GEORGE W. CARVER · I will be speaking about George W. Carver, famous Missourian, educator,...

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GEORGE W. CARVER MISSOURI GREEN SCHOOLS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI NOVEMBER 5, 2016 Environmental educator…

Transcript of GEORGE W. CARVER · I will be speaking about George W. Carver, famous Missourian, educator,...

GEORGE W. CARVER

MISSOURI GREEN SCHOOLS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE

SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI NOVEMBER 5, 2016

Environmental educator…

Welcome to the 2016 Missouri Green Schools and Environmental

Education Conference!

I will be speaking about George W. Carver, famous Missourian, educator,

scientist, artist and environmentalist.

George W. Carver should be considered the prototype for Place-Based

Education (PBE), otherwise known as Place-Based Learning. He was

also instrumental in developing Project-Based Learning

A DIFFERENT KIND OF PEDAGOGY…

How far you go in life depends on your

being tender with the young,

compassionate with the aged,

sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant

of the weak and strong. Because someday

in your life you will have been all of these.

George W. Carver

PHILOSOPHY, PEDAGOGY OR BOTH?

What do each of these mean for teachers and students today?

How far you go in life depends on your being tender

with the young, compassionate with the aged,

sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the

weak and strong. Because someday in your life you

will have been all of these.

CARVER’S PHILOSOPHY/PEDAGOGY

Student Characteristics

YOUNG

AGED

STRIVING

WEAK

STRONG

Teacher Responses

TENDER

COMPASSIONATE

SYMPATHETIC

TOLERANT

GOOD SCIENCE PEDAGOGY STARTS WITH GOOD

TEACHER PREPARATION

Pre-service education including courses in science content and science pedagogy.

But, then what? Take advantage of any and all professional development opportunities in science, like this workshop!

Get involved in organizations like Stream Team, Missouri ForestKeepers, Missouri Environmental Education Association, Missouri Prairie Foundation.

Partner with National Park Service sites.

Just get outside!

LESSONS FROM CARVER’S OWN EXPERIENCES

“Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”

His struggle for an education.

Some students struggle with acquiring reading skills, inequalities or social justice issues.

Carver in the South.

We are all impacted by environmental issues.

Carver became an expert, well-trained and educated.

Expert in Mycology.

He was a man of great faith and spirituality.

THE BASICS…

Discovery Learning (we could stop right here…)

Not just lecture (although there is nothing wrong with some lecture), focus on the scientific method

Environmental education (reduce, reuse, recycle) get your students involved in service education projects related to science

Naturalist Intelligence (Howard Gardner) where teachers and students are immersed in nature.

Read Richard Louv’s books on Nature

Utilize PBE and PBL

CARVER’S METHOD

He modeled a collaborative pedagogy (letters,

bulletins, mobile school, networks of

like-minded individuals)

CARVER WROTE NUMEROUS EXTENSION BULLETINS

THE ETHOS OF A TEACHER

George W. Carver exhibited an ethos of care.

This was manifested in spiritual and relational

ways.

Carver was a thorough educator and engaged

in solid preparation for whatever he was doing.

He manifested a sustainable lifestyle.

“You can't tear up everything just to get the

dollar out of it without suffering as a result."

THE PEDAGOGY OF BEAUTY

All children have aesthetic needs.

What are teachers doing to meet these needs?

James Comer’s Developmental Pathways

(including the psychological and ethical

pathways).

Creativity is one of the highest forms of

thinking...

Self-actualization is critical...

HOW PHILOSOPHY AND PEDAGOGY INTERSECT

ANDERSON’S REVISION OF BLOOM’S TAXONOMY MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF HUMAN NEEDS

George W. Carver developed paint from clay in

Alabama and shared this knowledge with local

farmers so they could paint their homes.

He also advocated vegetable gardens to help

supplement the diet of sharecroppers in the South

as well as flower gardens to promote beauty.

He is usually pictured with a fresh flower in his

lapel.

PRACTICAL PEDAGOGY!

21ST CENTURY STRUGGLES

We must equip students with the ability to deal

with oppression in effective ways like Carver

did.

This requires an activist pedagogy.

There is a need for teachers to be proactive in

their preparation, pedagogy and profession.

CARVER IN HIS TUSKEGEE LAB

From 1896 to his death in 1943, George W. Carver consistently exhibited those characteristics he began to form on the Moses Carver farm where he was born. He is the epitome of a dedicated teacher, one who impacted thousands upon thousands all around the world and still inspires us today.

RESOURCES

George Washington Carver National Monument

https://www.nps.gov/gwca/index.htm

Green Party http://www.gp.org/

Environmental and social justice organizations

http://www.globalstewards.org/organizations.htm

George W. Carver at Tuskegee http://www.tuskegee.edu/about_us/legacy_of_fame/george_w_carver.aspx

Recommended books on George W. Carver

THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE TODAY!

Edward Williamson, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Education and Child Development, Drury University

VIP at Carver National Monument

[email protected]

(573) 451-2400 office

Drury University

194 Eastlawn, Suite C

St. Robert, MO 65584