Recently, I saw studies about teachers
who sometimes have class outside in a naturalistic environment. I think this
type of environment could help students reflect and learn. Since I believe in
the importance of combining heaven, earth, and mankind for a person to reach
their full potential, I can see how different environments assist students in reaching
their full potential. Teaching in nature can allow students to experience learning
with other people while also individually discovering what they see and feel
around them. This environment could help them use what they have learned in the
classroom and combine it with what they learn outside.
What do you think about teaching in a naturalistic environment?
Teaching in naturalistic environments provides the purest, most authentic method of teaching. Natural environments allow students to learn by using their senses and knowledge in practical situations. They learn, apply, and test their knowledge immediately. Here the academic world and practical world combine so that students use smell, taste, touch, and experience to understand the world around them. If a student makes a mistake they immediately see the consequence of the error. If a student learns a fact or concept and desires to test their knowledge, they can immediately do so. Students who experience natural teaching methods develop a sense of respect for the environment and animals that that they do not learn in a traditional classroom situation. Naturalistic teaching environments also allow students to break free from the mindset that learning only takes place in a classroom. Students view the entire world as their classroom. In using the outdoors as a classroom, educators provide students with the freedom to learn deliberately and naturally in an organic way.
ReplyDeleteI am in favor of teaching in a naturalistic environment to maximize learning. In education, there are the three following teachers: nature, mankind, and circumstance. All three of these embody or should embody a naturalistic environment. The first teacher in education is nature. Nature embodies teaching in the natural environments since we as humans grow up and learn in stages. As much as they might want to, children cannot skip to adulthood. They must go through the natural process of growth. The second teacher in education is mankind. Because education can hinder thinking, humans must train human students to think for themselves. Mankind teaches students to learn to perform activities on their own in organic, naturalistic circumstances. The third teacher in education is circumstance. Humans learn what interests them though situations and surroundings. Life’s circumstances allow the student to explore and apply the relevance of what they have learned in an organic setting.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it does not matter where one teaches, as long as students have opportunities to explore their environment and acquire information. Since education is imperative to one’s fulfillment in life, any teaching setting is adequate as long as students have an opportunity to study material and their environment. Rousseau makes a good point concerning the benefit of allowing students to “investigate on their own.” However, I believe this applies to whether students are using their senses or their cognitive contemplation to make logical assessments of the world around them. Personally, I do not hold to the view that location is an important factor in learning. As long as students strive for academic advancement, practical application, and sustained learning, setting is immaterial.
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