This text is part of the special Back to School notebook
In August, Bic National Park hosted the first environmental education summer school. The goal of this unique project is to provide tools to teachers and their successors who want to raise ecological issues with their students.
Entitled “Maritime Education at the Heart of Social and Environmental Transformation,” the summer school is an initiative of the Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR). For one week, 10 teachers and 12 students in the field attended a series of educational workshops with the St. Lawrence Estuary as a backdrop.
“It really appealed to me as an idea,” explains participant Dany-Kate Barriault, who leads a class in a Rimouski elementary school. “Every year, with our students, we set up projects on the river and the environment. It’s good to have advice on how to do it as best as possible.”
Established by researchers from fields as diverse as oceanography and visual arts, the summer school program is intended to be a mix of theoretical courses, practical activities and discussions on the role of environmental education.
“Initially, I was really there for the scientific side,” adds M.me Barriault, who notably attended a workshop on ocean currents. But I realized, through the week’s activities, that we also need to make room for artistic creation, self-expression and notions of civic culture.”
One of the objectives of the summer school is to develop the maritime culture of teachers and future teachers, offering them the opportunity to re-appropriate their territory and strengthen their sense of belonging.
“It’s a big whole that allows us to approach ecological issues in a concrete and engaging way. When we work by project, giving freedom to the students, we realize that the learning is much more anchored.”, adds Mme Barriault.
Participants, who work at the primary, secondary and college levels, are invited to transpose what they have learned into their classroom this fall.
“The idea is to apply and embody these learnings at school, to make them come alive for students,” says Catherine Simard, one of the program’s initiators at UQAR. “We will also follow up with teachers to support them in the classroom experience by organizing discussion groups.”
For the holder of a doctorate in education, it is obvious that those who devote themselves to teaching have a key role to play in the development of ecological awareness. But they still need to have the capacity to do so.
“Teachers would like to talk about environmental issues, but they don’t feel equipped to do so or they simply don’t have the time or resources,” she explains. “With the summer school, we want to provide as many educational tools as possible.”
The challenges of environmental education
When it comes to the lack of resources and time, Dany-Kate Barriault is well-placed to talk about it. A teacher for 15 years, she admits that the pedagogical approach to environmental education varies greatly depending on the involvement and personal initiative of teachers.
“We have outdoor activities, a contact with the environment that I intend to accentuate,” she emphasizes. “This approach allows students to develop a more direct connection with nature and to better understand environmental issues.”
However, field trips can add extra work to an already busy schedule.me Barriault says he understands his colleagues who prefer to stay “inside.”
“The most realistic thing is to always stay in the schoolyard,” admits the teacher. “Going out frequently with a class requires not only financial means, but also logistical preparation.”
But for the teacher at the Rose-des-Vents school, the game is worth the candle when she sees the results in class. She will continue to take the time to organize outdoor getaways, even if she hopes that financial support will eventually make things easier.
“You always have to be looking for a budget, it’s a lot of paperwork… but it can be done. I hope that one day, schools will have some help and maybe initiatives like the summer school will help. In the meantime, I prefer to focus on solutions rather than problems,” she says.
An emotional connection with nature
In addition to being one of the instigators of the summer school at Bic, Catherine Simard is one of the most renowned researchers in environmental education in Quebec.
According to the professor of educational sciences at UQAR, studies demonstrate the importance of creating an emotional bond between children and nature to develop a “feeling of being able to act.”
“We realized that young people in the region don’t know much about their river, even though it’s right in front of us. It’s essential that they re-appropriate their environment, that they study it, examine it in detail, and understand it. We need to encourage empathy for nature and the desire to protect it.”
Another reality to highlight for Mme Simard is the importance of proximity, even the quality of the natural places that surround children. According to her, whether young people grow up in the Bas-Saint-Laurent or in the heart of Montreal, nature can be found anywhere. “We don’t need to be in the middle of a national park with birds singing. Whether it’s in the schoolyard or even in a classroom, there is local biodiversity everywhere.”
This content was produced by the Special Publications Team of Dutyrelevant to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part in it.