Background: Science in the Learning Gardens (henceforth, SciLG) program was designed to address t... more Background: Science in the Learning Gardens (henceforth, SciLG) program was designed to address two well-documented, inter-related educational problems: under-representation in science of students from racial and ethnic minority groups and inadequacies of curriculum and pedagogy to address their cultural and motivational needs. Funded by the National Science Foundation, SciLG is a partnership between Portland Public Schools and Portland State University. The sixth- through eighth-grade SciLG curriculum aligns with Next Generation Science Standards and uses school gardens as the milieu for learning. This provides the context to investigate factors that support success of a diverse student population using the motivational framework of self-determination theory. Results: This study reports results from 113 students and three science teachers from two low-income urban middle schools participating in SciLG. Longitudinal data collected in spring of sixth grade in 2015 and fall of seventh...
Handbook of Comparative Studies on Community Colleges and Global Counterparts, 2018
Discussions of Indigenous ecological knowledge and aesthetics are largely missing from mainstream... more Discussions of Indigenous ecological knowledge and aesthetics are largely missing from mainstream education and environmental education. This chapter takes a unique approach to research and scholarship, one that is an emergent decolonizing methodology though it has long been used by Indigenous cultures: A conversation. In Indigenous cultures, oral language and storytelling are one of the oldest traditions. In keeping with the topic that is explored, Tewa scholar, educator, and artist Gregory Cajete and eco-educator Dilafruz Williams raised in India have come together to share through conversation the nature of eco-aesthetics, metaphor, story, and symbolism in Indigenous thought presented in Cajete’s writings of three decades. Our conversation method aligns with Indigenous worldview and upholds its relational significance. We discuss aspects of the Indigenous mythopoetic tradition as part of the traditional education practices of Indigenous cultures. We draw upon our lived cultural experiences and professional practices to elaborate upon the rich use of metaphor, story, symbols, and art to convey notions of eco-aesthetics in the teaching and learning process and the education of children. Our goal is to produce new levels of insight as we engage in this dialogue. Exploring the environmental, mythic, visionary, artistic, affective, communal, and spiritual dimensions of Indigenous education, we conclude the chapter with a discussion of how Indigenous ecological thoughts may be eco-aesthetically symbolized through contemporary art forms to show possibilities for childhood and nature interconnected.
School gardens offer culturally relevant learning opportunities for engaging children and youth i... more School gardens offer culturally relevant learning opportunities for engaging children and youth in applying science and engineering to solving real-life challenges, helping teachers meet the needs of all students, including underrepresented minorities. Consistent with the Next Generation Science Standards, gardening experiences provide opportunities for students to explore topics that integrate science and engineering in depth over extended periods of time. Science in the Learning Gardens (SciLG), described in this chapter, is a middle school curriculum project that was pilot tested at two middle schools that serve predominantly low-income and ethnic and racial minority students. The curriculum provides holistic, integrated, hands-on, project-based and place-based learning experiences and embedded formative assessments.
Moving beyond the despair resulting from what appears to be a tipping point of life systems due t... more Moving beyond the despair resulting from what appears to be a tipping point of life systems due to climate change, this narrative presents a possibility for regenerative hope. The article begins by discussing an emergent typology of hope that includes hokey hope, resolute hope, mythical hope, patient hope, hope deferred, sound hope, authentic hope, critical hope, and transformative hope. Drawing upon this typology, a model for regenerative hope is developed with the following features: care and conviviality, experience and engagement, imagination and joy, risk-taking and belief in possibilities, and critical sensibilities and transformation. Series of photos and voices of youth from a low-income middle school actively engaged in the learning gardens are presented as practical examples of pedagogy of action and agency manifested as
This case study explores what it is like for culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents wh... more This case study explores what it is like for culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents who are low-income English Language Learners to experience garden-based education at their school’s Learning Gardens in southeast Portland, Oregon, even as they and their families—driven from their homelands as immigrants and refugees—try to establish roots and call Portland their new “home.” This is a story of 16 sixth graders from seven countries for whom the Learning Gardens provide context and milieu for expression of their connection to place as they grow food and engage in significant ways in learning that encourage communication, crossing the English language “barrier.” Students’ experiences and conversations are captured as they develop a sense of belongingness, home, and place when connecting with soil, food, nature, peers, and adults in the Learning Gardens.
The International Journal of Sustainability in Economic, Social, and Cultural Context, 2018
By their nature, gardens embody diversity. This article explores the cultural significance and va... more By their nature, gardens embody diversity. This article explores the cultural significance and value of school gardens for diverse communities in restoring and reclaiming their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and resilience through stories, myths, and practical examples. It highlights details for experiential dimensions of garden based learning education. Grounded in the research-based, seven-fold benefits of garden-based sustainability education, this article is the international collaborative effort of garden researcher-practitioners from indigenous, multicultural, urban, biocultural, and STEM perspectives from over a half dozen different diversity-intensive urban learning gardens in the Pacific Northwest. It also describes dynamic experiential teaching approaches for sharing stories and engaging with hands-on approaches to garden-based learning at multiple scales and modes. Vivacious, research-based garden learning from regional learning gardens activates urban learning gardens as sites of diversity-enhancing sustainability education, nurturing the resilience and collaborative creativity required for biocultural flourishing
Garden-based education is a philosophical orientation to teaching and learning that uses gardens ... more Garden-based education is a philosophical orientation to teaching and learning that uses gardens as the milieu for student engagement through meaningful and relevant curricular and instructional integration in schools. In addition to their direct academic appeal in raising test scores and grades, particularly in science, language arts, and math, gardens on educational campuses, spanning pre-school through high school, are also utilized by educators for a variety of other outcomes. These include motivational engagement; social, moral, and emotional development; strengthening of institutional and community bonds; vocational skills development; food literacy; healthy eating habits; and holistic growth of children and youth. Moreover, garden-based education shows promise as a tangible and pragmatic solution to address problems of disaffection and disengagement among youth that has resulted in a school dropout crisis in many places. While specific to higher education, farm-based educatio...
Background: Science in the Learning Gardens (henceforth, SciLG) program was designed to address t... more Background: Science in the Learning Gardens (henceforth, SciLG) program was designed to address two well-documented, inter-related educational problems: under-representation in science of students from racial and ethnic minority groups and inadequacies of curriculum and pedagogy to address their cultural and motivational needs. Funded by the National Science Foundation, SciLG is a partnership between Portland Public Schools and Portland State University. The sixth- through eighth-grade SciLG curriculum aligns with Next Generation Science Standards and uses school gardens as the milieu for learning. This provides the context to investigate factors that support success of a diverse student population using the motivational framework of self-determination theory. Results: This study reports results from 113 students and three science teachers from two low-income urban middle schools participating in SciLG. Longitudinal data collected in spring of sixth grade in 2015 and fall of seventh...
Handbook of Comparative Studies on Community Colleges and Global Counterparts, 2018
Discussions of Indigenous ecological knowledge and aesthetics are largely missing from mainstream... more Discussions of Indigenous ecological knowledge and aesthetics are largely missing from mainstream education and environmental education. This chapter takes a unique approach to research and scholarship, one that is an emergent decolonizing methodology though it has long been used by Indigenous cultures: A conversation. In Indigenous cultures, oral language and storytelling are one of the oldest traditions. In keeping with the topic that is explored, Tewa scholar, educator, and artist Gregory Cajete and eco-educator Dilafruz Williams raised in India have come together to share through conversation the nature of eco-aesthetics, metaphor, story, and symbolism in Indigenous thought presented in Cajete’s writings of three decades. Our conversation method aligns with Indigenous worldview and upholds its relational significance. We discuss aspects of the Indigenous mythopoetic tradition as part of the traditional education practices of Indigenous cultures. We draw upon our lived cultural experiences and professional practices to elaborate upon the rich use of metaphor, story, symbols, and art to convey notions of eco-aesthetics in the teaching and learning process and the education of children. Our goal is to produce new levels of insight as we engage in this dialogue. Exploring the environmental, mythic, visionary, artistic, affective, communal, and spiritual dimensions of Indigenous education, we conclude the chapter with a discussion of how Indigenous ecological thoughts may be eco-aesthetically symbolized through contemporary art forms to show possibilities for childhood and nature interconnected.
School gardens offer culturally relevant learning opportunities for engaging children and youth i... more School gardens offer culturally relevant learning opportunities for engaging children and youth in applying science and engineering to solving real-life challenges, helping teachers meet the needs of all students, including underrepresented minorities. Consistent with the Next Generation Science Standards, gardening experiences provide opportunities for students to explore topics that integrate science and engineering in depth over extended periods of time. Science in the Learning Gardens (SciLG), described in this chapter, is a middle school curriculum project that was pilot tested at two middle schools that serve predominantly low-income and ethnic and racial minority students. The curriculum provides holistic, integrated, hands-on, project-based and place-based learning experiences and embedded formative assessments.
Moving beyond the despair resulting from what appears to be a tipping point of life systems due t... more Moving beyond the despair resulting from what appears to be a tipping point of life systems due to climate change, this narrative presents a possibility for regenerative hope. The article begins by discussing an emergent typology of hope that includes hokey hope, resolute hope, mythical hope, patient hope, hope deferred, sound hope, authentic hope, critical hope, and transformative hope. Drawing upon this typology, a model for regenerative hope is developed with the following features: care and conviviality, experience and engagement, imagination and joy, risk-taking and belief in possibilities, and critical sensibilities and transformation. Series of photos and voices of youth from a low-income middle school actively engaged in the learning gardens are presented as practical examples of pedagogy of action and agency manifested as
This case study explores what it is like for culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents wh... more This case study explores what it is like for culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents who are low-income English Language Learners to experience garden-based education at their school’s Learning Gardens in southeast Portland, Oregon, even as they and their families—driven from their homelands as immigrants and refugees—try to establish roots and call Portland their new “home.” This is a story of 16 sixth graders from seven countries for whom the Learning Gardens provide context and milieu for expression of their connection to place as they grow food and engage in significant ways in learning that encourage communication, crossing the English language “barrier.” Students’ experiences and conversations are captured as they develop a sense of belongingness, home, and place when connecting with soil, food, nature, peers, and adults in the Learning Gardens.
The International Journal of Sustainability in Economic, Social, and Cultural Context, 2018
By their nature, gardens embody diversity. This article explores the cultural significance and va... more By their nature, gardens embody diversity. This article explores the cultural significance and value of school gardens for diverse communities in restoring and reclaiming their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and resilience through stories, myths, and practical examples. It highlights details for experiential dimensions of garden based learning education. Grounded in the research-based, seven-fold benefits of garden-based sustainability education, this article is the international collaborative effort of garden researcher-practitioners from indigenous, multicultural, urban, biocultural, and STEM perspectives from over a half dozen different diversity-intensive urban learning gardens in the Pacific Northwest. It also describes dynamic experiential teaching approaches for sharing stories and engaging with hands-on approaches to garden-based learning at multiple scales and modes. Vivacious, research-based garden learning from regional learning gardens activates urban learning gardens as sites of diversity-enhancing sustainability education, nurturing the resilience and collaborative creativity required for biocultural flourishing
Garden-based education is a philosophical orientation to teaching and learning that uses gardens ... more Garden-based education is a philosophical orientation to teaching and learning that uses gardens as the milieu for student engagement through meaningful and relevant curricular and instructional integration in schools. In addition to their direct academic appeal in raising test scores and grades, particularly in science, language arts, and math, gardens on educational campuses, spanning pre-school through high school, are also utilized by educators for a variety of other outcomes. These include motivational engagement; social, moral, and emotional development; strengthening of institutional and community bonds; vocational skills development; food literacy; healthy eating habits; and holistic growth of children and youth. Moreover, garden-based education shows promise as a tangible and pragmatic solution to address problems of disaffection and disengagement among youth that has resulted in a school dropout crisis in many places. While specific to higher education, farm-based educatio...
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Papers by Dilafruz Williams