they live. Young children communicate their knowledge and understanding of local places in ways other than through extended talk and discussion. The next section of this chapter details the ways in which young children in both settings presented and represented their understandings of the physical layout of their local villages. Rich imaginative experiences

Play provides children with a safe space to try out new ideas, new vocabulary and work in collaboration with others (Bruce, 2011). Play has the potential to reveal how children think about their world as well as their working theories about how the world works and enables children to play out lived experiences in order to make sense of them (Bruce, 2011). Observant adults can tune into children’s play, thereby gaining a glimpse of what children know about their world and gain a sense of what is meaningful and relevant

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to them (Wood, 2013). This information can then be used to plan learning opportunities based on these observations of children’s interests. Advocated by both Aistear (NCCA, 2009) and Síolta (CECDE, 2006), play is recognised as central to young children’s learning and development and play pedagogy is key in Irish preschool education. Block play

A key feature of any early childhood classroom is the block play area. Block play facilitates rich imaginative experiences as children represent objects/ places that are meaningful to them (Ness and Farenga, 2007). Block play has been identified as an activity that supports young children’s developing spatial reasoning skills (Hawes et al., 2015) and provides opportunities to link constructions to children’s lived experiences and knowledge (Gura, 1992). Therefore, it can provide adults with an insight into children’s meaningful places. As well as facilitating rich imaginative experiences for children, block play is also an important context for extended talk and discussion as children negotiate together as to the positioning of blocks (Cohen and Uhry, 2007), and engage in spatially rich language exchanges with adults (Ferrera et al., 2011). In Rainbows Montessori, some children chose to represent the road network of the village using construction blocks. The play was enhanced by ongoing discussions as to the location of roundabouts and straight stretches of road, again demonstrating children’s internalisation of the main roads through the village and what can be seen along each one. At The Sunshine Preschool, play is often extended into the small-world area, where children use wooden blocks to depict the village main street or a particular area that interests them. Life-size building blocks are regularly used to build large structures including local roads and buildings. Map-making

One of the key tools of spatial representation used by the children to share their knowledge and understanding of the locality and meaningful places was the drawing of maps. Enda’s description of his journey from home to setting inspired other children to share their journeys to and from the setting through the medium of map-making. Mike’s map showed the layout of the road networks from home to setting and his accompanying monologue demonstrated his knowledge of the route in relation to local landmarks. Another child, Anne, chose not to focus on the route from home to setting but rather on the layout of her housing estate, marking her meaningful spaces on her map, for example, her friend’s house or the green area where she played. Thommen et  al. (2010) contend that in most cases, a person’s

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mental map of a journey will rarely accurately match a cartographic map. However, after consultation with the child’s mother, there appears to be a certain amount of accuracy in the details on the map. Both maps showed the children’s familiarity and perhaps their internalisation of the physical layout of local spaces and demonstrated an ability to symbolically represent space and place symbolically (Thommen et al., 2010). The role of the educator here was to present a stimulus for thinking about place and to provide a variety of tools for children to represent their interpretation of the locality. In response to this emerging interest of symbolically representing meaningful local spaces, a large map of the village was co-constructed with the children. This was the only guided activity the children had in map-making during the pre-school year. Discussions were held with the children regarding the positioning of key landmarks  – schools, shops, services and so forth – which side of the road they were on, what they were next to etcetera. This co-constructed activity enabled the children to voice which local amenities were important to them (skate park, playground, veterinary surgery) and to consider the relationship of these amenities in relation to each other. Children’s emerging spatial literacy was further enhanced through the introduction of Bee Bots (bee-shaped programmable floor robots). Children were charged with the task of programming the Bee Bot to get from the setting to another landmark on the map. This activity facilitated not only spatial talk and discussion but also rich imaginative experiences as children named the Bee Bots and composed stories about why they were going to certain landmarks. Adding narrative scenarios to spatial play has been proven to strengthen children’s use of spatial language during guided activity with adults (Kersh et al., 2008). Rich imaginative and creative experiences such as those outlined earlier serve as enablers for children to represent and communicate their ideas of meaningful places within their localities and provide a gateway for educators to interpret children’s understanding of local places (Figure 7.1). First-hand/Active learning

Young children learn from actively engaging in learning experiences. Dunphy (2012) notes that the role of educators is to provide real-life learning opportunities outside of the setting. Drawing on the pedagogical approach of Reggio Emilia, children attending The Sunshine Preschool are taken for walks around the village on a daily basis, noticing landmarks and conversing with local residents. First-hand experiences of local places help to cement a sense of local identity and belonging (Brillante and Mankiw, 2015), and aspects of the experience can be observed in children’s play. The next section describes these processes in action.

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FIGURE 7.1 Children

author).

construct the village church bell tower (Photograph by the

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FIGURE 7.2  Children

reimagine their village through play (Photograph by the

author). Walking in the village

Jordan (2009) speaks of co-construction; she emphasises the child as a powerful player in their own learning. Co-construction views the adult and child as having an equal role to play, both will draw understanding and meaning from the environment together rather than the child acquiring facts from the teacher. In The Sunshine Preschool, the children are empowered to plan their day and their learning. Conversations are had between the children as they plan for a walk in the village. They will often target one location as

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the source of their interest, highlighting various reasons why. These reasons often have a personal meaning for the children, for example: ‘My mammy works in the coffee shop, l want to go there’ (Oisín). ‘I want to see the pigs in the priests garden again, that was fun’ (Ellie). Interestingly, it was observed over time that children became so confident in planning and implementing their walks that they invited their teachers to go with them rather than being a necessary component. Through their daily walks, the children became visible in the village, their presence was often acknowledged by residents and those who work in the village. Being visible in the village was an important component of how the children viewed their own role as valued citizens. The children used language indicating ownership of the village, referring to it as their village, their graveyard or park. One of the children’s favourite places to visit is the old graveyard, it is also a wildlife sanctuary and houses the village beehives. For example, one child often referred to her grandad being buried in ‘our graveyard’, saying ‘grandad is buried down in our graveyard’ she had taken ownership of this space and viewed it as ours collectively. Aistear’s (NCCA, 2009) theme of Identity and Belonging points to the community as a place where children should build links, this theme was evident in this setting as children were invited to attend events or to call and visit residents and community groups. For example, the parish priest has a small holding next to the church, he invited the children to visit and made time to chat. The village Tidy Towns Committee asked the children to plant daffodils in the park, the children spoke about how important it is to plant the bulbs, they recognised that care for the environment is a responsibility that they shared with adults (CECDE, 2006; NCCA, 2009). The village prides itself on community involvement, and children’s developing sense of community involvement is nurtured and encouraged in the preschool setting through the daily walks. The children have formed connections with the people and places in their village. When children return to the classroom, this first-hand, place-based learning is extended through rich imaginative play and extended discussions (Dunphy, 2012). During these play sessions, children routinely showed that they are capable and competent in their ability to represent aspects of their locality which are built on these lived experiences. Children typically used foam building blocks to create representations of buildings they were interested in (Ness and Farenga, 2007; Gura, 1992). Often, the children extended that learning by introducing small-world characters who represented occupants of the village they know and like. Educator knowledge of the Aistear (NCCA, 2009) framework and the Reggio Emilia approach helped to create an environment which was culturally representative of the children’s community. In this play-based Reggio environment, materials were thoughtfully added to extend on the children’s

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learning and to promote a sense of identity and belonging. Materials included real-world items, like shopping baskets, tea sets, a range of real foods, a doctor’s kit and so forth, materials that are meaningful to the children and which they encounter on their daily excursions (Dunphy, 2012). Space and time were offered in abundance which allowed the children to represent their ideas in multimodal ways. These ideas most often emerged from the experiences the children encountered in the village. The children created photograph books of the village, referred to them regularly and used the pictures to open discussions. During extended play, children talked enthusiastically about their community and their role in it. Through discussions, the children demonstrated knowledge of their communities and the people in them. They expressed positive feelings of being members of the community both verbally and in their play. First-hand experiences in the local village supported children’s connections to meaningful places within the locality, developing a sense of identity and belonging (Brillante and Mikiw, 2015), and they helped children to form ideas about local places which were further explored through play and extended talk and discussion. Discussion

A crucial aspect of identity and self-esteem is that children see themselves as agents in control of their own actions (Dunphy, 2012). Aistear’s (NCCA, 2009) theme of Identity and Belonging centres on children developing a positive sense of who they are through interactions with their families and communities. Positive experiences in their communities increase the child’s feelings of being valued and respected as an individual and contribute to the child’s overall social development (NCCA, 2009). The factors which influence how a child encounters their place in the community are multifaceted. Outdoor first-hand/active learning opportunities that educators can create for young children are often dependent on child/adult ratios. The Sunshine Preschool had a higher child-to-adult ratio than Rainbows Montessori, thus facilitating children’s first-hand outdoor encounters with their local area. However, in Rainbows Montessori, where ratios met national requirements for indoor environments but did not meet those required for external outings, educators drew upon children’s lived experience of local places with their parents as they travelled to the setting. Using photographs as a stimulus for accessing children’s knowledge and understanding personal connections to local spaces proved to be a powerful tool for talking about local places. Follow on, child-led activities such as map-making and block play revealed children’s internalisation of meaningful physical spaces, for example, Kerry Anne’s knowledge of her housing estate. The children in The Sunshine Preschool, also playfully represented their understanding of local spaces, for example, when using the foam blocks to build the graveyard (Gura, 1992).

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These activities show that young children are capable and competent in their ability to represent aspects of their locality built on lived experiences. They are actively forming a connection with the people and places in their localities. The role of the educator is crucial in supporting emerging local knowledge and sense of place. As noted earlier, both Aistear (NCCA, 2009) and Síolta (CECDE, 2006) note the importance of establishing a sense of place, identity and belonging in a child’s earliest years. Educators in both settings were cognisant of this and actively supported children’s developing sense of place. Consequently, in both settings, creating opportunities for the children to encounter their place in the community is considered important in setting curriculum planning. In Rainbows Montessori, active listening to children’s responses to the photographs of local landmarks, prompted further discussion with the children about spaces that were meaningful to them and revealed the ways in which children knew about these places. Conversations between the children showed that when out with parents, children were exposed to local places and their use for example shops, take-away outlets, the community centre. Enda’s rich description of his journey from home to setting highlights the importance of parental conversation about direction and landmarks when journeying with children. Observation of child-led map-making activities resulted in a collaborative map-making activity, leading to rich extended talk and discussion about landmarks, road layouts and direction. This activity was enhanced through the introduction of programmable toys, the Bee Bots. These learning opportunities afforded the children time and space to reflect on what they knew about their locality and afforded the educators an understanding of the rich funds of place-based knowledge of the children. Tuning into children’s discussions in The Sunshine Preschool enabled the educators to note that children with older siblings, or grandparents living in the village had an increased sense of that place and articulated it more than children who lived outside the village. Armed with this knowledge, educators aimed for all children to be able to develop and articulate their sense of place and belonging in a more active way through their daily village walks. To conclude, young children’s emergent sense of place, identity and belonging is facilitated by adults (parents and educators) who take children out into the locality and talk to them about the use of space, where landmarks are positioned in relation to each other and model direction. First-hand, active learning experiences are crucial in helping children to become visible in their local spaces, to help them understand the varying use of space and how they may become users of those spaces as local citizens. Being active in the maintenance of the locality also helps to build a sense of citizenship and belonging to local spaces. Providing time, space and resources in the setting, to explore, discuss and represent children’s knowledge and internal ideas about local places in multi-modal, playful ways are essential to enhance learning gained from these active learning experiences.

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Further readings Brillante and Mankiw (2015) detail how young children come to understand aspects of local places through actively participating in them and positions educators as ‘place-makers’, supporting young children in their discovery of local places. Kilia et al. (2015) is essential reading if you want to read more about children using photographs to learn about space. Thommen et al. (2010) offer an insight into children’s representations of their journey to school through map-making, noting the position of local landmarks along the path taken.

References Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) (2018) Belonging, being and becoming the early years learning framework for Australia. ACECQA. https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2018-02/belonging_being_and_ becoming_the_early_years_learning_framework_for_australia.pdf Brillante, P., and Mankiw, S. (2015) A sense of place: Human geography in the early childhood classroom, Young Children, 70(3), 16–23. Bruce, T. (2011) Learning through play: For babies, toddlers and young children. London: Hodder Education. Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education (2006) Síolta, the national quality framework for early childhood education. Dublin: CECDE. Cohen, L., and Uhry, J. (2010) Naming block structures: A multi-modal approach, Early Childhood Education Journal, 39(1), 79–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s10643-010-0425-x Cresswell, T. (2013) Geographic thought: A critical introduction. Critical Introduction to Geography Series. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Dunphy, E. (2012) Perspectives on early learning, in M. Mhic Mhathúna and M. ­Taylor (eds) Early childhood education and care. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. Ferrera, K., Hirsh-Pasek, K., Newcombe, N. S., Golinkoff, R., and Shallcross Lam, W. (2011) Block talk: Spatial language during block play, Mind, Brain, and Education, 5(3), 143–151. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-228X.2011.01122.x Green, C. (2013) A  sense of autonomy in young children’s special places, International Journal for Early Childhood Environmental Education, 1(1), 8–31. Gura, P. (1992) Exploring learning: Young children and block play. London: Sage. Hawes, Z., Tepylo, D., and Moss, J. (2015) Developing spatial thinking, in B. Davis (ed) Spatial reasoning in the early years, principles, assertions, and speculations. Oxon: Routledge. Jordan, B. (2009) Scaffolding learning and co-constructing understandings, in A. Anning, J. Cullen, and M. Fleer (eds) Early childhood education: Society and culture. London: Sage, 31–42. Kersh, J., Casey, B. M., and Mercer-Young, J. M. (2008) Research on spatial skills and block building in girls and boys, in O. N. Saracho and K. Spodek (eds) Contemporary perspectives on mathematics in early childhood education. Charlotte: Information Age. Kilia, M., Zacharos, K., and Ravanis, K. (2015) Four-to-six year-old children using photographs as sources of information about space, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 23(2), 164–182. https://doi.org/10.1080/13502 93X.2015.10.16803

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Kullman, K. (2010) Transitional geographies: Making mobile children, Social and Cultural Geography, 11(8), 829–846. Malaguzzi, L. (2012) No way: The hundred is there, in C. Edwards, L. Gandini, and G. Forman (eds) The hundred languages of children. 3rd edn. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger. National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (2009) Aistear: The early childhood curriculum framework. Dublin: NCCA. Ness, D., and Farenga, S. J. (2007) Knowledge under construction: The importance of play in developing children’s spatial and geometric thinking. Plymouth: Littlefield Publishers. New Zealand (NZ) Ministry of Education (1996) Te Whāriki: He Whāriki Mātauranga mō ngā Mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington: Ministry of Education. Tanko, A. I., and Adamu, Y. M. (2004) What is where? Near or far? Primary Geographer, 18–21, October. Tanner, J. (2012) How do you see it? Primary Geography, 22–23. Thommen, E., Avelar, S., Sapin, V., Perrenoud, S., and Malatesta, D. (2010) Mapping the journey from home to school: A study on children’s representation of space, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 19(3), 191–205. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2010.496975 United Nations (1989) United Nations convention on the rights of the child. https:// www.unicef.org/child-rights-convention/convention-text Wood, E. (2013) Play, learning and the early childhood curriculum. 3rd edn. London: Sage.

8 MAPPING THE IMPORTANCE OF PLACE, IDENTITY AND LOCAL WAYS OF KNOWING Emma Walker and Lily Walker

Introduction

This chapter draws on research carried out in a secondary school located in a coastal town in the North of England. Set in the context of the expansion of the academisation programme in England, the school in question was subject to a forced academy order following a series of Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education) inspections which deemed the school to be ‘failing’. Such an order legislates that the school must move from Local Authority control to become an academy, often in England, these are part of a group of schools known as multi academy trusts (MATs). In the narrative fragment, we see a glimpse of a life lived in the school as it was navigating this transition. Conceptually, we utilise literature within the field of cultural geographies to develop our understanding of the school and the participants as situated within place, space and landscape. This gives much-needed context to challenge educational policy and the standardisation agenda at the macro, meso and micro scales and facilitates reflection on how pedagogy itself can attune to local contexts to inform personal geographies and relationality between student and curriculum. This, we argue, develops a critical tool to empower communities to draw on what Walker (2019) terms ‘local ways of knowing’, to develop a counternarrative which challenges the current trajectory that seeks to erase particularity. Exploring place, space and landscape Borders and mapping

The production of geographical knowledge has always involved knowing place and space in particular ways. Historically, importance was placed in DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-11

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technologies which could fix the locations of things in space; locations of places, people and phenomena on the surface of the earth and to represent these on maps. However, what developed was a recognition that there was an association between power, knowledge and geography. This connection between geography and power enabled cartography and mapping to become a means of exerting societal and cultural control upon marginalised communities, creating a notion of ‘othering’ (Said, 1978). Although originally used as a means of exerting colonial power and inscription, it could be argued that the process of bounding has developed into a dynamic phenomenon with the boundary line simply as the ‘tangible and visible feature that represents the course and intensity of the bounding process at any particular time and space’ (Newman, 2003, p. 134). To deepen our understanding of boundaries requires an exploration of the boundary not only as geographical, but as socially and culturally constructed. Whilst early boundary studies focused on territory and the state (Hartshorne, 1939; Minghi, 1963), more recently the focus has shifted to the notion of ‘boundary’ as a line which may separate, enclose and potentially exclude at several spatial and social scales (Newman, 2003). Studies emerging in the late 1990s saw a renewed interest in the territorial lines which separate state territories and how these are constantly being redrawn and re-demarcated (Newman, 1999). What was also developing was an interest in the nature of ‘bounding’, and the way in which people and groups can be enclosed within a variety of social and spatial compartments (Prescott, 1987). Examining the bounding process requires an integration of the types and scales of boundaries re-conceptualised as a single process. Whilst the study of boundaries is located within separate realms – political, social, geographical  – it becomes problematic to understand the phenomenon. What is needed is a way of understanding the processes of ‘bounding’ and ‘bordering’ rather than merely seeing the outcome of the various compartmentalised processes. There is, in addition, the notion of ‘borderless’. Thus, we can conceive of a borderless world fuelled by the impact of globalisation. The fact that boundaries have become increasingly permeable in terms of the movement of goods, people and ideas has led some to argue that we have seen the end of absolute territorial integrity and the sovereignty of the state (Albert, 1998; Dittgen, 2000; Kohen, 2000). Political power has moved away from the state towards global and virtual entities. Place

The ongoing importance of place reflects how fundamental it is to human existence, even existence itself. Acknowledging the importance of place does not shield it from the accusation that it can be seen as a ‘fuzzy concept’ (Cresswell, 2013, p. 235). The case we make for its centrality to this chapter

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demands that we understand the concept of place more clearly, dispelling some of the fuzziness. ‘Place’ as a concept suffers from several difficulties. It can often be used alongside, or instead of other concepts such as location, locale, region, space, territory and landscape. In addition, it can be used as a more taken-for-granted concept as opposed to a considered one (Cresswell, 2013, 2015). Massey suggests that very often when we think of what we mean by ‘a place’, we picture a ‘settled community, a locality with a distinct character – physical, economic and cultural’ (1995, p. 46). When we reflect on phrases such as ‘a sense of place’ or ‘there is no place like home’ or perhaps most revealingly, the phrase ‘out of place’, we begin to see the power of our conceptualisations of place. Yet for Massey, and central to our conceptual cartography here, is the positioning of space and place with relationality which can help us recognise and harness agentive possibilities. If places may be thought of as ‘open articulations of connections’, then ‘identities of subjects and identities of places constructed through interrelations not only challenge notions of past authenticities but also open the possibility of change in the future’ (Massey, 1999, p. 288). The emphasis on places as sites in the flow of social relations conceives of place as open and unbounded. Massey’s developing thinking that there is a global sense of place sees her conceiving of place as open and porous. They are meeting places where the trajectories of people and ideas collide. One of the effects of modernity has been the establishment of power/knowledge relations. The colonial power and the colonised spaces, for example, sees a geography of power and a power-geometry of intersecting trajectories (2005, p. 64). Place can be understood as ‘woven together out of ongoing stories, as a moment within powergeometrics, as a particular constellation within wider topographies of space’ (2005, p. 131). Space

Alongside the notion of a physical place is the notion of space in which it is situated. In this chapter we refer to ‘place’ as the coastal town in which the study took place. In turn we see ‘space’ as the cultural inscription on place which examines Grosz’s (1993) concept of ‘social tattooing’. The move towards a conception of space through social practices shifted the question from ‘what is space?’ to ‘how is it that different human practices create and make use of distinctive conceptualisations of space’ (Harvey, 1973, p. 14). Space, in this sense, is no longer ‘a category of fixed and given ontological attributes, but a becoming, an emerging property of social relationships’ (Jiménez, 2003, p. 140). This adds a relational dimension which moves space to spatiality. Massey (1994) describes her concern not only with the notion that the term ‘space’ is adopted with a multiplicity of meanings which are often unexplained. Many authors rely on the terms space or spatial while assuming that

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their meaning is clear and uncontested. Yet, her concern extends beyond this to a deeper anxiety that of the many conflicting definitions of space effectively ‘de-politicise the realm of the spatial’ (1994, p. 250) and for Massey, who argues for a dynamic and politically progressive way of conceptualising space, this is particularly problematic. Exploring landscape

‘Landscape’ is a key term of human geography. The constancy of landscape lies in its ability to be a central object of investigation, an organising principle and an interpretive lens. ‘Landscape’ can be viewed not only as a site of study in itself but also as a way of understanding interactions between human cultures and natural environments. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, writing on landscape took a cultural turn. Daniels and Cosgrove (1988) advanced a definition of landscape as a way of seeing and representing the world. They argued that landscapes worked to reflect and reproduce the values and norms of socio-economic elites. This was developed by Duncan and Duncan (1988), who saw landscape as a signifying system for the production and transmissions of cultural meanings. Applying psychoanalytic principles to the interpretation of landscape, Rose (1993) argued that the landscape way of seeing was through a masculinist gaze. This added the forms of patriarchy to systems of cultural and political power. Landscape has developed with work which focuses on the phenomenological, corporeal and performative aspects (Mulvey, 1989; Nash, 1996). The natural landscape is a classic foundation for the appreciation of place (Massey, 2005, p. 137). Grounding in the landscape however confers the natural world with a fixity that is challenged. The natural world is continually moving whether this be through erosion or the melting of polar ice. ­Massey (2005) asks, if everything is moving, where is here? ‘Here’, she argues, is where ‘spatial narratives meet up or form configurations, conjunctures of trajectories which have their own temporalities’ (p. 139). Seeing landscape as trajectory encourages thinking of the totality of the landscape at any particular moment as the ‘simultaneity of stories-so-far’ (p. 12). Personal geographies

The literature around personal geographies informs the conceptual and methodological choices within this chapter. It is inherently linked to the field of children’s geographies which Freeman and Tranter (2015, p. 491) define as ‘the study of the relationship between children and space’. Children’s geographies place students as ‘active participants’ in their own learning (Hammond and McKendrick, 2020, p. 88). It has been argued that the performativity of English schools has made it challenging to explore personal

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geographies among our learners (Hammond and McKendrick, 2020). This is in part a reflection and critique of increasingly diverse routes into teaching, ‘resulting in teacher educators making decisions to omit areas of knowledge, which they acknowledge to be of value, and which they otherwise would have incorporated in teacher education’ (Hammond and McKendrick, 2020, p. 91; GA, 2015; Whiting et al., 2018). The omitting of certain areas or types of knowledge within the curriculum leads to a questioning of how the curriculum is best designed to include the personal geographies and voices of students. According to the Geographical Association (GA, 2023), teachers must ask students geographical questions about issues that are important to them, for example questions around identity and their place in the world. Hammond and McKendrick (2020) use the GA’s curriculum making model in their own research to highlight how student experiences are an essential facet of curriculum development. This supports students in ‘meaning making’ and contributes to their ability to have a greater understanding of geographical imaginations and concepts (Hammond and McKendrick, 2020, p. 86; Vygotsky, 1962; Catling and Martin, 2011; Roberts, 2017). This highlights the importance of moving towards schools as ‘learning communities’ rather than ‘learning organisations’ (Rudduck, 2004, p. 141; Rachal, 1998). The ability to adapt the curriculum to include personal geographies is arguably the most effective way to create department and school wide change. Discussion of methodological approach

The methodological underpinnings of the research project we draw on, is one of beginnings and endings. It is one that seeks to tell, listen, understand and observe in a narrative way. This narrative methodology uses storytelling to understand the connections between people and places. By using stories, both teller and listener can come together to understand each other within a ‘personally sacred realm’ (Atkinson, 2012, p. 123). The telling of stories and the urge people have to narrate their lives is nothing new (Atkinson, 2012, p. 115, 1995, 1998; Kenyon and Randall, 1997; Randall, 1995), many wellknown figures in society and academia choose to autobiographically produce their life stories (Walker, 1984; Massey, 1992; Bunkše, 2004; Varley, 2008). Storytelling as a method then seems only natural as ‘telling stories about past events seems to be a universal human activity, one of the first forms of discourse we learn as children’ (Riessman, 1993, p. 3; Nelson, 1989). This can encourage us to view all types of research as ‘forms of life’ (Wittgenstein, 1953) rather than ‘technical exercises governed by an abstract logic of methodological rules’ (Mishler, 1990, p. 419). Narrative inquiry is interdisciplinary (see Langness, 1965; Riessman, 1993; Clandinin and Connelly, 2000; Blunt, 2003; Phillips et  al., 2020); viewing narrative inquiry as a creative

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methodological practice allows new ways of understanding how identity is constructed and produced. Narrative fragment

The following narrative fragment is taken directly from field notes carried out by the first author during the study. They take place during Continuing Professional Development (CPD) meetings that teachers attended every Monday after school: Today’s session is led by the Head Teacher. It is an opportunity to outline his expectations of how the forthcoming open evening should be conducted. The head teacher enters the room and then raises his hand. Even though I have now experienced this on several occasions, I still feel uncomfortable with this school rule. The teachers around me shift uneasily. I sense that they are sharing my discomfort. As silence falls the Head Teacher begins to talk about the importance of the open evening which is happening the following week. He is at pains to stress that this is now a ‘new’ school and teachers should talk as if it is. He shares concerns that the school needs to attract not only as many students as possible but also ‘quality’ students. I make a note to consider the implications of his ‘quality’ as well as quantity approach. When asked by parents about the school the collective line is that Longton Academy Seachurch is a new school, not yet rated by Ofsted, and that teaching and learning is improving every week. It is important, he stresses, to make sure that the new name should be used at all times and anyone referring to it by the old name of Seachurch School should be corrected. He recalls the following story to reinforce his point: The other day I was talking to one of the student’s grandfather’s about how the school has changed. I explained that it was important that everyone used the new name and no longer called it Seachurch School. He replied, ‘well, we all still call it ‘top school’ here’. I  said that it should be called Longton Academy Seachurch as it is now part of the Longton Academy Trust. This is what I am expecting you to do and especially next Thursday. The head teacher’s desire to erase the history of the school as he recounts ‘correcting’ the grandfather who uses the name the school is referred to by generations of families who have attended, gives an insight into the erasure of local history and perhaps, in a way, a lack of confidence that this school must in every way be rebranded as ‘new’. Attuning to ‘local ways of knowing’, building on local histories and identity-focused pedagogy can all be ways of reimagining how this school could be ‘turned around’.

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Implications for practice

Understanding the importance of place and identity is essential in the development of a curriculum in which students are seen and heard, as well as, providing students with the tools to understand geographical concepts and ideas. To move this chapter forward from research to practice, we now provide a couple of ideas that geography practitioners can use to support them in developing their own school curricula to reflect the ‘local ways of knowing’ advocated. On Migration, UK Geographies or Population Dynamics: • Ask students who/what/where/when/why questions, see Iram Sammar: www.salaamgeographia.com • Ask students to interview local people about their own migration stories, this links to human geography fieldwork. • Engage students with creative writing practices about migration (sensory writing: smell/touch/sight/taste/sound). On teaching challenging topics on Climatic and Tectonic Hazards: • Develop a model of difficult concepts that relate to students own lived experiences e.g. atmospheric circulation model, relating low pressure to boiling a kettle. These examples are particularly pertinent to the Key Stage 3 (KS3) curriculum, as there is more opportunity to include local examples and contexts. It is important to note that all curricular are in flux and therefore never ‘finished’. We suggest making changes over time to enable students to feel ‘seen’ within their lessons is a much more powerful approach. Conclusion

Through a detailed examination of the notions of place, space and landscape, this chapter has argued that these concepts can give us a framework to understand the context in which educational experience exists. We argue that the current performative culture in education in England, influenced by neoliberal values (Clarke et al., 2021), creates a discourse of individualism and an erasure of local identity. Attending ‘local ways of knowing’ (Walker, 2019) in terms of both connecting to communities and understanding the personal geographies of both students and teachers affords the opportunity to re-imagine educational futures. Where currently we see the constant judgement of schools and the way of ‘improving’ them as an erasure of all that has been before, we argue for privileging identity. By moving towards an identity-focused approach to education, not only are connections created between school and community to reimagine place,

114  Emma Walker and Lily Walker

but identity work also enables a re-imagining of curriculum and pedagogy. Through an understanding of the personal geographies of students within school communities, curricul can be powerful sites of change in which students see their lived experiences as connected and influencing their learning. Beyond this, curriculum work becomes an ever-changing project as changes are made in response to a community’s past, present and future. In this sense, we ground our experience in the spatial and the temporal – ­constantly mindful that our ‘stories’ do not erase what has come before them but work to harmonise local histories and imagined futures. Stories, therefore, are not static, but in flux – they are always ‘stories-so-far’ (Massey, 2005). Further readings The Decolonising Geography website contributes to developing curricula that challenge universal truths and objective knowledge in Geography. https://decolonisegeography.com. Grosz, E. (1993) Bodies-cities, in B. Colomina (ed) Sexuality and space. New York: Princeton Architectural Press. Hammond, L., and McKendrick, J. (2020) Geography teacher educators’ perspectives on the place of children’s geographies in the classroom, Geography, 105(2), 86–93. Massey, D. (2005) For space. London: Sage. RGS-IBG webpage ‘Enabling equitable cultures: decolonisation’ is a collection of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) resources with relevance to decolonisation in HE geography. https://www.rgs.org/research/higher-education-resources/ edi-decolonising/#:~:text=The%20Decolonising%20the%20curriculum%20 health,a%20process%20of%20continuous%20improvement. Salaam Geographia is a useful website for people who want to learn about anti-racist approaches to teaching geography in schools. https://salaamgeographia.com.

References Albert, M. (1998) On boundaries, territory and postmodernity, Geopolitics, 3(1), 53–68. Atkinson, R. (1995) The gift of stories: Practical and spiritual applications of autobiography, life stories, and personal mythmaking. Westport, CT: Bergin and Garvey. Atkinson, R. (1998) The life story interview. Qualitative research methods series, No. 44. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Atkinson, R. (2012) The life story interview as a mutually equitable relationship, in F. J. Gubrium, A. J Holstein, B. A. Marvasti, and D. K. McKinney (eds) The Sage handbook of interview research: The complexity of the craft. 2nd edn. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Blunt, A. (2003) Home and identity: Life stories in text and in person, in D. Pinder, A. Blunt, P. Gruffudd, J. May, and M. Ogborn (eds) Cultural geography in practice. London: Hodder Arnold. Bunkše, E. V. (2004) Geography and the art of life. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.

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Catling, S., and Martin, F. (2011) Contesting powerful knowledge: The primary geography curriculum as an articulation between academic and children’s (ethno-) geographies, The Curriculum Journal, 22(3), 317–335. Clandinin, D. J., and Connelly, F. M. (2000) Narrative inquiry: Experience and story in qualitative research. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Clarke, M., Haines Lyon, C., Walker, E., Walz, L., Collet-Sabé, J., and Pritchard, K. (2021) The banality of education policy: Discipline as extensive evil in the neoliberal era, Power and Education, 13(3), 187–204. Cresswell, T. (2013) Geographic through: A  critical introduction. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell. Cresswell, T. (2015) Place: An introduction. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley Blackwell. Daniels, S., and Cosgrove, D. (1988) The iconography of landscape: Essays on the symbolic representation, design and use of past environments. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Department for Education (DfE) (2013) National curriculum. https://www.gov.uk/ government/collections/national-curriculum Dittgen, H. (2000) The end of the nation state? Borders in an age of globalization, in M. Pratt and J. Brown (eds) Borderlands under stress. London: Kluwer Law Academic, 49–68. Duncan, J. S., and Duncan, N. G. (1988) (Re)reading the landscape, Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 6, 117–126. Freeman, C., and Tranter, P. (2015) Children’s geographies, in J. D. Wright (ed) International encyclopedia of the social and behavioural sciences. 2nd edn. London: Elsevier. GA (2023) Curriculum making explained. https://geography.org.uk/curriculummaking/. GA (2015) Geography initial teacher education and teacher supply in England: A national research report by the geographical association. Sheffield: Geographical Association. https://geography.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/GA_ITE_ REPORT-final_web.pdf Grosz, E. (1993) Bodies-cities, in B. Colomina (ed) Sexuality and space. New York: Princeton Architectural Press. Hammond, L., and McKendrick, J. (2020) Geography teacher educators’ perspectives on the place of children’s geographies in the classroom, Geography, 105(2), 86–93. Hartshorne, R. (1939) The nature of geography: A critical survey of current thought in light of the past. Lancaster, PA: Association of American Geographers. Harvey, D. (1973) Social justice and the city. London: Edward Arnold. Jiménez, A. C. (2003) On space as capacity, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 9(1), 137–153. Kenyon, G., and Randall, W. (1997) Restorying our lives: Personal growth through autobiographical reflection. Wesport, CA, Praeger. Kohen, M. (2000) Is the notion of territorial sovereignty obsolete? in M. Pratt and J. Brown (eds) Borderlands under stress. London: Kluwer Law Academic, 35–48. Langness, L. L. (1965) The life history in anthropological science. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Massey, D. (1992) A place called home, New Formations, 17, 3–15. Massey, D. (1994) Space, place and gender. Cambridge: Polity Press.

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Massey, D. (1995) Spatial divisions of labour: Social structures and the geography of production. 2nd edn. London: Macmillan. Massey, D. (1999) Power-geometrics and the politics of space-time. Heidelberg: Department of Geography, University of Heidelberg. Massey, D. (2005) For space. London: Sage. Minghi, J. V. (1963) Boundary studies in political geography, Annals Association of American Geographers, 53, 407–428. Mishler, E. (1990) Validation in inquiry guided research: The role of exemplars in narrative studies, Harvard Educational Review, 60(4), 415–442. Mulvey, L. (1989) Visual and other pleasures. New York: Palgrave. Nash, C. (1996) Reclaiming vision: Looking at landscape and the body, Gender, Place and Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography, 3(2), 149–170. Nelson, K. (1989) Narratives from the crib. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Newman, D. (1999) Forging a cross-boundary discourse: Political geography and political science, Political Geography, 18(8), 873. Newman, D. (2003) Boundaries, in J. Agnew, K. Mitchell, and G. Toal (eds) A companion to political geography. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 123–137. Phillips, R., Ali, N., and Chambers, C. (2020) Critical collaborative storying: Making an animated film about halal dating, Cultural Geographies, 27(1), 37–54. Prescott, J. R. V. (1987) Political frontiers and boundaries. London: Allen and Unwin. Rachal, J. R. (1998) We’ll never turn back: Adult education and the struggle for citizenship in Mississippi’s freedom summer, American Educational Research Journal, 35(2), 167–198. Randall, W. (1995) The stories we are. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Riessman, C. K. (1993) Narrative analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Roberts, M. (2017) Geographical knowledge is powerful if, Teaching Geography . . ., 42(1), 6–9. Rose, G. (1993) Feminism and geography: The limits of geographical knowledge. Cambridge: Polity Press. Rudduck, J. (2004) How to improve your school: Giving pupils a voice. London: Continuum. Said, E. W. (1978) Orientalism. New York: Pantheon Books. Varley, A. (2008) A place like this? Stories of dementia, home, and the self, Environment and Planning D Society and Space, 26, 47–67. Vygotsky, L. (1962) Thought and language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Walker, A. (1984) In search of our mothers’ gardens. London: The Women’s Press. Walker, E. (2019) Restorying ‘our school’: Mapping a school improvement counternarrative through place, space, and the light of local knowledge. Unpublished doctoral thesis, York St. John University. https://ray.yorksj.ac.uk/id/eprint/4723/. Whiting, C., Whitty, G., Menter, I., Black, P, Horndern, J., Parfitt, A., Reynolds, K., and Sorensen, N. (2018) Diversity and complexity: Becoming a teacher in England in 2015–2016, Review of Education, 6(1), 69–96. Wittgenstein, L., and Anscombe, G. E. M. (1953) Philosophical investigations. Oxford: Blackwell.

9 FOSTERING LOCAL IDENTITIES AMONG THAILAND’S YOUTH Place-based education Roger C. Baars and Xiaoling Zhang

Introduction

Since the 1980s, rural-urban migration has increased in Thailand, with mostly young people leaving the countryside (Hoshikawa, 2014). The problematic economic situation in many rural communities leads to large numbers of young people migrating to Thailand’s urban centres (Amnaj, 2014; Kurokawa, 2017). In addition to the common strategy of creating more economic opportunities for youth to counter these migratory trends, we suggest that fostering a stronger place attachment among them through education could help to improve the situation. One could argue that education, deeply rooted in local cultures and livelihoods, would connect students more deeply to their communities and potentially increase their motivation to stay (Yamashiro et al., 2016). In Thailand’s formal school curriculum, however, student learning is rather disconnected from local communities and environments (Satomi, 2009). Here, we see potential for non-formal education initiatives to overcome these shortcomings. Non-formal education can offer place-based learning that is deeply rooted in local cultures, involves a multitude of local stakeholders, and helps to foster community development (Leowarin, 2010). This chapter investigates how two rural place-based education (PBE) projects might have influenced aspects of place attachment among young people in north-eastern Thailand. Place attachment

Place attachment is often seen as a bond between people and their physical or social environment (Brown et al., 2003; Manzo and Perkins, 2006; Morgan, 2010). Multiple terms have been used to describe these relationships between DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-12

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place and people. Community attachment, sense of place, place identity, and place dependency are just some examples here. In this chapter, we conceptualise place attachment as an affective relationship between people and place, with a particular focus on cognition (thought, knowledge, and belief) and practice (action, and behaviour) in reference to place (Harris et  al., 1996; Rollero and De Piccoli, 2010). Brown and Perkins (1992, p.  284) offer a helpful definition to guide this research: ‘Place attachment involves positively experienced bonds, sometimes occurring without awareness, that are developed over time from the behavioural, affective, and cognitive ties between individuals and/or groups and their socio-physical environment’. Although place attachment is often experienced collectively among family and community members (Low and Altman, 1992), we focus in this chapter on individual perceptions and experiences of place. This study is informed by Scannell and Gifford’s (2010) Tripartite Model of Place Attachment to help evaluate how PBE initiatives might influence place attachment among youth in north-eastern Thailand. The model includes three dimensions of place attachment that were used as guiding principles rather than discreet categories to be assessed: • personal: individual and/or collective relationships; for example, the meaning of a cultural or religious place (e.g. temple); • place: social and physical environments people connect with; for example, being Buddhists or from a certain village; and • psychological: affective, cognitive and behavioural aspects; for example, enjoying a community event. This model allows place attachment to be conceptualised as a complex phenomenon which includes not only diverse aspects of people-place relationships but also their mutual inter-relationships within a community. Many studies have paid attention to place attachment as a product (Hidalgo and Hernandez, 2001; Brown et al., 2003; Rollero and De Piccoli, 2010). However, less attention has been paid to place attachment as a process (Kudryavtsev et al., 2012; Degnen, 2016). This research focuses on possible effects of two non-formal PBE programmes, seen as interventions aiming to strengthen youth attachment to their local village. Cultural settings of two rural communities in north-eastern Thailand

Sang Sinxay is a famous poem of high cultural relevance in Laos and northeastern Thailand. In 2016, a local non-governmental organisation (Isan Community Media Network for Art and Culture) established a PBE initiative in a small village in north-eastern Thailand, to strengthen local identity and foster

Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth  119

community cohesion (Pimpakun et  al., 2016). Multiple activities, such as workshops/lectures on Sang Sinxay, mural paintings, and village history, as well as drawing and handicraft activities and local festivals, were organised by the so-called Sinxay project. In this chapter, we explore the impact of two non-formal PBE projects based on Sang Sinxay. These are in Sawathii village, Khon Kaen Province, and Dongbang village, Mahasarakham Province; two villages with fewer than 500 residents. The Sinxay project was established in Sawathii village; hence, it has been selected as the first case study. Sawathii village is home of Moh Lam (traditional song) and the culturally important Songkran festival. Wat Chaisii, a local temple, exhibits several over 200-year-old mural paintings that depict scenes of Sang Sinxay. In 2018, Isan Community Media Network for Art and Culture established a second PBE project (Huptaem project) based on Sang Sinxay in Dongbang village, which has been selected as the second case study site. Stakeholders involved in both PBE projects include primary school students, local teachers and monks, village leaders and local government representatives, other local experts and scholars, as well as the Thai Health Promotion Foundation, the Sinxay project sponsor. At the time of this research, the Sinxay project was running in its fourth year, while the Huptaem project just had started its first year. The Sinxay project commenced with collecting and sharing information and knowledge about Sang Sinxay and the village more generally. Students learned about their community, its history and cultural significance as well as local handicraft (participatory learning approach). They utilised this knowledge to codevelop Sinxay Moh Lam (traditional song) to re-enact parts of Song Sinxay. Students then had to practice their performances, before (last step) performing at the Songkran festival. The Huptaem project followed similar steps. At the beginning, students were taught about mural paintings, the Sinxay story, as well as the history of their village. However, students in Dongbang created a drama play based on Buddha’s life, a highly regarded traditional lifestyle in north-eastern Thailand. Scenes of Sang Sinxay and mural paintings in the village were included in the play. At the time of this research, students did not yet have had the opportunity to perform their play but were eager and excited to show what they had achieved. Discussion of methodological approach

Data collection occurred in the villages Sawathii and Dongbang, Isan region, north-eastern Thailand. The Centre of Civil Society and Non-profit Management and the Research Group on Wellbeing and Sustainable Development at Khon Kaen University both supported the data collection. A total of 145 surveys were collected in the two local elementary schools. The survey was arranged into four sections: general questions about participants, student

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learning through the project, students’ level of place attachment, and a student mental maps exercise. In this chapter, we pay particular attention to the section students’ level of place attachment and the mental maps; the latter to illustrate students’ personal stories, as well as perceptions of and relationships with the village (Amsden and Van Wynsberghe, 2005). Participants were randomly sampled from the two local elementary schools, including participating and non-participating students in the two PBE projects. Participating students were asked to respond to all sections of the survey, while non-participating students were asked to ignore section B (learning outcomes). In Sawathii village, 36 participating (9–12 years; grades 3–6) and 40 non-participant students (9–10  years; grades 3–4) completed the survey. In Dongbang village, respondents included 18 participating (8–12  years; grades 2–6) and 50 non-participating students (10–12  years; grades 4–6). Surveys were translated into Thai before then distributed directly to students in class (between lessons). Responses were analysed to illustrate levels of place attachment among students. First, the average score across all eleven statements (Likert-scales) was calculated and used to compare participating and non-participating students. A  Welch t-test (independent samples t-test) was then conducted to explore statistically significant differences across individual statements, comparing participating and non-participating students. Mental maps were analysed following Jiang and Sun (2022) (based on Appleyard, 1970) to illustrate different levels of complexity and spatiality in student drawings. Mental maps were organised into four categories, I–IV: individual, sequential; spatial; and hybrid. Category II and III were further divided further into sub-categories. Appleyard (1970) claims, that the sequence from category I to IV often illustrates an increase in complexity (same applies to sub-categories) and spatial awareness. Hence, we argue that maps falling under category III and IV could indicate a more detailed spatial memory of local places (e.g. their village) and can be used as an indicator for measuring place-attachment among students. Letters requesting permission to collect personal data from students were sent to school principals and village leaders in Sawathii and Dongbang, as well as to the project leaders of Sinxay and Huptaem. Parents were consulted directly by school principals. Participation was voluntary (oral confirmation) and both purpose and content of this study were explained to all participants at the beginning of the data collection. Students’ level of place attachment

This section reports on levels of place attachment among participating and non-participating students in the Sinxay (Table 9.1) and Huptaem project (Table 9.2). In Sawathii village, the mean score of 4.83 for the statement ‘The village is important to me because of fond memories’ is the highest

TABLE 9.1 Student comparison Sawathii village

Non-participating (n=40)

t

df

p

significant

4.83 4.25 4.67 4.53 3.86 4.53 4.28 4.11 4.56 4.47 4.78 4.44

4.13 3.78 4.03 4.65 3.35 3.88 4.25 3.48 3.80 4.05 4.65 4.00

−3.043 −2.148 −2.598 0.739 −2.238 −2.705 −0.108 −2.343 −3.260 −2.337 −0.863

45.091 54.514 68.978 67.516 49.933 67.124 69.836 73.352 64.305 72.938 73.717

0.004 0.036 0.011 0.463 0.030 0.009 0.914 0.022 0.002 0.022 0.391

* * * * * * * *

Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth

1. Fond memories of village 2. Pride in the village 3. Enjoy traditional performances 4. Excited for community events 5. Can identify important landmarks 6. Knowledge about village history 7. Village got more important 8. Like to talk about my village 9. Village culture is unique 10. Motivation to promote Sinxay 11. Feeling comfortable in village Total mean score

Participating (n=36)

121

122

 

Participating (n=18)

Non-participating (n=50)

t

df

P

significant

4.94 4.89 4.89 4.89 4.44 4.94 4.72 4.78 4.78 4.61 5.00 4.81

4.82 4.49 4.47 4.43 4.08 4.65 4.57 4.12 4.47 4.33 4.63 4.46

−3.123 −1.169 −2.943 −3.432 −1.836 −2.594 −1.050 −4.128 −1.872 −1.516 n/a

63.462 66.575 66.598 65.160 47.784 66.874 45.669 60.405 61.966 40.039

0.003 0.247 0.004 0.001 0.073 0.012 0.299 < 0.001 0.066 0.137

* * * * * * * *

Roger C. Baars and Xiaoling Zhang

TABLE 9.2 Student comparison Dongbang village

Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth  123

across all items among participating students. Responses to the statement ‘I can identify important places in the village’ show the lowest score among participating students (3.86). For non-participating students, the highest score was recorded for statement ‘I am looking forward to community events’ (4.65), even higher than the respective score (4.53) among participating students. The statement ‘I feel more comfortable staying in the village than in other places’ scored high for both non-participating (4.65) and participating students (4.78). The total mean score across statement was higher among participating students (4.44) compared to non-participating students (4.00). The Welch t-test produced statistically significant differences in 8 out of 11 items between participants and non-participants (P < 0.05): participating students have higher levels of agreement for ‘The village is important to me because of fond memories’, ‘I am proud of my village’, ‘I feel happy about performing in my village’, ‘I can identify important places in the village’, ‘I know about the village history’, ‘I like to introduce my village to others’, ‘The village culture is unique’ and ‘I want to promote Sinxay project’. However, no significant differences (P < 0.05) were recorded on items ‘I am looking forward to community events’, ‘Sinxay makes my village more important to me’, and ‘I feel more comfortable staying in the village than in other places’. Among participating students in Dongbang, scores for the statement ‘I feel more comfortable staying in the village than in other places’ were the highest (5.00), indicating all students strongly agreed with this statement (see Table  9.2). The statement ‘I can identify important places in the village’ showed the lowest score (4.44) for participating students. Among nonparticipating students, the statement ‘I am proud of my village’ scored the highest (4.82). Similar to participating students, the statement ‘I can identify important places in the village’ showed the lowest score (4.08) among non-participating students. A statistically significant difference (Welch t-test) between both student groups was found in only 5 out of 11 items (P < 0.05): ‘I am proud of my village’, ‘I feel happy about performing in my village’, ‘I am looking forward to community events’, ‘I know about the village history’, and ‘I like to introduce my village to others’. No statistically significant differences (P > 0.05) were recorded for the statements ‘The village is important to me because of fond memories’, ‘I can identify important places in the village’, ‘Sinxay makes my village more important to me’, ‘The village culture is unique’, and ‘I want to promote Sinxay project’. The variance for item ‘I feel more comfortable staying in the village than in other places’ was equal to 0, with all participating students selecting 5 (strongly agree). Similar to results from Sawathii village, the total mean score of participating students (4.81) in Dongbang is higher than that of non-participating students (4.46).

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Mapping exercise

Mental maps from both villages were categorized following Jiang and Sun (2022). Several different categories (and corresponding sub-categories) were identified across student maps. Examples of student maps (and associated categories) can be seen in Figure 9.1. In Sawathii, the most common style of maps used by non-participating students is category I (individual), where only one single object or place has been sketched (see Table 9.3). A total of 39 maps in Sawathii were drawn in this simplistic style. Only one non-participating student used the more complex mapping style of category IIIc (linked). In contrast, this mapping style was used by most participating students (n=20). A combination of abstract plot symbols and more specific icons (e.g. houses) represent different features of the village linked by roads. However, most icons and symbols are rather abstract with only a few specific places, such as the local hospital or temple, highlighted. Participating student maps allocated to category IIc (branch and loop) focus on main roads and some symbolic landmarks, such as the school or temple (represented by plot symbols) and symbolised the only sequential mapping type used by students (n=7). Five maps could be allocated to type IIIa (scattered) and show personally important landmarks to participating students. However, spatial relationships (relative location to each other) between those items were either missing or portrayed in an abstract way. Category IIId (patterned) included only four maps, which convey the most complex and spatially accurate information about the village, hinting at spatial relationships between different items and adding labels to most features.

FIGURE 9.1 Students’

mental maps from Sawathii and Dongbang villages.

Fostering local identities among Thailand’s youth  125 TABLE 9.3 Map categories identified in maps of Sawathii and Dongbang villages

Map Categories

Sawathii village

Category

Participating NonParticipating Nonparticipating participating

Subcategory

I. Individual II. Sequential

III. Spatial

Dongbang village

39 a. fragmented b. chain c. branch loop 7 d. network a. scattered 5 b. mosaic c. linked 20 d. patterned 4

1 1

IV. Hybrid

8 3 6

1 36 5 4

Following Jiang and Sun (2022), student maps were divided into five categories: IIIa (scattered), IIIb (mosaic), IIIc (linked), IIId (patterned), and IV (hybrid) (see Table  9.3). The most surprising result in Dongbang was the complete absence of category I (individual) maps; most common among non-participating students in Sawathii. The distribution of mapping styles in Dongbang saw a general a shift towards more complex and accurate categories. Unlike Sawathii village, the distribution of maps in Dongbang shows much more variance among non-participating students. However, despite this variety, most maps from non-participating students (n=36) were produced in a linked (IIIc) mapping style showing more complex features of the village. This was also the most common category among participating students. Although these maps contain places, like individual buildings or important landmarks, these are generally organised freely without any meaningful spatial connections. Maps in category IIIa (scattered) and IIId (patterned) were characterised by high accuracy and detail. Although rather simplistic, maps falling under category IV (hybrid) highlight personally relevant places and their relationship to each other (symbolised by roads). One participating student used a mosaic (IIIb) style showing abstract enclosures of local housing clusters but did not detail important places in the village. Discussion: place attachment among students

Statistically significant differences could be identified for most individual items measuring place attachment (8 out of 11 in Sawathii and 5 out of 11 in Dongbang). The results for Sawathii suggest that participating students have a higher level of place attachment compared to non-participating students.

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This could be considered a possible effect of the PBE project. However, this cannot be stated in the same way for Dongbang, where only five items showed significant differences, indicating a weaker link between project participation and higher levels of place attachment. In both study sites, the total mean score was significant (higher than 3). However, this was the case for both participating and non-participating students alike. One possible explanation for this unexpected outcome could be that most respondents did not have the opportunity to live/stay outside their village as they were elementary school students. Hence, their levels of place attachment are relatively high in general. In Dongbang, we observe higher scores (compared to Sawathii), except for item 11 ‘Feeling comfortable in village’, where non-participating students in Sawathii scored slightly higher. A possible explanation for the higher scores in Dongbang could be its relative remote location (compared to Sawathii), resulting in less exposure of students to the outside world. The highest mean score for participating students in Sawathii was recorded for the item ‘The village is important to me because of fond memories’. Sawathii offered ample opportunities for participating students to bond with other group members and to partake in public performances. Participating students in Dongbang also scored very high on this item (4.89). Although they had not yet the opportunity to perform their play in public, it could be argued that social bonds and event practice have helped to create positive memories. However, since it was not specified what kind of memories this statement relates to, students could also refer to their own experience in the village. The lowest mean scores for participating and non-participating students in both villages were shown for the item ‘I can identify important landmarks in the village’. It seems that gender, personality and length of involvement in the two projects had an important effect on students’ confidence to identify important landmarks in their village. These personal characteristics were not directly assessed in this study, but anecdotal evidence in Sawathii suggest that older, male students, who participated in the Sinxay project for several years, were most confident and vocal when explaining key features in the village. Feeling insecure and shy when being confronted with expressing their opinion can be seen as a common feature in younger students with less experience and might not be connected to the PBE projects. The mapping exercise illustrates that most sketches created by participating students can be allocated to spatially dominant categories. The linked category IIIc was the most common type, which illustrates a strong focus on spatial elements by highlighting key features in the village and how these are connected by, for example, roads (sequential element). It can be argued that these maps demonstrate a clearer understanding of the spatial organisation of places and their connections (roads). The less prevalent maps of category IIc are characterised by a dominance of sequential elements (loops, squares,

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and branches) as outcrops from basic linear structures (roads) and the inclusion of abstract objects (represented at boxes). These maps show a less clear image of spatial elements in the village with mental maps being structured mainly along sequential elements (roads). Spatial rather than linear aspects dominate the patterned mapping style (category IIId), which indicates a complex and spatially informed image of the village. Students are aware of meaning and position of key features and how these relate to each other. In contrast, the scattered type (category IIIa), although spatial in perspective, lacks wider spatial awareness and often illustrates only individual objects without relevant connections to the rest of the village. Similarly, the mosaic type (category IIIb), although hinting at sequential relationships (road demarcations around districts or blocks), shows depictions of vague and abstract places or objects. These findings are supported by earlier work (Appleyard, 1970; Huynh et  al., 2008; Jiang and Sun, 2022), which suggest that more complex mapping styles illustrate a deeper and more complex understanding of the local environment, which often leads to, and is a result of, higher levels of place attachment. In Sawathii, participating students illustrate a complex understanding of spatial composition and relationships in their village, with 81% of their maps been allocated to spatially dominant categories (56% of them used a linked IIIc mapping style). Meanwhile, 39 out of 40 non-participating students in Sawathii used only one object in their maps. Although not spatially complex, more than half of these maps showcased an important landmark in the village. This could indicate that non-participating students are aware of important features in their village but lack a more complex spatial imagination. In Dongbang, 67% of the participating students produced spatially dominant maps. Somewhat unexpected, 90% of non-participating students also drew spatially dominant maps. An extremely unbalanced sample size (18 participating and 50 non-participating students) might have contributed to these results. It seems that Dongbang’s remoteness and very compact size allowed students to develop a more intimate relationship with the village. However, in terms of detail and level of complexity, maps from participating students showed more unique aspects and specific items compared to the simpler maps created by non-participating students. This might indicate a slightly more detailed perception of the village among participating students who often sketched places and items that were discussed in the village’s PBE project. Linkages to everyday place-based teaching practices

The concept of place is a powerful tool in everyday teaching and learning activities. The chapter has shown the benefits of bringing somewhat abstract knowledge into direct conversation with students’ everyday life in local communities. Going beyond typical approaches and materials in education (e.g. textbooks)

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and allowing for spatially informed alternatives, such as storytelling, folklore, and arts-based tools, could open up new opportunities in education. We found the mental mapping exercise particularly helpful in this sense. Giving room for a more creative and spatial engagement of students with their local communities has not only carved out new spaces of creativity and individuality, but also created high levels of enthusiasm and joy among students. Linking abstract subject knowledge with local places can be achieved in various ways. Excursions into local forests and parks, trips to historic sites, but also visiting places that are meaningful to students in various other ways, are just some examples of bringing place back into education. In this sense, even a gaming arcade or local bakery can be utilised in place-based teaching to connect, often mundane, places of importance to subject knowledge and desired learning outcomes. Conclusion

This research aimed to understand the complex relationships between the formation of spatial attachments and PBE. It was shown that students in both villages illustrated high levels of attachment to their village, perhaps partially influenced by their lifelong residence in that same place. Students were aged between eight and 12 years, an age where most have not yet experienced life outside the village. However, the research found significant differences in levels of place attachment between participating and non-participating students in terms of affect (pride, happiness, awareness, comfortableness), cognition (memory, knowledge, meaning), and behaviour (will, motivation, reconstruction of cultures) (Scannell and Gifford, 2010). In addition, a mapping exercise confirmed that most participating students understand the spatial composition and relationships between places in a more detailed and holistic way, compared to non-participating students. These differences could suggest that PBE can help to develop and foster students’ place attachment, when the learning process is implemented at the local level and deeply embedded in meaningful interactions with local culture and community. Therefore, to create a PBE project that can effectively facilitate interaction between students and the community and further their attachment to the village, the design and implementation of PBE projects is crucial. PBE projects in this study utilised participatory tools, such as drawing, observation, and partaking in performances, to develop a better understanding of local cultures (Sinxay, mural paintings, Moh Lam, lifestyle) and the meaning of relevant places (key features of the village). Students were engaged in the continuous process of knowledge generation, reflection, and action to sustain the project itself and to develop meaningful relationships between local culture and their everyday life. An important element of the PBE projects in this research was the Bowora network (home, temple, school). These three places can be seen as important key elements in the development of students’

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place attachment. They play both a social and physical role in forming student attachment to their village (see Scannell and Gifford, 2010). The social aspects of these places increase communication and interaction between people across generations and allow for collaborative and transformative learning. The physical aspects help to maintain and utilise the functions and meanings of place, for example, a temple as a place of learning. People who belong to these places are highly influential in developing student attachments to their village. Local experts, craftworkers, monks, and teachers, all are involved and important in the success of the two PBE projects discussed here. However, the two projects are currently struggling to sustain their work. Stakeholders involved in the projects are mostly elderly villagers. Thus, it will be difficult to continue the projects without younger generations becoming actively involved (beyond participation). Another issue is the high workload of teachers in rural schools. Rural Thailand suffers from under-resourced schools and overworked teachers. Their extra-curricular involvement might be difficult to be maintained in the future. Lastly, the lack of support from village leaders could jeopardise the future of the projects. Further readings Cincera, J., Valesova, B., Krepelkova, S., Simonova, P., and Kroufek, R. (2019) Placebased education from three perspectives, Environmental Education Research, 25(10), 1510–1523. The paper illustrates how perceptions and impacts of place-based education programmes can differ significantly across stakeholders (teachers, students and community). Dean, S. N. (2021) National park interpretation and place-based education: An integrative literature review, Journal of Experiential Education, 44(4), 363–377. Dean (2021) provides an interesting case-study to illustrate how place-based education could be meaningfully bundled with adjacent pedagogies to generate impactful learning outcomes. Rahiem, M. D. H., and Rahiem, H. (2020) The dragon, the knight and the princess: Folklore in early childhood disaster education, International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 19(8), 60–80. Although concerned with disaster education, the paper shows how cultural elements and folklore can be utilised creatively to develop new pedagogies in early childhood education.

References Amnaj, K. (2014) Sustainability of rural tourism in Thailand: A comparative analysis of remote area and urban fringe area. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo. Amsden, J., and Van Wynsberghe, R. (2005) Community mapping as a research tool with youth, Action Research, 3(4), 357–381. Appleyard, D. (1970) Styles and methods of structuring a city, Environment and Behavior, 2(1), 100–117.

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Brown, B., and Perkins, D. D. (1992) Disruptions in place attachment, in I. Altman and S. M. Low (eds) Place attachment. New York: Plenum, 279–304. Brown, B., Perkins, D. D., and Brown, G. (2003) Place attachment in a revitalizing neighbourhood: Individual and block levels of analysis, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 23(3), 259–271. Degnen, C. (2016) Socialising place attachment: Place, social memory and embodied affordances, Ageing and Society, 36(8), 1645–1667. Harris, P. B., Brown, B., and Werner, C. M. (1996) Privacy regulation and place attachment: Predicting attachments to a student family housing facility, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 16(4), 287–301. Hidalgo, M. C., and Hernandez, B. (2001) Place attachment: Conceptual and empirical questions, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 21(3), 273–281. Hoshikawa, K. (2014) Population and internal migration changes in Thailand during the demographic transition period, Japanese Journal of Health and Human Ecology, 80(1), 42–47. Huynh, N. T., Hall, G. B., Doherty, S., and Smith, W. W. (2008) Interpreting urban space through cognitive map sketching and sequence analysis, The Canadian Geographer, 52(2), 222–240. Jiang, Z., and Sun, Y. (2022) Exploring the spatial image of traditional villages from the tourists’ hand-drawn sketches, Sustainability, 14, 5977. Kudryavtsev, A., Krasny, M. E., and Stedman, R. C. (2012) The impact of environmental education on sense of place among urban youth, Ecosphere, 3(4), 1–15. Kurokawa, K. (2017) What do Thailand and Japan have in common, in terms of aging population? https://www.ritsumei.ac.jp/research/radiant/eng/aging-society/ story9.html/ Leowarin, S. (2010) Community learning centres in Thailand, Adult Education and Development, 74, 1–14. Low, S., and Altman, I. (1992) Place attachment: A conceptual inquiry, in I. Altman and S. M. Low (eds) Place attachment. New York: Plenum, 1–12. Manzo, L. C., and Perkins, D. D. (2006) Finding common ground: The importance of place attachment to community participation and planning, Journal of Planning Literature, 20(4), 335–350. Morgan, P. (2010) Towards a developmental theory of place attachment, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30(1), 11–22. Pimpakun, S., Wongphongkham, N., and Photisane, S. (2016) Sinxay: The application of cultural capital for community development of Thai and Lao in globalization, The Social Sciences, 11(23), 5719–5725. Rollero, C., and De Piccoli, N. (2010) Place attachment, identification and environment perception: An empirical study, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30(2), 198–205. Satomi, M. (2009) Tai ni Okeru Chiiki Saisei Undou ni Manabu [Learning about regional revitalization in Thailand]. Tokyo: Nobunkyo. Scannell, L., and Gifford, R. (2010) Defining place attachment: A tripartite organizing framework, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30(1), 1–10. Yamashiro, C., Morisaki, A., He, L., Eguchi, R., and Iwamoto, K. (2016) A study of community and school education in northeastern Thailand, Bulletin of the Faculty of Education Kumamoto University, 65, 91–103. http://hdl.handle. net/2298/35847

10 YOUNG PEOPLE’S CONCEPTUALISATIONS OF COMMUNITY AT A UK COMMUNITY RADIO STATION Catherine Wilkinson and Samantha Wilkinson

Introduction

Using the case study of Knowsley Community College-based radio station KCC Live, a volunteer youth-led community radio station, this chapter explores how young people at the station conceptualise community. We report on empirical research undertaken to explore how KCC Live functions as a site of informal, situated learning for the volunteers aged 16–25 who are predominantly Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). This chapter is structured as follows: first, we review literature on community and community radio, then we introduce the case study, community radio station KCC Live. Following this, we provide an overview of the methodology before presenting our findings in relation to the community within KCC Live. After discussing implications for practice, we conclude by emphasising our contribution to discussions of place and education as a new vocabulary for understanding community in relation to NEET young people and informal places of learning. Research in community and community radio

Adopting a place-based approach to community, Reed and Hanson define the community served by community stations as ‘in a specific geographic area’ (2006, p. 214). Others take a networked view, asserting that community stations reach people who live in dispersed locations, yet have shared interests (Gumucio-Dagron, 2013). Encompassing both strands, Coyer (2006) presents community radio as serving communities of interest, providing the examples of lesbians and gay men, blind and partially sighted people, DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-13

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Afro-Caribbeans and Asians, and small geographic areas. Crucially, these stations remain situated within the context of their local areas. Leal (2009) devotes attention to staff and volunteers working at radio stations or, to borrow Gaynor and O’Brien’s (2011, p. 31) term, the ‘community within’. Leal (2009) finds that the ‘community within’ exhibits diversity regarding gender, age and cultural background, although predominantly including marginalised sections of the population, particularly the unemployed. Leal refers to community radio stations as ‘communities manifested from the discursive practices of individuals who share physical space and a similar social situation’ (2009, p. 156), depicting a community that has a geographical base, yet serves a common interest. These conceptualisations of community reflect a social network approach, whereby community is (dis)located – situated in, yet distinct from, the locale. Other community radio research recognises the contested nature of community. Davidson (2004), using the case of Radio KC in Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa, considers the steps staff take to understand the communities they serve. The importance of this lies in identifying programming content that includes stories and voices from within the community. Davidson (2004) concludes that community extends beyond the geographical community outlined in the station’s broadcast licence, being cognitive, normative and imagined. Davidson (2004) discovers that, while staff and volunteers at Radio KC came from within the geographical vicinity of the station, they did not perceive themselves as ‘the community’, rather as serving the community. In a study of XK FM, a community radio station in Platfontain, South Africa, Mhlanga (2009) finds heterogeneity in the community served by the station. Kanayama (2007) draws the same conclusion in a study of the role of community radio in Japan. These findings counter understandings of community as homogenous which, as Young (1990) argues, typically privilege unity over difference. An area of the literature considers community radio as a space/place. In a study of the role of community radio in Japan, Kanayama observes that while community radio is a medium to listen to, it is important for stations to be visible to the community, this is known as ‘see the radio, show the radio’ (2007, p. 18). Kanayama (2007) concludes that the visibility of a community radio station increases levels of trust, creating a personal attachment to it. Accordingly, the radio station may function like a hub of the community. This has parallels with Sujoko’s observation that radio presenters’ detailed descriptions of conditions and activities inside the studio position the space akin to ‘home’ (2011). Bosch and Mullins (2012, p. 118) similarly see the interactions between radio presenters and listeners as simulating ‘informal living room type of conversations’. Informed by theories on place creation, Keough (2010, p. 77) states that community radio station WDVX is ‘more than just an FM frequency, it is a meaningful place to station personnel and

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the listening community’. The author argues that WDVX’s success is partly due to its efforts to connect local and non-local audiences to the importance of the station as a place, mediating the local/non-local divide. The studies reviewed here present community stations as places of physical identity and importance  – a disparate stance to those that present community stations as solely audio phenomena. However, the importance of space and place to community radio remains underexplored. Background

KCC Live was founded in 2003 as a college-based enrichment and work experience radio station, based at Roby Campus, Knowsley Community College. KCC Live was an important element of the college’s retention strategy and functioned as a bridge for NEET young people to re-enter education and training. According to the station’s Office of Communications (Ofcom) application for a community radio licence, KCC Live typically has a ­14–25-year-old volunteer base, although when conducting this research all volunteers were aged over 16, and several were older than 25. KCC Live is a youth-led radio station, with unpaid volunteers from the college and the wider community assuming the role of presenters, producers, newsreaders, segue-technicians, jingle producers, web-editors, and assistant managers. Since the station’s conception, there have been 50–200 volunteers at any one time. The makeup of the volunteer body is hyperdiverse (Wilkinson, 2019) in terms of the accents and hometowns of the young people, as well as their musical tastes and interests. Discussion of methodological approach

This chapter draws on a mixed methods study conducted by the first author (Wilkinson, 2015), which adopted a participatory design in collaboration with young people at KCC Live. A palette of methods (Wilkinson and Wilkinson, 2018) was deployed, including: 18 months of observant participation; interviews and focus groups with volunteers; interviews with station and college management; a listener survey, listener diaries and follow-up interviews. In this chapter, we focus mainly on data arising from interviews with volunteers and station management. More than 90 semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with KCC Live volunteers. Interviews typically lasted 60 to 90 minutes, with approximately 30 minutes for follow-up interviews. Preliminary interviews collated autobiographical data about each volunteer and focused on determining what KCC Live meant to them. Follow-up interviews pursued points raised in previous interviews or sought clarification following observations. The follow-up interviews were conducted around two months after the initial

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interviews, and there were between two and seven follow-up interviews with each young person. This number varied depending on how frequently a volunteer attended the station; whether they remained at KCC Live for the duration of the research project; and how contactable they were if they left the station. Further, six semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with station and college management. After reading through the dataset multiple times, open coding was undertaken (see Silverio et al., 2020). Any preconceived data categories were dismissed to ‘generate as many codes as possible’ (Emerson et al., 1995, p. 152). Memos were used to comment on parts of the data that were considered intriguing or important. This was followed by a second (axial) coding of data. MacLure (2008, p. 174) speaks of the pleasure derived from manual analysis, particularly ‘poring over the data, annotating, describing, linking, bringing theory to bear, recalling what others have written, and seeing things from different angles’. Crucially, this enabled questions to be asked about what had emerged through the data. As a result, links were changed and made between some codes, while others were dropped and added. The data were returned to multiple times adopting a process of constant comparison to ensure thorough interrogation. Findings from the research

In the findings that follow, all young people have been referred to by a pseudonym. Catherine invited young people to choose their own pseudonyms and many chose pseudonyms after pop stars, DJs, and presenters. The verbatim words of young people have been included to illustrate the varied and nuanced realities of youth voice. This adheres to the ‘preservationist’ approach (Blauner, 1987, p.  48), whereby sounds are reproduced as they appear on the recording, thereby staying faithful to participants and their accents, which were predominantly Scouse, an accent and dialect of English associated with Knowsley, Liverpool and the county of Merseyside. The Community ‘Within’

For many young people, KCC Live functions as much as a youth club as it does a radio station. Many volunteers come into KCC Live when they are not recording or broadcasting their shows and socialise. This notion of volunteers who ‘just bung up together’ (MJ, 22, interview) reveals a ‘community within’ (Gaynor and O’Brien, 2011, p. 31). The following exchange exemplifies this: You will have people who come in before their show, and then stay for a couple of hours after, just having a chat, laughing, that is I think quite

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unique to this station. . . . If you talk to anyone, anyone who works in commercial radio, this [the seven people in the focus group] will literally be all the presenters, and you won’t talk to them outside of these walls, so you’ll come in, ‘our staff meeting says we’ve got to do this’, and then you’ll bugger off. So, to actually have a community, sort of sense of ‘I actually want to stay and talk to these people’ is quite nice. (Harry, 24, participatory focus group) It is clear that positive and prosocial peer relations which promote friendship have developed in an informal space; for young people like Harry, KCC Live is an important space of social interaction. An interesting point to emerge is young people’s fluctuating levels of involvement with KCC Live, depending on their commitments to other communities of which they are members. Consider the following excerpt: The only change is probably the dissertation in uni and everything is picking up, like the pressure, so I feel a little bit like, chaotic at the minute. . . . I’m still doing my stuff here at KCC Live. . . . Some weeks, because of having a like meeting with my tutor, or an extra session has been organised at uni, I’ve felt like some days I can’t come in and do stuff, because it’s been clashing recently, so I can’t really wait to get it all over with so I can come back and spend even more time working on me radio stuff. (Nikki, 21, interview) Nikki simultaneously perceives herself as part of the KCC Live community and other communities, in this instance university. Because each distinct network brings a unique set of benefits, individuals may belong to many networks (Human and Provan, 2000); this may result in conflict when one network is given precedence over another. Jack explores this idea of membership to multiple communities: I think it’s good to have like a good collection of people around you, saying if you’re going through a hard time in your life . . . you can have people that you can rely on. You can be part of like three different communities and then you know there’s going to be somebody there to help you if you have trouble and that. (Jack, 20, ‘Community to me is . . .’ audio documentary) Jack adds credence to the phenomenon of ‘multiple belongings’ (Mannarini and Fedi, 2009, p.  212), highlighting benefits in accessing various support networks. As has been discussed so far, some young people manage their commitment to different communities, minimising and maximising their presence at KCC Live accordingly. However, for Chris, a NEET young person who

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does not belong to any other communities, outside of friends and family, for instance, school/college, university, work, or other social clubs, this wavering commitment to KCC Live by other volunteers sometimes caused frustration: It’s kinda weird for the fact that at the time [of the station relocation], you’d think people would come in and kinda pull together as a team. I know people have jobs and stuff, that’s understandable but I saw it as an opportunity to kinda grasp with both hands, kinda share the load with other people. (Chris, 18, interview) Reflecting on a period in which KCC Live relocated studios in the college, Chris expresses annoyance over the lack of volunteers who assisted, referencing other volunteers’ seemingly preferential commitments to work or education. Thus, for young people such as Chris, whose predominant commitment is KCC Live, this sense of ‘multiple belongings’ (Mannarini and Fedi, 2009, p. 212) can be difficult to comprehend. Family, friendships and a second home

Notions of homeliness and familial relationships were regularly invoked in discussions with volunteers and station management. As MJ tells: ‘I’ve spent so many of my free hours at the station this last year . . . it has become my second home’ (MJ, 22, interview). See also the following quotation: Our radio station, ah this is going to sound so cheesy, but it’s kind of more like a family. You know when people are on a TV show together and they say it’s like a family, that’s what I think about KCC Live, as cheesy as it sounds. (Bruce, 25, interview) Such terms used by KCC Live volunteers were also present in Algan’s (2005) study of local radio, where volunteers used the word ‘family’ to describe their sense of belonging to the station. KCC Live volunteers took this a step further, suggesting the roles they played in this family. Trev (38, audio documentary recording session), one of the eldest volunteers, told: ‘I’m the uncle of the group, I’m the big friendly uncle’, whilst Shaz (18, interview), one of the youngest volunteers, explained: ‘I’m definitely like the little sister of the KCC Live family, and then there’s Bruno [KCC Live volunteer] who’s like my big brother’. These statements reveal that KCC Live possesses a family-like structure, whereby volunteers self-identify, and identify others, as occupying specific familial roles.

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Telling of the permeability of both friendship and place, the social dimension of the relationships at KCC Live extends beyond the walls of the station to include cinema trips; shopping sprees; parties; and other celebrations. As Nikki tells: ‘I’ve made like good friends who – we go out like outside of the station as well, erm, and socialise with and it’s just nice’ (Nikki, 22, interview). However, for volunteers who do not live within the geographic community of KCC Live, socialisation outside of the station is not always viable, as Damon explains: I’d like to do more things with people outside of the station. I don’t know whether it’s practical because I’m from Yorkshire .  .  . it’s always radio based if I communicate with people outside of the station . . . usually on Facebook. (Damon, 37, interview) Due to lack of geographical proximity to KCC Live and associated transport costs, Damon experiences exclusion from a ‘community beyond a community’. Damon’s current relationship with KCC Live is ‘radio-based’, despite his desire to participate in social activities outside of the station. Significantly, then, although KCC Live has been described thus far as more of a sense of ‘family’ than something territorial, geography remains important in developing social ties (Lee and Lee, 2010). A point made by Michael supports this idea of the importance of geography for full participation in the KCC Live community: It [community] can transcend the geographic boundary, however it helps a lot based on the area where you live . . . if you lived somewhere and you had to drive in order to meet friends then you might not be able to do that, you might not have that same lifestyle. (Michael, 21, ‘Community to me is . . .’ audio documentary) This also resonates with the view of certain scholars (Daraganova et  al., 2012) who position human relationships as predominantly local, maintaining that as the distance between individuals increases, the likelihood of a social tie diminishes. Extending the idea of relationships, we found that ‘unlikely’ friendships had formed between volunteers who would ‘never be friends in the outside world’ (Modest Mouse, 28, interview). As Chrissie explains: There’s relationships that have been built at this radio station that I can personally say I know wouldn’t have existed outside of these walls. . . . Their lives are so different and their lives are so far apart, there’s not a chance that they would even have crossed paths, or necessarily been as

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open-minded to erm make friendships with those people if it wasn’t for inside here [KCC Live]. (Chrissie, 30, Station Manager, interview) Friendships of the kind described by Chrissie are ‘relationships and communities of choice’ (Friedman, 1989, p. 288), whereby young people choose to befriend other young people of different social backgrounds. A point made by Gee supports this: My community when I was younger was my friends, my family, my school life, erm like my netball team, things like that. Erm, now I do see erm community sometimes as a geographical erm space, because of how I  work with that geographical space . . . but I think a community is just a belonging of people. (Gee, 24, ‘Community to me is . . .’ audio documentary) Drawing together Gee’s claim and Friedman’s (1989) thesis, it can be assumed that young people at KCC Live would not have had the opportunity to make such diverse friendships in their immediate neighbourhoods, or in the more prescribed friendship groups of school. For children, the community of origin is given as opposed to entered and created (Friedman, 1989). However, for adults, and from our data we argue young people, there are communities of choice, much like friendships. Bridging the gaps

Throughout this research, we found evidence that KCC Live was successful in creating a bridge between different towns and districts in Knowsley. Pam illustrates this: When you look at where people came from who worked on the station . . . it wasn’t just sort of Roby, Huyton people, people came up from Kirkby, up from Halewood and, err, throughout Knowsley. When the people from the station took volunteers out to do community projects, it wasn’t just things round the corner, you know they were up in Prescot, up in Whiston, Halewood [towns/villages in Knowsley] and places like that. Well although it’s a very erm fragmented Borough as such, because they were listening to the radio, and because they had access to the radio and it was feeding them information, and they were taking them back to all these different sort of segments. So, I suppose to a certain extent it was helping to bridge the gaps. (Pam, 68, former Vice Principal of Knowsley Community College, interview)

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Pam emphasises Knowsley’s structure as a fragmented Borough yet tells that KCC Live helped to ‘bridge the gaps’, providing listeners with information from a central source, which they then took with them to their own localities. We found that KCC Live not only creates a bridge between towns and districts in Knowsley, but also different areas of Liverpool, and beyond. Damon captures this: I’m from Yorkshire, and then there’s people from Wirral and then there’s Hywel, he’s from Lancashire, and then there’s others that come from Cheshire, you know, Warrington and that lot, people come from all . . . I know three people who come from the immediate area . . . they come from within a three-mile radius, but other than that, they’re from all over. Like earlier I found out that Jay is from Wirral, the posh end . . . I think it’s great that we didn’t know each other from before this, and we all just met each other and got on . . . I think there’s more of a community here at this station than there is where I live, where I should fit in more. (Damon, 38, interview) It is interesting that Damon believes there is a greater sense of community at KCC Live than there is in Yorkshire, where he lives and where he believes he ‘should fit in more’. This indicates a notion of community that extends beyond the geographic, much like Webber’s (1963) community without propinquity. Further, this reveals a clear case of bridging social capital; that is, social networks that bring together different people (Putnam, 2000), uniting disparate geographic, amongst other, groups. As Bruce and Gideon suggest in the following quotations, the community within KCC Live is built through the ways in which volunteers are ­co-contributors to culture creation, moving towards a shared goal: We’re all rooting for KCC Live to grow and expand; I think that’s where the sense of community mainly comes from. It’s just, it’s nice being in a creative environment where nobody’s jockeying for a better position, everyone sort of just wants the station to do well. (Bruce, 24, interview) We’re all here because we love what we do, and we want to make the station the best in Liverpool. So the work people put in, no matter how small the contribution, creates this sense of pride and unity. They don’t come across as peers, they come across as people with the same goal as you. (Gideon, 26, interview) Bonding social capital (Putnam, 2000) can be seen here in that, through the social relations embedded in KCC Live, volunteers collectively unite to ensure the success of the station. Dan (18, ‘Community to me is . . .’ audio

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documentary) reaffirms this conceptualisation of community: ‘it could be something like a team of yous are working towards, so something you’re a part of’. It is noteworthy that Bruce uses the term ‘sense of community’, employed by Sarason (1974) to refer to a simplistic, effortless, and egalitarian merging of like-minded people. However, the community built at KCC Live is far from simplistic and effortless. It is characterised by a considered effort to assimilate differences (see Wilkinson, 2019). While place, grounded in physical boundaries, may distinguish localities, creating binary distinctions between ‘us’ and ‘others’, this idea of social networks and sense of community enables meaningful interactions around a shared interest, and across categorical differences. Implications for practice

Our findings have shown that networked approaches to community are important in learning settings involving young people. This is significant for educators and the young people they teach because conceptualising community in this way lends itself well to networked approaches to learning, which involve co-operative, collaborative and community aspects. At the centre of networked learning approaches are collective inquiry, knowledge-creation and knowledgeable action, underpinned by trusting relationships and motivated by a sense of shared challenge (Networked Learning Editorial Collective, 2021). While the learning activity may be anchored in a particular place, technologies allow learning to permeate physical space (see Yeoman, 2016). Even without technology, networked learning can enable both teachers and learners from one learning environment to work together with those from another to co-construct knowledge, or to examine and reflect on practice. Conclusion

This chapter used the case study of KCC Live to explore how station volunteers encounter place, and therefore how they conceptualise community. We reported on empirical research undertaken to explore how KCC Live functions as a site of informal, situated learning for the predominantly NEET volunteers. In particular, we were concerned with place pertaining to understandings of community for these young people. We advanced debates that shift notions of community from static place-based understandings, to explore more networked approaches. Our findings show that notions of community as a homogenous group are misguided. KCC Live, as a place of informal learning, increases interpersonal contacts between diverse geographic, and other, groupings. Through creating social ties between socially fragmented groups, KCC Live provides a place for NEET young people to create stocks

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of bridging social capital. This is something to be strived towards for educators in other informal learning spaces. Further readings Keough, S. B. (2010) The importance of place in community radio broadcasting: A  case study of WDVX, Knoxville, Tennessee, Journal of Cultural Geography, 27(1), 77–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/08873631003593265. This paper uses community radio station WDVX in Knoxville, Tennessee, as an exemplar for understanding the importance of place, it argues that WDVX is a meaningful place to station staff and listeners through its unique sound, the use of technology in radio broadcasting, and the participatory nature of the station. Wilkinson, C. (2017) On the same wavelength? Hyperdiverse young people at a community radio station, Social and Cultural Geography, 20(9), 1251–1265. This paper extends the term hyperdiversity to a discussion of how youth voice on the airwaves can involve the prioritisation of certain local cultural representations, and the silencing of others. It finds that engaging hyperdiverse young people in meaningful interactions around a shared interest stimulates the development of relationships across differences. Wilkinson, C., and Wilkinson, S. (2022) Sounds (un)familiar: Introducing young people to the intersecting landscapes and soundscapes of a community radio station, in T. Smith, H. Pitt, and R. Dunkley (eds) Unfamiliar landscapes: Young people and diverse outdoor experiences. Cham, Switzerland, Palgrave Macmillan, 463–486. This chapter focuses on upskilling NEET young people, through formal training and situated learning. This enables young people to navigate the unfamiliar terrain of the airwaves and to develop their radio personalities, as they simultaneously find themselves more ‘at home’ in the physical space of KCC Live.

References Algan, E. (2005) The role of Turkish local radio in the construction of a youth community, The Radio Journal – International Studies in Broadcast and Audio Media, 3(2), 75–92. https://doi.org/10.1386.rajo.3.2.75/1 Blauner, B. (1987) Problems of editing ‘first person’ sociology, Qualitative Sociology, 10(1), 46–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00988268 Bosch, T. E., and Mullins, C. (2012) Radio, race and identity in South Africa: The case of Metro FM, Journal of Radio and Audio Media, 19(1), 110–122. https:// doi.org/10.1080/19376529.2012.667024 Coyer, K. (2006) Community radio licensing and policy, Global Media and Communication, 2(1), 129–134. https://doi.org/10.1177/17427665060618 Daraganova, G., Pattison, P., Koskinen, J., Mitchell, B., Bill, A., Watts, M., and Baum, S. (2012) Networks and geography: Modelling community network structures as the outcome of both spatial and network processes, Social Networks, 34(1), 6–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2010.12.001 Davidson, B. (2004) Mapping the radio KC community, Ecquid Novi, 25(1), 43–60. https://doi.org/10.1080/02560054.2004.9653277

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Emerson, R., Fretz, R., and Shaw, L. (1995) Writing ethnographic fieldnotes. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Friedman, M. (1989) Feminism and modern friendship: Dislocating the community, Ethics, 99(2), 275–290. Gaynor, N., and O’Brien, A. (2011) Community radio in Ireland: ‘Defeudalising’ the public sphere? Javnost – The Public, 18(3), 23–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/13183 222.2011.11009060 Gumucio-Dagron, A. (2013) Look back for the future of community radio, Media Development, 13(2), 6–12. Human, S. E., and Provan, K. G. (2000) Legitimacy building in the evolution of smallfirm multilateral networks: A comparative study of success and demise, Administrative Science Quarterly, 45(2), 327–336. https://doi.org/10.2307/2667074 Kanayama, T. (2007) Community ties and revitalization: The role of community radio in Japan, Keio Communication Review, 29(1), 5–24. Keough, S. B. (2010) The importance of place in community radio broadcasting: A  case study of WDVX, Knoxville, Tennessee, Journal of Cultural Geography, 27(1), 77–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/08873631003593265 Leal, S. (2009) Community radio broadcasting in Brazil: Action rationales and public space, Radio Journal: International Studies in Broadcast and Audio Media, 7(2), 155–170. Lee, J., and Lee, H. (2010) The computer-mediated communication network: Exploring the linkage between the online community and social capital, New Media and Society, 12(5), 711–727. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444809343568 MacLure, M. (2008) Classification or wonder? Coding as an analytic practice in qualitative research, in R. Coleman and J. Ringrose (eds) Deleuze and research methodologies. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 164–183. Mannarini, T., and Fedi, A. (2009) Multiple senses of community: The experience and meaning of community, Journal of Community Psychology, 37(2), 211–227. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.20289 Mhlanga, B. (2009) The community in community radio: A case study of XK FM, interrogating issues of community participation, governance, and control, Ecquid Novi: African Journalism, 30(1), 58–72. https://doi.org/10.1080/02560054.2009. 9653392 Networked Learning Editorial Collective (NLEC) (2021) Networked learning: Inviting redefinition, Postdigital Science and Education, 3, 312–325. Putnam, R. D. (2000) Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon and Schuster. Reed, M., and Hanson, R. E. (2006) Back to the future: Allegheny mountain radio and localism in West Virginia community radio, Journal of Radio Studies, 13(2), 214–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/10955040701313297 Sarason, S. B. (1974) The psychological sense of community: Prospects for a community psychology. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Silverio, S. A., Wilkinson, C., and Wilkinson, S. (2020) Further uses for grounded theory: A methodology for psychological studies of the performing arts, literature, and visual media, Qualitative Methods in Psychology Bulletin, 29, 8–19. Sujoko, A. (2011) Talking culture: Indonesian community radio and the active audience, Social Alternatives, 30(2), 16–20. Yeoman, P. (2016) A study of correspondence, dissonance, and improvisation in the design and use of a school-based networked learning environment, in L. Carvalho,

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P. Goodyear, and M. de Laat (eds) Place-based spaces for networked learning. Oxon: Routledge, 41–58. Young, I. M. (1990) The ideal of community and the politics of difference, in L. J. Nicholson (ed) Feminism/postmodernism. London: Routledge, 300–323. Webber, M. M. (1963) Order in diversity: Community without propinquity, in L. Wirigo (ed) Cities and space. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 23–54. Wilkinson, C. (2015) Connecting communities through youth-led radio, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Liverpool. https://doi.org/10.17638/02037460 Wilkinson, C. (2019) On the same wavelength? Hyperdiverse young people at a community radio station, Social and Cultural Geography, 20(9), 1251–1265. https:// doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2017.1358822 Wilkinson, S., and Wilkinson, C. (2018) Researching drinking ‘with’ young people: A palette of methods, Drugs and Alcohol Today, 18(1), 6–16.

11 PLACE-BASED EDUCATION Using enquiry-based learning to answer important questions Briley Habib and Drew Perkins

Introduction

Globally, children are facing catastrophic environmental issues. Teenage activist Greta Thunberg has encouraged young people to question the world in which they live. They want to know the ‘why’ to a complex set of issues as evidenced by the landmark complaint made to the United Nations Committee of the Rights of the Child in 2019. Driven to combat the issues that many adults take for granted, students are exploring these issues through enquirybased learning pedagogies. Arguably, the process of enquiry is at the heart of understanding ourselves and our relationship with the world, changing how we act in, and on the world and how we are further shaped by it (Leat, 2017, p. 29). The community as a classroom can potentially level the playing field of all students. The old age adage of ‘it is not what you know but who you know’ can be minimised by opening up classrooms to the wider community. Students can create strong partnership programmes by identifying potential individuals and groups that may be facing challenges. This chapter examines why and how project-based learning is successful in engaging students to investigate 21st-century problems in local and distant places. It explains why questioning is an important facilitator in the enquiry classroom, then introduces a case study of project-based learning in a Turkish secondary classroom before exploring what project-based learning could look like in your classroom. Why is enquiry learning important in an international context?

There are over 5.8  million students enrolled globally in over 600 Englishmedium speaking schools (Hingston, 2022) including Indigenous students and DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-14

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those enrolled due to their parents’ employment; these students are referred to as ‘third culture kids’. These students are defined by Pollock and Van Reken (2001, p. 19) as individuals who, having spent a significant part of the developmental years in a culture other than the parents’ culture, develop a sense of relationship to all the cultures they experience while not having full ownership in any. Roberts (2013) argues that identity is tied to our attachment to a place. Inequitable knowledge may therefore arise for Indigenous learners due to familial and cultural ties to local places, which may initially leave third culture kids feeling excluded due to the lack of identity tied to the place they live. Teachers may ask students to write or talk about their home or school locality, but without a connected place identity, this can lead to disengaged and disenfranchised learners. Vander Ark et al. (2020, p. 11) makes a strong case for the pedagogy of enquiry-based learning as it can connect learners to the concept of the place where they live, contributing to a sense of identity. Additionally, through community learning experiences, educators can create enfranchisement – the sense that ‘people like me’ belong here. In international private schools, enquiry-based learning is a more favoured pedagogy. (Beneker et al., 2014, p. 26). In their research, Beneker et al. (2014) found that in Dutch schools, third culture kids who experienced enquiry-based pedagogy were more likely to be world-minded compared to those experiencing the more traditional pedagogies of Dutch state schools. Vander Ark et al. (2020, p. 55) claim that students who develop the tools of enquiry become ‘truth seekers’, while determining their own questions and analysing s­elf-collected data. For third culture kids, this may enable them to include their lived experiences to use as ‘data’. An enquiry approach to learning requires a questioning attitude towards knowledge using pedagogy which encourages students to ask questions (Roberts, 2013). In other words, students who learn through an enquiry-based pedagogy will be engaged, enfranchised and empowered. What is project-based learning?

Leat (2017) defines enquiry-based learning as an umbrella term: learning is driven by learner curiosity and framed by questions which includes projectbased learning. Thomas (2000, p. 1) goes further and describes project-based learning as follows: Projects are complex tasks, based on challenging questions or problems, that involve students in design, problem-solving, decision making, or investigative activities; give students the opportunities to work relatively autonomously over extended periods of time; and culminate in realistic products or presentations. Many teachers say they have been doing project-based learning, yet it may lack the important scaffolding and assessment which makes for a robust

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learning experience. Project-based learning should not be confused or conflated with ‘discovery learning’, introduced in 1961 by Jerome Bruner. A fundamental aspect of discovery learning is that learners reaching the end result of their project independently. Robust project-based learning often includes, and certainly should not preclude direct and explicit instruction. Leat (2017) identifies a range of protocols existing in project-based learning which support teachers to plan lessons that keep students focused. While there certainly is plenty of room in project-based learning for constructivism to help students make meaning of concepts, an effective project-based learning teacher establishes the cognitive landscape they want their students to travel and scaffolds the experience appropriately. At the heart of every enquiry is an overarching question that needs to be answered. Roberts (2013) argues for students to be engaged in the process of enquiry then it is important that these questions become their own. Vander Ark et al. (2020) further suggest that well-conceived project- and placebased learning should incorporate challenges that enable students to work towards their individual learning goals and to fully engage and contribute. Leat (2017) claims that for projects to be successful, teachers should plan assessment criteria through backward planning in which the project plan specifies in advance what they want the students to learn. With this in mind, how do we visualise what a project can look like in the classroom? Before students engage with the enquiry, students and teachers should have clarity on the product, purpose, and audience. Designing an accessible driving question can take practice and using a ‘starter’ template can be helpful to clarify those elements. OUTLINE OF PROJECT PLANNING Driving Question ‘Starter’ Template How can we (do/create)

_______ (product)

so that _________ for ___________? (purpose) (audience)

Using the driving question template shown enables teachers to choose an enquiry question which is student-friendly and open-ended. A  key element of project-based learning is students creating a product. The driving question should include a verb that is essentially synonymous with ‘create’. Iterating to a more student-friendly driving question might mean the elements of whom they are creating for and why may not necessarily be explicitly noted. In those cases, the teacher will want to clarify in the project launch and working documents. In international schools worldwide, the English National Curriculum is used. The English National Curriculum for Geography at Key Stage Three

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FIGURE 11.1  A  typical

project-based learning enquiry structure, adapted from TeachThought, 2023 (@Drew Perkins).

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(11–14-year-olds) includes geographical content which investigates how human and physical processes interact to influence, and change landscapes (DfE, 2013). Fieldwork must be used to collect, analyse and draw conclusions from geographical data, using multiple sources of increasingly complex information. As the Geography National Curriculum (DfE, 2013) does not prescribe specific lesson content, teachers have creative autonomy for both pedagogy practice and curriculum development. An enquiry question using a starter template shown in the textbox could be used to generate the following based on curriculum requirements: What would be the outcome for the local food bank if we were to create a school vegetable patch where the products were given to those in need? What do we mean by important questions?

Project-based learning often features collaborative group work and opportunities for working on real-world problems. Vander Ark et al. (2020) suggest that a project-based approach promotes persistence and collaboration teaching project management skills and that a commitment to inquiry within place-based education allows for a true exploration of novel and complex problems. Indeed, a student may work on a project by themselves and in ways that are authentic but not necessarily real-world problems. What cannot be overlooked is the development of the list of important questions, often called the ‘need to know’ list. When teachers become more experienced at creating the content for the prescribed curriculum while using the pedagogy of project-based learning, it is in the planning phase that teachers identify the essential ideas they want students to think and learn about. With the learning objectives outlined in planning documents, teachers can then work to help students identify that content as questions to be added to the ‘need to know’ list as suggested by Roberts (2013). As teachers connect their teaching to resolving those questions, students cognitively work with specialised knowledge in ways that promote deeper learning. Students may struggle with this process initially but improve with quality teacher modelling and experience. It is this skill of being able to identify and pursue the important questions in doing something well that we think is incredibly vital in students being prepared for the modern world. For teachers and students who are starting out on the project-based learning journey, the ‘need to know questions’ can be thought about by the teacher and prompted with the students. If we look back at the enquiry question above, what would the questions be? What would be the outcome for the local food bank if we were to create a school vegetable patch where the products were given to those in need?

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Possible student driven need-to-know questions: • • • • • • • • • • • •

What is a food bank and how many food banks are in the local area? How many people use food banks? What type of fresh produce do the food bank need? Why are fresh vegetables needed at the food bank? Where can we place a vegetable garden? What type of environmental conditions (e.g. optimum soils) are needed for a vegetable garden? Who are the experts in our community who can assist us with growing vegetables? How do we advertise to the local users of the food bank about the vegetables grown? What equipment is needed to help us grow the vegetables? How do we get the equipment needed to help us grow the vegetables? How do we protect the vegetables from common pests? What happens if the project fails?

These need-to-know questions can then be used to tap into curriculum content such as fieldwork (by creating questionnaires for the people that work at the foodbank and the users of the foodbank) and place locational characteristics (by examining the school grounds for micro-climates or testing the acidity of soils to understand what plants might grow). Population statistics using census data can also be researched to examine the socio-economic status of geographical wards. This project can also be cross collaborative across the school’s teaching departments. For example, English language lessons can be used to teach about persuasive writing and the science department could teach students the techniques required to write a scientific report on the acidity of soils and plant recommendations. Research is increasingly evidence that interdisciplinary approaches to teaching and learning can increase equity as students explore perspectives from multiple content areas (Vander Ark et al., 2020). The important questions then tie into various subject curricula and enable the learner to create a product that will be used by the community. In this case, the school’s vegetable patch with products being donated to the community food bank users. These interdisciplinary and community projects facilitate strong relationships between the authentic audience (the users of the foodbank) and the school. Vander Ark et al. (2020) suggest when a deeply embedded place-based education model is implemented, the community can pivot to see a school not just as a place to send their children but as an active, working component of the community. Place-based education immerses students in local heritage, cultures, landscapes, opportunities and experiences (Vander Ark et  al., 2020). Students learn from authentic voices while including their voice in their work.

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Marginalised communities who have experienced racism and isolation may feel disenfranchised from unfamiliar environments. Engaging minority students using project-based learning can empower students to actively participate in the learning process. Providing community access and experiences, marginalised children can also experience a sense of belonging whilst planning a future role for themselves in their community. California State University’s student body is ethnically diverse, and many are socio-economically disadvantaged. Prior to 2013, nearly half of engineering students eventually dropped out or changed their major. A collaborative project-based Learning module was implemented for 15 students in spring 2013 and all students completed the course (Chen et al., 2015). Using project-based approaches with technology can also bridge the gap between the classroom and the wider community. Using Flipgrid, can support learners to record short videos sharing with students in other global classrooms in a safe environment. In the COVID-19 classroom, teachers used technology to develop enquiries and virtual field trips for those students who had access to digital technology. Geographical Information Systems such as Google Earth enabled enquiry exploration of unfamiliar places. Students have used project-based learning to design community apps. The Digi Navigators, primary school children in Christchurch, New Zealand, connected with a Samoan speaker who helped them develop an app which would benefit the school and wider community by continuing to teach the Samoan language after their previous teacher left. Their teacher, Mele Togiaso, said that the project deepened the connection the students had with their culture, as in Pacific cultures for everyone to achieve, as all students have to collaborate (Apple News, 2021). Cities such as Istanbul can be perceived to be geographically isolating; students may not venture into unknown territories to deepen their cognition about a place. By involving local communities to share their knowledge, this can enable all students to investigate unfamiliar places. Geographical knowledge has the potential to liberate young people from the limitations of their personal experience and to show them what is possible (Standish, 2021, p.  151). Through project-based learning, students capitalise and develop unique relationships with community experts, building upon student’s personal knowledge and understanding, learning from others about the issues and experiences that may affect them whilst ‘unlocking the power of place for learners’ (Vander Ark et al., 2020, p. 25). Case study

The British International School of Istanbul is a small school in Türkiye with around 600 students aged 2.5 through 18 years where most students speak English as an additional language (or third language). Students commute up

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to two hours as they live on either side of the Bosphorus Strait (a natural waterway that separates Istanbul in two sides  – the European side and the Asian side). Geography is a popular subject and 11–14-year-old students (in key stage 3) are taught through the pedagogy of project-based learning. The curriculum is varied in spatial context to engage all learners. Locations studied range from local to international contexts such as Las Malvinas (The Falkland Islands). A decolonised approach to teaching is implemented, and as part of this, names such as Las Malvinas are used to represent the Argentinian children who attend the school. This is important as at the core of placebased education is the need for more equitable learning environments for all students – environments where students are seen, valued and heard. (Vander Ark et al., 2020). In 2022, the UNHCR reported Türkiye was hosting over four million refugees and asylum seekers. For the eighth consecutive year, Türkiye is home to the world’s largest concentration of refugees and asylum seekers in one country. A sudden influx of refugees arrived from Russia in 2022 due to the Ukraine  – Russia war. Students from these countries may arrive speaking very limited English. The lead author has found that the students display very nationalistic ideas about Western countries and sometimes have very different experiences of human geography and their representations of place from those students who have been in an international education much longer. As students come to understand a wider idea of place, each student brings a unique perspective along a broad continuum from positive to negative. Those who identify with a dominant or powerful population group may see equity and egalitarianism; those who are marginalised may see discrimination. (Vander Ark et al., 2020). Nonetheless it is important that all students get the opportunity to engage with the curriculum. Driving question: how can we as students explain the issues affecting ecosystems to younger students? In this enquiry, students learnt about ecosystems and global biomes. Using the school’s pond, students investigated abiotic and biotic features of small habitats before large biomes such as the Great Barrier Reef and the Sarawak Rainforest. During the enquiry, students designed a product showing their learning whilst educating others. Students new to project-based learning were guided in their final product choice. It was hoped that by creating an end product that would be showcased in school, students would feel more confident with their first experience of project-based learning pedagogies. As part of the ecosystems unit, students had ten weeks to work collaboratively while completing individual assessments to satisfy the school’s assessment criteria. For one lesson every fortnight, students in groups of four and five worked through their need-to-know questions about the project. The questions ranged from low risk such as how much time will this take to deep questions such as what does it mean to educate? To begin, students decided

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that they needed to communicate with reception students and teachers to survey their likes and dislikes. Some questions also gauged prior learning of biomes. The reception teacher mentioned students were intrigued by role play and sock puppets. Students in year 7 agreed that one of their favourite lessons was drama; they decided they could use story to show impacts of the biome by using sock puppets. Some of the reception students enjoyed music using songs to teach students new knowledge through repetition. The lead author discussed with students to use authentic voices of areas affected and not invent quotes when educating younger students. Due to the age of the students watching the event, students were mindful of language used and facts they wanted reception students to learn. Free choice was given to students concerning the biome inquiry. Learning was facilitated by providing a question research sheet for students guiding new geographical knowledge which would be used in the final product: • Where is your biome? Write a geographical description. Include continents and other physical features such as bodies of water. • What is one issue that is affecting your biome (e.g. deforestation, mining, tourism, coral bleaching)? • What is the impact of this issue on the following groups: wildlife, conservationists, governments, Indigenous people, the wider community? • What could be done to reduce the impacts of the issues mentioned for the groups mentioned above? • How has your understanding of this place changed since researching the issues? When discussing place, students had to convey to younger students where something might be in its relative location. This then prompted the students to think about using a large map to show the location of Türkiye and the location of their biome. During the enquiry, protocols from the National School of Reform (Dowd, n.d.) were used to ‘check in’ with each other and their teacher. Protocol sessions drove forward the learning by using geographical questions to ascertain students’ increasing knowledge of the subject as well as how confident the students were at working collaboratively. This gave students the time to reflect and redraft their work. Each student had a role and had to create a sock puppet based on the character they were representing. The students were engaged in this task and produced props to support their scripts. During this enquiry there was still a high incidence of COVID-19. Students had to ensure that their puppet shows could meet the social distancing safety standards set by the school. Students then had to think about a place in the school grounds which would be outdoors but also quiet for them to project their voices. The feedback after the puppet shows came from reception students and their teacher. Students who performed the plays asked students retrieval

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questions and students could answer: ‘The coral is dying because the water is too hot’ and ‘Turtles live there and they sometimes eat plastic in the ocean’. This led to reception students asking their own questions in the enquiry: ‘How does the water get too hot?’ and ‘Does this only happen in Australia?’ Student performers reflected and assessed on how much learning had taken place for the reception class as well as meeting their own objective of educating others about the impacts taking place in biomes. Student reflection interview

Teacher: from completing this project what will be your key takeaways from this project? Marina: I had no idea that there were a group of people called the T ­ orres Strait islanders. I  thought all people that were not immigrants were called Aboriginals. I really enjoyed watching the video about the people talking about how climate change was impacting their lives as it made me think about the consequences for not only the marine life but also the people. I guess I only knew a little about this place but now I  know quite a bit more. I  also used what I learnt about the Torres Strait Islanders in my end of year test. Teacher: What do you think are some of the important questions you now need to ask about the future possibilities of this place? Marina: They would definitely relate to climate change for the islanders. How will climate change affect your way of life in the future? What will happen to your culture if your island is lost to the sea? Will this place exist in the future? From this interview, the lead author was able to reflect on the learning that had taken place through the enquiry and future enquiries could be adapted. Cross-phase discussions with the primary colleagues whose children had watched the sock puppet shows also had to discuss how younger students’ sense of place had also been developed. Implications for practice

It has been important for me as an educator to find ways in which students can understand their relationship with the wider world. By using enquirybased pedagogies, I  believe that students can develop their sense of place especially when wider communities are invited to be a fundamental part of a students’ learning experience through a community-focused classroom. Through the case study that has been presented here, and in literature reporting on Dutch schools (Beneker et al., 2014), when educators can choose a project-based and/or enquiry-based approach students will feel more enfranchised and empowered to make a positive contribution to their community.

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If you are interested in implementing project-based learning and/or enquirybased approaches in your teaching, you might want to start by: • Discussing with students how their lived experiences can be used in the curriculum to create an equitable experience. • Using local news, social media community groups and survey the parent and student body about issues that might be present that can be investigated using an enquiry-based pedagogy. • Starting small. Issues do not need to be big. Project-based learning can be a small enquiry such as educating the school community about wasting water at school. • Looking at your current curriculum and identify the experts in your parent community. Perhaps you have a parent who works for a charity or a government agency. Investigate how these experts can help with students’ ‘need to know’ questions. Be brave and contact them – the likelihood is that they will enrich your curriculum. Conclusion

This overview shows the possibilities of using project-based learning in international classrooms. Enquiry-based learning has many different facets but the common denominator for all enquiry is the importance of the overarching enquiry question. The community as a classroom can potentially provide equity to students by opening classrooms to the wider community, creating strong partnership programmes by identifying potential groups/individuals that students can work with as well as encouraging cross-collaboration between different curricula in schools. As such, both enquiry-based learning and project-based learning are important pedagogies in an international context, particularly in English-medium speaking schools where ­third-culture kids often find themselves without a connected identity. Through these pedagogies, students become engaged, enfranchised and empowered to make positive changes in their communities. References All websites last accessed 30 May 2023. Apple News (2021) Christchurch students prototype their own Samoan language app with iPad, Newsroom Feature. https://www.apple.com/nz/newsroom/2021/03/ new-zealand-students-prototype-their-own-samoan-language-app-with-ipad/ Beneker, T., van Dis, H., and van Middelkoop, D. (2014) World-mindedness of students and their geography education at international (IB-DP) and regular schools in the Netherlands, International Journal of Development Education and Global Learning, 6(3), 12–14.

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Chen, P., Hernandez, A., and Dong, A. (2015) Impact of collaborative project-based learning on self-efficacy of urban minority students in engineering, Journal of Urban Learning Teaching and Research, 1(11), 26–39. Department for Education (2013) Key stage three geography national curriculum. London: HMSO. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/ system/uploads/attachment_data/file/239087/SECONDARY_national_curricu lum_-_Geography.pdf Dowd, J. A. (n.d.) Check in circle protocol. Bloomington, IN: National School of Reform Faculty. https://nsrfharmony.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/check_­ circle_0.pdf Hingston, T. (2022) The new international school data for 2022. https://iscresearch. com/international-school-data-for-2022/ Leat, D. (2017) Enquiry and project based learning. Abingdon: Routledge. Pollock, D. C., and Van Reken, R. E. (2001) The third culture kid experience: Growing up among worlds. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press. Roberts, M. (2013) Geography through enquiry. Sheffield: Geographical Association. Standish, A. (2021) Geography, in A. S. Cuthbert & A. Standish (eds) What should schools teach? 2nd edn. London: UCL Press, 137–153. https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/ id/eprint/10118307/1/What-Should-Schools-Teach.pdf TeachThought (2023) The 5 Phases of Project-based Learning. Available at: https:// www.teachthought.com/project-based-learning/phases United Nations (2019) Press release: Child petitioners protest lack of government action on climate crisis. New York: UNICEF. https://www.unicef.org/pressreleases/16-children-including-greta-thunberg-file-landmark-complaint-unitednations United Nations (2022) Türkiye factsheet. https://reporting.unhcr.org/document/3438 Vander Ark, T., Liebtang, E., and McClennen, N. (2020) The power of place: Authentic learning through place-based education. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

12 POSSIBILITIES OF A RADICAL PEDAGOGY OF PLACE Lessons from Kucapungane Yi Chien Jade Ho and Hui-Nien Lin

Introduction

In spring 2018, Hui Nien and Jade accompanied a group of 11- and ­12-year-old students from Rinari in Southern Taiwan, on a journey to visit the ancestral home of the Kucapungane people. Many of the children are also part of the Kucapungane people of the Rukai Nation, but they had never set foot on their ancestral land due to the displacement of their people in the late 1970s to the foot of the mountain right on the bank of the Ailou River. The new village, officially called New Haocha (新好茶), was then destroyed by several typhoons between 2007 and 2009, resulting in the whole village once again being forcibly moved, this time to Rinari. To go back to the Kucapungane ancestral home, we needed to hike eight hours on foot and the first part of the journey was largely walking on the Ailou Riverbank. Before heading out, Rukai elders and the chief burned tobacco and gave thanks to the ancestors for the journey. For this is a historic and emotional day as there had not been any presence of children in Kucapungane for many decades. And for many of the students who are from Kucapungane, this would be their first visit to their ancestral land, the land where their people come from and where many of the stories that they grew up listening to take place. After the ceremony, we began our journey on the riverbank and trekked through some low-watered streams. Halfway through, we started noticing more and more boulders on the riverbank. One of the teachers stopped and asked the students, ‘Do you know where we are right now?’ One of the students responded, ‘We are at New Haocha’. The student then said, ‘I used to live here’. On the surface, it looked like a simple riverbank that was running a bit dry due to the lack of rain that spring, but underneath lies a whole village DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-15

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and all its memories, stories, and history of both survival and struggle against colonialism. This place taught us a humbling lesson to pay attention to the hidden stories that are not apparent, or many times erased (literally washed away in this case) or hidden. These stories are usually in contention with the official definition or narrative put upon a place. We need to especially pay attention to these grassroots place-based stories. They invoke an assemblage of interconnected lived experiences and relationships, as well as ­place-specific manifestations of the current capitalist and colonial encroachment. But, more importantly they tell us the place-based practices that exist against or despite these systems of domination. This chapter argues that each place-based practice holds a pedagogical programme, whether conscious or unconscious. This pedagogical programme, which we call a radical pedagogy of place, emerges through people engaging critically with place history, present and the collective imagination of what a just and flourishing future looks like. Radical pedagogy of place emphasizes the inseparable relationship between people and place and the transformative power that exists within a radical relationship with place. We draw on Mississauga Nishnaabeg scholar, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson’s (2017) use of ‘radical’ as coming from the roots – to not only examine the root cause of systemic oppression but also go to the roots from where the vitality of resistance and survival comes. Often this work takes place outside of institutions of formal education, and requires practitioners to collectively elevate, imagine and live out an alternative space. Through learning from these place-based stories, one can begin to see a radical pedagogy of place that has the transformative potential to create a space for reimagination and foster commitment to the project of decolonization. To see pedagogy in this light shows the essentiality of education in our day-to-day political struggles and the political nature of our everyday lives. Pedagogy is not limited to an approach in teaching in the traditional schooling sense but recognizing that pedagogy is present and a necessary component in the practice of liberation. This chapter is situated in the sociopolitical context of Taiwan and we apply the conceptualization of radical pedagogy of place to the case study of Kucapungane. There are currently 16 officially recognized Indigenous Nations in Taiwan. Indigenous people are about 2% of the population on the Island (Taiban, 2020). Both Hui-Nien and Jade are Han settlers in Taiwan. Jade is also an immigrant settler to the Coast Salish Land colonially known as Vancouver, Canada. As settler scholars, writing, teaching, and researching within the confines of settler colonial institutions and rules, we understand we are not outside of the settler colonial capitalist system that we critique. The stories we share largely come from Jade’s doctoral field work and interviews with Rinari community members as well as Hui-Nien’s ongoing community-based research regarding the issue of Indigenous land control and Indigenous land

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pedagogy. During Jade’s field work, she interviewed 13 community members including artists, teachers, and cultural workers in the community. During the interviews, participants would often take Jade to walk on the land and draw meaning from different places. Data also comes from informal discussions and field notes taken by both Jade and Hui-Nien as we participate in their community building effort. What is written here is mediated through our own understanding, intentions, and theorization. Highly aware of our own positionalities, we wanted to make sure the work that is generated is not extractive but can help fuel the struggle for liberation. Learning directly from communities on the ground also helps move away from romanticizing the community, place, and people, and it facilitates a cultivation of our own relationship with the land, place, and the Kucapungane People. In this chapter, we will first present the colonial context of Taiwan to bring to light the settler colonial capitalist structure that currently undergirds the nation state. We then situate our case study, the Kucapungane community, in this context. Specifically, we will interrogate the colonial mechanism of coopting disaster recovery process as part of reproducing Indigenous vulnerability and dependency. In the last section, we will present and discuss Kucapungane’s tourism and educational programme, the Shoes Off Village, that aims to reclaim their culture and resist colonial control through their own place-based practices. We hope by sharing these practices and reflections, we can begin to see that place is influenced by historical, social, and political processes. These various axes can become critical tools and entries for educators who are or may wish to engage in critical and decolonial place-based pedagogies. Contextualizing Taiwan

One of the keys for educators to move forward projects of critical and decolonial place-based education is to involve an analysis of territoriality and settler colonialism to centre Indigenous realities (Calderon, 2014a; Tuck et al., 2014). A way of illustrating Taiwan’s complicated colonial past and present is to go to Tainan city, located in Southwest Taiwan, and walk through some of the back alleys. One may feel a profound confusion as traditional Dutch forts, Japanese tea houses, and Chinese style dwellings sit together side by side amongst modern Taiwanese buildings, all looking out on the Formosa Strait. Tainan City represents a reminiscent portrayal of the multiple waves of the island’s colonial past and present. In the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company established a commercial and military post at today’s Anping, Tainan, and opened the island to mass Han immigration and settlement, thus beginning a long history of colonizations, Chinese settlements and Indigenous struggle (Henley, 2011). The Dutch colony was later defeated by Chinese imperialists at the fall of the Ming Dynasty. In 1895, Indigenous

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people and Han settlers of Taiwan found themselves colonized by Japan as the result of the Treaty of Shimonoseki sanctioned by the Qing Empire. After fifty years of resistance and assimilation, Taiwan was taken over by the Chinese Nationalist party, Kuomingtang (KMT) (Lu, 2002). Taiwan’s colonial histories come with rapid shifts of political power and identity. What we present here is a very brief narrative of Taiwan’s colonial history far from an exhaustive account, but we hope this narrative gives a glimpse into the complex history and cultural formation in Taiwan. This complex history layered with a desire to obtain international recognition and increasing social and ecological concerns have pushed people of various social sectors to grapple with the pressing issues of identity, power, and place. Within this chapter, we unequivocally position Taiwan as a settler colonial capitalist state that also possesses post-colonial struggle. Many of the government-sanctioned place-making projects at the local level become ­ attempts to find a collective nationalistic identity. Nationalism in this case becomes complicated as it is a survival mechanism that can be found in many post-colonial nations (Chen, 2010). The danger in Taiwan is that by neglecting the settler colonial reality while building this national identity, the seemingly progressive policies that centre on individual human rights can be used as tools of assimilation and erasure of cultures that do not fall within the homogenizing narrative. Additionally, each wave of colonization does not exist in isolation and their influences do not dissipate with the retreat of the empire. Post-colonial countries, although independent, rely on existing structures set up during the colonial rule (Kapoor, 2017). In Taiwan’s case, the current settler colonial formation has benefitted and adopted the infrastructures of former colonizing strategies, particularly the Japanese colonization. When KMT took over Taiwan, they adopted the Japanese way of organizing Indigenous people and, in fact, deepened segregation and continued to ensure erasure of Indigenous presence. The Taiwanese colonial state is also a devoted participant of global capitalism. The colonial takeover has been mediated through a profit driven and expansionist model. Settler colonial capitalism has tangible material consequences that are evident in the further disfranchisement of the rural working class, dispossession of Indigenous people and exploitation of migrant workers. Indigenous peoples and other marginalized communities in Taiwan have been calling out the violence of the structure of settler colonial capitalism. Although they may not use this term to name the source of their oppression, at the heart of each struggle is a fight for justice and self-determination, and a pedagogical programme that centres place as the foundation of relationship, learning and collectivity. An illuminating example of this is the case of the Kucapungane community in Rinari, an Indigenous township in southern Taiwan.

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FIGURE 12.1 Taiwan’s

400 years of colonial history, after Taiban (2020).

Kucapungane, Rinari: disaster colonialism and place-making resistance Situating Rinari

Rinari sits on top of a hill and is now home to three Indigenous communities, Makazayazaya, Tavalan, and Kucapungane. This is not the original home of these three communities. In fact, they were relocated here after the destructive typhoon, Morakot, trampled through Southern Taiwan in 2009. The three communities belong to two different nations, Paiwan (Makazayazaya and Tavalan) and Rukai (Kucapungane). Traditionally Rinari is situated on the land of the Paiwan Makazayazaya People but before the relocation, it was owned by the Taiwan Sugar Company, and it had to be repurchased to place the people there after the typhoon. Each family was relegated to a permanent housing of two-floored wooden house built by World Vision Taiwan and commissioned by the government (Lee and Hsu, 2016). Although the houses are used by the families, the government owns the land and property. There is also no other land for people to build additional housing or practice land-based activities. The devastating results of natural disasters are often products of a longterm and continuing ‘unequal distribution of socioecological conflicts caused by a modern economic system driven by the industrial revolution and colonization’ (Huang, 2018, p. 384). For example, Taiwan as a settler colonial nation-state has had years of capitalist exploitation of the land in which logging, industrial agriculture, and rapid urban development have striped the land of its ability to withstand natural disasters, such as typhoons or earthquakes, resulting in more serious landslides and flooding. Disaster recovery is one part of this process. Often done in the name of delivering people out of danger, ‘relocation’ as a form of disaster recovery reveals the longterm, deep-seeded issues of colonial control by creating further dependency through paternalistic treatment of Indigenous people from the state and large service- and charity-centred non-profit organizations, a top-down decisionmaking process that excludes the people most affected and callously homogenizes different Indigenous groups. In an interview, Tavalan artist, Daki, described the days of the Morakot Typhoon. He was in another city when the typhoon hit. Because the typhoon had destroyed the main road going into the village, he had to canoe back into

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his home. As he expected the worst, to his surprise, when he got back to his community, he saw people enjoying themselves and making traditional pork barbecue on slates. In that moment, he was reminded that they are the people of this land and for millennia they have experienced typhoons and other natural disasters. Their ancestors have passed down a way of life to live well on this land. Daki explains, ‘the typhoon disaster didn’t happen to my people when the typhoon came. It happened when the government intervention started’ (Daki, personal communication, March 13, 2018). Once the government intervened and deemed the land too dangerous to live on, the government turned Daki’s people from self-reliant to dependent as they had to fight each other for the limited food and resources at their temporary refugee camp. Disasters and disaster recovery processes are inherently political and social, and they need to be understood in ‘temporal/historical and spatial contexts’ (Huang, 2018, p. 384). We argue without centring Indigenous self-determination, safety and natural phenomena like disasters become a tool that creates opportunities to deepen Indigenous disfranchisement. We describe this process as disaster colonialism (Bonilla, 2020; García López, 2020; Lin and Sasala, 2022). In fact, intervention resulting in rapid urbanization and displacement mediated through disaster recovery are often more easily justified (Huang, 2018). The stories of Rinari are typical of Taiwan’s continuous colonial rule, but more importantly it is a story of resistance and refusal as people make Rinari into their home and find ways to ensure the survival of their land-based culture. The Kucapungane community provides a concrete example of a radical pedagogy of place in that place-based practice can become a powerful pedagogical tool in teaching about struggle, history, and the land, in that transforming the way we relate to the places we situate in. Turning away the colonial gaze: Kucapungane and the shoes off village program

In February 2018, when we drove up the hill into Kucapungane, the wooden permanent housing came into sight, and each had been decorated with slates and traditional patterns. The front porch is a sacred place for Kucapungane people. It is where ceremonies and celebrations happen, so the porch is always kept clean, and no shoes are allowed on it. Although the Kucapungane members face many unfair restrictions with the relocation to permanent housing in Rinari, they have been remaking the place through their relationship to land and tradition. Kucapungane members only have ‘using rights’ to the house. This means legally they cannot engage in any economic activities in the house, and the government ultimately owns the land on which the buildings sit. Residents cannot expand their current housing to accommodate for a growing population. Second, they were also not allocated any other space to do their traditional land-based practices, such as

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planting millet and other traditional crops that people depend on. Many of the Kucapungane elders resort to rent farmland from the River Management Office or find other ways to make a living. Kucapungane member, Ngedrelre, who is the co-founder of the Shoes-off Village Program, explains that when his people lost farmland and could not engage in their land-based practices, they also began to lose the important millet culture. Millet culture, as Ngedrelre describes it, is a communal culture that values reciprocity, ceremony, and relationship to land and to each other. He can see that without land for planting millet, people started to assimilate even more to the capitalistic mindset. As a result, many young people moved into the urban area for work leaving elders living on their own. In recent years, there has been a gradual return of young people as part of the movement to reclaim culture and identity. Ngedrelre was one of the people that returned to his community. Ngedrelre and other young people see these problems grinding down on elders and the community. There was no sense of vibrancy and belonging to this new place. They needed something that not only could bring them income but also create space to practice tradition. This was the conviction for the creation of the Shoes-off Village Program. This tourism and educational programme was developed by several young people with elders at Kucapungane. The programme uses a home-stay model where visitors board with elders who have empty rooms in their homes. As it grows, it becomes a network of elders, local food services, artisans, and artists in Rinari and activities with nearby cultural locations. When it first started, there were only two families participating. Currently, more than 40 families are part of the home-stay network and others have opened shops, studios, or eateries to accommodate the growing programme. Although on the surface, the programme is to primarily provide income to participating families, at a deeper level, this programme was developed to address the social issues at their new home, to tell their stories of displacement, and to practice the traditional communal way of life. Their goal is the collective flourishing of their people, and of creating a ‘homeworld’ (Maynard and Simpson, 2022). Ngedrelre expresses that the model follows their communal tradition where everything is run by everyone together. They use ‘family’ and ‘home’ to frame the visitors and the activities the visitors undertake. When each visitor arrives at the Shoes-off Village, Kucapungane members would conduct a welcome ceremony to initiate each person into the family. During the ceremony, they tell the story of where their people come from, how they come to Rinari, and the ongoing struggle for justice. They explain their important front porch culture and initiate each visitor as part of the family. While welcoming them home, Kucapungane members emphasize that as the visitors are now family, they need to treat and respect each other as family and respect the homes of the elders in which they are now going to stay. With that, they stress the visitors’ roles and responsibilities not just as

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consumers who come to take but also people who come to learn and to care. In our interview, Ngedrelre explained: This is not a ‘business’ like a hotel or hostel. We have turned away people before when they cannot accept the home stay format and demanded our elders to do more service. . . . We wanted to create ways in which we can continue to practice our tradition even with the lack of land. We want our children to have a way to identify with their culture and practice it as they grow up in Rinari. We are finding openings to pass down our culture. For Kucapungane members, this is not a conventional tourism relationship that sees through the tourist’s gaze, and where visitors arrive to consume the culture of the ‘Other’. Place-based educational programmes can sometimes take on the same type of consumeristic and othering nature by positioning learning as ‘learning about’ rather than ‘learning with’. In this place, Kucapungane people hold their agency and ask visitors to see through that gaze, to become a part of the ecology. Through grounding the programme in their land-based culture and co-owning the operation, Kucapungane people challenge the exploitative and capitalistic nature of conventional tourism and find different ways to enact their place-based practice. Through situating the visitors on the land, Kucapungane people educate settlers and visitors, both domestic and international, about ongoing Indigenous struggle, tradition, and most importantly, what it means to be a responsible guest to the host. This is a radical practice of hospitality. Here we do not refer to the hospitability industry although many would classify The Shoes Off Village as part of that industry. We refer to the tradition of hosting through communal acts, going to the root sense of opening space for connection to people and place. Drawing from the understanding of Esteva and Prakash (2014), hospitality encompasses ‘a principle of levelling, which comes with the root meaning of hospitality, by which the foreigner, the stranger, the “Other”, is given a place within the “we” hosting them’ (p. 87). At the same time, it is a call for responsibility in this relationship (Montgomery and Bergman, 2017). In Kucapungane, being hospitable is a demonstration of ‘ren qing wei’ (人情味), bringing in a Taiwanese sense of hospitality. Ren qing wei invokes a deep level of human connectedness. Its literal translation, ‘a taste of human connection’, connotes a desire for connection and an openness for that connection. Ngedrelre said they have always seen this in their elders when young people bring their friends home, no matter the cultural background of their friends. They see it once again through the Shoes-off Village Program. He stated, ‘Ren qing wei is the beauty of Taiwanese Indigenous people. You can find a sense of ren qing wei everywhere in Taiwan and for us this also comes from being a part of the vitality of the land’.

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Nevertheless, this radical form of hospitability needs to be understood as a practice of the collective that includes reciprocal responsibilities and trust on both the host and the guest. Montgomery and Bergman (2017, p. 160) conclude that hospitability ‘connotes a sensibility of trust based on people’s sense of their capacity to face the world together. . . . To be “hosted” is to be allowed to encounter a world, to be invited into it’. This calls for an ability to respond – to practice responsibility in relationship to the people and place. There is also a selectiveness in practicing hospitability. Gloria Anzaldúa calls this notion ‘bridging’ (Anzaldúa and Keating, 2002). While bridging is a call to expand and build up community, it is also a recognition that it comes with the risk of ‘being open to personal, political, and spiritual intimacy, to risk being wounded’ (Anzaldúa and Keating, 2002, p. 3). The key to effective bridging is ‘knowing when to close ranks to those outside our home, group, community, nation  – and when to keep the gates open’ (p.  3). It is about ‘selective openness, with firm boundaries’ (Montgomery and Bergman, 2017, p. 120) as historically Indigenous and other marginalized communities have been forced to open to colonial advances – in fact this has been part of the blueprint of colonialism (Maynard and Simpson, 2022). Lastly, it is important to note that the Shoes-off Village Program is by no means ‘perfect’. In fact, not all Kucapungane members are on board with the programme. This conflict is also deepened by the colonially imposed political system in the village being at odds against the traditional governance structure. While it is not the scope of this study to dive into the oppositional voices of the programme, it is important to mention points of contention so as not to romanticize Indigenous resistance, resilience, and community as well as to understand the complex issue of colonialism and how it affects ­day-to-day life. Kucapungane continues to be a site of struggle over Indigenous sovereignty and colonial control over land. Recently, the local government has been pushing back aggressively on community members’ use of permanent housing as part of the Shoes-off Village Program. In October  2020, the authority sent in a bulldozer and demolished the newly built visitor centre. The demolition was met with widespread resistance from community members and settler allies, but it also revealed the deep-seeded issue with housing rights and access to land. Concluding remarks

As educators, paying attention to place is crucial and urgent in our pedagogical commitment to social justice and decolonization (Boggs, 2015; Calderon, 2014b; Coulthard and Simpson, 2016; Dirlik, 1999; hooks, 2009; McKittrick, 2006; Tuck et al., 2014). The formation and reinforcement of place meanings through interactions with culture, politics, and history can expose the situated realities of colonial and capitalist expansion. At the same time,

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it also brings crucial place-based practices to the forefront of countering the dominant narrative. Indigenous scholars, activists, and educators all around the world have long seen place-based practices, tied to the vitality of the land, as essential to their relationship and flourishing. Dene scholar Glen Coulthard argues that struggles around land are key to Indigenous anti-colonial and anti-capitalist efforts, not only in the material sense but also for how such struggles can be ‘deeply informed by what the land as system of reciprocal relations and obligations can teach us about living our lives in relation to one another and the natural world in non-dominating and non-exploitative terms’ (Coulthard, 2014, p. 13). The stories of the Kucapungane people reveal that the tentacles of colonial capitalism expand through varying processes, and this includes further land control and creating deeper dependence through natural disaster. Many times, disaster recovery is framed through the language of resilience and paternalistic sense of care that diverts attention away from what cause the disastrous effects in the first place (Huang, 2018). Through the Shoes-off Village Program, the Kucapungane community brought this issue to the forefront and through their land-based relationship and practices, they are able to educate those who participate in their programme on the important history of the place and the stories of their people in the hope of cultivating a relationality that moves away from the colonial capitalistic way of relating to place. Kucapungane provides an important example of how to hold a pedagogical space that facilitates nuanced understanding of place, reciprocal relationship to each other and land, and responsibilities to healing and justice. This is the interrogation educators need to engage as we move to center place in our pedagogies. Place is not a fixed entity but constructed through historical, social, political, and economic influences. This requires educators to first examine the dominant definition of place and what the particular ‘colonial apparatus’ (Tuck and Yang, 2012, p. 21) that is in place to assemble the narrative about relationship with each other and with the land. We must also unearth the hidden place-based stories that are ignored and being erased. Many times, through this type of intentional and critical approach, our own relationship to place will also be called into question and be transformed as a result. There is a responsibility in engaging in place-based education and practices that does not just translate to conscious raising but into concrete actions. As we design, implement, and reflect on our place-based teaching, we need to ask difficult questions, for example: • • • •

Whose traditional territory is your lesson going to take place? Have you asked for permission to be at this place? What is your own relationship to this place? What are the existing relationship and knowledge the students hold to this place?

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• What is the dominant narrative of this place? • What are the hidden stories of this place that are silenced, erased, or marginalized? • Can you centre these voices in your lesson? • What assumptions do these stories challenge? • What can you give back as the community that shares and opens their place to you? Can you build that into your lesson? We also need to be accountable to our own preconceived relations to and ideas about place, build relationships with grassroots communities, ensure reciprocity, and honour boundaries. To do this is no easy feat, it requires working collectively with other educators, grassroots organizers, the students, the school community, and communities at large. Further readings The Disaster STS Network https://disaster-sts-network.org/ This website gathers resources on disaster-related research and projects with a current focus on environmental justice. Native Land Digital: Map of Indigenous territories in the Americas https://nativeland.ca/ and Teacher’s guide and exercises on mapping https://native-land.ca/ resources/teachers-guide/ Op-ed Article (in Mandarin): Five Questions about Taiwan Indigenous Land https:// www.matataiwan.com/2016/12/30/indigenous-customary-land-right/

References Anzaldúa, G., and Keating, A. (2002) This bridge we call home: Radical visions for transformation. Abingdon: Routledge. Boggs, G. L. (2015) A question of place, Monthly Review, 55–56, December. Bonilla, Y. (2020) The coloniality of disaster: Race, empire, and the temporal logics of emergency in Puerto Rico, USA, Political Geography, 7. Calderon, D. (2014a) Speaking back to manifest destinies: A land education-based approach to critical curriculum inquiry, Environmental Education Research, 20(1), 24–36. Calderon, D. (2014b) Anticolonial methodologies in education: Embodying land and indigeneity in Chicana feminisms, Journal of Latino/Latin American Studies, 6(2), 81–96. Chen, K. H. (2010) Asia as method: Toward deimperialization. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. Coulthard, G. S. (2014) Red skin, white masks: Rejecting the colonial politics of recognition. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press (Indigenous Americas). Coulthard, G. S., and Simpson, L. B. (2016) Grounded normativity/place-based solidarity, American Quarterly, 68(2), 249–255. Dirlik, A. (1999) Place-based imagination: Globalism and the politics of place, Review (Fernand Braudel Center), 22(2), 151–187.

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Esteva, G., and Prakash, M. S. (2014) Grassroots postmodernism: Remaking the soil of cultures. London: NBN International. García López, G. A. (2020) Reflections on disaster colonialism: Response to Yarimar Bonilla’s ‘The wait of disaster’, Political Geography, 78, 102170. Henley, A. (2011) Legacies of memory and belonging in Taiwan history, in G. Schubert and J. Damm (eds) Taiwanese identity in the 21st century. London: Routledge, 17–34. hooks, b. (2009) Belonging: A culture of place. New York: Routledge. Huang, S. M. (2018) Understanding disaster (in)justice: Spatializing the production of vulnerabilities of indigenous people in Taiwan, in M. Miller and M. Douglass (eds), Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space, 1(3), 382–403. Kapoor, D. (2017) Against colonization and rural dispossession: Local resistance in South and East Asia, the Pacific and Africa. London: Zed Books. Lee, Y., and Hsu, Y.  (2016)  An integrated system of engaging social workers and community volunteers in social care for the elderly: Case studies in Taiwan. Asia Pacific Journal of Social Work and Development, 26(4), 203–216. Lin, H. N., and Sasala, T. (2022) Whose resilience?: Disaster colonialism in indigenous communities after Typhoon Morakat [為誰韌性？莫拉克風災後災難殖主義 於原住民部落的體現]. 2022 Annual conference of Taiwan society for anthropology and ethonology, Taiwan. Lu, H. Y. (2002) The politics of locality: Making a nation of communities in Taiwan. New York: Routledge. Maynard, R., and Simpson, L. B. (2022) Rehearsals for living. Abolitionist Papers Series. Chicago: Haymarket Books. McKittrick, K. (2006) Demonic grounds: Black women and the cartographies of struggle. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Montgomery, N., and Bergman, C. (2017) Joyful militancy: Building thriving resistance in toxic times. Anarchist Interventions. Edinburgh: AK Press, 7. Simpson, L. B. (2017) As we have always done: Indigenous freedom through radical resistance. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press (Indigenous Americas). Taiban, S. (2020) Indigenous conservation and post-disaster reconstruction in Taiwan, in A. Esarey, M. A. Haddad, J. I. Lewis, and S. Harrell (eds) Greening East Asia: The rise of the eco-developmental state. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 122–136. Tuck, E., McKenzie, M., and McCoy, K. (2014) Land education: Indigenous, postcolonial, and decolonizing perspectives on place and environmental education research, Environmental Education Research, 20(1), 1–23. Tuck, E., and Yang, K. W. (2012) Decolonization is not a metaphor, Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education and Society, 1(1), 1–40.

13 DEVELOPING A VIRTUAL SENSE OF PLACE Janine Maddison, Charlotte Foster, David Morgan and Sara Marsham

Introduction

A space becomes a place as we get to know it better, building and giving meaning to it (Tuan, 1977) through physical exploration, presence and experiences within it. But this can also be achieved through virtual experiences in place augmented by technology (Chang et al., 2015). This chapter draws on empirical research to evaluate the role of digital tools in supporting students to develop a sense of place. It introduces three challenges in teaching place. Firstly, using mobile devices to support the development of place. Secondly, collaboration within a virtual space and thirdly, providing context when interrogating national data sets. These are challenges identified from the literature and from direct experience of facilitating student fieldwork at Flatford Mill Field Centre. Three digital interventions – digital data collection, digital collaboration and interactive data maps  – are used to address these challenges and evaluates these based on student experiences. From this, implications for practice are suggested.

Study context

Generation Z (born 1997–2010) and Generation Alpha (born 2010–2024) are often described as digital natives (Prensky, 2001). Many of these young people have grown up with technology playing a ubiquitous role in their lives (Dingli and Seychell, 2015). Through mobile devices and mobile internet, young people engage in places both online and offline, forming what has been defined as ‘ambient co-presence’ (Madianou, 2016). However, the

DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-16

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concept of the digital native is contested (Margaryan et al., 2011) and there is debate over the confidence and skill of these generations in using technology positively for education (Huffling et al., 2014; Welsh et al., 2015). Additionally, the digital divide that persists, where not all students have equal access to devices and internet provision, means that not all students have the same exposure to these valuable tools (Office for National Statistics, 2019). The concept of developing a virtual sense of place has been identified within local populations’ engagement with digital visualisations of coastal locations in Canada using 360 images and soundscapes (Newell and Canessa, 2018). It has also been applied to simulated virtual historic sites (Falconer, 2017) and the use of mobiles creating ‘hybrid spaces’ with young people in rural cities engaging with digital placemaking (Waite, 2021) demonstrates that digital exposure to place can form a key element of an individual’s sense of place. Young people can experience a place virtually in several possible ways. Formal digital representations of place are produced by political, social and cultural agencies and include government census dashboards and maps. Informal digital representations are produced by people working outside these institutions and share their work via social media or user-generated content sites such as Foursquare (Serrano-Estrada et al., 2023). Curated and non-curated tours (Tuthill and Klemm, 2002), in two dimensions (Stott et al., 2009) and three dimensions (Brown and Green, 2016) virtual field trips and tours which allow students to see the place and develop their own understanding based on the visible characteristics that they can observe. In situ tools such as Augmented Reality (Oleksy and Wnuk, 2017) and Soundwalks (Butler, 2007) add depth to students’ perceptions of a space by giving them access to information that might not be obvious, including temporal variation and expert interpretation or narratives. Responses to virtual environments are both complex and personal (Falconer, 2017) with the relationships between place, digital technologies and people ever-evolving (Waite, 2021). There are a vast range of opportunities afforded by technology and the these are recognised as diminishing the gap between the virtual and real world in fieldwork education (Cliffe, 2017), yet the literature relating to the application of this to school-aged students is limited. This chapter reports on research which evaluates the role of digital tools in supporting A-level students to develop a sense of place during residential fieldwork. Discussion of methodological approach

This chapter uses an instrumental case study approach (Stake, 1995) and incorporates student voice to explore the value of digital tools in supporting place-based fieldwork and overcoming challenges that students face during

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A-level residential geography field trips. The research was carried out at FSC Flatford Mill (a Field Studies Council field centre) where students from two schools shared their reflections on using digital tools to develop their own sense of place during the trip with the aim of applying findings to all schools undertaking similar programmes of study. Flatford Mill is in Dedham Vale, Suffolk, an area with historic links to the artist John Constable and is less than 20 km from Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk. Each year over 700 A-level geography students from approximately 40 schools visit the centre. Most visitors to Flatford Mill will be unfamiliar with the area and travel from contrasting areas such as Central London. The residential field trip aims to acquaint students with the location to enable them to identify and undertake geographical enquiry of their own, independent design. Residentials are typically three to five days in length and build towards students conducting individual investigations in the latter part of the trip. Consequently, developing a rich sense of place in a short time is important, yet challenging. Students engage with a variety of fieldwork tasks to develop their sense of place in the surrounding area. Some of these fieldwork tasks are enhanced by technology, for example, Figure 13.1 shows a rephotography task at Flatford Mill where students use their mobile devices

FIGURE 13.1 A  student

Pond

holding an image of the Hay Wain in front of the Mill

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to capture a picture in the same location where John Constable painted his famous The Hay Wain (1821) picture. Students are encouraged to reflect upon how this view has changed over time, and how representations of this rural Suffolk location have changed. Students used the three digital solutions throughout the field course (Table 13.1) before being asked to share their experience of trialling the digital solutions by completing a paper survey form on the final day (n=34). The survey focused on usefulness, challenges, skill development and suggestions for future development. Participation was voluntary and all participants provided informed consent in line with the ethical approval which was granted by School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Newcastle University (Project number 22-008-MA; approved 04/02/22). Codes were generated through examination of the responses, and their frequency recorded. Key

TABLE 13.1 Summary of digital solutions and how these were embedded within the

place-based fieldwork Digital approach Google Sheets

Key question

Content

Learning activity

How do your Digital recording Students completed a perceptions of sheet to record place check for their Dedham Vale differ and collate qualiown perceptions of from those of local tative data place and compared people? with a local vox populi (voice of the people). Padlet – digital How do primary Digital noticeboard Students added comcollaboration fieldwork experipopulated with a ments to secondary tool ences and secondvariety of seconddata sources and ary sources of ary data sources added their own priinformation supincluding crowdmary data and fieldport the developsourced photos work observations ment of a sense of of Ipswich and reflecting on their place in Ipswich? newspaper and others emerging articles sense of place. Interactive data How is Dedham Interactive maps Students explored the maps Vale formally showing several data to build a prorepresented? data sets includfile of Dedham Vale. ing Index of MulThey identified varitiple Deprivation, ations within the 2011 Census area and compared data, House Dedham Vale with prices their home or other familiar areas.

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findings and summaries from the feedback inform the implications for practice section of this chapter and continued development of our own practice. Challenges and digital solutions to enhance place-based fieldwork Challenge 1: Use mobile devices to connect with a place rather than disconnect

Background to the challenge: In our experience, students use their mobile phones during place-based fieldwork. They use digital maps to navigate around unknown locations, they capture data including photos and videos, they record their observations, and they communicate with others within their class and at home. By virtue of this, they are already experiencing a place both in the real world and virtually. This can be disorientating as students are existing in multiple spaces at once and through connection with their device they can be mentally and emotionally in other places, their mobile acts as a distracting technology (Medzini et  al., 2015). Used with care, digital tools can enhance understanding of a place allowing significant, additional insight into the place such as highlighting historical influences or illustrating possible future scenarios such as floods or climate change (Markowitz et al., 2018). Addressing the challenge: Using mobile devices and apps in field to support data collection, collation, presentation and analysis of fieldwork data: Students collected data into pre-configured, digital worksheets created in Google Sheets which allowed for the calculation of descriptive statistics and some data visualisation. By using digital data collection, the spatial and temporal gap between data collection and analysis was narrowed as students worked with processed data whilst in the field. Students were empowered to begin analysing fieldwork data whilst in the field and used the environment around them to explain the fieldwork data. We have found that through this approach, students use the data in a more holistic way to inform their perceptions and understanding of the area of study and revise methods to be more appropriate to the location. Challenge 2: Use digital tools to support communication and collaboration throughout their exploration of an unfamiliar place.

Background to challenge: Students sense of place is developed through interaction with it and with other people. These people can be known (family, peers, teachers) or unknown (shop staff, street artists, other participants present in the space). In our experience, when students use digital representations of a place or digital tools to explore a location they more

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often do so alone, using individual devices. So, while there is a vast array of both formal and informal digital sources of information that can be used by students to develop a sense of place (360 degree photos, drone imagery, soundscapes, webcams, social media posts, Streetviews, Living Atlas layers, etc.), students miss  out on the communication and collaboration which occurs during real-world explorations of place. While students have access to both digital sources and digital tools to develop a sense of place, there is a need to support students in using these effectively. France et al. (2016) found that using mobile apps for learning during fieldwork can be distracting for students. Socialisation processes, student contributions and teacher presence all contribute to a sense of place within online environments (Clark and Maher, 2001) some of the tools that can support asynchronous communication include discussion boards and blogs and synchronous embodied communication via avatars and chat functions (Arora and Khazanchi, 2010). In a review of a specific virtual environment for learning (Minecraft Edu), it was identified that students communicate and collaborate in a non-competitive environment as they share, debate and problem solve together (Dezuanni et  al., 2015; Callaghan, 2016), harnessing these interactions can help students develop their own sense of place. Addressing the challenge: Using digital collaboration tools to support students to communicate: Padlet was used to support digital collaboration between students. A digital noticeboard was created that was initially populated with a rich range of digital resources related to the fieldwork locations. Photos, video, audio, Word documents, PDFs, Excel files, weblinks and notes were uploaded and shared within the digital noticeboard. Students accessed the Padlet via mobile devices or laptops with the aim that these resources supported students in building background knowledge of the fieldwork site and the development of an initial sense of place prior to visiting in-person during the fieldwork. During and post-fieldwork, students were invited to share aspects of their individual in-field exploration with the rest of the class via the Padlet. For example, in a rephotography task, students were given hardcopies of photographs around Ipswich from 1950 and asked to find the location and take a photo of the same view, which included the original photograph. Students shared their descriptions and interpretations of their images on the digital collaboration space. This photo shows a building that has been boarded up because it is in a state of disrepair and has become derelict. This hasn’t changed from previous photos which showed that the building was not in use, this is evidence for a lack of regeneration in this area. (Student comment on Padlet)

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Throughout the field trip students commented on other people’s posts within the Padlet, they shared feedback to their peers, gave their opinion and offered alternative perspectives. Decent quality, to an extent representative but doesn’t show the full effect of the Crag Walk because it doesn’t take locals personal view into account as they may feel like it disrupts the natural aura of the place. (Student feedback on annotated photograph of Walton on The Naze) Challenge 3: Provide context when interrogating national data sets

Background to challenge: Formal representations of place such as National Census data, house price, land cover and indices of deprivation such as the English Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) are key to building an understanding of both familiar and unfamiliar places. These quantitative measures are a valuable tool in ground-truthing our perceptions of a place, but when taken in isolation are difficult to derive meaning from. Without an understanding of house prices across the UK and in those in an area that is known intimately such as a home place, how can a student know if the £455,000 median price tag for a property in East Bergholt, Suffolk is high or low? In order to understand formal representations of place and for these to contribute to students’ own sense of that place these figures need contextualising, in terms of how they compare to a national (or even global) picture, to places that they are familiar with such as a ‘home place’ and relative to other places that they have studied throughout the Geography curriculum. In our experience, using such values in isolation is meaningless, it is only through comparison with more familiar places that students can develop their own benchmarks, drawing similarities and differences between other places and synthesising these into their own senses of the place. Addressing the challenge: ArcGIS secondary data maps & layers: ArcGIS Online was used to create interactive web-maps allowing students to gather formal representations of Dedham Vale, Suffolk to develop their own sense of place. These interactive maps were not limited to the area around the study area, but contained the complete data set available (England, England and Wales or UK depending on data set). This allowed students to access the same data for Dedham Vale, their home area and any other locations of their choice. This ability to explore the data beyond the study area, and for locations of their choosing gave individual students the opportunity to draw comparisons between Dedham Vale and similar or contrasting places of their choosing. When exploring English IMD data for Dedham Vale, many students then went looking for areas in the same IMD decile in their own area, they were

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sometimes surprised when the data did not match their own perceptions of places that they know well. Dashboards were used in some cases to combine mapped data with graphs, charts and other summary statistics to support exploration of the spatial statistics. Students captured screenshots of the data and added these to the communal space on the Padlet to refer to. Being online, students were able to refer to these interactive maps and dashboards pre, during and after fieldwork, to recap or further explore digital data whilst in situ in the field site. Students used this data in the field to further develop their perceptions and understanding of the area. Student voice and feedback on the three digital approaches

Student feedback gave insight into their experience of using digital tools to develop a sense of place. In the student evaluation, most students identified that the digital tools enabled them to develop skills. The most frequently identified skill area was the use of GIS, mapping and technology in a geographical setting. One student commented on the benefit of ‘GIS layering maps and being able to collate things together’. Students also identified the skill of data presentation and interpretation as an area in which they had progressed with one saying, ‘I have been able to create visual diagrams/graphs to show data’. Students were asked to share what they thought the purpose of the digital approaches were. The most frequently identified purpose of the digital fieldwork approaches was the efficiency savings whilst using these resources. Students identified that the easy collation and storage of data and resources was a key purpose of the resources, something that was much easier to do using the digital approaches. Fifteen students identified that the purpose was related to the acquiring of geographical knowledge skills and understanding, with four out of these 15 identifying the purpose related to developing a sense of place such as how new perspectives informed the development of a holistic view of a location. Four students identified the purpose as having no relation to geographical understanding or providing additional learning options. These students identified that the purpose was to use technology, use less paper or to try different methods of learning. Almost all students shared examples of things they liked about the digital approaches. The two highest frequency purposes were also the things students liked the most about the resources which was having all the information from the field trip in one place and being able to comment and collaborate on everyone’s work. One student commented that ‘Everything is only in one place, which reduces the risks of losing sheets of paper. I  also enjoyed commenting and viewing other people’s work’. The most frequently identified challenge mentioned by students was old hardware resulting in slow functions. The second biggest challenge related to the cognitive load

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in using the digital approaches, and the need for students to develop new skills to use them, one student commented that ‘It takes a little bit of time at the beginning to understand them’. Students who trialled the resources were asked to suggest improvements to the approaches. Two thirds of the suggested improvements focus on upgrades to the hardware used. Students also commented on the impact of careful design and layout in improving usability and scaffolding student engagement with resources, one student suggested ‘more organisation of the space e.g. categories for each section of work’. Students shared additional ways that they felt they could be supported to develop a virtual sense of place, these can be organised into themes of pedagogy, content and technology developments. Within pedagogic developments students requested additional time within the virtual space including the option to continue work outside of class. One student said that they would like to be ‘Allowed use after work hours with optional task to develop further learning’. Within content developments students suggested some additional multi-media and interactive content that they would like to see, including augmented reality, interactive maps and videos. Technology developments included the need not only for upgraded technology but also for the digital approaches to utilise their existing school learning management system (LMS). This might reduce cognitive load but would be logistically challenging to implement in a field centre context where many schools with a range of LMS may visit. Barriers and enablers to using digital tools to support student’s development of sense of place

Based on our experiences facilitating fieldwork and the findings from the student evaluation the following discussion around barriers and enablers will be useful to educators looking to incorporate similar digital approaches within their own place-based teaching. As with any new teaching resource or approach an investment of time is required, but the numerous benefits to students should make this worthwhile. The choice of platforms for collaboration and other digital tools is vast. Educators looking to embed these may wish to consider how they can utilise existing school infrastructure to guide their choice. Once digital platforms have been chosen, focus can turn to the development of resources. For example, creating Google SheetsTM data recording and presentation worksheets and populating the Padlet collaboration space with a range of formal and informal representations. This process could be a positive learning experience for students if involved in these processes, with students encouraged to critically consider the resources they use and the data that is collected. It provides an opportunity for student to become familiar with a range of different data sources prior to the trip. Creating this resource will likely mean centralising resources that you already have, this will be beneficial

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for students use and your future upkeep. The use of digital recording sheets removes the need for photocopying prior to the fieldwork and give students seamless access to collected data without the need for collation and printing of results, allowing time to focus on reflections on the place and fieldwork. Using unfamiliar or outdated devices in the field can lead to students becoming frustrated, placing technology as a barrier to positive engagement in the place or your intended learning activities. A  bring your own device (BYOD) approach can overcome this, with students using devices that they are familiar with. To enable this school policies on mobile device use may need to be revised, with individual situations considered. It is also advised to have some devices available for students who do not have access to, or do not feel comfortable using their own device. One challenge with adopting a BYOD approach is ensuring that tools will work equally across all mobile operating systems. Accessing resources through the browser will usually overcome this but may require the use of mobile data or Wi-Fi, where possible offline solutions should be preferred. Prior to the fieldwork students will need time and guidance to ensure that suitable apps are installed. The digital tools for collection, collation and collaboration support the development of a student centred, living and growing virtual space for place-based education. This space is one which students have ownership of, with their individual contributions shared amongst their peers. With the virtual space becoming a vital resource in the development of sense of place. Contributions to this virtual space are anonymous, and this inevitably requires ongoing moderation. However, this potential negative issue may be mitigated using inbuilt profanity filters and configuration settings that require all comments to be reviewed by a moderator prior to posting. Implications for practice

Both digital and data literacy are vital functional skills for 21st-century students (Mahmud and Wong, 2022). In this study, students identify that utilising digital tools within place-based education supports the development of these skills within an authentic context. The students viewed the use of digital tools to develop a sense of place positively, and found the tools easy, accessible and efficient. Students welcomed opportunities for peer-peer interaction (sharing, feedback etc.) within digital spaces. Further opportunities for active engagement with digital tools within place-based fieldwork should be considered. However, in our experience, students do not always identify the holistic pedagogic value of the tools. Educators should consider how best to communicate broad intended pedagogic purpose of tools to ensure that students can explicitly identify the value of the approaches, which will support engagement and uptake of the digital tools within placebased fieldwork.

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Although students may be familiar with using technology and mobile devices in their everyday lives, their use within education may still be something which is new to students. Educators should consider appropriate scaffolding to support students and give time when integrating technology to reduce cognitive load for students. Educators may wish to work with their students involving them in the onboarding process of using technologies within place-based education. Additionally, educators should consider logistical and environmental factors which may affect mobile device use within fieldwork. In the evaluation students identified improvements to the approaches in the areas of pedagogy, content and technology. This highlights the value of capturing student voice when integrating new digital approaches in placebased fieldwork, students are aware of emerging technologies (e.g. augmented reality) and educators should consider how to work with students to incorporate these new ideas supporting a student-centred approach to the development of a virtual sense of place. Conclusion

Digital tools can be used effectively within place-based fieldwork to support students to develop a sense of place and to address challenges present within place-based fieldwork. However, educators should ensure a degree of criticality with their use, ensuring that adoption is led by the pedagogy not the technology. The value of student feedback in the use and integration of digital tools should be acknowledged. We hope that the discussions around barriers and enablers and the implications for practice are useful for educators in adapting and creating their own digital tools to support students to develop a sense of place within their contexts. Further readings Digital Placemaking Guide. https://calvium.com/resources/digital-placemaking/useful reflection on the use of digital tools within the heritage and cultural sectors. Relph, E. (2021) Digital disorientation and place, Memory Studies, 14(3), 572–577. has a discussion on the hybridity of place, and the affordances of digital tools to cross spatial and temporal boundaries when exploring place.

References Arora, V., and Khazanchi, D. (2010) Sense of place in virtual world learning environments: A  conceptual exploration, information systems and quantitative analysis faculty proceedings & presentations. Moorhead, MN: MWAIS, 8. Brown, A., and Green, T. (2016) Virtual reality: Low-cost tools and resources for the classroom, TechTrends, 60, 517–519.

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Butler, T. (2007) Memoryscape: How audio walks can deepen our sense of place by integrating art, oral history and cultural geography, Geography Compass, 1, 360–372. Callaghan, N. (2016) Investigating the role of minecraft in educational learning environments, Educational Media International, 53(4), 244–260. Chang, Y.-L., Hou, H.-T., Pan, C.-Y., Sung, Y.-T., and Chang, K. (2015) Apply an augmented reality in a mobile guidance to increase sense of place for heritage places, Educational Technology & Society, 18, 166–178. Clark, S., and Maher, M. L. (2001) The role of place in designing a learner centred virtual learning environment, in B. de Vries, J. van Leeuwen, and H. Achten (eds) Computer aided architectural design futures. Dordrecht: Springer, 187–200. Cliffe, A. D. (2017) A review of the benefits and drawbacks to virtual field guides in today’s geoscience higher education environment, International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 14(28), 1–14. Dezuanni, M., O’Mara, J., and Beavis, C. (2015) ‘Redstone is like electricity’: Children’s performative representations in and around Minecraft, E-Learning and Digital Media, 12(2), 147–163. Dingli, A., and Seychell, D. (2015) Who are the digital natives? in: A. Dingli and D. Seychell (eds) The new digital natives. Berlin and Heidelberg: Springer, 9–22. Falconer, L. (2017) Experiencing sense of place in virtual and physical Avebury, ­Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 21, 977–988. France, D., Powell, V., Mauchline, A. L., Welsh, K., Park, J., Whalley, W. B., and Rewhorn, S. (2016) Ability of students to recognize the relationship between using mobile apps for learning during fieldwork and the development of graduate attributes, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 40(2), 182–192. Huffling, L., Tomasek, T., Matthews, C., Benavides, A., Carlone, H., and Hegedus, T. (2014) Using mobile devices in field science, The Science Teacher (National Science Teachers Association), 81(6), 35–40. Madianou, M. (2016) Ambient co-presence: Transnational family practices in polymedia environments, Global Networks, 16, 183–201. Mahmud, M. M., and Wong, S. F. (2022) Digital age: The importance of 21st century skills among the undergraduates, Frontiers in Education, 7(950553), 1–9. Margaryan, A., Littlejohn, A., and Vojt, G. (2011) Are digital natives a myth or reality? Understanding students’ use of digital technologies, Computers and Education, 56, 429–440. Markowitz, D. M., Laha, R., Perone, B. P., Pea, R. D., and Bailenson, J. N. (2018) Immersive virtual reality field trips facilitate learning about climate change, ­Frontiers in Psychology, 9(2364), 1–20. Medzini, A., Meishar-Tal, H., and Sneh, Y. (2015) Use of mobile technologies as support tools for geography field trips, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 24(1), 13–23. Newell, R., and Canessa, R. (2018) From sense of place to visualization of place: Examining people-place relationships for insight on developing geovisualizations, Heliyon, 4(2), 1–16. Office for National Statistics (2019) Exploring the UK’s digital divide. https:// www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/householdcharacteristics/ homeinternetandsocialmediausage/articles/exploringtheuksdigitaldivide/2019-03-04 Oleksy, T., and Wnuk, A. (2017) Catch them all and increase your place attachment! The role of location-based augmented reality games in changing people-place relations, Computers in Human Behavior, 76, 3–8.

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Prensky, M. (2001) Digital natives, digital immigrants part 1, On the Horizon, 9(5), 1–6. Serrano-Estrada, L., Martin, T. J., and Marti, P. (2023) Understanding city dynamics: Using geolocated social media in a problem-based activity as an investigative tool to enhance student learning, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 47(1), 106–127. Stake, R. E. (1995) The art of case study research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Stott, T., Nuttall, A.-M., and McCloskey, J. (2009) Design, development and student evaluation of a virtual alps field guide, Planet, 22(1), 64–71. Tuan, Y.-F. (1977) Space and place the perspective of experience. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Tuthill, G., and Klemm, E. B. (2002) Virtual field trips: Alternatives to actual field trips, International Journal of Instructional Media, 29(4), 453–468. Waite, C. (2021) Making place beyond the city through the lens of digital media: Culturally diverse young people negotiating social change in a rural city, Digital Geography and Society, 2, 1–9. Welsh, K., Mauchline, A., Powell, V., France, D., Park, J., and Whalley, B. (2015) Student perceptions of iPads as mobile learning devices for fieldwork, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 39(3), 450–469.

PART 3

Encountering place in educational spaces

14 PARTICIPATORY LEARNING IN PLACE THROUGH YOUNG PEOPLE’S GEOGRAPHIES Denise Freeman and Susan Pike

Introduction

As two educators in geography, a secondary teacher and the other as a teacher educator, we see local places and the processes that shape them as highly significant to those we teach and ourselves. We are both geography teachers, with one of us working in teacher education, from early years to upper high school with students aged 22 years and over, and the other working in a school for students aged 11–18  years. Having connected through social media and the Geographical Association Annual Conference 2023, we have met face to face and online, to explore our own stories of place and our ideas about place and young people’s geographies. This has led both of us to develop our practice in relation to young people’s participation in their learning within local places, referred to by us as participatory learning in place (PLiP). In this chapter, we outline selected research that has inspired our conversations, before outlining a framework for PLiP in schools. We draw on an example of how this was carried out in one school, before considering implications for other schools. Research in young people’s geographies and education Young people’s geographies in local places

As outlined in Figure  14.1, the geographies of children, young people and families (GCYF) is a sub-discipline of geography, focusing on young people’s experiences of places and spaces, experientially, politically and ethically (Holloway and Valentine, 2000). Within this chapter, we use the term ‘young people’s geographies’, whilst acknowledging that within the field, scholarship DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-18

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Psychology

Sociology

Geography

Philosophy

have and continue to inform . . . Geographies of young people across time, space and place is all about . . . Young people’s experiences of and opinions on place for themselves as individuals and groups they are part of

Young people’s sense of place and place making at home, school and other places within their communities

Can occur during . . .

And are enhanced through . . .

Participatory Learning in Place within and about local places, spaces and people Which occurs by teachers enabling their students to be . . . Being in place, outdoors

Being challenged in place

Being curious and enquiring in place

Sharing learning within places

FIGURE 14.1  Young

people’s geographies, education and learning in place explored in this chapter (© Susan Pike).

is inspired by and emerge from a range of disciplines, including geography (Hart, 1979; Massey, 2005; Tuan, 1977), psychology (Matthews, 1992) sociology and philosophy (Merleau-Ponty, 2002), see Figure 14.1. Research in young people’s geographies focuses on how young people live, play and socialise in places, particularly their homes, schools and communities (Hammond, et al., 2022; Matthews, 1992). This lived space is referred to as third space, conceptualised as the space where ‘everything comes together’ (Soja, 1996, p. 57). For young people, third space involves their homes, schools, neighbourhood and related places, real and virtual. Research has found that the geographies of young people’s third spaces are significant to their sense of place and belonging, reflected in their talk, drawing and mapping of their home locality. They also have opinions on third spaces, as studies have shown that young people like places where they can play and socialise, buy food or other items, but not places where they feel unsafe, including those with noise, litter, graffiti or other environmental concerns (Doyle, 2022; Pike, 2011; Yates and Oates, 2019). Furthermore, despite the global, national and local forces and restrictions they may experience, young people will seek out experiences in local places (Katz, 2004). These may not be as adults expected, as young people create and repurpose places. For example, they seek the rural in the urban, for example, local rough ground or parks, vice versa, for example, hanging out together at the bus stop in rural areas (Nairn, 2003; Pike, 2011). Young people are also resourceful and creative in their use of places, as they know local risks and dangers and use avoidance strategies to minimise these (Jamme et  al., 2018). Opportunities to play and hang out are often taken, even when such

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chances are rare, perhaps due to work demands (Punch, 2001). For young people, spaces develop more meanings over time, through new and repeated experiences with others and alone occur, resulting in a sense and appreciation of place (Pike, 2011). The way in which they experience place shapes young people’s geographies, as they ‘form relationships and social networks, develop a sense of community and learn to live with others’ (McInerney et al., 2011, p. 5). Their sense of place evolves with their personal, lived experiences of such places, and defines how they view, interpret and interact with their world (Russ et al., 2015). Overall, young people’s developing geographies in their local places are complex and evolving. Young people’s geographies, place and education

Young people’s geographies are significant influences during their lives and so it is important that ‘attention from researchers and policy makers is the potential of the school curriculum to connect young people’s everyday lives to formal education and the content of the latter’ (Jirata and Kjørholt, 2015, p. 237). Drawing on all the above, we suggest a framework for our focus on young people’s geographies within school which we refer to as PLiP. Features of Participatory Learning in Place

The characteristics of how PLiP are listed here and described in the following section: • • • •

Being in place, indoors and outdoors Sharing experiences to learn through place Being curious and enquiring in place Sharing and acting in place

While we recognise that many of these occur in schools, we outline a rationale and practicalities of embedding them within schools, throughout the rest of this chapter: Being in place, indoors and outdoors

These are learning activities that occur both in the classroom and beyond, that involve learning through interactions with places and people, supported by educators. This is because young people value their local communities and evidence shows that young people are able and willing to engage in learning within their locality (Barratt-Hacking et al., 2007; Schlemper et al., 2018). In fact, there is evidence that almost all outdoor learning interventions have a positive effect (Nundy, 1999; Pike, 2016; Rickson et al., 2004). Such effects are

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true for young people and increase over time. Nundy found learning outdoors improved young people’s learning, ensured that abstract ideas were understood (1999). Davies et al. (2013) found that taking young people out of the classroom and working outdoors fostered creative development. In a recent project with 500 teachers by NaturScot in Scotland, Munro (2022) noted a range of benefits, including that after an outdoor learning session, young people were more engaged with learning when they returned to the classroom. Sharing experiences to learn through place

This starts with using stories of the everyday, to introduce content that is relevant for students. We note that a starting point of critical place-based learning is sharing experiences of local places. As hooks (2009, p. 49) notes ‘telling stories is one of the ways that we can begin the process of building community, whether inside or outside the classroom’. Young people’s stories of local places reveal joys and pluralities of experiences and can ‘serve as a means to understanding a sense of exclusion that individuals or groups may feel regarding certain spaces’ (Schlemper et al., 2018, p. 607). Stories from students and others will lead to the asking of questions, which as Freire (2000) states creates change. Through such experiences, teachers can ensure young people extend their everyday knowledge, or ‘horizontal discourse’ of their locality (Bernstein, 1999, p. 159) supported by their teachers (Pike, 2016). Being curious and enquiring in place

This usually involves teachers recognising where students’ interests and curiosities are. We note that such curiosities arise from students’ geographical imaginations, shaped by their lived experience, including community, media and education (Massey, 2006). These imaginations contribute to a wider personal schema in which memories and information about our surroundings are organised and connected in our mind. We describe later how we helped students to unpack these imaginings of place and encourage students to ask questions about them (Massey, 2006). This includes developing enquiry pedagogies that provide opportunities to think deeply and critically, and to ask many questions (Roberts, 2023) as well as embedding critical thinking involves finding the answers to those eternal questions of the inquisitive child (hooks, 2009). Through enquiry, students can ask questions that are pertinent to them, as well as questions teachers may encourage them to ask (Pike, 2016). Sharing and acting in place

This is an opportunity for students to make informed decisions and enact change, arising from the enquiry learning process. While the actions of young people may not always be appropriate and can be limited by social

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and political constraints and structures, it is recognised that young people’s enquiries can result in some form of action. This can be a presentation to their class through to a meeting with decision makers, as Kirshner (2007) notes, such activism can enable social change and transformation. There is also evidence that social activism projects may help students develop improved self-efficacy, a positive cultural self-identity, leadership skills and a sense of meaning and purpose (Torres-Harding et al., 2018). However, Aitken (2001) warns against celebrating young people’s resourcefulness and creativity to the detriment of an analysis of wider social and spatial contexts. However, as others have noted, a focus on action as part of planning can promote young people’s ongoing engagement with authentic learning contexts (Wynne-Jones et  al., 2015). Overall, deciding if, when and how larger political or social actions should arise from young people’s learning is a difficult tightrope for us as educators to walk. However, in the examples here, it is clear that action can take many forms, and that such activity has a positive impact on young people’s views of school and their overall wellbeing (Pike, 2016). While we recognise elements of PLiP occurs in many schools, we outline the impact developing it further has on young people in London. The remainder of this chapter provides an example of PLiP learning activities. Participatory learning in place in a London school

The example we now describe started with a conversation about transitions from primary to high school, especially in geography. We noticed that it was very common for students entering high school, to begin their geographical journey with an ‘introduction to geography’. This includes an exploration of the differences between human and physical geography and the development of geographical skills. Drawing on our experiences of geography at all phases of education, including teacher education, we reflected on such practices through conversations online and in person. Following our discussions, a rationale developed to try an alternative approach to introducing geography, driven by the research outlined, in three key ways: firstly, recognising that students beginning high school have developed an understanding of the world around them. They were born with geographical traits including curiosity and developing spatial skills. And although varied, they have all also taken part in geographical learning in primary school. Therefore, the lessons built on expertise developed in places at home and school. Secondly, by building in opportunities to listen to the students there was an understanding of how they saw and make sense of the world. Arising from the research, we focused on the students’ world around them, in what Massey (2006) called the geographical mind. Finally, a strong emphasis on young people’s geographies featured throughout the revised lessons. Like elsewhere, young people’s geographies are largely underrepresented in the school curriculum (Hammond, 2021), and this is something we wanted to address.

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We planned a new scheme of learning for the start of secondary school, with an emphasis on a sense of place through young people’s geographies. What follows is an outline of these geography lessons, as well as a discussion of the impact it had on teaching and learning. The lessons centred upon the young people’s home and school localities. This acknowledged that for some students the school locality is different to their home area. Whilst they know the area around the school, they can be experts on their home locality. Home for the students featured here, is a dense, urban landscape, in an outer London Borough. It is well connected to central London and other parts of the region via underground and overland trains and an extensive bus network. It is a multicultural place, with global social and economic connections. However, due to its peripheral location relative to central London, there are also nearby areas of greenery, including farmland, a large lake and a Country Park. The learning activities outlined here were aimed at helping young people explore these complexities and make sense of their surroundings. The lessons offered an opportunity for students to explore their knowledge of the local area, build on it and share it with others, to facilitate new learning. Students linked their understanding of their home locality to their school, the wider city and the global context. As shown in Table 14.1, learning was underpinned by key themes such as place, space, processes and sustainability. The concept of place was of particular significance and ran throughout, with ongoing development of geographical skills, with students using these skills to explore places. Discussion and implications

Within this findings section, we describe the key learnings from the lessons described in relation to the PLiP framework. And despite being a small-scale exemplar, we hope our work has positive implications for practice elsewhere. PLiP to develop a sense of place

The students featured in this case study all had diverse experiences of place, shaped by lived experience that we embedded within the lessons. The series of lessons placed a strong emphasis on exploring the place stories of young people and enabled them to share these with each other as a basis of their learning. In lesson 3, students were asked to consider their emotional and sensory connections to their home locality, providing insight into the geographical imaginations of the class and they took pride in talking about their home locality. They were asked about places that made them happy, with many seeing their ‘happy place’ with many others. For example, they referred to the park, particularly when visiting with friends. Some referred to their

TABLE 14.1 What is my place in the world? Outline of unit of learning

Student activities

1 Seeing the world as a geographer What does it mean to be a geographer? What do you understand by the term geography? What does it mean to you? What geography did you study at primary school?

Students consider the key questions, drawing upon their lived experience and knowledge developed in primary school. Use of Geographical Association video introducing geography. Students respond to questions posed the video including what they find fascinating and inspiring about the world, and how they can find out more about the world.

2 Exploring places What makes a space a place? How can we be place detectives? What questions can we ask about places? What places are special to us and why? Why do people ‘see’ places differently?

Introduce the concept of place. Students are encouraged to think about place names, landmarks and experiences. Photograph analysis to explore places – familiar and unfamiliar. Students ask questions about places. Answers and observations shared. Photographs annotated.

3 My place What do you see as your home locality? How do you experience that place (smells, sounds, food, music, emotions)? How does your locality compare and contrast to others?

Students respond to questions about their home locality, for example, name somewhere in your locality that makes you happy. Responses recorded, shared and discussed. Sketch maps of home localities completed. Emotional mapping activity using emojis to show feelings about places. Different types of maps and features of a map explored.

4 & 5 My school locality Where is our school locality? What is the landscape like? How can we use Ordnance Survey (OS) maps to find our way around the area? What can OS maps tell us about places?

Focus shifts from home locality to school locality. School is located at local, regional, national and global scales. Local OS maps used to identify key features of the school locality. Map skills developed including compass directions and using map symbols to recognise key features of the landscape.

6 Exploring places with GIS What are my perceptions of my local environment? How do these differ to other people in my class? How can we use online apps and GIS software to collect and map data?

Before joining the school, the students are asked to complete an online survey (ArcGIS Survey 123) about their local area. The survey to recorded information about the environment around their home. In this lesson, the students explore the survey data collected, viewed on a GIS map generated by Survey 123. (Continued)

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Lesson number, theme and enquiry questions

Lesson number, theme and enquiry questions

Student activities

7 & 8 My place in London What does London mean to you? What are your experiences of London? What is London? What is London like now and in the past? How are decisions about London and by whom?

Students share their perceptions of London, including words and feelings associated with the city. The geography and history of London is explained, including origins, changes in the population (Census data) and administration (boroughs). Students map personal connections with London and use OS maps to develop grid reference skills.

9 My place in the world How can we use an atlas to find out more about the world around us? Which parts of the world interest you? What does an atlas tell you about that part of the world?

Focus shifts to places at a global scale and using atlases. Review understanding of world geography (hemispheres, continents) (links to previous learning at primary level). Introduction of new knowledge and skills (longitude and latitude). Students follow their own personal lines of enquiry to explore places of interest or significance to them.

10 Connecting places How are places connected? What connections do you have with other places? What is globalisation and how does it shape the school locality (high street shops analysis)?

Comparing mind maps (sketch maps) of our locality with those drawn by students in Taiwan (a link school). Exploring similarities and differences between the two places. A video conference is held with the link school. Students follow their own lines of enquiry and ask questions about Taiwan.

11 Sharing places How might different people, with different social and demographic profiles feel about our school locality? What may be their lived experience of the local area?

A virtual field trip of the local area, using Google Street View. Students assess different areas of the locality in terms of accessibility, safety and inclusion. What changes would they like to see in the area? This could be developed into a fieldwork activity, around the immediate school locality.

12 Making places better What is sustainable development? What does a sustainable city look like? What improvements are needed in your locality? How is the school locality changing? How do you feel about these changes?

Exploring the redevelopment of a site within the local area. Using GIS and OS mapping skills to locate the area and create a sense of place. Introducing the concept of sustainable development and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. An analysis of the plans for the area – who may or may not benefit from them? Final evaluation of the plans by the students. What is their view of the proposed changes?

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TABLE 14.1 (Continued)

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FIGURE 14.2 Students’

senses of their locality (n=20) via smells and sounds, word cloud generated by worditout.com.

primary school as a happy place while others mentioned food outlets such as those selling doughnuts, chicken fish and chips, or pizza. It would be interesting to repeat such activities over time, to see if the responses changed with age and increased freedom. When asked about sounds and smells that reminded students of their home or home locality, the range of responses was wide but also contradictory (see Figure  14.2). Like elsewhere (Pike, 2011), we found students mentioned pleasant, welcome smells such as flowers and fresh air and family cooking. Yet, their thoughts about sounds in their local area also paint a

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picture of a busy, noisy urban area dominated by cars, modern sounds and activities. Birds were frequently cited; however, the results still contradict the rather idyllic landscape painted in the responses about smells. It is important to consider how much of their sense of place is real and what is imagined, and to reflect on whether, when asked, young people feel compelled to give particular (often binary) answers to questions about places. Their responses suggest many see smells as good (flowers and mum’s cooking) and sounds as bad (cars). The students were able to list anything in their answers, with no restrictions. There was some discussion as a class, as they noted down their ideas, but they were encouraged to think independently about where they live and their sense of place (Hart, 1979). Observations during the activity suggest that students enjoy being given the opportunity to share their stories of place and talk about their locality with others. These conversations are central to the learning in place. However, some of the greatest impact of this work comes from the reflections of teachers. This includes some of the critical questions raised earlier but also a consideration of how feelings about places can be explored further through outdoor learning and exploratory learning (Hammond, 2021). These examples show how teachers can provide opportunities for students to connect with their local places within school settings. However, a sense of place can be deepened by providing students with opportunities to explore the perceptions of others on their local places. This may involve students digging deeper into their locality and test their perceptions. PLiP to make connections with other places

The learning within the lessons supported much of the research from the field of young people’s geographies. Students engaged in deep reflection on how they placed themselves in the school locality, within London and beyond. When asked to map the connections, the students had with people and places across London, their work and discussions revealed great differences in the personal geographical schema of the students. Students had very specific, strongly rooted connections with places across the city. They were able to identify places where relatives lived, where a parent worked, where they went socially or where siblings were born. For some these connections spanned across the city. However, for most, London was a place that seemed largely unfamiliar to them. Most simply identified famous landmarks in the centre of the city, such as Buckingham Palace, as a stranger to the city may do. Mind maps were also shown to be uncertain, with one student commenting that they had been to Westminster ‘I think!’ These findings are important and highlight the need to explore the geographies of young people when teaching about places (Hammond, 2021). It would be easy to assume that those living on the edge of a city, feel a sense of place within it. However, this is not the

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case for all, and there was confusion within the student’s geographical imaginations. One student commented that they were sad about ‘the pavements with homeless people’, which was not a common sight in their locality. This suggests their view of the local area could be influenced by what they have seen elsewhere in London. When asked about how smells in their local area reminded them of other places, only a few students were able to make global connections. Some were reminded of ‘car fuel in Morocco’ and ‘smoke from Pakistan’. Again, this highlights a need to recognise the range of experiences in a class and acknowledge that each student will have very geographical minds, shaped by different levels of knowledge and lived experience of the world around them. Such views can also be a route to illustrating that our perceptions of other places, as just that and others have different views (Massey, 2005). If wellscaffolded by teachers, such experiences will encourage students to develop a deeper appreciation and in time understanding, of the complexity of places (Biddulph et al., 2020). This will enhance their connection with places and enhance their learning as they have a deeper appreciation of places over time and space. PLiP to develop a place in the community

School education helps young people to shape the future of their local place. In the final lesson of the sequence, the students looked at how, as local citizens and community members, they can shape the locality. It is important to acknowledge that young people have agency and often hold a desire for change; however, they often have limited decision-making powers (Pike, 2011; Catling and Pike, 2022). There is an emphasis in the lessons upon developing an understanding of how decisions are made, and how those decisions can shape a place (Schlemper et al., 2018). Furthermore, that changes can affect different people, in different ways, within the school locality. Connections were also made to how different groups and individuals in society may experience places, for example those with physical disabilities or those in certain age groups. When discussing the planned redevelopment of a local water park, the students learned about local power structures and decisions making processes, as well as local consultation and opinion gathering. The class were also asked to assess the proposals and outline their opinions about how the proposed changes. They wrote their thoughts down individually and then shared them with each other, as a class. It was intended that the students would see themselves as important stakeholders in their decision-making process and that, as experts in the local area, they would be able to give a valuable opinion on the plans (Torres-Harding, 2018). The needs of others in the community were considered in the students’ evaluations. Through this type of activity, student develop knowledge of how action can be taken at a

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local level and the notion that they, as members of their community, could have agency (Catling and Pike, 2022). Teachers can consider how they can follow this up in future units of work, and work to make connections made to other subjects and areas in the school curriculum. Conclusion

This chapter has described the scholarship and practices that link young people’s geographies in their home, communities and schools. As described, it is possible, within existing curricula to realign practices and pedagogy to embed young people’s experiences of place into their school experiences (Hammond et al., 2022). We recommend that schools review such areas of their curriculum and ask questions about the possible inclusion of students’ geographies (Catling and Pike, 2022). Such questions include: • How can we understand young people’s geographies in local places, in schools? • How can a range of lived experiences in place, including those that are uncomfortable for some or unfamiliar to others be used? • How can unconsciously recognised lived experiences of place for students be drawn out and explored? • How can we avoid simple binary analysis of experience and place? • How can we ensure lessons, such as those described here and across this book, be developed and embedded in later years and in topics across the curriculum? • How can a focus on young people’s geographies aid learning with, through and in place across the school curriculum? Offering opportunities to explore young people’s lived experiences within the environment are essential and, for example, it would add to the sequence of lessons outlined here. Opportunities for learning about place outdoors, within the framework proposed here are vast. There are countless further methods of documenting a sense of place through a range of subjects, through photo collages, experiential fieldwork including collecting data on soundscapes, recording feelings about places, and mapping textures or shapes noted in the landscape, as described elsewhere in this book. As we did as part of this work between our students at school and in teacher education, opportunities for students to meet online to share stories of and learning in place should be taken. We recognise that this project emerged gradually, rather than being intentionally planned from the outset. We hope this will encourage others to look for spontaneous or planned opportunities for curriculum development and change in relation to place. Our work also emphasises the significance of

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conversations in education, and of collaborating across places and phases of education. Working together and sharing ideas ‘shook up’ our existing practices and led us to ask questions about what we do each day. While young people’s experiences of places and spaces, vary experientially, politically and ethically and readers of our chapter may not do exactly what we did, we hope the process of initiating conversations with each other, and young people will provide more opportunities for participatory learning within place. Further readings Aitken, S. (2001) Geographies of young people. London: Routledge – although over 20 years old, this book is ground breaking in reorientating views of young people. Hammond, L., and colleagues (2022) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. London: Routledge – this book provides a fascinating range of scholarship and research on children’s geographies and geographies of education. Pike, S. (2016) Learning primary geography. London: Routledge  – provides many examples of student learning in the school grounds and immediate locality.

References Aitken, S. (2001) Geographies of young people: The morally contested spaces of identity. Abingdon: Routledge. Barratt Hacking, E., Barratt, R., and Scott, W. (2007) Engaging children: Research issues around participation and environmental learning, Environmental Education Research, 13(4), 529–544. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620701600271 Bernstein, B. (1999) Vertical and horizontal discourse: An essay, British Journal of Sociology of Education, 20(2), 157–173. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425699995380 Biddulph, M., Lambert, D., and Balderstone, D. (2020) Learning to teach geography in the secondary school: A  companion to school experience. 4th edn. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429426780 Catling, S., and Pike, S. (2022) Becoming acquainted: Aspects of diversity in younger children’s geographies, in M. Biddulph, S. Catling, L. Hammond, and J. McKendrick (eds) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge. Davies, D., Jindal-Snape, D., Collier, C., Digby, R., Hay, P., and Howe, A. (2013) Creative learning environments in education: A systematic literature review, Thinking Skills and Creativity, 8, 80–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2012.07.004 Doyle, O. (2022) What’s so great about the NEIC: Children’s experiences in their locality. Unpublished MEd thesis. Dublin City University, Dublin. Freire, P. (2000) Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum. Hammond, L. (2021) Recognising and exploring children’s geographies in school geography, Children’s Geographies. https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2021.1913482 Hammond, L., Biddulph, M., Catling, S., and McKendrick, J. H. (2022) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge. https:// doi.org/10.4324/9781003248538 Hart, R. (1979) Children’s experience of place: A  development study. New York: Irvington Press.

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Holloway, S., and Valentine, G. (2000) Children’s geographies: Playing, living, working. Abingdon: Routledge. hooks, b. (2009) Teaching critical thinking: Practical wisdom. New York: Routledge. Jamme, H.-T., Bahl, D., and Banerjee, T. (2018) Between ‘broken windows’ and the ‘eyes on the street’: Walking to school in inner city San Diego, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 55, 121–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2018.01.004 Jirata, T. J., and Kjørholt, A. T. (2015) The place of children among the Guji of southern Ethiopia: School, work and play, Children’s Geographies, 13(2), 226–239. https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2013.829661 Katz, C. (2004) Growing up global: Economic restructuring and children’s everyday lives. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. Kirshner, B. (2007) Youth activism as a context for learning and development, American Behavioral Scientist, 51(3), 367–379. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764207306065 Massey, D. (2005) On space. London: Sage. Massey, D. (2006) The geographical mind, in D. Balderstone (ed) Secondary geography handbook. Sheffield: Geographical Association. Matthews, H. (1992) Making sense of place: Children’s understanding of large-scale environments. Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf. McInerney, P., Smyth, J., and Down, B. (2011) ‘Coming to a place near you?’ The politics and possibilities of a critical pedagogy of place-based education, AsiaPacific Journal of Teacher Education, 39(1), 3–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359 866X.2010.540894 Merleau-Ponty, M. (2002) Phenomenology of perception: An introduction. Abingdon: Routledge. Munro, S. A. (2022) Learning in local greenspace – an evaluation report. NatureScot Research Report No. 1296. www.nature.scot/doc/naturescot-research-report-1296learning-local-greenspace-evaluation-report Nairn, K., Panelli, R., and McCormack, J. (2003) Destabilizing dualisms: Young people’s experiences of rural and urban environments, Childhood, 10(1), 9–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0907568203010001002 Nundy, S. (1999) The fieldwork effect: The role and impact of fieldwork in the upper primary school, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 8(2), 190–198. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382049908667608 Pike, S. (2011) ‘If you went out it would stick’: Irish children’s learning in their local environment, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 20(2), 139–159. https://doi-org.dcu.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/10382046.2011.564787 Pike, S. (2016) Learning primary geography: Ideas and inspirations from classrooms. Abingdon: Routledge. Punch, S. (2001) Negotiating autonomy: Childhoods in rural Bolivia, in L. Alanen and B. Mayall (eds) Conceptualising child-adult relations. The future of childhood series. Abingdon: Routledge, 23–36. Rickson, M., Dillon, J., Teamey, K., Morris, M., Choi, M., Sanders, D., and Benefield, P. (2004) A review of research on outdoor learning. London: Field Studies Council, NFER and King’s College London. Roberts, M. (2023) Geography through enquiry, 2nd edn. Sheffield: Geographical Association. Russ, A., Peters, S. J., Krasny, M. E., and Stedman, R. C. (2015) Development of ecological place meaning in New York City, The Journal of Environmental Education, 46(2), 73–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2014.999743

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Schlemper, M. B., Stewart, V. C., Shetty, S., and Czajkowski, K. (2018) Including students’ geographies in geography education: Spatial narratives, citizen mapping, and social justice, Theory & Research in Social Education, 46(4), 603–641. https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2018.1427164 Soja, E. (1996) Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and other real-and-imagined places. Oxford: Blackwell. Torres-Harding, S., Baber, A., Hilvers, J., Hobbs, N., and Maly, M. (2018) Children as agents of social and community change: Enhancing youth empowerment through participation in a school-based social activism project, Education, Citizenship and Social Justice, 13(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1746197916684643 Tuan, Y.-F. E. (1977) Space and place: The perspective of experience. London: Arnold. Wynne-Jones, S., North, P., and Routledge, P. (2015) Practicing participatory geographies: Potentials, problems and politics, Area, 47(3), 218–221. https://doi. org/10.1111/area.12186 Yates, E., and Oates, R. (2019) Young children’s views on play provision in two local parks: A research project by early childhood studies students and staff, Childhood, 26(4), 491–508. https://doi.org/10.1177/0907568219839115

15 FOSTERING THE TRAVELLER CHILD’S SENSE OF PLACE IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION Paula Walshe and Nora Corcoran

Traveller culture in Ireland

Irish Travellers are recognised in Ireland as an Indigenous group and an ethnic minority who hold a strong shared sense of community, culture and traditions (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment [NCCA], 2023). The rich culture of Travellers comprises many factors including a language of their own, called Shelta, Cant or DeGammon. This along with other historical traditions has self-defined the Traveller community as one which is both recognisable and distinct (NCCA, 2023). A person’s sense of identity is intrinsically linked to their culture and is influenced and shaped by the community in which they live or the group to which they belong (NCCA, 2023). Elements of Traveller culture include but are not limited to, several defining features; however, it is also important to acknowledge that culture as a concept evolves and changes over time and across generations (Varnum and Grossman, 2017). Traveller identity should therefore not solely be confined to an individual’s actions in relation to a predefined idea or expectation. As stated by the NCCA, Traveller is born a Traveller and will die a Traveller and what they do or don’t do does not determine their ethnic identity (2019, p. 15). A nomadic lifestyle, however, has historically been one such distinguishing factor of Irish Travellers along with a deep knowledge of horses, storytelling, music, tinsmiths, weaving and trading. Traditional horse-draw wagons, painted in various colours, are historically synonymous with Irish Travellers, but in recent decades, these have been replaced with trailers (caravans). Playing music and singing songs provided Travellers not only with enjoyment but also as a means to earn an income, singing ballads and playing instruments such as fiddles and the uilleann pipes were traditionally popular forms of DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-19

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musical engagement. Travellers have also been acknowledged as wonderful storytellers who would communicate a rich oral history as they transferred the knowledge of their culture, values and traditions from one generation to another as they moved from one location to another around Ireland (NCCA, 2009). A link between storytelling, music and song is understood to be intrinsic to the Irish Traveller community’s sense of identity and culture and the importance of such traditions is captured: You must remember that storytelling is our only means of communication with the past . . . [our deeds] we do remember them and pass them down faithfully by word of mouth. (Maher, 1972 as cited in O’hAodha, 2009, p. 70) Unfortunately, some Irish Traveller traditions and crafts, such as tinsmithing, became somewhat obsolete in the 20th century as a period of industrialisation swept across the island of Ireland. As a result, objects which were previously made from metal were now made from plastic and people were no longer using the services of the Traveller tinsmith and other tradespeople as they had previously. Issues such as this had a detrimental effect on the ability of the Irish Traveller to make a living and maintain such traditional crafts. In 1963, the Commission on Itinerancy Report was published by the Irish government (Government of Ireland, 1963). This report put forward policies on the assimilation of Irish Travellers into the settled community. Their traditional style of nomadism was to be replaced by the introduction of halting sites run by local councils. However, the halting sites lacked appropriate services and the Irish Traveller community became isolated from the local communities around them (Ostberg, 2022). Subsequently, due to legislation such as the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act or Trespass Legislation (2002) and other actions to block access to traditional locations for Travellers to stop taken by Local Authorities (Donahue et al., 2005), the tradition of practising nomadism became somewhat difficult. Nowadays, most Travellers no longer practice their once nomadic and historically traditional way of life (NCCA, 2023). In 2017, the Central Statistics Office in Ireland (CSO) reported that the total number of Travellers in the Irish context had increased by 5.1% to a total of 30,987 since 2011 (CSO, 2017). Despite this increase in population, Travellers are underrepresented throughout the entire educational continuum, and the visible absence of their ethnicity and cultural background within educational settings may be posited as a contributing factor (Pavee Point, 2023). To support inclusion, which contributes to fostering the Traveller child’s sense of place in early childhood education, it is vital that educators find ways to represent Traveller culture, both past and present, and make it visible in the educational space (NCCA, 2023).

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Traveller children, like all children, must see themselves, their culture and traditions, reflected in educational settings to promote their sense of place, identity and belonging in the educational environment. They need to recognise themselves in books, on wall displays and in the curriculum, so that their sense of place is fostered, supported and reinforced and it is essential that this commences at the early childhood education and care (ECEC) stage. It is vital that diversity and inclusion are evident right from the very beginning of the educational continuum, as our youngest learners embark on their early childhood education journey. By doing this, ECEC will be the nurturing start that can validate, acknowledge and sustain a sense of place and belonging in education for Traveller children as they begin to navigate their pivotal lifelong educational journey. From a place of segregation to a place of inclusion

Historically, Travellers have been marginalised and subject to educational segregation through the provision of a parallel educational system. In 2004, over 50 Traveller preschools remained in existence, along with several educational settings at primary, post-primary and adult education level (Ó Riain, 2004). This segregated approach across the educational continuum meant that Traveller and settled children from the same locality were denied the opportunity to experience an inclusive educational space where they could build friendships and develop a sense of reciprocal empathy and respect by learning from and engaging with each other (Department of Education and Skills [DES], 2006). Segregating our youngest children in this way can obstruct the potential for Traveller and non-Traveller children to experience a shared sense of place in a common and inclusive educational setting. Concerns related to the negative impact of segregated educational provision, on a wider societal level, were highlighted in a consultative process which included Traveller parents and children and informed a publication entitled Report and Recommendations for a Traveller Education Strategy (DES, 2006). Although this segregated approach needed to be addressed and resolved, it would be vitally important that this process was carefully planned to ensure that, when Traveller children would attend a mainstream educational setting, they would be welcomed in an inclusive educational space which was cognisant of, and embraced, their culture and traditions (DES, 2006). Thankfully, today, segregated educational provision is no longer in effect and the importance of an inclusive approach to ECEC, in the best interests of all children, is universally recognised. However, it is vital that the quality standards and curriculum framework underpinning ECEC provision provide increased and explicit guidance for educators to enable them to specifically support Traveller children to recognise their culture and ethnicity as an intrinsic component of the ECEC environment. Educators must build up a body of

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knowledge and level of expertise to enable them to appropriately support the inclusion of Traveller children in the ECEC environment. In addition, increased, targeted pedagogical supports are also required to assist ECEC educators to acquire the relevant knowledge and expertise to appropriately foster the Traveller child’s sense of place. Education and Traveller children

Under the United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (UN, 1989), all children have the right to an education, to participation and to have their views and opinions sought, considered and acted upon in all matters which affect them. Additionally, Article 30 of the UNCRC enshrines the rights of children of minority groups, such as Travellers, to ‘enjoy their own culture’ (UN, 1989). It is vitally important that these rights to education, participation and culture, are protected and facilitated with equity for all children, including Traveller children, so that they can enjoy, and want to be present in, an educational space, which they feel has a place for them. Unfortunately, however, statistics (CSO, 2017) show that Traveller children are not staying in education and the number of Travellers who complete their primary education and continue to post-primary and third-level education is worryingly low in contrast to their counterparts in the settled community. According to the CSO (2017), the overall level of education among Irish Travellers remains significantly lower than that of their settled counterparts and peers in the general population. CSO statistics report how just 13.3% of Traveller females were educated to upper secondary level or above compared to a significantly higher statistic of 69.1% of the general female population. In addition, data shows that almost six in every ten Traveller men (57.2%) had either no formal education or had attained a primary-level education at most, a figure which is in distinct contrast to 13.6% of the general male population. At the higher end of the educational continuum, 25.5% of the general male population and 30.8% of the general female population had completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, a statistic which starkly contrasts with only 1% of Traveller males and 1.5% of Traveller females who held a degree qualification at bachelor level or higher (CSO, 2017). It is notable that the number of Travellers in Ireland with a degree has almost doubled from 89 in 2011 to 167 in 2016. However, the high rate of early school leavers among the Traveller community has been highlighted as one of several contributing factors impacting the low number of Travellers accessing the higher educational system in Ireland (DES, 2019). These statistics are perhaps not surprising, when considered alongside research data published in 2017 by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) describing the sizeable disparity in levels of education completion rates among Travellers and non-Travellers as illustrated in Figure 15.1. Factors

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FIGURE 15.1 School

leaving age for Traveller and non-Travellers (Source: ESRI,

2017).

which have been associated with poor retention rates among Travellers in education include numerous ‘push’ factors (Derrington, 2007, p. 357) such as racial discrimination, issues of bullying and an absence of representation within the educational curriculum (Bhopal and Myers, 2008; Bhopal, 2011). A highly significant report entitled Out of the Shadows (Quinlan, 2021) provided information pertaining to the lived experiences of Travellers within the educational system. Within the report, Traveller children described feeling excluded, unsafe and unwanted in school and this is particularly evident at secondary school level. The findings, including the following quote, describe a distinct lack of belonging in the school space and in wider society (Quinlan, 2021). Rather than feeling a strong sense of belonging, the predominant feeling amongst the parents and students from the Travelling community who participated in this research is one of being unwanted – both in school and by the settled community more generally in society. (p. 52) Quinlan (2021) documented the experiences of Traveller children who described how they were rejected, ostracised at school and subjected to name calling by their peers who used such derogatory terms as ‘pikey’, ‘knacker’ and ‘dirty’. The children reported feeling a ‘sense of isolation and aloneness’ where they were the only Traveller student present among a group of their settled peers. One quote from a Traveller child provides an insight into these feelings: ‘I’m all by myself, broken . . . others are together, but I have no-one. . . . people don’t like us’ (p. 83). Often, it was reported that other children refused

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to sit beside the Traveller children and share the classroom space with them. Unfortunately, when instances of bullying or racist name calling were brought to the attention of teachers and staff, the Traveller children reported that they often felt a sense of not being taken seriously. It is also important to highlight, however, that some of the Traveller children did also report that they enjoyed aspects of their educational experience. Additionally, some Traveller parents described how, when they encountered teachers or principals who were ‘interested in learning about Traveller culture’ and who exercised zero-tolerance policies on racist language and discriminatory behaviour, these educators had a ‘very positive impact on the families’ (2021, p. 23). Further findings incorporating the views of parents of children from the Travelling community describe how they want their children to have a good education and positive educational experiences. Such findings describe how: • Parents of Traveller children want their children to experience a higher standard and more comprehensive education than they themselves had access to and wish to do their utmost to help their children to achieve this. • During their own time in school, these parents report that they experienced feelings of being ‘isolated’ and ‘overlooked’ and therefore feel passionately that they want their children to have a different experience. • Parents of Traveller children ‘do not want their children to suffer the lack of literacy and accompanying lack of confidence that comes with it’, something which both they and their own parents frequently struggled with. • Parents of Traveller children want their children to experience feeling both safe and included when they are in school, another experience which they themselves rarely had. Quinlan’s report (2021) went on to describe how Traveller children experienced a lack of inclusion and feeling unwanted at school. This data correlates with evidence of low rates of retention in education and school completion among the Traveller community. According to the CSO (2017), Traveller engagement and retention in education remains well below that of the general population. As previously described in this chapter, CSO statistics highlight the substantial gap in education completion rates among Travellers and non-Travellers, with 57.2% of the male Traveller population and 54.4% of the female Traveller population having either no formal education or a primary education at most (CSO, 2017). These statistics are sobering, but perhaps not unexpected given that, from the very start, Traveller children are exposed to an educational system which not only lacks representation of their culture but also fails to retain Traveller children at every level spanning the educational continuum from primary, post primary and right through to third level. Interestingly however, according to research by Pobal (2020), ECEC settings are experiencing an increase in numbers of Traveller children

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in attendance. Therefore, to address the drop off in educational attainment as these children move up through the education system, it is vital that they are supported and enabled to recognise and establish their sense of place, identity and belonging in the educational context, right from the very start in ECEC, so that they can both claim and embrace their rightful place in education. Representation and maintaining cultural identity

In the Irish context, Traveller culture is recognised within equality legislation (Government of Ireland [GoI], 2000) and the Traveller community is defined as being comprised of people who hold a ‘shared history, culture and traditions including, historically, a nomadic way of life’ (GoI, 2000, p. 7). Irish Travellers have their own traditional language, known as Shelta, Cant or De Gammon, and some identify themselves as Pavee or Minceir, which are words derived from their traditional language. The tradition of nomadism in Traveller culture is a very important component of Traveller identity, and this has proven to be the case even for those who are not currently engaged in nomadic practices (NCCA, 2023). Perhaps therefore, to foster a sense of place among children for whom nomadism is such an important element of their community’s cultural identity, the concept of place must be considered in a broader sense. To foster the Traveller child’s sense of place in ECEC, educators should reflect on how Traveller culture can be appropriately represented within the educational setting, through resources, activities, imagery, literature, music and so on. Educators need to consider how they can represent Traveller culture, traditions, language, songs, imagery and stories, including those which represent, highlight and celebrate their nomadic history. If resources for ECEC, such as books, wall displays, songs and nursery rhymes, do not feature Traveller children as the protagonist or include positive imagery of Traveller life, then this may negatively affect the Traveller child as their ethnicity becomes practically invisible in the ECEC setting, not only to themselves but to all other stakeholders, including other children, educators and parents. As a result, the Traveller child may struggle to acquire a sense of place and belonging for their true self in the ECEC environment. They may start to leave behind and lose their cultural identity. Traveller children may then find themselves entering a chrysalis, transforming, and transitioning and subsequently emerging into what they may perceive as a more acceptable, generic form, more closely aligned with the dominant culture than their own. However, a perceived need to assimilate in this way can have a negative impact on Traveller sense of identity and can result in a cultural limbo whereby it can become difficult to find a sense of place in either the dominant culture or their own traditional culture (Pavee Point, 2005). Research published in 2022 with post-primary children found that Traveller children were identified by their settled peers as different to what they

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considered to be a ‘normal stereotype’ and this was associated with how the Traveller children spoke, negative perceptions of how Traveller children behaved and their physical appearance and style of clothing (McGinley and Keane, 2022). However, acceptance and inclusion within society should not necessitate change to the structure of one’s being and the identity of one’s culture. Losing one’s own cultural identity in this way may result in children feeling that they need to merge into the dominant culture of the educational setting, and this can bring about new emotions which can subsequently have a negative impact on the child. Developing a sense of shame of one’s heritage, denial of one’s ethnicity, or pretending to be someone else, can become a way of life for the Traveller child whose sense of place goes unacknowledged. This can result in a loss of the self, the invention of a persona or changes to speech, unfortunately contributing to the child slowly transitioning into what they may, albeit incorrectly, perceive as a more acceptable version of themselves which aligns more with the dominant culture. Derrington (2007) maintains that some Traveller children attempt to conceal cultural identity in an attempt to ‘fit in’ and because of their experiences of racist bullying. In 2019, Traveller representative groups provided statements to a GoI committee on education which included reports that Traveller children were changing their accents to avoid falling victim to harassment and bullying (Coyne, 2019). These are very worrying findings, as a lack of recognition, failure to foster the Traveller child’s sense of place within the educational system and an omission of acceptance and celebration of the Traveller child’s heritage, can ultimately result in cultural invisibility and places can become devoid of the very essence of the Traveller child. Unconscious bias and microaggressions

When children commence education, they enter a world of the unknown, and it is perhaps the first time they have left the safety of their home life. For any child, this can represent a time of anxiety and fear. The Traveller child, like every other child, leaves the nurturing nest of homelife and is thrust into a different space and routine. Their parents, like all parents, are hoping that their child will be given the same treatment as their peers, but unfortunately for the Traveller child, this is not always the case. Traveller children can be distinguished as different, unequal and less deserving. Unchallenged conscious or unconscious bias and microaggressions contribute to this. If a child is treated differently and less equal to their peers by the adults or other children in the environment, this can become normalised and accepted. Freire (2005, p. 128) describes how people can tend to believe that their ‘way of being, is not only good but better than that of others who are different’. As a result, intolerance can become embedded and those who are perceived to be different can also be perceived as inferior (Freire, 2005). However, intolerance and discrimination are not dispositions which children are born with; it

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is something that is taught, ultimately it is learned behaviour. This can have a detrimental impact, and if not dealt with appropriately, can disproportionality affect the child as they move through the educational continuum. Role modelling an anti-bias approach, where both conscious and unconscious biases are challenged and not tolerated, is key to breaking the cycle as children will naturally mimic the adults around them. As maintained in Bandura’s concept of social learning theory, children learn socially acceptable behaviour by observing and subsequently imitating others around them (Bandura, 1977). Therefore, if the adults with whom children interact are accepting of difference, so will they, if those adults discriminate, the children will most likely do the same. Adopting the internationally recognised antibias approach to education (Derman-Sparks and the ABC Taskforce, 1989) in the ECEC setting, provides an educational approach which proactively supports inclusion and challenges inequality (Department of Children and Youth Affairs [DCYA], 2016). This approach can support the educator to represent Traveller culture in ECEC in a positive way to ensure that children from this community are supported to establish a positive sense of identity and place and to develop their self-esteem, while also supporting every child in the setting to develop an ‘understanding of difference in a proactive way’ (DCYA, 2016, p. 64). Starting at the very beginning

Issues of engagement and retention in education can be improved by ensuring that Traveller children have positive experiences in ECEC which foster their sense of place and belonging from the very start of their educational lives. Research maintains the importance of an early intervention approach to tackling educational disparity which further underpins the importance of addressing these matters at ECEC stage (Weir et al., 2017). Engagement in quality early childhood education has been proven as beneficial in the short, medium and long term for children experiencing disadvantage. Among the factors highlighted as conducive to effective quality are adequate funding and state expenditure, low adult-child ratios, highly qualified staff, adequate daily and total duration, quality continuing professional development, positive adult-child interactions, effective collaboration with parents, appropriate curricula, adequate oversight, monitoring and evaluation, and inclusivity and catering for diverse learning needs. (Weir et al., 2017) In the ECEC setting, groups of young children come together in an environment that should represent their sense of identity and belonging within the classroom and the wider community (NCCA, 2009). For most children, this

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may be the case; however, children from the Traveller community may struggle to identify where they, their culture and their community are represented with clarity in the ECEC environment. It is vital that Traveller culture is not only represented but also understood and discussed within ECEC to foster the Traveller child’s sense of place and promote diversity, equality and inclusion among all ECEC children, which they can bring forward with them on their lifelong learning journey to primary school and beyond. This will contribute to addressing discrimination, discouraging micro-aggressions and fostering a mutual sense of understanding and respect between Traveller and non-Traveller children (Murray, 2014). To achieve this, the educator must increase their knowledge related to diversity and engage with relevant stakeholders, such as Traveller representative groups, to inform themselves with accurate information pertaining to Traveller culture and community (DCYA, 2016). However, further questions remain. Does the ECEC curriculum provide sufficient guidance to appropriately embrace Traveller heritage and culture, so that once Traveller children enter education at ECEC stage, they feel welcomed, valued, respected and ultimately feel that they belong? How can the ECEC educator facilitate Traveller children to recognise the ECEC setting as a safe place? Are ECEC educators equipped with the required training and resources to embed Traveller culture in the ECEC curriculum in an appropriate manner? The role of the ECEC educator

Navigating one’s educational journey is no mean feat. Navigating it from the point of few of a child from a minority background, such as the Traveller community, can set the scene for both conscious and unconscious bias and discrimination which can negatively impact the Traveller child for the rest of their life. It is exceedingly difficult for Traveller children to find a sense of their own place in education when a place has already been allocated for them, either consciously or unconsciously. The ECEC educator has a vitally important role to ensure that all children feel that they belong and that their identity is represented and respected in the ECEC setting. Yet, despite the importance of the educator’s role, the extent of educator understanding of Traveller culture, heritage and traditions must be considered. Early childhood education is a pivotal and important milestone in the lifelong learning journey. Children are supported to develop valuable skills and dispositions through the provision of quality ECEC, by appropriately qualified and skilled educators. Through their professional training, future educators gain a varied wealth of knowledge as they prepare to take on a very important role. However, there remains a significant gap in educator training regarding how to appropriately provide quality ECEC experiences which are

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accessible, equitable, relevant and meaningful to the Traveller child. A lack of educator continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities means that they are ill-equipped to support the identity and belonging of Traveller children and alleviate the negative stereotypes they face as they strive to find their place in education. This need for educator CPD to appropriately represent Traveller culture within an inclusive curriculum is also highlighted further along the educational continuum at post-primary level (McGinley, 2020). The curriculum framework for ECEC in Ireland, Aistear (NCCA, 2009) maintains the value of children developing a positive sense of self-identity, linked to the formation of a sense of belonging within the ECEC environment. However, there is a paucity of practical and specific pedagogical guidelines for ECEC educators to enable them to appropriately support this for Traveller children. For example, there may be a miniature playhouse available in the environment for children to engage with and recreate their realworld experiences through imaginative play or role-play. However, if you are a Traveller child who does not live in a house or apartment, is your home represented in the play materials or in the books available in the library? Even in the conversations and interactions between the adult and the children around home life, are children being asked about their ‘house’ or their ‘home’, being cognisant that all children do not necessarily live in a house, however, that should not devalue their sense of ‘home’ and ultimately, their sense of place (Walshe, 2023). Engaging Traveller children in conversations which draw upon their own rich knowledge of their culture will support the development of their sense of place in the environment along with a sense of inclusivity and a sense of pride in their own cultural identity (DCYA, 2016). Changing the narrative through the anti-bias approach

It is fundamentally important for Traveller children that their culture and ethnicity is seen and celebrated as an integral and beautiful part of who they are. To change the negative educational statistics for Travellers, the educational system needs to change the narrative. This must commence right at the very beginning, at ECEC level when children take their initial, perhaps tentative, steps on their lifelong learning journey. The path through education must be accessible and equal for all, not ‘one size fits all’. The Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Charter (DEI Charter) published by the DCYA in 2016 provides guidelines to support ECEC educators and acknowledges the importance of representation and developing a sense of identity and belonging in the ECEC environment: it is important to provide a rich, accurate, non-stereotypical environment with regard to gender, race, culture and ethnicity, including Travellers and those with a disability (DCYA, 2016, p. 35).

Fostering the Traveller child’s sense of place  209 TABLE 15.1 DEI Charter questions on inclusion for Traveller children with examples

on how to implement in practice Questions for reflection

Examples of practice

Do you value Traveller children’s culture in your early childhood service?

• Portray Traveller culture in a positive light through imagery, books and art. • Incorporate words from the traditional Traveller language in the environment. • Research the history of the Traveller community. • Reflect on how you represent Travellers in your setting. • Interact and engage with Traveller children and their families to discover more about their traditions and cultures. • Ensure you interact with Traveller children from a strengths-based approach. • Ask open-ended questions about Traveller children’s families, interests and traditions for example. • Reflect on your own attitudes and challenge the unconscious biases of both yourself and others. • Reflect as a team on how Traveller culture is or is not evident in your setting and how you can address and improve this. • Research correct language and terminology related to Traveller culture. • Incorporate elements of Traveller culture in the environment. • Invite Traveller parents in to your setting to talk about their culture and traditions. • Challenge negative stereotypes that may present in the environment immediately. • Engage in open discussion with other educators to address and eliminate negative stereotypes or biases. • Ensure that positive imagery of the Traveller culture and community is clearly displayed and appropriate terminology is used. • Role model a positive anti-bias approach to children, other educators and all stakeholders. • Link with organisations which can provide accurate information on Traveller culture, language, history, art and so forth. For example, The Irish Traveller Movement and Pavee Point. • Use positive language from a strengths-based approach. Ensure that language is culturally correct and is inclusive, for example: home is more inclusive than house, not all children live in a house, some live in an apartment and some live in a trailer and so forth.

Do you value the funds of knowledge that Traveller children bring?

Have you questioned your own knowledge and attitudes towards Traveller communities? Do you foster positive attitudes towards Traveller cultural differences in your early childhood service? Do you immediately address negative responses to Traveller cultural differences from staff, parents and children?

Have you accessed accurate ­information about Traveller communities? Do you support ­Traveller children when they identify that they are different from other children?

(Continued)

210  Paula Walshe and Nora Corcoran TABLE 15.1 (Continued)

Questions for reflection

Examples of practice • Incorporate resources which reflect Traveller culture into the environment, for example: a trailer/caravan in the small play area, traditional Traveller songs, stories and music. • Draw from the funds of knowledge of the Traveller child, ask plenty of open-ended questions to give them the opportunity to share their knowledge with us.

Source: Adapted from DCYA (2016).

Our world is increasingly diverse, we are welcoming learners from all over the world into the Irish educational system, but, whether consciously or unconsciously, Traveller children can be made to feel unrepresented and therefore, unwelcome. From early on, children from all communities should be introduced to Traveller culture and heritage in a positive way. The DEI Charter (DCYA, 2016, p. 66) provides some important questions for educators to consider and reflect upon when they are endeavouring to provide an inclusive ECEC environment for Traveller children and their families. Educators have a responsibility to be proactive in their approach to creating an inclusive ECEC environment for all children, including Traveller children. An important element of this is that educators recognise, acknowledge and draw upon Traveller children’s deep funds of knowledge pertaining to their culture, that they bring with them to the ECEC setting. For example, the Traveller child ‘may know a lot about communicating with adults, homemaking, working with horses, cars, music and trading’ (DCYA, 2016, p. 65) and they may also be able to provide a valuable insight into their traditional language. When these funds of knowledge are recognised and drawn upon from a strengths based approach, the Traveller child will be facilitated to develop a sense of pride, they will feel that they are valued both as a unique individual and as a member of the group (DCYA, 2016) The educator must reflect upon the ECEC environment, it’s imagery and resources, to assess how it may be unconsciously biased or lacking in diversity and inclusion. Considering not only the materials which are present in the environment but also, and equally as important, considering what is absent. Children’s storybooks featuring Travellers as the central character are an effective way to introduce Traveller culture and traditions. Role playing, music, song and open communication about Traveller ethnicity are also a good place to start. Engaging children in open conversation to share their thoughts, ideas and opinions provide an opportunity for Traveller children to participate with equity. In addition, educators should research information about Traveller

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culture from reliable and accurate sources to enhance their knowledge, for example regarding appropriate language and terminology (DCYA, 2016). This includes engaging with parents and Traveller organisations who can provide a wealth of knowledge and information. To conclude, recognising that each child is different, that each child is equal, and that each child deserves to be seen, valued, respected and can identify their own place, is paramount to embedding the Traveller child’s sense of place in ECEC. Educators have a duty to facilitate a sense of place in education for all children, to celebrate them, to support their culture, identity and belonging and to guide and nurture them with respect, empathy and understanding, side by side as they embark upon their life-long educational journey. Resources for educators

Can’t Lose Cant – A book of Cant, the old language of Irish Travellers www. kidsown.ie. The Giant Tent  – A  book of celebrating Traveller culture and identity www.kidsown.ie. What Makes a Home? A booklet for schools on history of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Cultures www.gypsy-traveller.org/grthm Irish Cant or De Gammon phrase list www.gypsy-traveller.org/grthm Further readings To gain further insight into the culture, traditions and history of the Irish Traveller community, refer to this NCCA report which is available online from www.ncca. ie. National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (2023) Traveller culture and history: Research report. Dublin: NCCA. For more information on diversity, equality and inclusion in education and implementing an anti-bias approach in ECEC, refer to the DEI Charter which is available online from www.gov.ie. Department of Children and Youth Affairs (2016) Diversity, equality and inclusion charter and guidelines for early childhood care and education. Dublin: Government Publications.

References Bandura, A. (1977) Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Bhopal, K. (2011) ‘This is a school, it’s not a site’: Teachers’ Attitudes towards gypsy and Traveller pupils in schools in England, UK, British Educational Research Journal, 37(3), 465–483. Bhopal, K., and Myers, M. (2008) Insiders, outsiders and others: Gypsies and identity. Hertfordshire: University of Hertfordshire Press. Central Statistics Office (2017) Census 2016. Irish Travellers – demographics – CSO – central statistics office. https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-cp8iter/ p8iter/p8itseah/#:~:text=The%20labour%20force%20participation%20rate

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Coyne, E. (2019) Children ‘hide Traveller identity’ to avoid bullies, The UK Times, 26 March. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/children-hide-travelleridentity-toavoid-bullies-0pl2n7f5z Department of Children and Youth Affairs (2016) Diversity, equality and inclusion charter and guidelines for early childhood care and education. Dublin: DCYA. Department of Education and Skills (2006) Report and recommendations for a Traveller education strategy. Dublin: Stationery Office. Department of Education and Skills (2019) Action plan for increasing Traveller participation in higher education 2019–2021. Dublin: DES. https://assets.gov.ie/ 41923/f4cd00e21a4346bc97671a72ab41f12f.pdf Derman-Sparks, L., and ABC Task Force (1989) Anti-bias curriculum: Tools for empowering young children. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children. Derrington, C. (2007) Fight, flight and playing white: An examination of coping strategies adopted by gypsy Traveller adolescents in English secondary schools, International Journal of Educational Research, 46(6), 357–367. Donahue, M., McVeigh, R., and Ward, M. (2005) Misli, crush, mislÌ: Irish Travellers and nomadism: A research report for the Irish Travellers movement and Traveller movement (Northern Ireland). Dublin: ITM. Economic and Social Research Institute (2017) A Social Portrait of Travellers in ­Ireland: Research series number 56. Dublin: ESRI. Freire, P. (2005) Teachers as cultural workers: letters to those who dare to teach. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Government of Ireland (1963) Commission on itinerancy report. Dublin: Stationery Office. Government of Ireland (2000) Equal status acts 2000–2015. Dublin: Stationery Office. Government of Ireland (2002) Housing (miscellaneous provisions) act. Dublin: Stationery Office. Irish Traveller Movement (2023) Mapping a way forward for the realisation of Traveller rights in Ireland: Strategic plan 2023–2027. Dublin: Irish Traveller Movement. Maher, S. (1972) The road to God knows where. Dublin: Talbot Press. McGinley, H. (2020) A critical exploration of intercultural education in a post-­ primary school in Ireland with particular reference to Travellers. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland. McGinley, H., and Keane, E. (2022) Traveller students being and relating to an/ ‘other’: Identity, belonging and inter-ethnic peer relationships in a highly diverse post-primary school, Irish Educational Studies, 41(3), 551–572. Murray, C. (2014) A  minority within a minority? Social justice for Traveller and Roma children in ECEC, The ITB Journal, 15(1), Article 9. National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (2009) Aistear: The early childhood curriculum framework. Dublin: NCCA. National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (2023) Traveller culture and history research report. Dublin: NCCA. O’hAodha, M. (2009) Doing it for themselves: Irish Travellers and their literary voice, Migrants and Memory: The Forgotten ‘Postcolonials’. Ó Riain, G. (2004) Report on consultations with Travellers learners and parents: Towards the development of the Traveller education strategy. https://itmtrav.ie/ wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Consultations-with-Traveller-Parents.pdf

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Ostberg, R. (2022) Irish Travellers: Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britan nica.com/topic/Irish-Travellers. Pavee Point (2005) Assimilation policies and outcomes: Travellers’ experience. Dublin: Pavee Point. Pavee Point (2023) Travellers and education. Dublin: Pavee Point. http://www. paveepoint.ie/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Education_Leaflet.pdf Pobal (2020) Annual early years sector profile report 2019/2020. Dublin: Pobal. Quinlan, M. (2021) Out of the shadows: Traveller and Roma education: Voices from the communities. Dublin: DES. United Nations (1989) The United Nations convention on the rights of the child. Geneva: United Nations. Varnum, M., and Grossman, I. (2017) Cultural change: The how and the why, ­Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12(6), 956–972. Walshe, P. (2023) Síolta in practice: A guide to implementing Síolta quality standards in early childhood education and care. Tipperary: Boru Press. Weir, S., Kavanagh, L., Kelleher, C., and Moran, E. (2017) Addressing educational disadvantage: A review of evidence from the international literature and of strategy in Ireland: An update since 2005. Dublin: Educational Research Centre.

16 INTERRUPTING THE EVERYDAY Students’ photography in reimagining their places Alex Booth and Mary Biddulph

Introduction I thought about something that was unique to me so I was thinking about the park and then I thought a lot of people would think about that place too because it’s very popular for people our age so I was trying to think of something that meant something to me, so someone just looking might think ‘that’s very irrelevant’ but to me it means something.

This quote is from an 11-year-old geography student writing about a place that is significant to them. Teaching and learning about place is not straightforward. While Lambert and Morgan (2010) focus on geography teachers’ work and the moral responsibility, they have in attending to what they all the ‘politics of place’ (p. 83). Hammond (2021) is more attentive to students’ own constructions of places and the implications of this for their geographical understanding. She demonstrates the significance of students’ perspectives to developing more complex understandings of places, and, as the quote above demonstrates, their ability to articulate places as often ‘contradictory social spaces’ (p. 6). This chapter outlines a research study on a sequence of lessons where the class teacher wanted to interrupt the students pre-existing understanding of their perhaps taken-for-granted familiar places and in so doing reconsider the meaning of places for them. The lessons were taught in a rural comprehensive school for 11–18-year-olds, located on the edge of the Peak district. The participating class was a mixed-ability group of 30 students aged 11–12 years (in year 7). All lessons were taught by one of the authors (a teacher in the school) and all were observed (and field notes taken) by the other author, a researcher unknown to the students. DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-20

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In the context of this study, the notion of ‘interruption’ draws from Biesta’s (2016) discussion of ‘pedagogy as interruption’. Biesta argues that if education is to contribute to the development of an individual’s uniqueness (their subjectivity) then it will be necessary to, through different pedagogies, provide students with opportunities to have their understanding of the normal order of things interrupted. In the lessons, the interruption process used fieldwork as a form of place-based learning and photography as a form of public pedagogy to afford the students opportunities to re-examine their local place. The chapter first examines three key concepts: pedagogy as interruption, explorer mindset and photography as a form of public pedagogies for placebased learning. Following a short account of the methodology and associated ethical processes, we then discuss an analysis of the students’ final photographic montages and what these reveal about students’ understanding of their places. This discussion is informed by the outcomes of a focus group interview with six students about their photographic montages capturing their reflections on their newly interrupted understanding of place. Pedagogies of interruption

According to Biesta (2015), a democratic, ethical education has three major aims. Firstly, education is about achieving qualifications, granting students the capacity to know and understand new ways of thinking and engaging with the world. Secondly, education is about socialisation; initiating students to shared social, political and cultural ways of thinking and being. Thirdly, education is about recognising that society is comprised of unique individuals. Promoting this third aim of ‘subjectification’ is of central importance within our research. When considering how subjectification can be brought into the classroom, Biesta (2010) acknowledges that it cannot be reduced to a simplistic checklist-style approach. Rather, any teaching that works towards achieving subjectification should be built on two, linked premises: that student’s thinking needs interrupting for them to recognise their uniqueness, and that this uniqueness allows students to ‘come into the world’ and become democratic, ethical and active citizens (Arendt, 1958, cited in Biesta, 2016, p. 83). It is important to disrupt students’ thinking to achieve the educational aim of subjectification, and central to this aim are pedagogies of interruption. Defined by James (2014, p. 115) as ‘entailing communication between, and uniqueness of, people in society’, pedagogy as interruption requires students to be in a position of openness in communication (Bruce, 2013). The idea is to encourage students to question what they already know; their generalisations, or prejudices surrounding prior knowledge and allow them to be open to new ideas that the other may teach them (Kirby, 2009). It is through this dialogue that unique perspectives are built. As Bruce (2013, p.  42) states,

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uniqueness requires ‘not an entire rejection of our ego, but rather the idea of conscious suspension or interruption: catching the thoughts and capturing the emotion (i.e. bracketing) so that we may become attentive to what the Other may teach us’. In this way, interrupting is a process in which the individual becomes more aware of the world around them, questioning its composition and challenging existing assumptions that they might have. Interruption is a vital process in defining the uniqueness of individuals. This is of significance, for it is only when uniqueness is recognised that students can truly ‘come into the world’ (Biesta, 2015, p. 80); expose themselves to alternative views and further develop their own unique voices. Pedagogy as interruption promotes both an ethical education that recognises the importance of alternative perspectives and develops an individual’s personal identity (Biesta, 2015). Despite this significance, creating space in the curriculum to allow such interruptions is a challenging task (Biesta, 2010). According to Biesta (2016), uniqueness, and the interruption of student thinking, does not stem solely from the individual. Instead, it emerges also from the places that individuals interact with. As this concept of place is significant within the discipline of geography (Lambert and Morgan, 2010), it provides a useful frame within which student thinking can be interrupted in the geography classroom. In applying the principles of a pedagogy of interruption to place-based learning, Loopmans et  al. (2012) explore how interruption is used as a tool to reconceptualise place using self-curated photographs to enable collaborative discussion within a community setting. Loopmans et al. (2012) state that places tend to be represented in ways that either reinforce dominant assumptions about places or promote marginalised voices. Interruption is used by Loopmans et al. (2012) to introduce a new way of thinking about how places are constructed. With photography as a pedagogy of interruption, Loopmans et  al. (2012) allows the individuals to articulate what places mean to them and create opportunities for alternative conceptualisations of places. Adopting a similar approach in our research, our intention is also to allow for students to interrupt their thinking about familiar places by curating a series of photographs they have taken themselves. Drawing on pedagogy as interruption, we adopted the following principles when planning a unit of learning about place, for our research: 1. Ideas on how places are constructed should be led, wherever possible, by the students. 2. Opportunities should be built into lessons for students to reflect on their existing assumptions about places. 3. Students should be encouraged to rethink or ask new questions about places that are familiar to them. 4. Lessons should provide spaces for students to engage with their peers and discuss their ideas.

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The explorer mindset

The most important goal in promoting pedagogy as interruption is to promote an inquisitive, reflective attitude in students (Biesta, 2010). Such an attitude is encapsulated within the National Geographic’s explorer mindset framework (Schwille, 2016). According to Schwille (2016, p.  13), the explorer mindset is vital in ensuring that ‘students have the education they need to be successful in the workplace, to become good stewards of the planet and their communities, and to become thoughtful decision makers in their civic lives’. In introducing the framework, the National Geographic (2022) illustrates three major attitudes that encapsulate the explorer mindset. These include important, powerful geographical qualities such as being inquisitive about the world, looking at differences over multiple perspectives and having the creativity and confidence to understand how the natural and human worlds develop and the ways that they interact. (Maude, 2020; Roberts, 2017). These are complemented by skills and knowledge, including critical thinking, collaboration and the changing qualities of places. Through encouraging students to explore their immediate surroundings, Humphreys (2014) builds on this approach and outlines the ways in which microadventures can be used to foster this explorer mindset. To Humphreys (2014), any engagement with the world that sparks curiosity, open-mindedness and enthusiasm can be considered an act of exploration. Combining the two presented a useful framework in which place-based learning and pedagogy as interruption could be integrated within lessons. Photography as a pedagogy of interruption

As we have argued, there is no single ‘pedagogy of interruption’, but rather it is the extent to which different pedagogical approaches enable students to question what they know and develop an openness to new ideas. Drawing from the field of public pedagogies, we were taken by the idea of ­auto-photography (Loopmans et al., 2012) where the individual taking the photographs is in control of what is photographed and what is not. Wissman (2008) positions photography as a social practice because captured images are part of an individual photographer’s framing of reality influenced by their social, cultural and spatial context. Loopmans et al. (2012) remind us that the auto-photography process also comprises the curation, the exhibition and the viewing of the photographs. In this sense, they argue that public (as opposed the personal) photographic pedagogies are in essence political in that at each stage individuals are required to make choices and decisions that will influence how a place is seen and understood. We suggest that autophotography could be a valuable way to develop students’ explorer mindset where they become co-producers of their own place knowledge as they ­participate in a process of place creation and representation (Driver, 2014).

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Pedagogy of interruption in school geography

In this section, we summarise the sequence of geography lessons (see Table 16.1) before sharing the outcomes of the students’ work and our reflections on our findings. The early classroom lessons were designed to introduce the idea of ‘place’ and to encourage students to start to think more carefully and critically about their local place (Major, 2010). It was from these early lessons that some sort of consensus emerged from the students as to what they felt were important concepts they associated with Place as an idea. While there is much academic debate about the concepts that frame geography as a discipline (see Biddulph et al., 2020; Geographical Association, 2022), the mind-map (Figure 16.1) summarises the students’ consensus view about their meaning of Place. The three concepts identified in the mind-map – Time and change, Connections, and Scale and Difference – became the framework for our later analysis of students’ montages and the outcomes of the semi-structured interviews.

TABLE 16.1 Interrupting the everyday lesson series summary

Lesson Outline

Key ideas/processes

1

Introduce concept of place

2

Key concepts in place

3

Key concepts in place

4

Fieldwork

5

Fieldwork follow-up

6

Curation process

7

Exhibition

My favourite place – where is my favourite place and why is it my favourite place? Photo analysis of local village Words to think about place How places change in different time and at different scales: • Macro • Meso • Micro Emerging concepts • Time and change • Scale and difference • Connections Students taking photographs in a local park: an example of place-based learning Students repeating the activity in their own chosen places Photo Review Place impressions Creating and annotating a montage – preparation for Lesson 6. Students working in small groups to create a photographic exhibition. ­ Students exhibiting their final posters

Interrupting the everyday

FIGURE 16.1

219

Mind map of students’ perspectives on ‘Place’.

The fieldwork in Lesson 4 was based around students taking photographs of a local place together. It was planned to illustrate the approach to autophotography we wanted students to adopt when thinking about their own places at a later stage. We wanted to emphasise the importance of their own unique perspective in the photographic process and encourage them to operate within Biesta’s notion of a ‘state of openness’. Lesson 4 captured something of an intersection between geography as a subject and place-based learning, an intersection which Israel (2012) argues can help students reconsider the way the way they feel about and act in their everyday place to better understand the nature of the connections between their lives and those of others at a range of scales. After the fieldwork, students then took their own photographs of their place as homework, that is, a local, accessible place with which they were familiar. Working in small groups the photographs from home were curated by the students and place-montages were created using students’ own photos of their places. One month after the lessons, a semi-structured interview with a group of six students was conducted by the external observer. It is essential at this stage to outline the ethical practices of the work, in terms of both our research with the students and their work with each other. Drawing on BERA’s (2018) Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research and in line with the school’s ethical practices, informed consent was obtained from all relevant parties including parents/guardians and the students themselves. Throughout the research and bearing in mind it was centred around students taking photographs of their places, we were mindful of the need to ensure that the privacy of students and others was respected. When out and about, both during the school-based fieldwork and when taking photographs

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for homework, students were advised not to include other people in their images. Likewise, when asked if they could take images of private spaces such as inside the home and their bedrooms (as special places to them), we felt that it would be advisable to avoid these spaces. This reflects Prins’ (2011, cited in Loopmans et al., 2012) argument that despite the intention that auto-photography seeks to visually capture the unique perspectives of participants, it is inevitable that researchers, like us, influence participant choices; this is especially significant when the participants are children. Students’ responses to ‘being interrupted’

A key question to address in this section is: To what extent did the auto-­ photography and curation process interrupt the students’ understanding of their place? We start with a brief reflection on the students’ curation processes before then considering the outcomes of their work. To support our discussion here, we draw on two specific sources: the students’ final montages and the outcomes of the focus group interview conducted one month after the lessons had been completed. As previously mentioned, both were analysed using the concepts of Time and change, Connections; Scale and Difference. In terms of the curation process, groups were keen to ensure that everyone was included in the process of creating the montages and so everyone contributed one image of the place that they had captured students were reminded that creating their group montage was not a random process and that they needed to think about what kind of narrative they wanted to present about a place. They were given the title ‘My Place-Our Place’ to work with but within this, they had a lot of freedom over how they approached the activity. Some groups adopted a thematic approach such as focusing on what they would call ‘environmental’ photographs (fields, trees, parks), others selected photos with specific features such as a wheelbarrow in a garden that represented something specific for the student. At the curation stage, it was clear that the students were making choices about the images that represented their thoughts, perspectives and ideas about a place special to them. An example of a student’s montage can be seen in Figure 16.2. All the montages contained annotations of some sort, see Figure 16.2. This was because the students felt that despite the significance of the photographs to them, they were mindful that anyone else viewing the photographs might have to interpret the images and not necessarily appreciate what they were trying to represent via the images alone. While the evidence in academic literature (see Loopmans et al., 2012; Schuermans et al., 2012) suggests that artistic public pedagogies such as photographs are in themselves educative because of the way publics engage with the outcomes, for the students in this project, they wanted their fellow students who would view their exhibit to

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FIGURE 16.2 Example

of ‘My Place-Our Place’ curated montage.

understand rather than interpret what they were trying to represent in their photographs. As one student stated: ‘on one of my photos, you might not get to see all of it, but the writing reveals what I know about that place-it reveals what happened there’.

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Time and change

Students generally photographed places that had good memories in terms of personal experiences, and photographs were in some cases directly linked to family and friends. There is some evidence that different functions and emotions were associated with the same place depending on when the photograph was taken. In addition, students not only drew attention to those aspects of places that they went to on a regular basis. Just as important were those infrequently visited places that held specific memories meaning that a singular event is enough to leave a lasting impression. As one student stated regarding his memories of the place in his photograph: I kind of looked down the garden and I thought I had sort of lots of memories of that place and I had done lots of stuff and had nice memories, so it was quite easy to decide. And also, I had been camping out there. The theme of places and family and friends emerged as strongly interlinked and students presented photographs of family experiences they enjoyed, such as going to a football match with their dad and friends or playing sport in their back garden. Students demonstrated that they can also take familiar places and project from their chosen images. In one instance a student talked about a place that, in that moment, looked quite ordinary (their back garden), yet they could project forward to the summer when the flowers would be out. They drew attention to the fact that ‘in summer there’s lots of colour’. The students also appreciated longer-term change and the fact that places transcend generations. One student photographed his great grandad’s wheelbarrow. To a casual observer, there is little of note in this wheelbarrow, yet, to the student, certain memories and experiences made it an object worth drawing attention to. Some students started to question their chosen places. In one case, the student’s annotations asked, ‘How much water does the lake hold?’ and ‘How many ducks are there?’ Questions such as these offer an interesting gateway into a student’s interpretation of place. This suggests that students were increasing their awareness of the unknown elements of their familiar places, and they were alert to the changing nature of places. Not only did this allow for students to research and find out the answers to their questions – becoming more inquisitive and aware of their familiar place  – but could lead to further questions. In this case, students could be tasked with thinking about how the amount of lake water or number of ducks on the lake might vary throughout the year, and why, which in turn could invite them to consider broader questions such as ‘where the water comes from, how it is used and by whom, and who manages/controls the water? This could also lead to what Hicks (2012) describes as ‘futures thinking’ where they start to consider what

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might this lake (or other places) look like in 10, 20, or 30 years’ time and what factors might shape and influence change. Connections

In some instances, the students were mindful of place connections and seemed to appreciate ways in which specific photographs demonstrated how their place was connected to other places. With reference to the decking in their back garden, one student drew attention to the tropical wood that the decking was made from. According to this student, it was akin to ‘walking on the other side of the earth’ (student annotation). The student recognised that places are interconnected through the, often mundane, nature of their construction. You might like to think it’s just a normal shed but it’s quite interesting because it has decking and stuff and tropical woods from different places, so you might be thinking’ oh decking’ whereas it could have come from anywhere in the world and you might not know that without the captions. (student annotations) For another student, connections to other places were demonstrated by the trail in the local park that connects the park and those who use it to another place: ‘One of my pictures is like a park and there’s a trail for it and there’s lots of forests. And lots of people walk on the trail’. However, some students struggled to appreciate the ways in which their specific place was connected to other places. This was despite this being a focus of the teaching in lessons two and three, and where, as a class, the students themselves identified ‘connections’ as a key concept in understanding place. When asked in the interview to consider how their chosen places were connected to other places students tended to resort to ‘my picture has trees and there are trees all over the world’ or ‘my picture has goal posts’ and ‘people play football all over the world’. Once they had landed on the global perspective, some struggled to let it go and tended to copy responses from others. Scale and difference

Students did appreciate the fact that change can take place at different scales and in different time frames. For example, they reflected on the need to sometimes look at the fine detail of a place: If you look closer at stuff then you’ll notice more things. Like if you look closer at the ground then you’ll notice smaller things like bits of rubbish

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and stuff. But if you look further away you won’t notice it as much because its smaller, it’s not as big. Or, If you miss scale, you could miss like tiny little stories of animals that live there and if you don’t look for them you won’t see them. It’s important because it opens up your mind to different things and you might want to look into them more. This idea of ‘noticing’ and being alert to the fine detail of places links to the work of the philosopher Stilgoe (1999), who argues that that the act of noticing, paying attention to the fine detail of our surroundings reveals knowledge not yet encountered and enables our natural curiosity to flourish. Overall, any exploration of ‘scale and difference’ evidenced in the students’ work is minimal, focuses on the micro-scale and therefore is possibly largely influenced by work on the ‘micro-scale’ completed in lesson two where students evaluated images by the photographer Slinkachu in his 2008 book Little People in the City. Other than through their discussions about connections to other places, the students did not provide any evidence that they really understood or appreciated the place/scale-difference relationship. In summary, evidence from the students’ montages and the semi-­structured demonstrated that students were thinking more deeply about the concept of place through this project. Of the three organising concepts, students were more appreciative of the emotions that constitute places and how these change over time (‘time and change’). Rather than static, these emotions were recognised by many as altering depending on the time of year that these places were visited, and the people with whom they had shared these places. Some students were also noticing more about their familiar places and drawing more sophisticated connections between their familiar places and other areas around the world (‘connections’). For others, however, these connections remained relatively simplistic in nature. Although many were asking questions about their places and suggesting lines for further enquiry, their thinking about the concept of ‘scale and difference’ proved most challenging for many students to grasp. Indeed, rather than presenting their own voice, in these instances, some students relied on copying the responses of those around them. This runs contrary to the workings of interruption, which seeks to promote the unique voices of individuals (Biesta, 2015). Conclusion

In this chapter, we have advocated the importance of place-based learning in geography education. Utilising student photography of their familiar places

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was used to promote an explorer mindset in the students (Schwille, 2016) and encouraged them to find novel ways of presenting and representing these places. Our primary motive within this scheme of work was guided by Biesta’s (2016) notion of interruption. By building our scheme of work on the familiar, both in terms of the student’s understanding of place and by their selection of places for exploration, we challenged students to rethink this familiarity and become more aware of themselves and the places they occupy. What became apparent over the course of this research is that more opportunities to encourage interruption is necessary for students to fully benefit from this pedagogical thinking. Despite efforts, some students were reluctant or unable to fully express their thinking on the concepts of place, particularly for the more abstract concepts of scale and difference and how these relate to places. This is perhaps unsurprising, as finding the space within the curriculum to interrupt student thinking is not always easy (Winter, 2011). If our education system in England intends to bring students into the world and better make them aware of their place in it, such opportunities are vitally important. We have shown the possibility of using place as means to integrate such thinking into the geography curriculum and move towards Biesta’s (2015) third educational aim of subjectivity. Such an approach may indeed be a risk (Winter, 2011), yet worth taking if students are to have a more rounded understanding of how their unique identities are built through the interactions between themselves and the wider world. Further readings Clark (2018) highlights the importance of critical pedagogies in higher education, utilising a pedagogy of interruption to broaden the perspectives and criticality of students: Clark, L. B. (2018) Critical pedagogy in the university: Can a lecture be critical pedagogy? Policy Futures in Education, 16(8), 985–999. Kudryavtsev and colleagues advocate the combining instructional and experiential approaches to foster a more robust understanding of place: Kudryavtsev, A., Stedman, R. C., and Krasny, M. E. (2012) Sense of place in environmental education, Environmental Education Research, 18(2), 229–250. https://doi.org/10.1080/135 04622.2011.609615. Larsen and Harrington (2018) present a useful illustration of how to integrate, and progress, place-based learning within geography education: Larsen, T. B., and Harrington, J. A. (2018) Developing a learning progression for place, Journal of Geography, 117(3), 100–118. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221341.2017.1337212.

References All websites last accessed 30 May 2023 Arendt, H. (1958) The human condition. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Biddulph, M., Lambert, D., and Balderstone, D. (2020) Learning to teaching geography in the secondary school. 4th edn. London: Routledge.

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Biesta, G. (2010) Education after the death of the subject: Levinas and the pedagogy of interruption, in Z. Leonardo (ed) Handbook of cultural politics and education. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers, 289–300. Biesta, G. (2015) What is education for? On good education, teacher judgement, and educational professionalism, European Journal of Education, 50(1), 75–87. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12109 Biesta, G. (2016) Good education in an age of measurement: Ethics, politics, democracy. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315634319 British Educational Research Association (BERA) (2018) Ethical guidelines for educational research. 4th edn. https://www.bera.ac.uk/publication/ethical-guidelinesfor-educational-research-2018-online#intro Bruce, J. (2013) Service learning as a pedagogy of interruption, International Journal of Development Education and Global Learning, 5(1), 33–47. https://doi. org/10.18546/IJDEGL.05.1.03 Driver, F. (2014) Imaginative geographies, in P. Cloke, P. Crang, and M. Goodwin (eds) Introducing human geography. 3rd edn. London: Routledge. Geographical Association (2022) A framework for the school geography curriculum. Sheffield: Geographical Association. Hammond, L. (2021) London, race, and territories: Young people’s stories of a divided city, London Review of Education, 19(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.14324/ LRE.19.1.14 Hicks, D. (2012) The future only arrives when things look dangerous, Futures, 44(1), 4–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2011.08.002 Humphreys, A. (2014) Microadventures: Local discoveries for great escapes. Illustrated edn. London: William Collins. Israel, A. L. (2012) Putting geography education into place: What geography educators can learn from place-based education and vice versa, Journal of Geography, 111(2), 76–81. James, A. (2014) Implementing a ‘pedagogy of interruption’: Worth the risk, Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: Gulf Perspectives, 11(2), 115–141. https://doi. org/10.18538/lthe.v11.n2.205 Kirby, K. E. (2009) Encountering and understanding suffering: The need for service learning in ethical education, Teaching Philosophy, 32(2), 153–176. https://doi. org/10.5840/teachphil200932216 Lambert, D., and Morgan, J. (2010) Teaching geography 11–18: A  conceptual approach. Berkshire: Oxford University Press. Loopmans, M., Cowell, G., and Oosterlynck, S. (2012) Photography, public pedagogy and the politics of place-making in post-industrial areas, Social & Cultural Geography, 13(7), 699–718. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2012.723734 Major, B. (2010) Aspects of place, Teaching Geography, 35(3), 90–92. Maude, A. (2020) The role of geography’s concepts and powerful knowledge in a future 3 curriculum, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 29(3), 232–243. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2020.1749771 National Geographic (2022) National geographic explorer mindset framework. http://www.nationalgeographic.org/education/about/explorer-mindset/ Roberts, M. (2017) Geographical education is powerful if . . ., Teaching Geography, 42(1), 6–9. Schuermans, N., Loopmans, M. P. J., and Vandenableele, J. (2012) Pubic space, public art and public pedagogy, Social and Cultural Geography, 13(7), 675–682.

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Schwille, K. (2016) Changes at the national geographic society, The Geography Teacher, 13(1), 13–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/19338341.2016.1151717 Slinkachu (2008) Little people in the city: The street art of Slinkachu. London: Boxtree. Stilgoe, J. (1999) Outside lies magic: Regaining history and awareness in everyday places. New York: Walker and Co. Winter, P. (2011) Coming into the world, uniqueness, and the beautiful risk of education: An Interview with Gert Biesta by Philip Winter, Studies in Philosophy and Education, 30(5), 537–542. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-011-9254-7 Wissman, K. K. (2008) This is what I see: (Re)envisioning photography as a social practice, in M. Lamont Hill and L. Vasudevan (eds) Media, learning and sites of possibility. New York: Peter Lang, 13–45.

17 DIVERSITY, DEMOGRAPHICS AND SENSE OF PLACE Educational experiences of multilingual students Ellen Bishop and Lucy Manners

Introduction

The diversity of individual schools is shaped by the bringing together of students from different backgrounds and identities, and the geographies, spatialities and demographics of the places they are located. Ethno-linguistic diversity within schools is increasing globally due to recent and historic international migration. It is estimated that over 60% of the world’s population speak more than one language (Vince, 2016), with more children in the world growing up in multilingual rather than monolingual contexts (National Literacy Trust, 2022). Examining place in education through the lens of multilingual students is valuable as schools are places that are shaped by increasing ethno-linguistic diversity, and as school education, reciprocally, influences the sense of place amongst multilingual learners and their peers. Developing a sense of place and belonging for multilingual students is also particularly important to aid them in settling into new schools and cultures. As this chapter will explore, varying proportions, identities and language proficiencies of multilingual students in individual schools significantly impact their interactions with peers, sense of belonging/place and how and what they are taught. Multilingual schools are heterogeneous, resulting from the diversity of national, Indigenous and migrant languages spoken by staff and students. While recognising diversity, this chapter utilises the framing of multilingualism in schools in England, the setting of our empirical study, to examine how diversity, demographics and sense of place shape the educational experiences of multilingual students. This chapter utilises data from ethnographic fieldwork in a secondary school in Leicester, a multicultural city in the English DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-21

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Midlands, and interviews with UK-based teachers conducted by the first author, combined with the perspectives of the co-author, a Leicester secondary school geography and business teacher. The chapter argues that place is critical in shaping the ethno-linguistic diversity of schools, which, consequently, influences the sense of belonging of multilingual students, diversity experienced by students and the curriculum and approaches utilised by teachers. These factors also cyclically affect the sense of place experienced by multilingual students and their peers. Towards an inclusive school environment for multilingual students

Sense of place is referred to in this chapter as place attachment (Holton, 2015), where individuals who feel in-place are emotionally tied to the locale (Holloway and Hubbard, 2001). Pretty et  al. (2003, p.  274) highlighted that ‘location itself is not enough to create a sense of place. It emerges from involvement between people, and between people and place’. Hence, sense of place is intertwined with belonging and identity (Raffaetà and Duff, 2013). Shared identity and experience are factors that contribute to belonging and connectedness, according to Nair (2022). Thus, in the context of multilingual students, the number of students in a school/area who share identity characteristics with multilingual students influences their relationships with place. Furthermore, peers who speak their home language may help multilingual students to feel a sense of belonging to a place, whilst helping them to make friends (French and De Courcy, 2017). The language proficiencies of multilingual students also influence relationships to different places. An individual’s language-of-instruction proficiency impacts who they interact with at school and the accessibility of the curriculum (Flint et al. 2020). Research (Krzyzanowski and Wodak, 2009; Lu et al., 2016) highlighted how a lack of fluency in the main language of the place they live can be isolating and a barrier to feelings of belonging. As language-of-instruction proficiency increases, connectedness and sense of place increase as students begin to feel that they belong in a new community (Raffaetà and Duff, 2013). Developing sense of place is interdependent on language proficiency as improving communication skills allows multilingual students to academically and socially communicate more effectively with peers (Doyle, 2019), building sense of belonging and feelings of being in-place. Studying the local area supports all pupils, notably those who are multilingual, to develop place attachment through connecting with their local environment. It aims to ‘establish a positive interaction between people and their environment’ and ‘provide students with a sense of belonging by helping them understand the physical and humane qualities of the place they live in’ (Yilmaz, 2019, p. 36). While examining the local area shapes all students’ understandings and senses of place

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(Üztemur and Dere, 2022), it may have heightened significance for multilingual students, particularly those who may have recently moved to the area, by encouraging connections to place. Experiencing local fieldwork encourages social interactions in group work which promotes l­anguage-of-instruction development for multilingual students, entwined with developing sense of place. Increased informal interactions with peers and learning about their locale both encourages language-of-instruction development and fosters a sense of place (Illeris, 2017). For multilingual students, language acquisition is better developed when the content encourages an increased incentive to learn about local geographies and experiences whilst developing a sense of place, according to the English Outdoor Council (2023). Furthermore, a sense of place develops through using spatial awareness to positively promote and engage students’ prior experiences (Biddulph et al., 2015). Some multilingual students who have lived in other countries may understand place in relation to their country of origin and country of residence, drawing spatial comparisons. As a result, multilingual students can have additional spatial thinking skills, defined as visualising and analysing ‘spatial relationships between objects’ (Geographical Association, 2022). Encouraging an openness about students’ prior travel or life experiences can contribute positively to learning about place for all (Biddulph et al., 2015), whilst encouraging multilingual students’ language-of-instruction development and a greater sense of belonging to their school through inclusivity. As Roberts (2023, p.  72) described, ‘students’ personal geographies could provide data related to . . . place’ which can be ‘used through sharing and discussion to connect with new knowledge, making both everyday and school knowledge more meaningful’. Thus, multilingual students can enrich learning about place for their peers and aid their peers with sense of place development through sharing/discussion. Such themes are engaged with in our analysis which follows the subsequent section outlining the context of our research. Research context

While broadly discussing the interconnectivities between sense of place and multilingual education, the empirical research that informs this chapter took place in England. Thus, this section outlines the multilingual contexts of the nation (England) and region (Leicester) where the schools we worked in are located, followed by information on each school, to contextualise discussions. National context

In England, the proportion of multilingual students continues to rise. Students who speak and are exposed to languages other than English (national language/language-of-instruction) at home are classified as students who

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speak English as an Additional Language (EAL). In state-funded education, 19.5% of students use EAL (UK Government, 2022), speaking over 360 different languages (NALDIC, 2015). However, this national average masks heterogeneity within the category and geographical variation. Students with EAL have varying levels of English proficiency and their proficiency changes over time. The School Census found that 36% of students with EAL are fluent in English, 25% are competent, 22% are developing competence, 11% are early acquisition and 6% are new to English (DfE, 2020). In a supportive educational setting, it takes on average five to seven years for students with EAL to acquire English proficiency (Demie, 2012). Geographical variation in the numbers of EAL pupils across England, resulting in 54% of UK schools having less than 5% of their students using EAL, while 8.4% have most students using EAL (Bracken et al., 2017), is shaped by the differential demographics across local and regional areas and historic and contemporary migration patterns. While this chapter refers to students with EAL to interrogate its themes, it is relevant to other international contexts when considering the experiences of multilingual students who speak languages other than the language-of-instruction in schools. Regional context

Our schools are in Leicester, a city in the English East Midlands. Leicester has long been associated with multiculturalism. Historic and contemporary transnational migration has shaped the city. Significant eras in Leicester’s migration history include the 1947 Partition of India, 1950s’ Caribbean Windrush, 1970s’ Ugandan-Indian expulsion, 2000s’ Somali civil war and recent influxes of EU migrants and international students (Leicester City Council, 2022). Such inflows have led to people from different ethnic backgrounds settling and raising further generations in Leicester, shaping its diversity and sense of place of its residents today. Increased ethnic diversity has brought increased linguistic diversity, with only 69.96% of Leicester residents speaking English as their main language (ONS, 2021) and over 70 different languages cited as residents’ main languages (Leicester City Council, 2011). For the younger generation, more than half of Leicester students are categorised as EAL (Bell Foundation, 2022a), which is significantly higher than the 19.5% national average (UK Government, 2022). School contexts

Ellen’s ethnographic research took place in a Leicester secondary school, pseudonymised as Ridgeview, with approximately 1,200 students aged 11–16 years. Nearly half of its students use EAL and speak over 60 different languages. Ellen also conducted 37 interviews with teachers from schools

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across Britain about their teaching and teacher education experiences with students with EAL. Lucy teaches at the secondary school Greenfield (pseudonym). It has over 800 students aged 11–16 years and is located on the outskirts of Leicester city. Two-thirds of students are white British, while one-fifth are from Indian heritage. The remaining students have a range of ethnicities. Although below the national average, one-eighth of students use EAL. Drawing together accounts from Ridgeview and Greenfield is useful to consider the experiences of students with EAL around diversity and place in contrasting educational settings. Diversity, demographics and sense of place

Within this section, we examine various connections between school diversity/demographics and a sense of place that emerged from the previous literature review. As such, we have identified the following themes as having significant interconnections with multilingual students’ relationships with place: identity and language, inclusive pedagogies, inclusive curriculum and initial teacher education. Identity, language and relationships to place

Ellen’s research highlighted how for students with EAL seeing others with shared characteristics may foster a sense of shared community/belonging to the school, area, and, more widely, to Britain. While existing research (e.g. Nair, 2022) connected shared identity to belonging in schools, Ellen’s research identified connections to place across a range of spatial scales, including regionally and nationally. For example, a student with EAL at Ridgeview who had migrated from India said they felt at home in Leicester as there were ‘others like me’, reflecting the migration history of the city. As sense of place is created through the interactions between people and place (Pretty et al., 2003), students with EAL having others with shared characteristics (e.g. ethnicity, religion, language) influences attachment to place. In contrast, the English proficiency of individual students with EAL influences their relationships with peers and to different places. For example, a Bulgarian student at Ridgeview who was new to English was unable to fully participate in group work, limiting learning and social opportunities and deterring a sense of belonging and place. Ellen’s research also revealed how speaking another language that is not shared by many other multilingual students in a school can diminish the sense of place of students with EAL (Lu et  al., 2016), but that schools can put measures in place to remedy this. Two year-10 students with EAL at Ridgeview described difficulty making friends when joining the school because ‘people don’t understand

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you’. However, participating in a buddy system, where they were paired with other students who spoke their home language, helped them to learn English, socialise and settle into their new school, community and country (Hampshire EMTAS, 2022). Encouraging students with shared languages to interact may strengthen connections to their locale through developing emotional ties (Holloway and Hubbard, 2001) and sense of place as the entanglement between people and place (Pretty et al., 2003). Ellen’s research also highlighted multilingual students’ changing relationships with their country of residence and country of origin due to individuals’ language proficiencies changing over time. A teaching assistant at Ridgeview recounted that many students who were born in India and migrated to Leicester via Italy described themselves as Italian due to Italian being the language they felt most confident speaking. Thus, connections to various places are intertwined with linguistic identity (Nair, 2022). Furthermore, as students with EAL develop English and spend more time communicating in English at school, their connections to various significant places can diminish or strengthen. Existing research highlighted how such shifts in language practices may be viewed as a loss/devaluation of home languages and connection to country of origin by families (King and Bigelow, 2018). However, a Greek student with EAL at Ridgeview described their continued connection to Greece as most of their family still lived there and they spent the holidays there, meaning it was necessary to maintain Greek language skills to communicate with family despite increasing time spent speaking English in school. Thus, as English proficiency increases, different languages and expressions of identity become associated with different spaces and places, affecting place attachment (Holton, 2015). The home becomes a place of performing cultural heritage and identity for students with EAL, whilst school becomes a place of assimilation to the local area and its language (Valentine et al., 2008). Inclusive pedagogies and relationships to place

Ellen’s research and Lucy’s teaching experiences demonstrated how student diversity should influence pedagogical approaches adopted by teachers and that they should seek to develop sense of place for students with EAL to help them feel like they belong. Several teachers discussed how increasing numbers of students with EAL in their schools shaped their teaching practices: ‘Teachers are starting to notice there are more EAL pupils .  .  . I’ve heard more conversations where teachers are discussing how to provide for these pupils . . . and address their needs’. Another explained, that ‘EAL students in our classes change the way we plan and think. It makes me think about how I explain certain tasks and the vocabulary that’s needed to access my lessons’. Thus, the diversity and demographics of the place where a school is located affects, or should affect, teaching approaches to meet the needs of

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multilingual students. For example, Lucy’s school promotes the use of visual stimuli in resources to expand the comprehension of new words for multilingual students developing language-of-instruction fluency, extending their vocabularies and allowing for easier communication and access to learning materials. With increasing numbers of multilingual students in schools globally, it is important that teachers adapt their pedagogical approaches to enhance learning and inclusion. However, whilst ‘differentiated learning .  .  . can help minority-language children to feel included’ (Hamilton, 2021, p.  177), singling out students with EAL can cause othering by their peers (Freeman, 2014), which may have an adverse effect on their sense of belonging to their school and local area. It is the role of educators to ensure that learning strategies are supportive of and not alienating to multilingual students, with one teacher in Ellen’s research describing how inclusive approaches for all ‘ensures EAL pupils do not feel left out or “different” as there are others like them’. Based on our findings, we argue that inclusive strategies that are used to support students with EAL are beneficial to all students (Graf, 2011), including, but not limited to, students who are SEND or Pupil Premium. For example, teachers stated: I started using EAL strategies as general practice . . . as it benefited other children in the class as well as supporting EAL children . . . thinking of it that way was a much more positive experience, rather than stressful. Sometimes the techniques used to support EAL students will indirectly help those who are not EAL students, such as key word definition sheets. Thus, inclusive pedagogies could be adopted irrespective of the school’s demographics, as strategies that benefit the learning of students with EAL benefit all students. Developing an accessible and supportive learning environment that is attentive to all student’s needs, diversity and experiences fosters a feeling of being in-place, rather than out-of-place (Cresswell, 1996). Inclusive curriculum and relationships to place

In addition to pedagogies, we argue that the demographics and diversity of schools should also inform the study of places within the curriculum to be inclusive to multilingual learners. Studying places far and near can foster sense of place for multilingual students, learning about their local area and country of residence, whilst bringing their own valuable experiences of place and attaching this prior knowledge to different locations. At both Ridgeview and Greenhill, learning about the school’s surrounding area is a key component of the geography curriculum in the first year (year 7). For example, Ellen observed a lesson on natural spaces in Leicester, inviting students to discuss the parks they visit at weekends, activities they do

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there, and environmental concerns surrounding them. For students with EAL, particularly those who had recently migrated, exploring the local area, either in the classroom or through local fieldwork as previously discussed in the context of existing literature, allowed them to become familiar with their locality, the opportunities it offers, and begin to develop emotional connections to it (Holloway and Hubbard, 2001). Educators intentionally providing opportunities for multilingual students to share their personal geographies (Roberts, 2023; Biddulph et al., 2015) and connect these to their local area develops their sense of place. Learning about the cultural diversity of Leicester was also prominent at Ridgeview and Greenhill. Studying its diversity and migration history and focusing on the cultural groups reflected in the individual schools’ student population, for example the local Indian population at Greenhill, positively encouraged sense of belonging amongst students with EAL at each school, allowing multilingual students to see connections to their own cultures in the diverse landscape. Encouraging multilingual students to engage with their personal geographies also improves language proficiency (Doyle, 2019), which is significant as language-of-instruction development is intertwined with place attachment. We argue that international case studies should also be chosen based on individual school demographics. Due to a high proportion of Indian students at Greenhill, the city of Mumbai is utilised as an inclusive case study of urbanisation. It is intended that Indian heritage students with EAL at Greenhill can draw on first-hand knowledge of place to understand the topic, critically investigating a familiar location whilst developing key geographical skills. Furthermore, Indian heritage students may feel that their knowledge is valued and celebrated, encouraging a sense of inclusion and belonging (Roberts, 2023). The Mumbai case study also widens the knowledge of other students about the country of origin of some of their EAL peers. This can assist their peers in understanding the cultures of, communicating with and integrating students with EAL, whilst ‘enabling them to acquire a sense of places other than their own’ (Doyle, 2019, p. 11). Teacher education and experience and relationships to place

Place is important in shaping teachers’ experience and confidence in teaching students with EAL. Findings from Ellen’s research revealed that student demographics of schools where teachers work and train influence their approaches towards teaching, supporting and including students with EAL, relating to the different approaches taken towards inclusive pedagogies and curriculum design, as previously discussed. Watkins and Noble (2021, p. 39) contended that there is an ‘unevenness of experiences of multicultural education within . . . training and professional development’, which we connect to the varied diversity of the places where teachers do their initial teacher education (ITE).

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Only 14 of 37 teachers in Ellen’s research explicitly described encountering students with EAL during ITE. Thus, many teachers did not get opportunities to teach students with EAL during ITE due to the demographics of placement schools. One teacher described gaining extensive experience teaching students with EAL during ITE due to: ‘The diverse nature of the school as it was an inner-city school. However, most trainees who were placed in schools in rural Oxfordshire, their opportunities to understand how to teach EAL pupils were somewhat limited’. Another teacher stated: The schools I’ve worked at have comprised of mainly white students . . . so EAL isn’t something I’ve encountered as much as other teachers’. It is important to note that largely white student populations do not mean an absence of students with EAL, as there is a misconception that students with EAL are people of colour (Conteh, 2019). Nevertheless, the connection between school demographics and experience teaching students with EAL is apparent. Interviews revealed that teachers who were exposed to students with EAL due to diverse populations in the locations of their ITE adopted more inclusive pedagogies than those with limited EAL experience. One teacher described how ‘teachers were very aware of how to plan, resource and carry out lessons to help those pupils and it was embedded in their practice’ in their placement school with a high proportion of students with EAL. Thus, place is influential in shaping the school experiences of students with EAL indirectly through the ethno-linguistic diversity that teachers encounter during ITE and their approaches towards teaching and supporting students with EAL, due to the formative nature of ITE in shaping future practices (Ainsworth, 2013). Implications for practice

As educators, we should consider how our school’ ethno-linguistic diversities (e.g. how many other students share similar identity/language characteristics with students with EAL) influences sense of belonging for multilingual students. We must encourage language-of-instruction development to aid learning, inclusion and social interactions with peers, but in a way that does not single out linguistically diverse students. As multilingual students gain confidence in the language-of-instruction, they also develop sense of belonging within their school and local area. As teachers, we must also consider how the curriculum can encourage sense of place/belonging for multilingual students. Studying the local area can strengthen place attachment, whilst culturally sensitive international case studies that encourage multilingual students to use prior experiences of place can promote meaningful discussions about place for all, whilst fostering sense of belonging by valuing their personal geographies.

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Conclusion

This chapter reflected on how the demographics of individual schools, particularly in terms of the number of students with EAL and heterogeneity amongst them, and pedagogical and curriculum decisions based on it, relates to sense of place. Through exploring how the varied linguistic and cultural characteristics connect to feelings of belonging, we argued that how the identities and language proficiencies of students with EAL relate to their peers affects their place attachment and connections to their locality. Furthermore, the chapter considered how diversity shapes teachers’ inclusive pedagogies and how approaches that encourage language development also promote a sense of belonging and place, whilst curriculum content that encourages students with EAL to engage with the local area and previous experiences of place also fosters a sense of belonging and place. Finally, we considered how school demographics, shaped by the diversity of the places they are located, impact teachers’ preparedness in supporting multilingual students. We conclude that place is critical in shaping the ethno-linguistic diversity of schools, which influences sense of belonging of students with EAL and the curriculum and approaches utilised by teachers. These factors also cyclically affect sense of place experienced by students with EAL and their peers. This chapter covered an important area of consideration for educators, due to growing linguistic diversity worldwide and the influence that teachers can have on the inclusivity or alienation of multilingual students. As numbers of multilingual students grow, it is important to note that supporting the academic, linguistic and social needs of students with EAL is the responsibility of all teachers. As such, all teachers are language teachers (Bell Foundation, 2022b). Further readings Bell Foundation (2023) Effective teaching of EAL. https://www.bell-foundation.org. uk/eal-programme/guidance/effective-teaching-of-eal-learners/ The Bell Foundation, a leading charity researching and advocating for students with EAL, website includes the context and rationale for EAL pedagogy, underlying EAL teaching principles and links to useful resources for teachers. Osterman, K. (2010) Teacher practice and students’ sense of belonging, in T. Lovat, R. Toomey, and N. Clement (eds) International research handbook on values education and student wellbeing. London: Springer, 239–260. This book chapter details how teacher practices have the power to influence sense of belonging of students from different backgrounds. Royal Geographical Society (2023) Local fieldwork toolkit. https://www.rgs.org/ schools/teaching-resources/local-fieldwork-toolkit/ This website describes benefits for students of researching their local area and conducting local fieldwork and how teachers can plan/prepare for fieldwork.

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References All websites last accessed 1 May 2023 Ainsworth, J. (2013) Sociology of education: An A-to-Z guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Bell Foundation (2022a) EAL learner proficiency, attainment and progress maps. https:// www.bell-foundation.org.uk/eal-programme/research/eal-learner-proficiencyattainment-and-progress-maps/ Bell Foundation (2022b) The EAL co-ordinator: Leading on EAL in secondary schools webinar. https://youtu.be/T_ihr2O7_4o Biddulph, M., Lambert, D., and Balderstone, D. (2015) Learning to teach geography in secondary school. Abingdon: Routledge. Bracken, S., Driver, C., and Kadi-Hanifi, K. (2017) Teaching English as an additional language in secondary schools: Theory and practice. Oxford: Routledge. Conteh, J. (2019) The EAL teaching book: Promoting success for multilingual learners. London: Learning Matters. Cresswell, T. (1996) In place/out of place: Geography, ideology and transgression. London: University of Minnesota Press. Demie, F. (2012) English as an additional language pupils: How long does it take to acquire English fluency? Language and Education, 27(1), 59–69. https://doi.org/1 0.1080/09500782.2012.682580 Department for Education (DfE) (2020) English proficiency of pupils with EAL. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/ attachment_data/file/868209/English_proficiency_of_EAL_pupils.pdf Doyle, L. (2019) Do we give EAL students the opportunity to study their own personal geographies? Teaching Geography, 44(1), 11–13. English Outdoor Council (2023) Support for promoting, evaluating and improving high quality outdoor learning. https://www.outdoor-learning.org/Good-Practice/ Good-Practice/High-Quality-Outdoor-Learning Flint, A., Kitson, L., Lowe, K., Shaw, K., Humphrey, S., Vicars, M., and Rogers, J. (2020) Literacy in Australia: Pedagogies for engagement. Milton, QLD: Wiley. Freeman, L. (2014) Other/otherness, in B. Warf (ed) Encyclopaedia of geography. Singapore: Sage, 2106–2107. French, M., and De Courcy, M. (2017) A place for students’ multilingual resources in an Australian high school, in S. Nichols and C. Snowden (eds) Languages and literacies as mobile and placed resources. Oxford: Routledge, 153–169. Geographical Association (2022) Graphicacy and spatial thinking. https://www.geo graphy.org.uk/Graphicacy-and-spatial-thinking Graf, M. (2011) Including and supporting learners of English as an additional language. London: Continuum. Hamilton, P. (2021) Diversity and marginalisation in childhood: A guide for inclusive thinking 0–11. London: Sage. Hampshire Ethnic Minority and Traveller Achievement Service (Hampshire EMTAS) (2022) Young interpreters’ scheme. https://www.hants.gov.uk/educationandlearning/ emtas/supportinglanguages/young-interpreters-guide Holloway, L., and Hubbard, P. (2001) People and place: The extraordinary geographies of everyday life. Harlow: Pearson. Holton, M. (2015) Adapting relationships with place: Investigating the evolving place attachment and ‘sense of place’ of UK higher education students during a

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period of intense transition, Geoforum, 59, 21–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. geoforum.2014.11.017 Illeris, K. (2017) How we learn. London: Routledge. King, K., and Bigelow, M. (2018) Multilingual education policy, superdiversity and educational equity, in A. Creese and A. Blackledge (eds) The Routledge handbook of language and superdiversity. Milton: Routledge, 459–472. Krzyzanowski, M., and Wodak, R. (2009) The politics of exclusion: Debating migration in Austria. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction. Leicester City Council (2011) Interpretation and translation services. https:// www.leicester.gov.uk/your-council/how-we-work/equality-and-diversity/inter pretation-and-translation-services Leicester City Council (2022) A city of diversity. https://storyofleicester.info/ city-stories/a-city-of-diversity/ Lu, Y., Samaratunge, R., and Härtel, C. (2016) Skilled migration, expectation and reality: Chinese professionals and the global labour market. Oxford: Routledge. Nair, A. (2022) Campus politics: Don’t be silent, don’t be. Kerala: Infinity Indica. National Association for Language Development in the Curriculum (NALDIC) (2015) EAL pupils in schools. https://www.naldic.org.uk/research-and-information/ealstatistics/eal-pupils National Literacy Trust (2022) Understanding multilingualism in the early years. https://literacytrust.org.uk/resources/understanding-multilingualism-early-years Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2021) Census 2021 maps. https://www.ons.gov. uk/census/maps?lad=E06000016 Pretty, G., Chipuer, H., and Bramston, P. (2003) Sense of place amongst adolescents and adults in two rural Australian towns: The discriminating features of place attachment, sense of community and place dependence in relation to place identity, Journal of Environmental Psychology, 23(3), 273–287. https://doi.org/10.1016/ S0272-4944(02)00079-8 Raffaetà, R., and Duff, C. (2013) Putting belonging into place: Place experience and sense of belonging among Ecuadorian migrants in an Italian alpine region, City & Society, 25(3), 328–347. https://doi.org/10.1111/ciso.12025 Roberts, M. (2023) Powerful pedagogies for the school geography curriculum, International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 32(1), 69–84. https://doi.org/10.1080/10382046.2022.2146840 UK Government (2022) Schools, pupils and their characteristics. https://explore-educa tion-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics Üztemur, S., and Dere, İ. (2022) ‘I was not aware that I did not know’: Developing a sense of place with place-based education, Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/13511610.2022.2092457 Valentine, G., Sporton, D., and Bang-Nielsen, K. (2008) Language use on the move: Sites of encounter, identities and belonging, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 33(3), 376–387. https://www.jstor.org/stable/30131224 Vince, G. (2016) The amazing benefits of being bilingual. https://www.bbc.com/ future/article/20160811-the-amazing-benefits-of-being-bilingual Watkins, M., and Noble, G. (2021) Doing diversity differently in a culturally complex world: Critical perspectives on multicultural education. London: Bloomsbury. Yilmaz, N. (2019) Examining the effects of geography lessons taught with place based teaching to science process skills for classroom teacher candidates, Journal of Education and Training Studies, 7(2), 36–45. https://doi.org/10.11114/jets.v7i2.3693

18 TEACHING CLIMATE CHANGE THROUGH AN ATTENTION TO PLACE Catherine Walker and Andrew Vance

Introduction

Teaching on climate change is challenging for many reasons. It is a complex and often politicised topic, constituted by ever-evolving information (Puttick et  al., 2022). The emotions involved in considering the ‘affective pain’ of learning to live with climate change (Verlie, 2022, p. 12) are also challenging. Whilst teaching for transformation can be hopeful and even joyful, educators may feel overwhelmed by the issues at stake (Walker et al., 2022a). Against this backdrop, our message is hopeful and practical: climate change education (CCE) can be enhanced, focused and even transformed by attention to place. We recommend that educators begin where they are, rooting teaching in students’ and their own experiences of place. Yet we also argue that attention to place can build a sense of global solidarity when considering the differential impacts of climate change. This solidarity can be brought to life through students’ familiar and less familiar stories of climate change, particularly in classes where students have experience of living in multiple places. The chapter reviews theoretical literature on CCE and connects this to the principles, affordances and current limitations of place-based education (PBE). We then draw on research carried out in Manchester, England, and Melbourne, Australia, with migrant-background young people and educators to show how educators are using place in innovative ways to make sense of climate change. As the dynamic lens of place draws different scales into focus, we have organised reflections into making sense locally, making sense globally and making sense relationally. We end each making sense section with some practical pedagogic strategies as well as resources for educators. DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-22

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Why attention to place?

Research conducted by the UK-based campaigning organisation Teach the Future found that while 92% of the 7,682 teachers surveyed were concerned about climate change, 70% said they had ‘not received adequate training to educate students on climate change, its implications for the environment and societies around the world, and how these implications can be addressed’ (2022, pp. 2–3). This is telling; while most countries in the world refer to CCE in their United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change reporting (see UNESCO, 2019, p. 5), often there remains a gap between high-level aspirations and resourcing on the ground (Puttick et al., 2022). Given the challenges already outlined, it is unsurprising that many educators feel ill-equipped to teach sensitively and compassionately on climate change. Evidently, for adequate training of educators to take place, climate change must be prioritised by governments, requiring significant political and cultural shifts. In addition, scholar-activists have argued that the very purpose of education needs to be reconfigured around the principle of human-environmental interdependence, and oriented away from ‘workplace supply for economic growth’ to ‘the future survival of the planet’ (Common Worlds Research Collective, 2020, pp. 1–2). Teaching on climate change must be more than simply an ‘add-on’ to an existing political and pedagogic model. Considering the need for such structural changes, we do not claim that innovative teaching approaches alone are enough to resolve the challenges of teaching on climate change. Yet we are convinced of the value of attending to place in CCE, encompassing local, global and relational perspectives. Fundamentally, we argue, the effects of climate change are unique to each place, and thus must be understood in place. Nonetheless, attending to place in CCE also means attending to diversity. Diverse places are already present in classrooms through people, objects, knowledge and representations. As global migration continues – fuelled, in part, by climate change – this diversity will grow, particularly in countries of the Global North that are relatively less vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Before moving on, we offer a few words on our own positioning with regard to education in the places we write about. Catherine is a UK-based social science researcher whose interests centre on diverse youth and environmental/climate education, and she seeks to research in collaborative ways that generate pedagogic moments. Andrew is an environmental educator who works as a secondary school science teacher and at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, preparing graduate teachers for teaching environmental science. We have drawn on our combined experiences to compile this chapter.

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Climate change education and attention to place – combining pedagogic framings

CCE is an emerging pedagogical field relevant to all educational levels that builds upon yet is distinct to education for sustainable development and environmental education (Mochizuki and Bryan, 2015). Part of this distinctiveness is the ever-evolving nature of climate change, requiring acknowledgement of uncertainty and an unsettling of educators’ authority. Whilst challenging, this situation has the potential to create contexts of ‘togetherness’ and mutual learning between educators and students (Clarke and Witt, 2023; Puttick et  al., 2022; Rooney, 2019). In this way, CCE is consistent with participatory and non-hierarchical pedagogic approaches developed under the aegis of PBE, as conceptualised by Smith (2002; see discussion in Yemini et al., 2023, p. 3). The transdisciplinary nature of CCE can run the risk of inaction as it is considered everyone’s and no-one’s direct responsibility to teach. However, along with others, we argue that CCE could not be more important. Mochizuki and Bryan (2015, p.  5) write that CCE can engender ‘transformative shifts in how we think and act, and how we relate to present and future generations’, yet, as envisaged by the Common Worlds Research Collective (2020, p.  3), this requires a paradigm shift, ‘from learning about the world in order to act on it, to learning to become with the world around us’ (authors’ italics). Verlie (2022, p.  2) conceives of CCE as ‘a pedagogy .  .  . that centres human feelings as potent apparatuses to knowing climate’. These various articulations are derived from authors’ experience as educators, as well as their engagement with theoretical scholarship. To date, resourcing for CCE is most extensive in science curricula, mirroring societal and government tendencies to present climate change as an issue to be resolved through advancing scientific knowledge (Stevenson et  al., 2017). As a secondary school science teacher, Andrew has seen a doubling of enrolments in the Victoria Certificate of Education elective subject Environmental Science, largely due to an influx of students with a humanities background who are selecting a final year subject that addresses issues that resonate deeply with their values. These values, and the emotions that drive them, must be acknowledged in compassionate as well as scientifically informed ways. A systematic review comprising 270 CCE publications found that ‘very few publications were found to directly address the role of the arts and humanities in climate change education’ (Rousell and ­Cutter-Mackenzie-Knowles, 2020, p.  201). As important as it is to have a scientific foundation to understand climate change, scientific explanations alone ‘do not offer relatable, connective or inspiring accounts of human-climate relationships’, that is, what it means to ‘live with climate as a real-life, embodied person’ (Verlie, 2022, p. 3).

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Within this context, we argue that place has an invaluable role to play. Educators engaged in CCE can learn from PBE principles, notably knowledge as co-created by students and educators in specific places (Smith, 2002), and the role of place itself as instructor (Yemini et al., 2023). A focus on learning in place often means emphasis on the local; however, local places can be used to teach on global processes (Catling and Pike, 2023), and increasingly there is recognition that local place experiences can contribute to how students respond to climate change as a spatially and temporally expansive concern. For example, Rooney (2019, p. 177) writes that ‘taking the time with children to slow down and attend to the elemental affects in the world can . . . build a foundation for a curious and open attentiveness in responding to the climate challenges ahead’. A relational and multi-scalar sense of place is helpful as places near and far combine to shape students’ sense of ‘their place’ (Catling and Pike, 2023), including their local place interactions, their understandings of big issues like climate change, and their sense of responsibilities to other humans, species and the earth (Bryan, 2022; Verlie, 2022). Massey (2005, p. 141) describes place as an ‘event’ that is ‘thrown together’ through temporary encounters in time and space between people and other phenomena such as rocks, stones, trees, and thus always open to negotiation. CCE can be a conduit for such relational encounters, prompting students and educators to ‘more thoroughly empathise with others near, far, estranged and yet to come, as well as to draw strength and joy from our relations’ (Verlie, 2022, p. 9). CCE can thus expand and enrich PBE through offering a more relational and evolving sense of place and relating this to questions of climate (in)justice. Plumwood (2008, p.  139) observes that place-sensitive approaches to knowing often ‘direct our honouring of place towards an ‘official’, singular, idealised place, while disregarding the many unrecognised shadow places that provide our material and ecological support’. If Plumwood’s words remind us that place-sensitive education should not mean place in the singular, then climate change is a topic that can build a more globally and politically-attune sense of place (Bryan, 2022). Scholars are beginning to articulate how teaching on climate change can ‘move away from a vague discourse of undifferentiated responsibility and agency’ (McGregor and Christie, 2021, p. 652), highlighting different impacts, degrees of urgency and vulnerabilities in different parts of the world. A relational sense of place can help students and educators to understand themselves as active subjects rather than passive bystanders in climate change as a real-time issue affecting real places and their inhabitants, including themselves. Attending to place: insights from research

To illustrate our arguments, we turn now to present insights that show the ways that teachers spoke of using place in their teaching to make sense of climate change, that is, to bring an abstract and potentially overwhelming

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topic to life in different contexts. The insights are drawn from a research project that explored how migrant-background young people and their families learn and talk about climate change in Manchester and Melbourne, cities characterised by growing multiculturalism and ambitious climate adaptation plans. As the dynamic lens of place draws different scales into focus, teachers’ reflections are organised into three sections: making sense locally, making sense globally, and making sense relationally. About the Young People at a Crossroads Project

Reflections are drawn from Young People at a Crossroads (YPAC), a research project funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council from 2021– 2023 and led by Catherine at the University of Manchester, in collaboration with the University of Melbourne. Forty young people aged 14–18 took part, of whom 13 chose to interview one or more parents or grandparents for the research. Through young people’s own interviews and their interviews with other family members, perspectives from 34 different countries were included in the research.1 Alongside research with young people and their families, Catherine also interviewed 14 secondary school teachers or informal educators in Manchester and Melbourne about their experiences of teaching on climate change in multicultural schools. Interviews and focus groups were audio recorded, transcribed and coded in NVivo. Making sense locally – teaching in and through place

Whilst climate change presents a ‘problem of intelligibility’ because of its uncertain effects, a focus on place as lived, known and yet changing is one way that educators can ‘allow for this unassimilable knowledge to be somehow imagined and spoken about’ (Bryan, 2022, p.  333). This was seen in how educators talked about trying to make climate and ecological challenges meaningful for students. For a 15-year-old kid if you think about carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, like first of all, what’s a good amount of carbon dioxide? It’s so intangible. But to actually make it relevant to them, I do a lot of my teaching through biodiversity and first connect with kids and find out what interests them about nature and whether that’s animals or plants or going out and just being in nature. (Educator 8, Melbourne)

My big conduit for engaging different cultures and families and that sort of stuff is through food and horticulture. You then have a connector that

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is relatable for everyone, and for me gardening and plants are always like that, so if you pick something up you can smell it, and everyone smells the same thing. I think that’s a really valuable lesson in connecting with nature and understanding the environment and having a lot more empathy if you have a connection with it. (Educator 12, Melbourne) These examples show how the event of place  – in Massey’s (2005) terms, the ‘thrown togetherness’ created by multi-species interactions – becomes an interpretive frame for how climate change is impacting the natural world, potentially stimulating responsive action in students. The quotes also hint at the role of place events in creating shared understandings. Creating shared understandings through place was seen in another quote from an educator who, in response to a question about inviting students to reflect on their family ties to places in considering the differential effects of climate change, showed hesitation because of not wanting to draw attention to difference (this was noted by various educators, and is further discussed below). After a brief pause, the educator continued: I suppose, what we do quite a lot of is we try and relate it [climate change] to Manchester .  .  . we try and link some aspects of what’s happening in Manchester to, you know, making a difference in terms of mitigating against climate change . . . because they’re not living in Kenya, or Nigeria, we know that they live in Greater Manchester, so we will try and relate things to their home area, as in their current home, perhaps rather than their historical home. (Educator 7, Manchester) Whilst this example shows the educator wanting to avoid drawing attention to difference, it also shows an attempt to overcome the abstractions of climate change mitigation by grounding it in a context that students were familiar with, and in which they could act. Building attention to local place: practical strategies

• As much as possible, get out of the classroom! Aim to cultivate a sense of wonder and engender affective and cognitive learning through embodied interactions with natural phenomena. • Use local places and experiences to generate local-global empathy by relating in situ experiences to places and processes taught in curricula. • Conduct a field trip to measure the DBH (diameter at breast height) of various trees in your local area. Use this data to calculate the carbon dioxide sequestered from the atmosphere and the amount of carbon in the

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tree (biosphere). Spend time observing the structural differences between Indigenous and introduced plants in your local area and note adaptations that native trees have made to live in the environment. • Commenting on this activity, Andrew reflects: ‘Before wrapping the tape measure around the trunk, remind the students that they are ‘tree huggers’, hugging the tree ‘scientifically’. This emphasizes the personal connection students have to nature and bridges the gap between scientific investigation and our place in nature. This reinforces the fact that getting out of the classroom and honouring time to make observations is so important to building understanding’. Making sense globally: teaching about place

Educators interviewed for the YPAC research were working in schools with high levels of ethnic diversity, relative to local context. This allowed for discussions in interviews of the extent to which educators drew on students’ first-hand or ancestral knowledge as a way of bringing to life climate and ecological challenges in distant places. One educator spoke enthusiastically about this, saying: I’ve got an Indonesian student in my year 8 science class, and we were talking about the fishing nets floating around in the ocean from the illegal fishermen and we showed a video [of] Indonesian fishermen and [the] boy in the class who is Indonesian was like, ‘Oh, no, it’s so bad, but they have no choice’ and he was able to change the perspective to they’re poor, they have no choice, and the rest of the class were like, ‘Yes, right, wow’. (Educator 11, Melbourne) However, other educators explained in interviews that they were often wary of drawing attention to difference. For example: We’ve got students with some very varied backgrounds, which is phenomenal to be able to draw on in the lesson, but they might not either feel comfortable talking about it, or they might as second- or first-generation migrants have gone through difficulty . . . there’s sometimes a reluctance to talk . . . because it can either highlight difference or poverty or historical poverty. (Educator 3, Manchester) This quote exemplifies educators’ sensitivity in engaging with students’ perspectives while also highlighting the challenges and potential for using diverse place knowledge and difference to develop understandings of climate

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justice (as discussed by Bryan, 2022; McGregor and Christie, 2021; Mochizuki and Bryan, 2015; Verlie, 2022). As the effects of climate change are felt worldwide, this is increasing the potential for curriculum content to trigger emotional responses. One example of this is that a distressed student ran out of Andrew’s Environmental Science class during a short video that was used to address some of the key course content. The video was produced by the Australian Climate Council and collated media reports of bushfires that evidently had affected this student’s family directly. It was already a powerful learning experience but was made more impactful by the student’s response and subsequent willingness to share her experiences with other students. This example illustrates the need for sensitivity in use of language and resources in teaching on climate change, particularly where the content relates to contexts directly known by students. There is also a need for sensitivity in addressing the ways that many students (as well, of course, as educators) in Global North contexts are relatively more protected from effects of climate because of their country’s economic positioning in relation to countries of the South. As Bryan (2022, p.  330) observes, ‘how individuals contribute to, and benefit from, historical as well as present-day injustices’ is ‘difficult knowledge’, yet there is arguably a need to address such injustices if students are to develop understandings of the complexity of climate change. Indeed, as educators and students’ accounts show, questions of climate justice are already surfacing and can be constructively and sensitively discussed, particularly in classes where diverse perspectives are represented. Building attention to global place: practical strategies

• Use the educators’ resource that was developed from the YPAC project: ‘Stories of Climate Education, Adaptation and Action from Around the World’, to initiate, develop and deepen conversations and reflections on climate change education, adaptation and action. • List and map connections to different places represented across the student class or cohort. They could include family connections, personal experience of migration, foods consumed that day, the origin of technological devices used in the classroom or any other connections students suggest. • Engage students in building an atlas of climate vulnerability. Students map climate-related events they remember learning about or seeing in news reports. They use online or paper atlases to suggest global patterns to climate vulnerability and then discuss places that are not known about. This can lead to discussion of what gaps there are in the atlases, and why these places might be less represented in CCE.

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• Make use of citizen science projects that connect local experiences to global changes and trends. For example, in Australia, ClimateWatch is a great app that allows people to monitor wildlife in their local environment. The database makes use of the GPS system in smart devices that can be used to precisely log records of common and rare wildlife by volunteer scientists that can be verified by experts. Smartphone applications such as Giving Nature a Home (run by the RSPB in the UK) are other great introductions to species often found in domestic gardens, with tips for cultivating biodiversity. Making sense relationally: teaching across and between places

In continuing to think about how a grounding in place could assist educators to open up ‘difficult knowledge’, the following reflection from a teacher in Manchester is helpful. In this quote, the educator has just been talking in their interview about grounding understandings of the impacts of climate change in the students’ locality as a way of making climate change meaningful to students. I think it’s just that grounding it in the students’ locality. . . . You know, we probably won’t get it 100% right, but there are definitely moves in that direction all the time . . . for example, we teach about Manchester and the Industrial Revolution. Well, we now make links to how the cotton trade is linked to the slave trade . . . it’s quite hard to sort of look at your city in that way, isn’t it? You know, say to the kids, this is our city, but you know it was built on a lot of good things, but it was also built on some less good things as well. So having that awareness, I think we can do the same with climate. (Educator 7, Manchester) Here the idea of grounding potentially difficult knowledge in locality leads the educator to expand on the significance of locality as an interpretive frame, as they talk about teaching the slave trade through Manchester’s role in industrialising cotton production and the wealth this brought to the city. The educator concludes that the same critical awareness could be applied to the teaching of climate change, hinting at what climate justice education might look like through the lens of decolonisation. Here, questions raised by Plumwood (2008, p. 141) in building a more critical sense of place through a consideration of power are pertinent: ‘whose place is made better, whose worse and what patterns can be discerned?’ Such questions could be used in teaching on place and climate justice in classroom settings: indeed, as the quote by Educator 7 shows, this is already happening in some secondary classrooms.

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Building a relational sense of place: practical strategies

• As in the example of the slave trade, are there any currently missed opportunities for bringing a local perspective to bear on teaching about a historical or present-day event that links to ‘places beyond’? • Where students who have grown up in different place are happy to do so, invite them to share their recollections of how particular topics were taught in the places where they used to live, and invite other students to comment on any differences they see. Use this as a prompt to consider with students how local experiences frame the way we understand global events. • Make use of creative campaigns to help students (and teachers!) think through the global impacts of consumption habits and their own contributions. On fast fashion, Oxfam UK’s ‘Second-Hand September’ campaign offers a creative way to think through fashion choices and the recycling of garments. The campaign begins from the finding that the textile industry accounts for approximately 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. On smartphone use, Zoos Victoria’s ‘They’re calling on you’ campaign connects students in Melbourne to consider the impact of coltan mining used in Smartphones on Gorilla habitats in the Congo. Conclusion

While structural changes are necessary to prioritise and resource climate change adaptations at all levels of government, educators have a significant responsibility in building students’ practical, intellectual and emotional capacities and resilience to thrive in uncertain futures. Unlike other topics in which educators might consider themselves to be experts, adapting to climate change is something that educators themselves are learning alongside students. This chapter suggests that place itself can be an invaluable teacher in this challenging endeavour if educators allow it to be. We have sought to show this by drawing together literatures on CCE and PBE, arguing that while there is much that those engaged in CCE can learn from the relatively more established pedagogic field of PBE, the more temporally and spatially expansive perspectives necessitated for meaningful CCE can enrich and expand PBE and help to avoid singular or static understandings of an idealised place. We have presented interview reflections as stimuli for educators to consider how they might use place  – as a site of learning, a dynamic ‘event’, and a coming together of diverse global perspectives  – in their teaching on climate change. Across the chapter, we have suggested that students’ own knowledge and perspectives, particularly where these are informed by experiences of living in different places, can contribute to this teaching. Finally, we have presented ideas for how educators might encompass a local, global and relational sense of place in how they teach on climate change. These are not separate endeavours. Rather, they are necessary and

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FIGURE 18.1 Artwork

inspired by the Young People at a Crossroads project by Maisy Summer.

interconnected components that can help educators and students make sense of climate change together in a globally connected, ecologically diverse world. Note 1 The YPAC creative book, listed under ‘Further reading’ shows family migration journeys.

Further readings Helen Clarke and Sharon Witt’s (2023) ‘Paying attention with more-than-human worlds: Field-visiting’ is an engagingly written set of ‘short, focused stories of place encounters’ drawn from the authors’ fieldwork with young children. The authors use these stories to conceptualise ‘pedagogies of attention’ that are consistent with learning to become with the world envisaged by the Common Worlds Research Collective. Yoko Mochizuki and Audrey Bryan’s (2015) ‘Climate change education in the context of education for sustainable development’ is a very helpful introduction to the field of Climate Change Education. The authors present three organising principles of Climate Change Education for Sustainable Development: ensuring an integrated and interdisciplinary approach, addressing local and global perspectives, and taking a climate justice perspective.

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Catherine Walker, Kit Marie Rackley, Nerida Thompson, Maisy Summer and Young Researchers’ (2022) ‘Young people at a crossroads: Stories of climate education, adaptation and action from around the world’ is designed for educators, students and the general public. This creative resource, illustrated in Figure  18.1, includes reflections on climate change education, adaptation and action from 14–18-year-old young researchers who interviewed family members for the research project, as well as thematic summaries.

References All websites last accessed 28 May 2023 Bryan, A. (2022) Pedagogy of the implicated: Advancing a social ecology of responsibility framework to promote deeper understanding of the climate crisis, Pedagogy, Culture and Society, 30(3), 329–348. https://doi-org.elib.tcd.ie/10.1080/1468136 6.2021.1977979 Catling, S., and Pike, S. (2023) Becoming acquainted: Aspects of diversity in children’s geographies, in L. Hammond, M. Biddulph, S. Catling, and J. McKendrick (eds) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge, 83–101. Clarke, H., and Witt, S. (2023) Paying attention with more-than-human worlds: Field-visiting, in L. Hammond, M. Biddulph, S. Catling, and J. McKendrick (eds) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge, 215–231. Common Worlds Research Collective (2020) Learning to become with the world: Education for future survival. Paper commissioned for the UNESCO Futures of Education report. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000374923 Massey, D. (2005) For space. London: Sage. McGregor, C., and Christie, B. (2021) Towards climate justice education: Views from activists and educators in Scotland, Environmental Education Research, 27(5), 652–668. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2020.1865881 Mochizuki, Y., and Bryan, A. (2015) Climate change education in the context of education for sustainable development, Journal of Education for Sustainable Development, 9(1), 4–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/0973408215569109 Plumwood, V. (2008) Shadow places and the politics of dwelling, Australian Humanities Review, 44. http://australianhumanitiesreview.org/2008/03/01/shadow-placesand-the-politics-of-dwelling Puttick, S., Chandrachud, P., Chopra, R., Robson, J., Singh, S., and Talks, I. (2022) Climate change education: Follow the information, in L. Hammond, M. Biddulph, S. Catling, and J. McKendrick (eds) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge, 168–181. Rooney, T. (2019) Weathering time: Walking with young children in a changing climate, Children’s Geographies, 17(2), 177–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/1473328 5.2018.1474172 Rousell, D., and Cutter-Mackenzie-Knowles, A. (2020) A  systematic review of climate change education: Giving children and young people a ‘voice’ and a ‘hand’ in redressing climate change, Children’s Geographies, 18(2), 191–208. https://doi. org/10.1080/14733285.2019.1614532

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Smith, G. A. (2002) Place-based education: Learning to be where we are, Phi Delta Kappan, 83(8), 584–594. https://doi.org/10.1177/003172170208300806 Stevenson, R. B., Nicholls, J., and Whitehouse, H. (2017) What is climate change education? Curriculum Perspectives, 37, 67–71. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41297017-0015-9 Teach the Future (2022) Teaching the future: Research with UK teachers on the current state and future of climate education (summary report). https://www.teach thefuture.uk/teacher-research United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) (2019) Country progress on climate change education, training and public awareness: An analysis of country submissions under the United Nations framework convention on climate change. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000372164 Verlie, B. (2022) Learning to live with climate change: From anxiety to transformation. Abingdon: Routledge. Walker, C., Rackley, K. M., and Jolley, N. (2022a) Creative, sensitive and grounded in diverse perspectives: Why we need inclusive climate change education. https:// blogs.manchester.ac.uk/sci/2022/11/09/creative-sensitive-and-grounded-indiverse-perspectives-why-we-need-inclusive-climate-change-education/ Walker, C., Rackley, K. M., Thompson, N., Summer, M., and Young Researchers (2022b) Young people at a crossroads: Stories of climate education, adaptation and action from around the world. www.sci.manchester.ac.uk/research/projects/ young-people-at-a-crossroads/project-resources/ Yemini, M., Engel, L., and Simon, A. B. (2023) Place-based education – a systematic review of literature, Educational Review, online, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/ 00131911.2023.2177260

19 EXPLORING THE GEOGRAPHICAL PALIMPSEST OF PLACE THROUGH FIELDWORK Alan Marvell, David Simm, Cyril Clark and Kerry Thompson

Introduction

This chapter explores the importance of encountering place through fieldwork using a palimpsest approach. Students at school and university gain a more holistic perception of place by using multiple strategies to uncover meanings of both the present and the past. An example of urban fieldwork is used to illustrate how the palimpsest approach can be adapted from ­pre-COVID-19 pandemic contexts in higher education (HE) to upper secondary school level. Integrating a palimpsest approach into teaching offers a geographical understanding of place that underpins geographical learning. The approach also offers a way forward post-pandemic, to support the learning of students and to instil a natural curiosity in the wider world. Geography is inherently a discipline founded on experiential learning and active engagement with the wider world (Fuller et al., 2006). Fieldwork is a signature pedagogy of geography (Seow et al., 2019) and demonstrates that inquiry-based learning in situ enables the connection between an embodied experience and a sense of place. Fieldwork, whether at a local or international scale, allows students to make connections between what they experience and broader geographic theories. In so doing, they can reflect and become active participants in synthesising and even creating geographical thought (Marcus, 2021). Students have the potential to actively demonstrate transformative learning (Mezirow, 2000), as they begin to actively question their own feelings and assumptions which leads to a change in their personal perspective. With the emotional turn in geography, attention has focused more on lived experiences and the emotional and affective role whilst being in place (Burlingame, 2021). Students can also act as co-researchers in the DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-23

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process of collecting and analysing fieldwork data and making sense of their feelings and findings (Marvell and Simm, 2022). This experiential form of learning is not only part of the geographic tradition but is an example of high-impact educational practice (Praskievicz, 2022). In turn, this leads to a deeper understanding of place and the dynamic processes at work within it and can be applied across a range of educational settings. Fieldwork is important in enhancing the learning experiences of students (France and Haigh, 2018) and is more effective through learning with others (West et al., 2023). The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the opportunity for many students to actively engage in live fieldwork during their academic studies. Geography departments switched to online teaching (Bryson and Andres, 2020), with some creating virtual fieldtrips for their students with varying success (Yoon and Mecca, 2022). Students who had previous experience of information technology and gaming more readily embraced digital fieldwork resources whilst there was a general acknowledgement that the physical nature of being ‘in the field’ was being lost (Wright et  al., 2022). Li  et  al. (2022) discovered that virtual attendance is not always advantageous to teaching and learning and skills such as teamwork, leadership and communication suffered as a result. Yet their evidence also suggests that personal skills such as visual observation, note-taking and organisation were perceived by students to be enhanced by an online approach to fieldwork. However, this approach to fieldwork does not provide the experiences necessary for the creation of non-representational and embodied knowledge as these can only be realised by emotional experiences in the field (Wang et al., 2021). As such students gain a greater understanding of place through using their senses and learning from experience. Although these studies are based in HE contexts, the experiences of students are also applicable pre-university. Fundamental changes to the fieldtrip experience brought about by COVID19 had a series of consequences for new undergraduate students in the UK who were embarking on first-year university fieldwork, some with little in the way of preparation. While some fieldwork was conducted locally and more in situ fieldwork was possible as to because restrictions eased, the experience for students has been challenging. Reconnecting students to fieldwork in post-pandemic times

A small-scale survey of first-year undergraduate students was undertaken in October 2022 at one HE institution in southwest England to ascertain their fieldwork experiences at school and college. Although the sample represents a cohort that was directly affected by COVID-19 restrictions, the study provides a picture of the experiences and needs of current students and reinforces that fieldwork is integral to learning at all levels. The study surveyed 43 first-year undergraduates, 15 identifying as male (35%), 26 female (60%)

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and 2 other (5%) on a compulsory geography module, shortly after starting their degree courses, providing a timely window to recall and reflect on their field opportunities and experiences over the preceding years. Predominantly, 35 students had taken geography at both General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE, 14–16 years) and A-level or International Baccalaureate (16–18 years) (81%), 4 taking GCSE only (9%), 1 A-level/International Baccalaureate only (2%), but notably 3 students (7%) had not studied geography at any qualification level. The number of days of fieldwork declared by the respondents during their school examination programmes was typically four or less. Fewer students had the opportunity to take ten or more days, mostly associated with international fieldtrips taken during the periods when COVID-19 restrictions eased. Significantly, only three respondents reported that fieldwork was cancelled, and no alternatives offered. Some students were offered more than one chance to participate in fieldwork, predominantly 75 fieldtrip occurrences (93%) were local or regional day trips and these were often split into human and physical geography activity days. Residential fieldwork consisted of UK destinations on 14 occurrences (33% of students) and relatively few international (European) destinations were mentioned by 6 students (14%). Students were also asked to comment qualitatively on their fieldwork experience. Student experiences of being in place were varied, ranging from nonplussed to being enthusiastic. Their affective experiences were influenced by good or inclement weather conditions, the topic studied and the location. Some respondents expressed anxieties, in particular when visiting less affluent areas of cities, or separation from friends not on the trip, and anxiety about COVID-19: ‘I felt confused at the start and lost especially . . . as it was a city I had never been before as well as [feeling] unsafe as [the area] is quite deprived’ (Student A), another student commented ‘the area is quite dangerous . . . I [felt I] was on edge’ (Student B). Some respondents commented that the field days were too short or too rushed or felt that they were not fully supported by teachers. This may, in part, be due to rescheduling and limited time windows, as well as practicalities, to undertake fieldwork between lockdowns and restrictions: ‘[I] Didn’t gain much understanding at A-level, just going through motions of data collection’ (Student C). Many students clearly found the field teaching and experiences inspiring and motivating, and many appreciated the opportunity to relate the theory learned in class to the real world, especially to practise using equipment and to collect their own data for projects: ‘A great way of getting out and looking at the work that we had been doing in the classroom’ (Student D). This small-scale study highlights the importance of fieldwork as integral to learning. As the cohort had been significantly affected by the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, the study firstly provides an insight into the learning histories of current students (with subsequent cohorts affected in lesser

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but possibly different ways); and, secondly, highlights the value of fieldwork for developing resilience, at a period when a higher proportion of students are experiencing anxieties that affect their studies. Thus, finding ways of maximising the experiences in the field and building emotional intelligence can help to develop students on their learning journey. The authors posit that adopting a palimpsest approach at A-level or even GCSE and at Key Stage Three (11–14 years), can help to address these specific issues. Palimpsest: a window on the world of geography

A palimpsest can be used to better understand and engage with place and bring together multisensory observations of material, visual, cultural and social experiences of place (Powell, 2010). A  palimpsest is traditionally regarded as a parchment or tablet that has been written upon several times. Each time an attempt is made to erase the old text and replace it with new. However, the process of erasure and resurfacing is not complete and often leaves traces of what existed before with the previous erased texts still partly visible. What is produced is ‘a palimpsest representing the sum of all the erasures and over-writings’ (Crang, 1998, p. 22). Modern usage of the term was introduced by Thomas de Quincey in 1845 in his essay ‘The Palimpsest’ where he examines the human brain and its layers of consciousness and memory (Quincey, 2019), although the term was in common use prior to this. Since then, the term has been applied to areas such as architecture, geography, geology, glaciology, biochemistry and computing (Dillon, 2005). The palimpsest is not easily read in linear or sequential time as each layer is comprised of what existed before (Okello and Duran, 2021). Instead, the palimpsest can be considered as a composite and presents traces of the past in the present. As such it can be read and interpreted as a whole with each layer adding its own text. In so doing, the meanings that are inscribed by the reader are not fixed and change over time as meanings are the result of social relations and re-interpretations (Barthes, 1977). Landscapes can be regarded as palimpsests, consisting of superimposed layers of geography, history, culture and politics (Marvell and Simm, 2016) and can be read as if they were a series of texts (Duncan and Duncan, 1988). Within the landscape, the objects that surround us give shape and meaning to our being, belonging and beliefs and exist entangled in a series of complex networks (Colwell, 2022). By revealing and interpreting these superimposed layers, a deeper sense of place can be achieved as well as a greater understanding of the processes at work. Landscapes are in a continuous process of change where features are created, removed or reconfigured. As such these processes are not just natural but cultural (Sauer, 1925). Sauer (1925/1963) identified the changing nature of landscapes and how they are constructed through time, postulating that landscapes should be understood as ‘palimpsests’ which Anderson (2010,

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p.  20) describes ‘as surfaces with multiple inscriptions that build up over time and mark the presence and passing of different cultural groups’. As such a contemporary landscape is an amalgamation of present and past cultures that can be applied to urban and physical environments (Shep, 2015). A palimpsest can be likened to archaeology as geographers begin stripping away layers to uncover historical meaning. Offering contemporary perspectives on historical objects facilitates an opportunity to produce new insights and potentially identify new layers of meaning (Benacer et al., 2022). Places are constructed through meaning and with it understanding, as personal and cultural identity is bound up with place. Meaningful interpretations are produced when ‘relation to place is intimately bound up with the embodied nature of perception’ (Massey, 2004, p. 8). Places offer a sense of attachment and security (and yet for others challenge and repulsion) through meaningful symbols and actions (Tuan, 1977). However, the opinions of places are often transient as people and places change over time (Catling and Pike, 2022). As such it is necessary not just to study the formation of places through time but to also study the reactions and encounters associated with place. Places may exhibit multiple meanings to those that experience them, brought about by an individual’s relationship with that place through a diversity of lived experiences, education, religion, gender, demographics, values, cultural identification and other factors. As such individuals may encounter the same place yet interpret it in different ways. Landscapes are therefore polysemic as there is no singular interpretation of a place. As Kroessler (2015, p.  9) suggests the ‘palimpsest is an ideal metaphor for the living city.  .  .  . The palimpsest city sets the values and contributions of our own time among the monuments of the past’. By encountering the city and stripping back the layers, the past is ever more present. Those that encounter it become more attune to its evolution and the multiple histories that are seen to coexist. The palimpsest approach invokes a greater sense of place and an understanding of how it has come to be and what it signifies in the present. Using a palimpsest approach in field teaching: Hessle Road, Hull

Fieldwork allows students to experience different situations and locations and begin to make attachments and connections between people and place (Marvell and Simm, 2016). The palimpsest helps to make connections between the present and the past and the many processes that have shaped and defined a particular place. Using a palimpsest approach in field teaching is made possible by • immersing students in situ so that they can experience the place through their senses; • observing and witnessing the movements and processes that are occurring;

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• identifying ‘layers’ in terms of development over time but also through cultural, social and historical references; • relating observations to geographical theories and historical events; and • selecting either specific aspects for interpretation or providing a holistic understanding. This can be combined with a variety of traditional fieldwork data collection methods, and in addition, the palimpsest can provide an initial way into observing a landscape and be applied at the end of the project to bring everything together through an analytical framework. The approach can be applied to international and domestic fieldtrips that allow students to experience an unfamiliar setting and apply their geographical skills to reveal the palimpsest and therefore gain a greater understanding (Marvell et al., 2013). Students learn better from first-hand experience which has the potential to transform their perception of and attachment to place (Simm and Marvell, 2015). Even when applied to familiar environments, awareness of processes affecting change and development can become visible and offer a renewed sense of wonder and enquiry (Pike, 2021). Clark and Spamer (2017) used a palimpsest approach when designing fieldwork to support an A-level Geography unit on ‘Changing Places’ based on Hessle Road in Hull, UK. This inner-city area has suffered from urban decay having once been the heart of Hull’s fishing industry (Gerrard, 2021). It has since fallen into long-term economic and social decline and is currently undergoing a period of regeneration (Clark and Spamer, 2017). Inspired by the article by Marvell and Simm (2016), they adapted the approach to gain a deeper understanding and create a coherent narrative of the area. Geography fieldtrips at A-level often focus on teaching individual fieldwork techniques and research methods. To the students they can appear unconnected, losing an overall sense of purpose about how the methods combine to create a sense of place. Clark and Spamer (2017) decided that to gain a holistic perspective, they would adopt a palimpsest approach. To understand the contemporary nature of Hessle Road it was necessary to reconstruct traces of the past using historical maps, census data, old photographic images oral histories, songs, poetry, vernacular words and phrases: ‘The fieldwork was planned around the palimpsest approach and a strategy of using our “geographical eyes” to peel back the layers of Hessle Road’ (Clark and Spamer, 2017, p.  61). Students were tasked with identifying layers in the urban landscape and to suggest what it means for people living in the area. As Kerry Thompson (née Spamer), one of the teachers who applied the palimpsest approach, explains: Hessle Road lends itself to a fieldwork study that unravels the palimpsest. There are still visible traces of the rich history of Hessle Road everywhere you look. The murals on the walls show head scarf revolutionaries whilst

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FIGURE 19.1  Word

cloud of Hessle Road (Source: Questionnaire data, created with freewordcloudgenerator.com).

sympathetic renovation of key buildings that are rich in history. Visiting the area against a classroom study of census data, historical photographs, maps, newspaper records, and songs gives the students a real appreciation and vision of how the area has transformed through time. Under guidance from their teachers, students selected six sites, and as part of their fieldwork techniques produced annotated field sketches, mapped land use and included a bipolar quality decay assessment to record their perceived environmental quality of the area. This was supported with a questionnaire, where students asked residents and visitors about their perceptions of Hessle Road. The results were displayed in word clouds that allowed an instant visualisation of the frequency of words. Some of the main words were shops, better, past, variety, friendly, eyesore, community diversity and safe (see ­Figure 19.1). As a student observed, ‘For example, some people may think that it is a deprived and dirty area, whilst others talk about the variety of shops’ (Student A-level 1). Experiencing issues around urban inequality presents emotional and ethical challenges. One student felt uneasy about drawing conclusions from deprivation and environmental quality data, as it was regarded as being disrespectful to residents: ‘We have no right to judge others housing and determine that their houses link to their quality of life’ (Student A-level 2). The combination of techniques allowed students to reflect on their experiences: A good thing about the research was that we got to see how Hessle Road has changed since the 19th century, in which at first it was a turnpike, in which people had to pay to use in order to travel to surrounding places such as Hessle, to an area full of working class people working in the

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fishing industry, living in poor ‘slum like’ conditions and low wages, to ultimately an area full of shops in which many people travel to daily. (Student A-level 1) After the fieldwork, students were asked a series of reflective questions, including, ‘Have we stripped back the palimpsest of Hessle Road?’ In response a student remarked, ‘It made us look and made us ask questions. I find myself walking through town and looking and wondering how it came to be like this’ (Clark and Spamer, 2017, p. 62). Discussion

Whilst on fieldwork, students learn from experiencing unfamiliar cultures and places, but as part of the assessment they engage in deeper learning (Simm and Marvell, 2015). These experiences of being in place can be emotionally charged as students are confronted with unfamiliar situations, mild culture shock, challenging physical and climatic conditions and the stresses of group work and intensity of working in the field (Marvell and Simm, 2021). Even when organising fieldwork in a local setting, students may not have visited the area before or rely on popular perceptions. The palimpsest reveals new information and experiences that can render the seemingly familiar, unfamiliar, and through experience a deeper understanding and reflection can occur. Since COVID-19, teachers are more aware of the emotional needs and wellbeing of students. Not only do teachers have a duty of care but need to be mindful that the very feelings and emotions created during the fieldtrip affect the students’ sense and perception of place. Students are likely to exhibit strong emotions on fieldwork in an unfamiliar setting with the pressure of assessment and are also often tired or disorientated (Marvell, 2008). But within these borderland spaces of learning, away from the comfort of the classroom, students can gain a greater personal and academic perspective of the geography of their fieldwork area (Hill et al., 2016). Teachers need to be aware of areas that have the potential to challenge the perception and confidence of their students and as such should demonstrate compassionate pedagogies to build confidence and understanding (Hill et al., 2019). By exploring the palimpsest, students can critically reflect on their experiences and begin to make informed judgements about their fieldwork location. As Cyril Clark, one of the teachers who applied the palimpsest approach explains: The palimpsest approach allows students to become more emotionally immersed in the geography of the area and gain a deeper understanding. It encourages them to develop a ‘geographical eye’ by looking and asking questions of what they see. Why are the buildings of different heights and styles? What is the significance of that statue, fountain or mural? They

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begin to empathise with the economic and social challenges that other approaches would not give then access to. The palimpsest develops and enhances observational skills as students look deeper into their immediate surroundings. It enables the exploration of complex geographical issues by breaking these down into layers or subsequent parts. By introducing the approach at A-level it offers a way into understanding landscape and is useful preparation for studies in Higher Education. It introduces students to new environments and opens up new insights into familiar ones. The palimpsest complements traditional approaches of data collection and project work as a way into understanding landscape and the importance of self-reflection. The impact of COVID-19 has had a noticeable impact on teachers’ approach to fieldwork. The adoption of the palimpsest approach has helped to mitigate against some of the immediate challenges and concerns, as Cyril Clark further explains: Covid had an impact on students in the sense that they looked inward, had reduced opportunities to look outside of their immediate environment. The long-held tradition in Geography that ‘geographers do it in the field’ was not available to them. A palimpsest approach was helpful in making students look and question what they were seeing. Being told what to look for helped in this respect. The major modification to our approach to fieldwork was to include an element of field teaching and to a certain extent determined our route through the area. The chosen route, based on prior knowledge, attempted to walk through the layers to establish the extent to which the built environment reflected past ages and led to questions on lived experience as the palimpsest revealed itself. The approach we took opened the eyes of our students and gave them the confidence when conducting their own fieldwork investigations. Conclusion

A palimpsest approach to fieldwork offers a way to reveal and understand a wide range of events that can be identified through the traces that they leave behind and the meanings and representations that they form (Crang, 1996). The example of Hessle Road demonstrates that the palimpsest offers a holistic approach to reveal the traces and meanings of the past that exist in the present. It encourages deeper learning by revealing potential avenues of investigation to inform a sense of place. This can be important in allowing an ‘outsider’ to begin to appreciate and understand what it is like for people who live and work there. A palimpsest approach can also be introduced earlier in a student’s educational career providing foundational contexts, deciphering

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landscapes and identifying and unravelling complexity. For example, Hammond and El Rashidi (2018) have used the approach with students aged 13–14 years, demonstrating how a palimpsest can been applied to their evaluation of the Layers of London project, developing students’ understanding of London as a historical place. As students reflect on their series of encounters and experiences, they begin to interpret them and in turn create new knowledge and understanding about the present and the past. This informs a deeper understanding of place and helps encourage a wider curiosity of the world. However, the evidence within the palimpsest must be carefully selected by both students and teachers as this will determine which stories and histories are rendered visible: ‘As each era is overtaken by the next, so it leaves traces and redundancies, obsolesces and irrationalities – things that remain as a mark’ (Crang, 1996, p. 430). The history and development of an area can be portrayed in many ways and as such the evidence can be evaluated in context, to avoid introducing a biased perspective. What the palimpsest should do is to offer many possible interpretations. As Gieryn (2000, p. 465) states, the meanings associated with a sense of place are ‘pliable in the hands of different people, malleable over time, and inevitably contested’. By allowing students to explore a diversity of meaning, they deepen their understanding and acknowledge the complexities of place and develop a wider appreciation of the world around them. Further readings Clark and Spamer (2017) apply the work of Marvell and Simm with A-level geography students to explore the palimpsest of Hessle Road, Hull. Hammond and El Rashidi (2018) apply a palimpsest approach to reveal layers of London with Key Stage three geography students. Marvell and Simm (2016) explores how to construct a palimpsest during a fieldtrip to Barcelona, Spain.

References Anderson, J. (2010) Understanding cultural geography, places and traces. Abingdon: Routledge. Barthes, R. (1977) Death of the author. Image, music, text (S. Heath, trans). London: Fontana Press. Benacer, H., Golkar, N., and Aouissi, B. (2022) Public spaces as a palimpsest of city layers: The case of Baharestan Square in Tehran (Iran), Journal of the Geographical Institute Jovan Cvijic SASA, 72, 341–353. https://doi.org/10.2298/IJGI2203341B Bryson, J. R., and Andres, L. (2020) Covid-19 and rapid adoption and improvisation of online teaching: Curating resources for extensive versus intensive online learning experiences, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 44(4), 608–623. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2020.1807478

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Burlingame, K. (2021) Learning by feeling: Excursions into the affective landscape, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2 021.1977917 Catling, S., and Pike, S. (2022) Becoming acquainted: Aspects of diversity in children’s geographies, in L. Hammond, M. Biddulph, S. Catling, and J. H. McKendrick (eds) Children, education and geography: Rethinking intersections. Abingdon: Routledge. Clark, C., and Spamer, K. (2017) Unravelling the Palimpsest of Hessle Road, Hull, Teaching Geography, 42(2), 60–62. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26383128 Colwell, C. (2022) A  palimpsest theory of objects, Current Anthropology, 63(2), 129–157. https://doi.org/10.1086/719851 Crang, M. (1998) Cultural geography. London: Routledge. Crang, M. (1996) Envisioning urban histories: Bristol as palimpsest, postcards, and snapshots, Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 28(3), 429–452. https://doi.org/10.1068/a280429 Dillon, S. (2005) Reinscribing De Quincey’s palimpsest: The significance of the ­palimpsest in contemporary literary and cultural studies, Textual Practice, 19(3), 243–263. https://doi.org/10.1080/09502360500196227 Duncan, J., and Duncan, N. (1988) (Re)Reading the landscape, Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 6(2), 117–126. https://doi.org/10.1068/d060117 France, D., and Haigh, M. (2018) Fieldwork@40: Fieldwork in geography higher education, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 42(4), 498–514. https:// doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2018.1515187 Fuller, I., Edmondson, S., France, D., Higgitt, D., and Ratinen, I. (2006) International perspectives on the effectiveness of geography fieldwork for learning, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 30(1), 89–101. https://doi. org/10.1080/03098260500499667 Gerrard, J. (2021) Hessle Road went from being the spiritual heart of hull’s fishing industry to long-term decline. The Yorkshire Post. https://www.yorkshirepost. co.uk/news/people/the-story-of-how-hessle-road-went-from-being-the-spiritualheart-of-hulls-fishing-industry-to-long-term-decline-3262777 Gieryn, T. F. (2000) A space for place in sociology, Annual Review of Sociology, 26, 463–496. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.26.1.463 Hammond, L., and El Rashidi, S. (2018) ‘Layers of London’ – a rich geographical palimpsest, Geography, 103(1), 42–45. Hill, J., Healey, R. L., West, H., and Déry, C. (2019) Pedagogic partnership in higher education: Encountering emotion in learning and enhancing student wellbeing, Journal of Geography Higher Education, 45(2), 167–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/ 03098265.2019.1661366 Hill, J., Thomas, G., Diaz, A., and Simm, D. (2016) Borderland spaces for learning partnership: Opportunities, benefits and challenges, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 40(3), 375–393. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2016.114 4728 Kroessler, J. A. (2015) The city as palimpsest. CUNY Academic Works. https:// academicworks.cuny.edu/jj_pubs/42/ Li, Y., Krause, S., McLendon, A., and Jo, I. (2022) Teaching a geography field methods course amid the Covid-19 pandemic: Reflections and lessons learned, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2022. 2041571

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Marcus, A. P. (2021) Using ‘autogeography,’ sense of place and place-based approaches in the pedagogy of geographic thought, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2021.1991290 Marvell, A. (2008) Student-led presentations in situ: The challenges to presenting on the edge of a volcano, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 32(2), 321– 335. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098260701514173 Marvell, A., and Simm, D. (2016) Unravelling the geographical palimpsest through fieldwork: Discovering a sense of place, Geography, 101(3), 125–136. https://doi. org/10.1080/00167487.2016.12093996 Marvell, A., and Simm, D. (2021) Encountering emotions during international fieldwork: Using innovative pedagogies to develop emotional intelligence and resilience, in J. E. Wessell (ed) Experiential learning in geography. Cham: Springer, 57–75. Marvell, A., and Simm, D. (2022) integrating assessment effectively into international fieldwork: A case study using student-led teaching and learning, in T. Bourke, R. Mills, and R. Lane (eds) Assessment in geographical education: An international perspective. Key challenges in geography. Cham: Springer, 101–122. Marvell, A., Simm, D., Schaaf, R., and Harper, R. (2013) Students as scholars: Evaluating student-led learning and teaching during fieldwork, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 37(4), 547–566. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2013.8 11638 Massey, D. (2004) Geographies of responsibility, Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography, 86(1), 5–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0435-3684.2004.00150.x Mezirow, J. (2000) Learning as transformation: Critical perspectives on a theory in progress. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. Okello, W. K., and Duran, A. (2021) Here and there, then and now: Envisioning a palimpsest methodology, International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 20. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069211042233 Pike, S. (2021) Experiential learning in geography teacher education: Encountering geography in the immediate environment, in J. E. Wessell (ed) Experiential learning in geography: Experience, evaluation and encounters. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. Powell, K. (2010) Making sense of place: Mapping as a multisensory research method, Qualitative Inquiry, 16(7), 539–555. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077800410372600 Praskievicz, S. (2022) Field-based local stream research in undergraduate classes: An inquiry-based approach, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi. org/10.1080/03098265.2022.2065667 Quincey de, T. (2019) Suspiria de profundis. Thrift edn. New York: Dover Publications Inc. Sauer, C. (1925/1963) The morphology of landscape, reprinted in J. Leighly (ed) Land and life: A selection from the writings of Carl Ortwin Sauer. Berkley: University of California Press, 315–350. Seow, T., Chang, J., and Irvine, K. N. (2019) Field-based inquiry as a signature pedagogy for geography in Singapore, Journal of Geography, 118(6), 227–237. https:// doi.org/10.1080/00221341.2018.1561740 Shep, S. J. (2015) Urban palimpsests and contending signs, Social Semiotics, 25(2), 209–216. https://doi.org/10.1080/10350330.2015.1010322 Simm, D., and Marvell, A. (2015) Gaining a ‘sense of place’: Students’ affective experiences of place leading to transformative learning on international fieldwork,

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Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 39(4), 595–616. https://doi.org/10.10 80/03098265.2015.1084608 Tuan, Y. F. (1977) Space and place: The perspective of experience. Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota Press. Wang, M., Wu, J., An, N., and Lin, M. (2021) The effect of emotional experiences in fieldwork: Embodied evidence from a visual approach, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2021.2005002 West, H., Hill, J., Abzhaparova, A., Cox, A., and Alexander, A. (2023) Pandemic pedagogies: Reflecting on online learning using the community of inquiry framework, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098 265.2023.2190962 Wright, P. N., Whitworth, M., Tibaldi, A., Bonali, F., Nomikou, P., Antoniou, V., Vitello, F., Becciani, U., Krokos, M., and Van Wyk de Vries, B. (2022) Student evaluations of using virtual reality to investigate natural hazard field sites, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/03098265.2022.204 5573 Yoon, H., and Mecca, M. (2022) Fieldwork from desktop: Webdoc for teaching in the time of pandemic, Journal of Geography in Higher Education. https://doi.org/10. 1080/03098265.2022.2045575

CONCLUSION Encountering ideas of place in education: Looking to the future Susan Pike and Emma Rawlings Smith

Introduction

The authors of the chapters within Encountering Ideas of Place in Education have explored the possibilities of place in education, through authentic learning in and through place for children and young people. The chapters are both academically rigorous and practically orientated, providing a vision and inspiration for all educators considering or using place-based learning. Within this conclusion we re-examine the scholarship across the chapters, to consider future practices in encountering place in education. We use the three stages of place in education: Children, young people and place, followed by Education, place and children and young people, and finally Place and children and young people’s futures. Within each section we explore experiences, changes in experience and opportunities for place in education: Children, young people and place

Children and young people’s lives are place-based, as they play, learn and socialise in places, often near their homes (Rasmussen, 2004). As toddlers, they have a sense of the layout and activities that occur in their homes and communities, both inside and outside. As Green (2018) notes, play in familiar places, under beds or in constructed indoor dens, ensures imaginative meanings for places. As they interact with others, children give spaces meaning, and begin to appreciate the meanings other people have (Massey, 2005). Tuan noted that what begins as undifferentiated space gradually becomes a place as people shape it and give it value (1977). As described within the chapters on early childhood in this book, through such experiences, children develop a sense of place. DOI: 10.4324/9781003386162-24

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Like their parents and grandparents before them, children also interact, play and learn in their community. They are part of what makes a place distinct, as Massey notes ‘space is never closed, never fixed, as space is always in the process of becoming as relations unfold’ (2005, p. 9). Such space facilitates movement, but to be ‘in place’ requires a pause, as Tuan noted ‘each pause in movement makes it possible for location to be transformed into place’ (1977, p. 6). This is something young children often do, in their homes and localities and not always as adults expect them to (Nairn et al., 2003). However, as explored in this book, children’s experiences in place are changing. There is evidence they spend less time in local places than in the past, and when they do so, they are more likely to be with adults. At the same time, their connections to virtual places, via computer games and phones, are expanding, but as explored in the book, educators can build on this expertise children and young people have. As educators, we can also (re)connect children to real places. Inside we can refer to people and places, we can take children out into local places and so use place(s) as a learning resource as explored in most of the chapters. As described throughout the book, for such actions to embrace place, they do require conscious efforts to embed place practices. These involve not only being in place but also slowing down in place, purposely using slow pedagogies for the benefit of children and young people (Payne and Wattchow, 2008). This action provides opportunities firstly for learning experiences, and secondly, to learn from reflecting on such experience (Dewey, 1938). As Tuan (2012, p. 129) notes ‘experience takes time and calls for patience’, so as educators we need to be patient and plan to slow down to enable children and young people to connect with us, with each other and with people and place. Within this process, meaningful relationships can be built, as power relationships can be transformed in outdoor spaces. Once this occurs, as is evident in most chapters in this book, encountering place will lead to learning in place. Education, place and children and young people

Making connections with and through place is time well-spent. This process of slowing, even for a short time, provides space for curiosity, thought and reflection as learning experiences. This is especially so outdoors, as Ord and Leather (2011, p. 19) note ‘experience of the outdoors cannot be removed from the thoughts, ideas and ultimately the ‘meanings’ we make of it’. Encountering places does not stop here, encountering place provides both pedagogies and content for high-quality learning as outlined throughout this book. In fact, the many opportunities outlined in this book align with the many priorities for education. Drawing on a range of research and policy, Darling-Hammond et  al. (2020) suggest the global emerging consensus on

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learning and development, including the relationships and learning opportunities, needed to promote healthy development and transferable learning. Encountering place in education contributes enormously to these, as show in Table 20.1, providing opportunities for engaging with and extending situational knowledge. As outlined in the chapters within this book, educators enable children and young people understand the physical, social, political and creative world beyond their own experiences. By real-time interactions with people and place, it is likely that their accommodation of concepts or schemas and the process of assimilation of events or experiences into existing concepts or schemas (Piaget, 1962) could be strengthened. The physical closure of educational institutions and shift online during the COVID-19 pandemic reminded TABLE 20.1 Education and encountering place, adapted from Darling-Hammond

et al. (2020, p.98) Key requirements for education

How encountering place in education supports children and young people towards the requirements

Supportive environmental conditions that foster strong relationships and community

Experiencing strengthening of relationships during learning in place Gaining a sense of belonging through interactions in local places Developing purpose through engaging with local issues and actions. Being listened to in relation to experiences in place Improving motivation through learning via enquirybased learning Scaffolded to be curious and asking questions about place Learning new concepts through experience in place Taking part in engaging activity before, during and after being in place Experiencing the challenges of enquiry-based learning Being challenged by activity in places to develop resilience Developing self-efficacy through challenging learning Gaining interpersonal skills through interactions with others outside in place Reflecting forward and back on learning, including enhancing capabilities Experiencing places to interact differently with educators and peers Engaging with local spaces and places, communities and people Connecting with people and places Opportunities to be agentic locally

Productive instructional strategies that support motivation, ­competence and self-directed learning

Social and emotional learning that fosters skills, habits and mindsets

System of supports that enable healthy ­development, respond to student needs and address learning barriers

Conclusion  269

us of the learning that such outdoor and virtual learning spaces in networked communities could provide valuable educational opportunities. As noted within the chapters of this book, this is not a new proposal. In fact, Joyce’s Handbook for School Management and Methods of Teaching, ran to 25 editions in the nineteenth century, specifically suggesting lessons were ‘best given in the open air’ (for example, 1868, p. 216). In the 1900s, in Ireland, the curriculum emphasised the use of local places, asking the children ‘not merely to take in knowledge from books, but to observe with intelligence, the material world around them’ (INTO, 1995, p. 7). Since these publications, there have now been two global pandemics, and there may be others within the lives of the students we teach. Although there were many benefits of remote learning in education, it did accentuate the digital and academic divide that had always existed between those with and without access to the Internet and technological devices; these injustices became more visible in the digital world (Andrew et al., 2020). Azorín (2020, p. 381) argued that the pandemic was ‘a golden opportunity to rethink what matters most in education’, noting two possibilities; a return to traditional education or a transformation to another education. Fullan notes that there growing structural issues with education before this time, and ‘considerable pent-up energy to make some changes’ and that ‘Covid-19 exposed and exacerbated what was wrong with the system but has also provided opportunities to make changes amidst the confusion’ (2020, p.  25). And war in Ukraine and global environmental crises continue to create a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world which impacts on children and young people’s views of place. Many children and young people have already changed their attitude towards school, with overall patterns of lower attendance, completion and attainment, although there is no data on this from many countries (Betthäuser et al., 2023). These issues can make us return to Biesta’s (2015) fundamental question for educators, what is education for? It is an opportune time to question what children and young people should to learn and how, and to reimagine education. It has never been more timely to be guided by bell hooks to ‘teach in a manner that respects and cares for the souls of our students . . . to provide the necessary conditions where learning can most deeply and intimately begin’ (1994, p.  13). Once this occurs, learning in place can lead to thought and actions for the future in place, as explored in differing ways across the book. Place and children and young people’s futures

As previously outlined, learning in and through place can take children and young people beyond their everyday thinking examining how a place has developed, or how it may be in the future (Bernstein, 1999). This is essential

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as children and young people are subject to social and economic forces that structure and limit their geographies (Aitken, 2018; Gruenewald, 2003), although they are agentic on working around these (Holloway and Valentine, 2000). As educators, we need to appreciate the need to be ‘discerning and attentive to those places and practices in which social agency has been denied and produced’ (Giroux, 2020, p. 1). And Apple (2013) argues, the structures of society must be challenged but that the most appealing ways to do this is through projects which attempt to make an immediate material and visible difference in children and young people’s own places. The role of educators is to facilitate and scaffold learning, so children and young people learn in and connect with their community and the wider world to develop as critically engaged citizens (Giroux, 2016). As is evident in the chapters in this book, authentic engagement with people and places, along with traditional and technological tools can enable such actions (Schlemper et al., 2018). Learning in and through place provides a context for children and young people’s learning for both their present and futures. At a time when the future of the planet as our home is in immediate threat, children and young people’s places provide opportunities for action. This can be soft, in terms of bounded actions or hard, in terms of actions that question the systems of power within place, that have given rise to the issues we face. Within the chapters of this book, authors have theorised and exemplified actions for both dimensions of looking to the future (Andreotti, 2014). Conclusion

Educators play a most significant role in facilitating and guiding learning experiences, as is very evident throughout the chapters here in Encountering Ideas of Place in Education. Providing space in education for children and young people to engage in slow(er) pedagogies which allow deeper thinking in and about the world around them will better prepare them as global citizens able to critically reflect on and act for the changing world. We hope this book will be used by educators to celebrate, critique and develop their practices and be a source of inspiration as to how to use the wonder and potential of place, especially local places, for using experiential, place-based and future-orientated pedagogies. References All websites last accessed 2 June 2023. Aitken, S. C. (2018) Children’s geographies: Tracing the evolution and involution of a concept, Geographical Review, 108(1), 3–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/gere.12289 Andreotti, V. O. (2014) Soft versus critical global citizenship education, in S. McCloskey (ed) Development education in policy and practice. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 21–31.

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Andrew, A., Cattan, S., Dias, M. C., Farquharson, C. Kraftman, L., Krutikova, S., Phimister, A., and Sevilla, A. (2020) Inequalities in children’s experiences of home learning during the COVID-19 lockdown in England. London: The IFS. https:// ifs.org.uk/publications/inequalities-childrens-experiences-home-learning-duringcovid-19-lockdown-england Apple, M. W. (2013) Can education change society? New York: Taylor & Francis. Azorín, C. (2020) Beyond Covid-19 supernova is another education coming? Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 5(3), 381–390. https://doi.org/10.1108/ JPCC-05-2020-0019 Bernstein, B. (1999) Vertical and horizontal discourse: An essay, British Journal of Sociology of Education, 20(2), 157–173. Betthäuser, B. A., Bach-Mortensen, A. M., and Engzell, P. (2023) A  systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence on learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, Nature Human Behaviour, 7(3), 375–385. https://doi.org/10.1038/ s41562-022-01506-4 Biesta, G. (2015) What is education for? On good education, teacher judgement, and educational professionalism, European Journal of Education, 50(1), 75–87. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12109 Darling-Hammond, L., Flook, L., Cook-Harvey, C., Barron, B., and Osher, D. (2020) Implications for educational practice of the science of learning and development, Applied Developmental Science, 24(2), 97–140. https://doi.org.10.1080/1088869 1.2018.1537791 Dewey, J. (1938) Experience and education. New York: Macmillan Company. Fullan, M. (2020) Learning and the pandemic: What’s next? Prospects, 49(1–2), 25–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-020-09502-0 Giroux, H. A. (2016) When schools become dead zones of the imagination: A critical pedagogy manifesto, The High School Journal, 99(4), 351–359. https://doi. org/10.1353/hsj.2016.0014 Giroux, H. A. (2020) On critical pedagogy. London: Bloomsbury. Green, C. J. (2018) Young children’s spatial autonomy in their home environment and a forest setting, Journal of Pedagogy, 9(1), 65–85. https://doi.org/10.2478/ jped-2018-0004 Gruenewald, D. A. (2003) The best of both worlds: A  critical pedagogy of place, Educational Researcher, 32(4), 3–12. https://journals-sagepub-com.elib.tcd.ie/doi/ epdf/10.3102/0013189X032004003 Holloway, S. L., and Valentine, G. (2000) Spatiality and the new social studies of childhood, Sociology, 34(4), 763–783. https://doi.org/10.1177/S0038038500000468 hooks, b. (1994) Teaching to transgress: Education as the practice of freedom. New York: Routledge. Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) (1995) The primary school curriculum: An evolutionary process. Dublin: INTO. Joyce, P. W. (1863) Handbook on management and methods for schools. Dublin: Gill. Massey, D. (2005) For space. London: Sage. Nairn, K., Panelli, R., and McCormack, J. (2003) Destabilizing dualisms: Young people’s experiences of rural and urban environments, Childhood, 10(1), 9–42. Ord, J., and Leather, M. (2011) The substance beneath the labels of experiential learning: The importance of John Dewey for outdoor educators, Journal of Outdoor and Environmental Education, 15(2), 13–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/ BF03400924

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Payne, P. G., and Wattchow, B. (2008) Slow pedagogy and placing education in posttraditional outdoor education, Journal of Outdoor and Environmental Education, 12(1), 25–38. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03401021 Piaget, J. (1962) Play, dreams and imitation in childhood. New York: Routledge. Rasmussen, K. (2004) Places for children  – children’s places, Childhood, 11(2), ­155–173. https://doi.org/10.1177/0907568204043053 Schlemper, M. B., Stewart, V. C., Shetty, S., and Czajkowski, K. (2018) Including students’ geographies in geography education: Spatial narratives, citizen mapping, and social justice, Theory & Research in Social Education, 46(4), 603–641. https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2018.1427164 Tuan, Y.-F. (2012) Humanist geography: An individual’s search for meaning. 1st edn. Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press.

INDEX

Note: Page numbers in italics indicate a figure and page numbers in bold indicate a table on the corresponding page. Abram, D. 15, 16 academisation 107 ACARA (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority) 27, 37 Adams, D. 17 adventure education 76 – 88 aesthetic experience 41, 80 affective learning 54, 245, 255 agency: community agency 67, 194, 270; student agency 6, 40, 49, 193 Aitken, S. 187, 270 Albert, M. 108 Algan, E. 136 Altman, I. 118 ancestral land 75, 156, 246 Anderson, J. 1, 256 Anthropocene 67 apiary 17 – 19 Appleyard, D. 120, 127 Arendt, H. 215 Artscaping 5, 39, 42 – 43, 45, 48 – 50 arts-in-nature practice see Artscaping assemblage 56, 157 Atkinson, R. 111 Attenborough, D. 69 attention to place 8, 118, 165, 240 – 242, 245, 247

Australian curriculum 5, 27, 34, 36, 94 Australian Science Curriculum (ASC) 26 – 27 auto-photography 217, 220 awe and wonder 22, 54 Ayliffe, P. 41 Bawaka Country 28 – 29 Bee Bots 99, 104 bees 5, 17 – 20, 47 Bell Foundation 231, 237, 238 Betasamosake Simpson, L. S. 157 Bhopal, K. 202 Biddulph, M. 193, 230, 235 Biesta, G. J. J. 215 – 217, 219, 224 – 227, 269 Boggs, G. L. 164 Boireann, ‘place of stone’ 66 Bonnett, M. 14, 16 Brillante, P. 93 – 94, 99, 103, 105 bring your own device (BYOD) 177 Brookes, A. 78 – 79, 81 – 82 Bruce, J. 215 Bruce, T. 97 Bryan, A. 242 – 244, 247, 250 Buber, M. 16, 22 Burrenbeo Trust, Burren, Burren in Bloom 5, 65 – 75

274 Index

Cajete, G. 14 – 15, 21, 23 Calderon, D. 158, 164 capabilities 5, 26, 32 – 36, 39 – 50, 268 Catling, S. 52, 62, 193, 194 – 196, 243, 257 children’s geographies 93, 95, 110, 183 – 185, 187 – 188, 192, 194 Clark, C. 258 climate change education (CCE) 240 – 248 colonialism 14, 28, 157, 164 – 165, 248; colonial guilt 82; colonial hegemony and control 81, 108 – 109, 158 – 159; colonial history 160; disaster colonialism 161 community 31 – 32, 35 – 36, 43, 65 – 68, 72 – 74, 93 – 94, 102 – 104, 113 – 114, 117 – 123, 128, 131 – 140, 144 – 153, 158 – 167, 193 – 194, 198 – 209 community radio 131 – 143 community stewardship 65, 67 – 70, 74 Cosgrove, D. 110 Coulthard, G. S. 164 – 165 Country as pedagogy 27 – 29, 32 – 33, 36; Country as teacher 5 COVID-19 3, 23, 39, 43, 49, 150, 152, 253 – 261, 268 – 269 Crang, M. 256, 261 – 262 creative writing 57 – 58, 62 Cresswell, T. xiii – xv, 1, 4, 56 – 57, 61 – 62, 94, 108 – 109, 234 critical pedagogy of place 28, 157, 218 cross-cultural education 27, 30 – 34; cross-cultural science 26 – 34 cultural education 32, 87; cultural heritage 33, 65 – 66, 71 – 72, 73, 74 – 75, 149, 205, 210, 233; cultural identity 94, 145, 159, 162, 187, 204 – 205, 208, 233, 257 Cultural Interface Theory 33 culture: cultural diversity 228, 235, 244 curiosity 20, 39 – 40, 46 – 47, 54, 68, 145, 187, 217, 224, 253, 262, 267 curriculum 111 – 113, 154, 174, 187, 194, 216, 225, 229, 242, 245, 247 Curriculum for Wales 17, 80, 83 – 84, 88 cynefin 17, 80, 83 – 86, 88 Czajkowski, K. 185 – 186, 193, 270

Daniels, S. 110 Davidson, B. 132 Debord, G. 41 Decolonised/ decolonized perspectives and approaches 13, 28, 33, 114, 151, 157 – 158, 164 Degnen, C. 118 Derrington, C. 202, 205 Devine-Wright, P. 70 Dewey, J. 68, 267 dialogical openness 16 difficult knowledge 247 – 248 digital divide 169, 269 digital resources 173, 175 – 177, 254 digital tools 7, 168 – 178, 214 Dirlik, A. 164 disaster Colonialism 158, 160 – 161 disconnect from nature 39, 163 Doyle, L. 184 Dunphy, E. 93 – 95, 99, 102 – 103 early childhood 7, 93 – 98, 198 – 209, 266 early childhood and care curriculum 200, 202, 206 – 208, 211 eco-capabilities 5, 39, 42 – 45, 47 – 48, 50; see also Sen, A. ecologic 16 ecological self 45 ecologisation 14 ecopedagogy 17 education for sustainable development 190, 242 Edwards, A. 84 egologic 16 English as a second language (EAL) 150, 231 – 237 English National Curriculum 53, 55, 62 – 63, 146, 148 – 151, 187 enquiry learning 3, 6, 56, 144 – 155, 170, 186, 189 – 190 equity 49, 149, 151, 154, 201, 210 ethnography 56 Evernden, L. 14 everyday geographies 53 – 61, 127 – 128, 219; everyday lives 53, 59, 127 – 128, 157, 178, 185 – 186 experiential learning 1, 6, 53 – 55, 61 – 62, 79, 129, 194 – 195, 253 – 254, 270 explorer mindset 46, 215, 217, 225; see also Schwille, K.

Index  275

Falconer, L. 169 feeling of belonging 4, 6, 7, 40 – 41, 48, 86, 93 – 95, 99, 102 – 104, 135 – 136, 150, 162, 184, 200 – 211, 228 – 237, 256 fell race 84 fieldwork 5, 8, 53 – 64, 81, 148 – 149, 168 – 173, 175 – 179, 190, 194, 218 – 219, 230, 235, 253 – 261 First Nations’ (Science and sovereignty) 5, 26 – 36 fish trap engineering 27, 33 – 37 folklore 2 Freeman, C. 110 Freire, P. 62, 186, 205 French, G. 79, 81 – 83, 85 Friedman, M. 138 Gelter, H. 46 genuine friluftsliv 46 Geographical Association 111, 183, 189, 218, 230 geographies of young people 93, 95, 107, 110 – 111, 113 – 114, 183 – 185, 187 – 188, 192, 194; see also children’s geographies Gieryn, T. F. 262 Gifford, R. 2 – 3, 9, 118, 128 – 129 Giroux, H. 270 Griffiths, J. 16, 83 Grosz, E. 109 Gruenewald, D.A. 28, 270 Gumucio-Dagron, A. 131 Gura, P. 98, 102 – 103 habitat 48, 66, 73, 151, 249 Hagerty B. M. 40 Hall, S. 57 Hammond, L. 110 – 111, 187, 192, 194, 267 Harrison, N. 27 – 28 Hart, R. 184, 192 Hart, T. 15 Harvey, D. 109 Heidegger, M. 80 Hilgers, L. 45 Holloway, L. 229, 233, 235 Holloway, S. 2, 183, 270 Holton, M. 229, 233 homeworld 162 honeybees see bees hooks, b. 164, 186, 269 Huang, S. M. 160 – 161, 165

Hubbard, P. 229, 233, 235 humanistic turn 56 human rights 93, 144, 159, 161, 164, 201, 212 Humphreys, A. 226 hybrid spaces 169, 172, 177, 267, 269 hyperdiverse young people 133, 141 Illeris, K. 230 imagined places 1, 5, 114, 132, 192 immigrant, immigration 153, 157 – 158 inclusive curricula 208, 232, 234 – 237 inclusive pedagogy 237 Indigenous: Indigenous communities 160; Indigenous cultures 5, 21, 28; Indigenous education 13, 15, 26 – 36, 165; Indigenous groups 198; Indigenous knowledges 5, 26 – 27, 30; Indigenous languages 228; Indigenous people(s) 14, 22, 152, 159; Indigenous perspectives 14, 15, 27, 82; Indigenous science 30, 35, 36; Indigenous struggle 163, 164; Indigenous students 144, 145, 157 – 158 informal learning 65, 131, 141 infra-ordinary 57 inquiry-based learning 93, 111, 140, 148, 152, 253 Irish curriculum 269 Israel, A.L. 219 James, A. 8, 215 Jardine, D. 14, 16 Jenks, C. 8 Jiang, Z. 120, 124, 125, 127 John Muir Award 86 Jordan, B. 101 journeys with a purpose 87 kairos 16, 17, 22 Kapoor, D. 159 Keough, S. 132 knowledge systems 5, 26, 28 – 32 Kolb, D. 154 Krasny, M. 118 Kroessler, J. 257 Kucapungane people or community 156 – 165 Kudryavtsev, A. 118 Kullman, K. 97

276 Index

landmarks 93 – 99, 104 – 105, 124 – 126, 192 landscape 5 – 7, 41, 65 – 74, 80 – 82, 84 – 85, 87, 107, 109 – 110, 192, 194, 256 – 258, 261 – 263 learning: authentic learning contexts 54 – 55, 61, 78, 177, 187, 266, 270 learning communities 111 learning settings 4, 6; community radio station 6, 131 – 141; fieldwork 53 – 62, 168 – 178, 253 – 262; multi-academy trusts 6, 107 – 114; outdoors 65 – 76, 78 – 89, 214 – 225; preschools 93 – 104; schools 228 – 238 learning spaces 26, 141, 269 Leat, D. 144 – 145, 146 Leowarin, S. 117 liberatory education 62 Liebtag, E. 3, 9, 145, 148 – 150 Lin, H. N. 161 locality or local places 2, 53, 57, 72, 85, 97, 102, 109, 112, 186, 243, 269 local ways of knowing 17, 27, 107 – 113, 243 Louv, R. 13.69 Low, S. 118 Lu, H.Y. 159

migration 113, 117, 158, 228, 231, 235, 241, 247 mindful activities 13, 18, 20 – 23 Mochizuki, Y. 242, 247, 250 Moon, J. 53 more-than-human world 5, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 29, 41, 47, 48 Morgan, P. 117 multiculturalism 231, 244 multilingualism 228 – 237 Murray, C. 207 Mutual Cultural Responsivity 30 – 35, 38

Maher, S. 199 Makazayazaya people 160 Mankiw, S. 93 – 94, 99 marginalized communities 159, 164, 166 Marvell, A. 254, 256 – 258, 260 Massey, D. 3, 56 – 57, 62, 109 – 111, 114, 184, 186 – 187, 193, 243, 245, 257, 266 – 267 Matthews, H. 179, 184 Maude, A. 217 Maynard, R. 162 McClennen, N. 3, 9, 145, 148 – 150 McCormack, J. 2 – 3, 213, 267 McDaniel, J. 14 McKendrick, J. 110 – 111 mental and emotional wellbeing 2, 13, 23, 39 – 43, 49, 55 – 56, 69, 119, 187, 260 Merleau-Ponty, M. 16, 184 Mezirow, J. 253 microadventures 217, 226

O’hAodha, M. 199 O’Regan, T. 73 Orr, D. 14.69 Othering or Otherness 15 – 16 outdoor education 3 – 4, 6, 39, 78 – 88, 185 – 186; outdoor art 39, 41, 46, 49, 69, 86, 87 out-of-place 234

Nair, A. 232 – 233 Nairn, K. 2 – 3, 213, 267 Nakata, M.N. 31 narratives 29, 31, 47, 56, 99, 107, 110, 112, 157 – 166, 169, 208, 220, 258 nature-based interventions 41 nature connection 13, 14, 22 – 23, 46 – 50, 70, 79, 85, 224, 244 – 246 nature deficit disorder 13 neoliberal values 113 Newman, D. 136 Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) 131 – 135, 140 noticing 46, 61, 99, 156, 224

palimpsest 8, 57, 253, 256 – 258, 260 – 262 Panelli, R. 2 – 3, 213, 267 Payne, P. G. 5, 17, 41, 46, 48, 56, 267 pedagogy as interruption 215 – 218, 225 – 226; see also Biesta people-place relationships 118 Perec, G. 54, 56 – 57, 62 personal geographies 93, 107 – 114, 185, 192, 230, 235 – 236 photographs 95, 103 – 105, 173, 216 – 223, 259

Index  277

photography, auto-photography, rephotography 7, 43, 61, 84, 170 Piaget, J. 68, 268 Pike, S. 69, 185, 187, 191, 193, 195, 243, 255 – 257 place attachment 1, 6, 40 – 41, 48 – 50, 70, 94, 117 – 118, 120, 125 – 130, 132, 145, 232 – 233, 235 – 237, 257 – 258 Place, G. S. 69 place-based education (PBE) 4, 117 – 120, 126 – 129, 240, 242 – 243, 249; place-based fieldwork 171 place-based learning (PBL) 3, 6, 9, 65 – 70, 73, 74, 102, 117, 186, 215 – 219, 224, 266; place-based pedagogy 5, 7, 28, 68, 78 – 88 place-based stories 85, 157, 161, 165 – 166 place identity 40, 45, 70, 93, 118, 145 placelessness 14, 90 place-making resistance 160 place montages 215, 218 – 220, 224 place-responsive pedagogy 6, 81 – 88 place-writing 53, 55 – 56 play 6, 8, 18 – 19, 47, 93, 97 – 99, 101 – 104, 184, 208, 266 – 267 playground 46, 95 – 99 Plumwood, V. 243, 248 post-colonial 78, 82, 85 – 86, 159 Powell, K. 256 powerful learning 275 pre-colonial practices 82 – 83 professional development 32, 42, 112, 208 project-based learning 144 – 148, 150 – 151, 154 Prout, A. 8 Pyle, R. M. 13 qualitative fieldwork 56, 61, 255 questioning 95, 111, 144, 216 Quinlan, M. 202 – 203 radical pedagogy of place 157, 159 Randall, W. 111 Rawlings Smith, E. 53, 56 reflection on practice 84, 107, 111, 128, 153, 158, 170, 177, 192, 209, 210, 215, 240, 244, 247 – 251, 260 – 261

Reggio Emilia 94, 102 Relph, E. 80 representation of place 7, 45, 95, 98, 102, 115, 169, 171, 174 residential fieldwork 7, 79, 83, 85, 88, 169, 170, 255 Richardson, M. 70 river habitat, the Riverina 26 – 27, 33 – 36 Roberts, M. 55, 111, 145 – 146, 186, 230, 235 role play 19, 152, 208 Rose, D. 41 Rose, G. 110 Ruddell 27, 30 Rukai Nation 156, 160 rural communities, rural areas and rural life 2, 6, 8, 117 – 118, 129, 184, 236 rural-urban migration 117 Said, E. 108 Sauer, C. 256 Scannell, L. 2 – 3, 118, 128 – 129 Schlemper, M. B., 185 – 186, 193, 270 Schwille, K. 217, 225 Sen, A. 39 sensational pedagogies 28 sense of belonging 1, 4, 6, 40 – 41, 48, 50, 86, 93 – 99, 103 – 105, 135 – 136, 150, 184, 200 – 208, 228 – 237, 268 senses of place 56, 174, 184, 191, 229, 254, 257; senses trails 87 Shetty, S. 185 – 186, 193, 270 Shoes-off Village program 162 – 165 Shulman, L. S. 54 signature pedagogy 54, 253 Simard, S. 21 Simm, D. 254, 256 – 258, 260 Simpson, L. B. 162, 164 Slinkachu 224 slowliness 41 – 42, 49 slow pedagogy 5, 17, 41, 56 Smith, D. G. 14, 16 Smith, G. A. 2, 243 Sobel, D. 68 social capital 139, 141 socialisation 137, 173, 215 social networks 132, 139 – 141, 162, 185 social tattooing 109 Soja, E. 184

278 Index

solo space 86, 87 Stedman, R. C. 118, 140 STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) 26 – 27, 29, 31 – 32, 34 stereotypes 208 – 209 Stewart, V. C. 185 – 186, 193, 270 Stilgoe, J. 224 storytelling 21, 47, 111, 128, 199 student agency 5, 68, 193 – 194 student transitions 187, 204 – 205 subjectification 215, 225 Sumida Huaman, S. 29 Sun, Y. 120, 124, 125, 127 sustainability 26 – 36, 39 – 42, 53, 74 technology 140, 150, 168 – 178, 254 territory 108 – 109, 165 third-culture kids 145, 154 third space 184 traces 256, 258, 261 – 262 transformative learning 34 – 36, 62, 79, 129, 242, 253 Tranter, P. 110 Travellers 198 – 211; Traveller children 209 tree hugger 246 trees 5, 16, 21 – 22, 46, 67, 87, 223, 243, 245 – 246 Tuan, Y.F. 2, 17, 40, 53 – 54, 62, 70, 168, 184, 257, 266 – 267 typhoon 156, 160 – 161

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC, 1989) 93, 94, 144, 201 Valentine, G. 2, 183, 239, 270 Vander Ark, T. 3, 9, 145, 148 – 150 Verlie, B. 240, 242 – 243, 247 virtual sense of place 168 – 177 Walker, C. 240 Walker, E. 107, 113 walking 46, 79, 87, 93, 101, 156, 223, 260 Walshe, N. 42, 49 Walshe, P. 208 Wattchow, B. 5, 17, 41, 46, 48, 56, 267 Western knowledge systems 5, 26 – 32 Whitehead, M. 67 Wilkinson, C. 133, 140 Wilkinson, S. 133 Wilson, E. O. 15 Wissman, K. 217 Witt, S. 41, 46, 111, 242 Wood, E. 98 wood-wide-web 21 Yilmaz, N. 229 Young People at a Crossroads (YPAC) 244, 246 – 247 Yunkaporta, T. 29 Zeisel, J. 40, 47