Details the middle school implementation of an Academies of Inquiry and Talent Development enrichment program involving authentic-learning and real-life problem solving objectives. Considers start-up issues of orientation for students and parents, as well as teacher planning. Also considers issues of maintaining high standards, finding time for…

Modified school years in First Nation schools contextualize the learning process by allowing student participation in traditional, seasonal, outdoor activities. Two case studies in which Hudson Bay area school officials unilaterally reintroduced the conventional calendar illustrate the important roles that First Nations education authorities can…

To alert the community to the impact of a proposed parkway that would divide the largest remaining greenspace in Charlottesville (Virginia), an architect, a photographer, and students from a private high school dedicated to ecology and art lined the proposed route with tires. The project garnered a lot of publicity, and to date the parkway has not…

A cooperative of small, rural Alabama schools is teaching aquaculture in vocational agriculture classes to make science more relevant. Program goals include enhancing student skills through daily work in living laboratories; training teachers who understand life sciences' connection to everyday rural life and are skilled in using living…

Describes a collaborative parent-involvement project for inner-city Hispanic primary students sponsored by the Chicago Community Trust. A university professor, two graduate assistants, the principal, and the school community representative designed a summer program featuring hospitality and support activities, free books, and hands-on science and…

The University of New Brunswick's Renaissance College is Canada's first undergraduate interdisciplinary leadership program. The 3-year outcomes-based program values experiential learning and exposes students to a multitude of perspectives. Forty percent of the courses are electives taken outside the college, including two Canadian and…

Multivariate analytic techniques offer useful research methods that permit the experiential educator to test theoretical models, analyze the effects of several variables acting together, and predict the effects of one set of variables upon another set of variables. Several of these techniques are discussed, including analysis of variance, multiple…

An outdoor teacher reflects on the risk of sharing personal emotions and family history with students to help integrate new refugee students into the class. Adventure and experiential activities are described that served as metaphors for the refugee and immigrant experience. (SAS)

Describes the planning and integration of the Earthkeepers Programme into the curriculum at Orchard Park Secondary School, Ontario. Benefits included student development of community skills and relationships with the natural world, as well as leadership and responsibility through cross-age teaching of elementary students by high school seniors.…

Discusses ways of awakening urban youth to the presence of the natural world in the city and thereby fostering their sense of stewardship toward their own place. Describes activities involving observation and exploration of small bits of ground, connection of these micro-environments to larger environmental processes, reflection exercises, and…

For decades, Lester B. Pearson College (British Columbia) has been involved with Race Rocks--islands in San Juan de Fuca Strait. The college is steward for the Provincial Ecological Reserve and has partnered with public agencies, businesses, and First Nations to create educational television programs and an interactive Web site on island ecology,…

An alternative school in southern Oregon that allows students to make up missing credits offers project-based thematic classes that take students outside the school. One course studied the Klamath Basin's water crisis and involved exploring the area and the perspectives of farmers, biologists, park rangers, and Native Americans. Courses culminate…

Discusses how early childhood classroom learning centers can meet the needs of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Describes how to set up learning centers, suggesting materials and procedures for centers for block play, art, dramatic play, science, music, and manipulatives, as well as library and outdoor areas. Includes a resource list for each…

Details the three phase renovation plan for a children's zoo. Focuses on the first phase, the Hamill Family Play Zoo, and how the project differs from previous projects at the Brookfield Zoo. (DDR)

A month-long residential program for adolescents in Michigan teaches arts and sciences through active learning workshops in an experiential, cooperative camp environment. Appreciation for diversity, supporting the developmental needs of adolescents, and building a sense of community are prime foci of the program. These are accomplished through…