Education: Growing Learning Communities

Growing Learning Communities

The UC Botanical Garden Education Program, in collaboration with staff from the Lawrence Hall of Science, has developed Growing Learning Communities (GLC), a project to strengthen the knowledge, teaching skills and leadership capabilities of local elementary school teachers through professional development linked to school gardens as outdoor science and mathematics labs. With the support of project staff, these teacher-partners become leaders and mentors at their school sites, creating positive change in their school’s culture, practices, environment and community.

Launched in June 2003, with funding from the National Science Foundation Teacher Enhancement Program, the GLC project uses the professional development strategy of Japanese Lesson Study to foster the teaching of mathematics, science, literacy and nutrition through lessons in school gardens. The Lesson Study cycle requires teachers to work in teams setting educational goals, planning, observing, gathering evidence of student learning, reflecting, sharing and analyzing data, and revising lessons. Through this process, teachers report gaining new insights on student learning and “the opportunity to experience teaching in a richer way.”

The GLC project involves 20 local elementary schools in 7 East Bay school districts. The majority are low-income, underserved schools with large populations of English language learners. Teacher teams from partner schools participate in summer institutes and a combination of school year activities designed to develop and foster mentorship among teachers, leadership skills, use of Lesson Study, as well as skills to develop and use school gardens as outdoor classrooms.

The UC project staff work individually with teachers and support them in meeting their school site challenges. Our Lesson Study specialist and School Garden specialist assist teacher teams with their specific questions and needs, acting as resources and facilitators. Staff also participates in outreach activities at partner schools. These include guiding school communities through garden program planning and garden design; providing specific horticulture technique workshops; assisting staff at schools to write their own grants, and other capacity building activities. Amidst times of great challenges and staff turnover in our local public schools, teachers have found support in the GLC project. Principals, who are faced with extreme pressures to show test score achievements, have been increasingly interested in the professional development strategy of lesson study, and have contributed an array of assistance to their teachers.

As Lesson Study is gaining attention in this country, the GLC program is serving as a model of how to combine Lesson Study and teaching children in the out-of-doors. The garden provides an exceptional environment for teaching and learning, a place that engages and motivates, and bolsters curricula linked to real world experiences. Through the school garden, the larger school community is becoming part of a growing learning community.