Promoting sense of place and culture in science: a study of the effectiveness of a cross-cultural, marine science curriculum through experiential exploration
Date
2009-08-28T23:05:37Z
Authors
Ashurst, David H.
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Abstract
This thesis presents the development, implementation and evaluation of a cross-cultural, experiential marine program that occurred in 2007 at a Senior High School in
Sooke, British Columbia. The program consisted of a field-intensive, marine curriculum that acknowledged the contributions of Aboriginal science (Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Wisdom) as complementary to Western science, when understanding and monitoring the coastal environment. Students of both Aboriginal (N= 8) and non-Aboriginal (N= 11) heritage were surveyed before and after instruction of theirknowledge and beliefs about marine science and Aboriginal culture. Prior to instruction,students tended to have positive opinions about Aboriginal culture and marine science, although their knowledge in marine ecology and oceanography was not strong. However, students showed a good understanding of human impacts on the environment. An important finding was that after instruction all students, regardless of cultural heritage, gender or previous coursework, gained positively in all measures from the experience.
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Environmental, Aboriginal, Experiential, Cross-cultural, Marine