Organic Learning Gardens in Higher Education: Do They Improve Kindergarten Pre-service Teachers’ Connectedness to and Conception of Nature?

Producción CientíficaStudies have shed light on the idea that people who have experiences in natural settings might be more aware of the environment. Learning gardens, as outdoor contexts, might contribute to the development of students’ affective relations toward nature, proenvironmental attitudes, and protective actions; neverthless, these aspects begging to be explored. This preliminary research investigates the impact that the use of organic gardens to teach natural sciences at university has on kindergarten pre-service teachers’ (KPST) connectedness to and conceptions of nature. The research follows a pre-/postdesign and it uses a mixed methods approach. A total of 74 students completed four quantitative scales (INS, CCC, LCN, and NR-6), and 66 of them an open question about the concept of nature. After the garden experience, students scored higher in all the scales, nevertheless the change was significant only for INS and CCC. The phenomenographic analysis evidenced an initial predominant static and non-social concept of nature, biased toward the most obvious biological elements. After the garden-based learning experience, more informed conceptions of nature – including notions of complexity and systemic character – increased from 7 to 19%; however, statistical comparison was not significant. In spite of the absence of concluding results, further research is required to assess the role that learning gardens may play regarding connectedness to nature and pro-environmental behaviors.This research was partially conducted and funded in the framework of the Educational Innovation Project “Organic Learning Gardens: new educational spaces for the development of scientific competence of university students” (Ref. 46; coordinated by ME-G) of the Teacher Training and Innovation Area of the Vice Rectorate for Academic Planning of the University of Valladolid (UVa) and the Campus Bizia Lab program (Campus Living Lab for Sustainability) project entitled: “Teaching collaboratively and interdisciplinary in the university organic learning garden of the Campus of Alava (HECA)” (Ref. CBL19ZUAZ; coordinated by DZ) driven by the Sustainability Directorate of the Vice-chancellor’s office for innovation, social commitment and social action from the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)

Organic Learning Gardens and Education for Sustainability. Educational experiences for competencies development in pre-service teacher training

Los Huertos EcoDidácticos son huertos cuyo manejo sigue los principios de la agricultura ecológica o la permacultura, y cuya principal función es educativa. Actualmente están presentes en algunas universidades españolas, en general como resultado de iniciativas puntuales de un profesor o área de conocimiento del ámbito de las ciencias experimentales o de la didáctica de las ciencias. Se trata de recursos didácticos y entornos de aprendizaje de gran valor para la implementación de metodologías activas que persiguen el desarrollo de competencias para la sostenibilidad. Presentamos dos experiencias de uso de Huertos EcoDidácticos en el contexto de la formación inicial de maestros/as, enmarcadas en sendos proyectos de innovación docente e innovación en sostenibilidad: en primer lugar, el desarrollo de una secuencia didáctica en torno al uso de biocidas para el Grado de Educación Infantil, en la Facultad de Educación de Soria (Universidad de Valladolid, UVa), y en segundo lugar, una interven - ción didáctica en torno al uso del compostaje como forma de gestión de los biorresiduos para el Grado en Educación Primaria, en la Facultad de Educación y Deporte de Vitoria-Gasteiz (Universidad del País Vasco, UPV/EHU). Finalmente, se reflexiona en torno al uso de los Huertos EcoDidácticos como espacios educativos en el marco de la Educación Superior.Organic Learning Gardens are foof gardens which are sustainably managed based on the principles of organic agriculture or permaculture, and whose main purpose is educational. They are currently present at some Spanish universities, generally as the result of isolated initiatives of a particular professor or knowledge area, either belonging to the field of experimental sciences or of science teaching. They constitute educational resources and learning environments of a great value for implementing active methodologies directed towards promoting students’ competencies for sustainability. We provide with two educational experiences structured around the use of Organic Learning Gardens in the context of initial teacher training, and framed, respectively, in a project for teaching innovation and a project for innovation in sustainability: firstly, the development of a teaching and learning sequence around the use of biocides for the Degree in Early-Childhood Education, at the Faculty of Education in Soria (University of Valladolid, UVa), and secondly, an educational intervention around the use of composting for organic waste’ management for the Degree in Primary Education at the Faculty of Education and Sport in Vitoria-Gasteiz (University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU). Finally, reflections are presented on the use of Organic Learning Gardens as educative contexts in the frame of Higher Education

Implementing citizen science programmes in the context of university gardens to promote preservice teachers' scientific literacy: a study case on soil

This work presents an assessment of pre-service teachers' argumentative practice, after implementing a novel teaching-learning sequence on soil health including a citizen science programme, which was applied outdoors at the university garden. The sequence was implemented at five Spanish universities with 351 undergraduates studying Early Childhood and Primary Teacher Education. It posed a final assessment task consisting in a real-world situation that involved making decisions on science-related issues: students needed to argue whether it was possible to use a piece of land as a school garden, based on soil data provided in a variety of formats. To assess participants' level of achievement, a rubric was specifically designed by adapting the Evidence-Explanation Continuum approach, which was applied to a subsample of 123 answers (35%). Results evidenced that the process of knowledge-building discourse from initial data to final explanations involved a series of transformations of increasing difficulty, since the percentage of students who were able to correctly accomplish them decreased a long the continuum. Including the citizen science programme promoted the development of basic aspects of scientific literacy related to interpreting data and evidence scientifically but, for students to be generally capable of drawing evidence-based conclusions, argumentation practices should be regularly included in science classes

Integrating Mathematics and Science Teaching in the Context of Education for Sustainable Development: Design and Pilot Implementation of a Teaching-Learning Sequence about Air Quality with Pre-Service Primary Teachers

This article presents an interdisciplinary teaching–learning sequence (TLS) about air quality for pre-service primary teachers using an organic learning garden. The design involved a curricular integration of concepts and competences about sustainability, mathematics, and science disciplines following constructivist and active learning strategies, such as problem-based learning and place-based education. In this TLS, both the topic and the learning context act as facilitators of education for sustainable development (ESD). The contents address the overarching STEM and sustainability concepts related to air pollutants, weather, and climate. Our results show that students learned about a STEM topic within a space and context that enables ESD. Several misconceptions related to air quality, weather, and statistics were identified through the evaluation of students’ initial ideas. Furthermore, students’ attitudes towards the topic of study and self-efficacy and perceived relevance of ESD improved after the implementation. These results will guide further improvements of the designed TLS, which connects STEM education and ESD as a transformative educational experience for pre-service teachers. In this sense, we conclude that such initiatives can improve pre-service primary teachers’ self-efficacy as agents of change towards sustainable development goals.This research was funded by the Vice-Rectorate of Innovation, Social Commitment and Cultural Action (UPV/EHU), through the call for Projects of Educational Innovation, grant number PIE13-PIE-HECA-STEM and the call from the Directorate of Sustainability: Campus Bizia Lab 2018/19 edition, grant number 18ZUAZ

¿HA MEJORADO EL CONOCIMIENTO SOBRE LA NUTRICIÓN DE LAS PLANTAS DESDE LOS AÑOS 90? UN ANÁLISIS TEMPORAL CON ALUMNADO DE PRIMARIA Y SECUNDARIA Has students’ knowledge on plant nutrition improved since the 90’s? A temporary analysis with primary and secondar

La nutrición de las plantas, proceso de gran trascendencia biológica y relevancia curricular, entraña gran complejidad para el alumnado de Educación Obligatoria. Los errores conceptuales del alumnado y la evolución en la adquisición de este conocimiento han sido estudiados con profusión, pero en pocas ocasiones se han comparado estos aspectos entre diferentes periodos. En este estudio se comparó el nivel de formulación acerca de la nutrición de las plantas entre el alumnado (de los tres ciclos de Enseñanza Primaria y primer ciclo de Secundaria) del curso académico 1995/96 y del 2012/13 en base a sus dibujos y explicaciones. Los resultados muestran que, en general, el conocimiento se adquiere progresivamente con la edad, y que los niveles de formulación son similares entre los dos periodos de estudio (i.e. 1995/96 y 2012/13). Además, aunque el vocabulario científico del alumnado aumenta junto con la etapa educativa, aparecen errores conceptuales en todas las edades.AbstractPlant nutrition, a biological process of great significance and curricular relevance, entails huge complexity for Compulsory Education students. Students’ previous ideas and development in knowledge acquisition have been profusely studied. However, these aspects have been rarely compared between different time periods. In this study the formulation level about plant nutrition was compared among students (from the three cycles of Primary Education and first cycle of Secondary Education) from academic years 1995/96 and 2012/13 based on their drawings and explanations. The results show that, in general, knowledge is acquired progressively with age, and that formulation levels do not improve from 1995/96 to 2012/13. Besides, despite scientific vocabulary of students increases with the educational stage, conceptual errors appear at all ages

Evaluating the functional, sexual and seasonal variation in the chemical constituents from feces of adult Iberian wolves (Canis lupus signatus)

Chemical signals deposited in feces play an important role in intraspecific and interspecific communication of many mammals. We collected fresh feces of adult wolves from wild breeding groups. All samples visually identified as belonging to wolves were subsequently identified to species level by sequencing a small fragment of mtDNA and sexed typing DBX6 and DBY7 sex markers. Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS), we identified 56 lipophilic compounds in the feces, mainly heterocyclic aromatic organic compounds, such as indole or phenol, but also steroids, such as cholesterol, carboxylic acids and their esters between n-C4 and n-C18, aldehydes, alcohols and significant quantities of squalene and α-tocopherol, which would increase the chemical stability of feces on humid substrates. There was variability in the number and proportions of compounds between sexes, which could be indicative of their function as chemical signals. We also found variability in different reproductive states, especially in odorous compounds, steroids and α-tocopherol. Feces with a presumed marking function had higher proportions of α-tocopherol and steroids than feces with non-marking function. These compounds could be involved in intragroup and intergroup communication of wolves and their levels in feces could be directly related with the wolf’s sex and physiological and reproductive status.Financial support was provided by the project MCI-CGL2008-02119/BOS

Has students’ knowledge on plant nutrition improved since the 90’s? A temporary analysis with primary and secondary education students

La nutrición de las plantas, proceso de gran trascendencia biológica y relevancia curricular, entraña gran complejidad para el alumnado de Educación Obligatoria. Los errores conceptuales del alumnado y la evolución en la adquisición de este conocimiento han sido estudiados con profusión, pero en pocas ocasiones se han comparado estos aspectos entre diferentes periodos. En este estudio se comparó el nivel de formulación acerca de la nutrición de las plantas entre el alumnado (de los tres ciclos de Enseñanza Primaria y primer ciclo de Secundaria) del curso académico 1995/96 y del 2012/13 en base a sus dibujos y explicaciones. Los resultados muestran que, en general, el conocimiento se adquiere progresivamente con la edad, y que los niveles de formulación son similares entre los dos periodos de estudio (i.e. 1995/96 y 2012/13). Además, aunque el vocabulario científico del alumnado aumenta junto con la etapa educativa, aparecen errores conceptuales en todas las edades.Plant nutrition, a biological process of great significance and curricular relevance, entails huge complexity for Compulsory Education students. Students’ previous ideas and development in knowledge acquisition have been profusely studied. However, these aspects have been rarely compared between different time periods. In this study the formulation level about plant nutrition was compared among students (from the three cycles of Primary Education and first cycle of Secondary Education) from academic years 1995/96 and 2012/13 based on their drawings and explanations. The results show that, in general, knowledge is acquired progressively with age, and that formulation levels do not improve from 1995/96 to 2012/13. Besides, despite scientific vocabulary of students increases with the educational stage, conceptual errors appear at all ages.peerReviewe