FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project Teacher Professional Development and Forestry Field Trip Project 2020
Inside Education’s ongoing commitment to forest education, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, saw the creation of a series of 6 in-person and 2 web-based teacher professional development workshops through the month of October. During these 8 workshops, 111 teachers from across Alberta and B.Ed. students from four universities participated in hands-on, interactive programing and received a fantastic forestry field trip kit for their school.
Inside Education leads award-winning student forestry field trips for thousands of K-12 students and teachers at seven sites across Alberta. With pandemic restrictions placed on field trips (mainly due to travel to field sites) for at least the first half of the 2020-21 school year, we asked, “How can we continue to support teachers in facilitating meaningful forestry and wildlife education for their students?” The solution was to provide teachers with knowledge, experience and tools to lead local field trips closer to their schools during these difficult times, and to provide engaging tools for them to use even when things return to normal. With this, we launched the Forest and Wildlife Education Project this October and were thrilled with the interest and uptake from teachers province-wide. In addition to providing each participating school with a field trip kit, we coordinated full-day, in person professional development experiences for teachers. The program involved a mix of local forestry and wildlife experts, hands-on experience with forestry, environmental and wildlife monitoring tools as well as engaging outdoor activities designed by Inside Education. In the pages that follow we will outline the successful implementation of this project, and we should note that a highlight for both the teachers participating and for Inside Education was a return to a feeling of normalcy. To gather in a safe outdoor environment, with an eye to personal and professional development aimed at helping Alberta young people be tomorrow’s environmental and natural resources leaders, stewards and career practitioners.
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It is a fanastic kit and the handbook is perfect! Really well laid out and easy to use. CHRISTINA REID CONNECTIONS FOR LEARNING, STONY PLAIN
FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project
TOOL KITS An integral component of the Forest and Wildlife Education Project was the Forest Field Trip Tool Kit. The tool kits included tools that are used in Inside Education forest field programs, resources to help teachers increase their knowledge of the natural world around them as well as a Teacher’s Guide with activities and instructions on the use of the kit components. Each school that was accepted to participate in the Forest and Wildlife Education Program received one of these kits valued at $400, at no cost. The tool kits were designed to lead teachers through activities related to five different topics: Forest Report, Plant Identification, Tree Measurements, Wildlife Habitat Assessment and Soil Sampling. These elements of our field programs allow students to explore many facets of forests, and also link to curriculum outcomes in science, social studies, math, outdoor education, careers and more!
Tool Name
Alberta Nature Guide
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Owl Pellets
Flagging Tape
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Surveyor’s Rope
Soil Auger Anemometer
Tally Counter
Fur Samples Soil Test Kit
Animal Tracks: A Folding Pocket Guide to the Tracks & Signs of Familiar North American Species
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Bird Bands
Magnifying Glass
Species at Risk Posters (Woodland Caribou and Alberta’s Native Trout)
Species at Risk Education Program
Antlers present on both males and females, designed to dig for lichens in the snow
Two layers of fur; underfur is designed for warmth and outer “guard fur� is hollow and thick to insulate and make caribou buoyant for swimming
Small tail and short ears to protect from the cold
Habitat Checklist
Diameter Tape
Mountain Pine Beetle kit
Mature coniferous forests (80 - 150 years old) Large quantities of lichen Special types of wetland called peatlands Connected and undisturbed forests Forests dominated by black spruce, white spruce, tamarack/larch Large range
Stomachs contain specialized bacteria that allow caribou digest lichens
Keen sense of smell, caribou can sniff out lichen that is buried 1.5 metres under snow
Hooves act like snowshoes in deep snow and as shovels to dig for lichens
General Status: At Risk Detailed Status: Threatened - populations declining, some at immediate risk of extirpation.
Range map courtesy of CPAWS - Northern Alberta
Recovery Plan Checklist: Increase protection of critical caribou habitat Restore disturbed habitat in key areas Manage wolf populations Incorporate Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) into management decisions Develop localized range plans for each of Alberta’s 15 caribou ranges Reclaim forest disturbances Collaborate between all stakeholders Caribou education (like this poster!)
Lichen
Identification Card Scientific Name: Common Name:
Taxonomy Group: You might be carrying a caribou in your pocket! Caribou are the Canadian icon represented on our quarter.
Caribou recovery efforts have other benefits as well including: increasing habitat for other species, helping conserve wetlands and reducing climate change impacts by increasing carbon storage in forests.
Family: Height: Weight: Colour:
Rangifer tarandus caribou Woodland caribou (Boreal and Mountain Ecotypes) Mammals
Cervids (Deer Family)
1.0 - 1.2m tall at shoulder
110 - 210kg (average 180kg
for males; 135kg for females)
Brown (grey in winter). Neck, mane, shoulder stripe, underbelly,
underside of tail, & patch above Reproductive age:
each hoof are white all year round 2.5 years old
Reproductive rate: 1 calf per year (avg. survival Diet:
rate 30-50%)
approximately 70% arboreal (tree)
& terrestrial (ground) lichens
Wildlife Camera Photos
FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS PRO G R A M O UTLI N E WELCOME
Introductions and Safety Orientation
FOREST MANAGEMENT Guest Speaker
FOREST MANAGEMENT Tool Kit Activity
FORESTRY OPERATIONS Guest Speaker
FOREST MEASUREMENTS Tool Kit Activity
FOREST PROGRAMS In-person programs were held in five communities, at six different forest sites:
WOOD BUFFALO | Friday October 2nd – Gregoire Lake Provincial Park EDMONTON | GROUP A – Friday October 2nd – Bunchberry Meadows GROUP B – Friday October 2nd – Cooking Lake-Blackfoot Provincial Recreation Area
WHITECOURT | Thursday October 8th– Huestis Demonstration Forest CENTRAL ALBERTA | Friday October 9th – Des Crossley Demonstration Forest CALGARY AREA | Friday October 9th – Jumpingpound Demonstration Forest
- LUNCH -
WILDLIFE & ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT Guest Speaker
FOREST WILDLIFE AND SOILS
The value of in-person programs is that teachers were able to use the tool kits with experienced Inside Education educators alongside forestry and environmental science professionals to help guide the use of the tools.
Tool Kit Activities
We are incredibly grateful for the experienced forestry, wildlife and environmental professionals who joined us at all of our programs: JENNIFER OKRAINEC | Alberta Environment and Parks ASPEN DUDZIC | Alberta Forest Products Association KEAGAN RICHARDSON | Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc. ERIN WOODLAND | Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc.
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I thoroughly enjoyed spending the day learning more about the valuable resource of our forests and the myriad of career opportunities available in them. COLLEEN KISELYK FORT ASSINIBOINE SCHOOL, FORT ASSINIBOINE
MICHELLE HOLLAND | Canadian Wildlife Federation KIRK HAWTHORN | Alberta Agriculture and Forestry JAMES MORGAN | Alberta Environment and Parks JENNIFER OKRAINEC | Alberta Environment and Parks JANET MILLAR | Millar Western Forest Products DAN PHILIPPOT | Millar Western Forest Products CHARLOTTE RATCLIFF | Millar Western Forest Products KATELYN CEH | Nature Conservancy of Canada ANDI ROMITO | Nature Conservancy of Canada JEFF SCAMMELL | Northland Forest Products ALEX DRUMMOND | NorQuest College MATT DENNEY | Spray Lake Sawmills SUE ALDRIDGE | University of Calgary Biogeosciences Institute BRITNI SMITH | West Fraser- Sundre Forest Products EMMA KNIEL | Work Wild
FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project EXTENDING THE REACH THROUGH ONLINE PROGRAMMING VIRTUAL WORKSHOP On Friday, October 23rd, a virtual workshop was held to ensure that the forest toolkit was accessible to Grande Prairie schools, as well as those teachers unable to attend in-person programs. Teachers from 3 Grande Prairie area schools were part of the 17 teachers from across Alberta who joined Inside Education for a virtual demonstration of the Forest Field Trip Tool Kit. Kits were mailed out to the 13 participating schools in the week leading up to the session to allow the teachers to have the tools in hand during the workshop. Inside Education led teachers through activities from the Teacher’s Guide using the items from the Forest Field Trip Tool Kit during the two hour virtual session. The virtual platform allowed for teachers from a broad geographical area to receive a tool kit and benefit from the opportunity to obtain guidance in use of the tools and ways in which forest education can be incorporated into their classrooms.
EDUCATION STUDENT WORKSHOP
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Excellent professional development. Grounded in classroom needs. LYLE WATLING PRINCE CHARLES SCHOOL, EDMONTON
Inside Education received many applications for the Forest and Wildlife Education Program from Bachelor of Education students across Alberta. To meet this demand, a specialized virtual workshop tailored for this audience was delivered on Wednesday October 14th, with 42 new and beginning teachers participating in the session. During this session, Inside Education shared ways in which forest measurements, community forest studies and wildlife exploration could be done without specialized tools and in a wide variety of classroom situations, helping support participants throughout their teaching careers.
FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project PROGRAM REACH We accepted 100 schools to receive kits, and had a total of 153 teachers join us for the teacher professional development sessions.
OVER 7000 STUDENTS IMPACTED *calculated based on teacher responses in post survey
40
COMMUNITIES
ACRO SS ALBER TA
NUMBER OF SCHOOLS RECEIVING KITS
NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS
11
13
7
8
Edmonton Bunchberry Meadows
17
20
Edmonton Cooking Lake
15
17
Central Alberta Des Crossley Demonstration Forest
16
16
Calgary and Area Jumpingpound Demonstration Forest
19
20
Online Programming
13
59
100
153
LOCATION Wood Buffalo Gregoire Lake Provincial Park Whitecourt Huestis Demonstration Forest
TOTAL Field Sites
Communities of participating teachers
FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project PROGRAM FEEDBACK
IMPACTS
In order to evaluate the effectiveness of all Inside Education professional development programs, pre and post program surveys are completed to gather feedback, comments and program impacts. For the Forest and Wildlife Education Project, key findings and comments are summarized below.
The average level of knowledge of teachers in all topic areas was higher after the program than before the program, as seen in the figure below. The topics in which teachers reported the most knowledge gained are forest management/forestry practices, wildlife management, soil science and sampling, current research and best practices for northern Alberta forests and careers related to forests and wildlife.
Average participant confidence in teaching forest and wildlife topics increased 20% following the program.
Average participant confidence in teaching forest and wildlife topics outdoors increased by 30%.
2.8/4 before the program to 3.6/4 after
2.5/4 before the program to 3.6/4 after
Not at all confident
Not at all confident
Very confident
Very confident
RATING OF TEACHER UNDERSTANDING OF TOPICS BEFORE AND AFTER ATTENDING THE FOREST AND WILDLIFE EDUCATION PROGRAM 0% Forest Management and Forestry Practices
Wildlife Management
Soil Science and Sampling
Species at Risk
Impacts of natural resource development on forests Conservation and protection of species and habitat Indigenous connections to forests and wildlife
25%
50%
75%
100%
Pre Post Pre Post Pre Post Pre Post Pre Post Pre Post Pre Post Pre
Current research and best practices for northern AB forests
Post
Careers related to forests and wildlife
Post
Pre
I don’t know much about this
I understand the basics
I have a strong understanding
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It’s a well-balanced approach to teaching/ learning about a subject. Industry experts from various fields are always utilized and you get some excellent resources to take back to your classroom right away. TYLER DIXON MARSHALL SPRINGS SCHOOL, CALGARY
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FOREST & WILDLIFE Education Project Inside Education is committed to providing hands-on, experiential learning opportunities for students and teachers, and is proud to continue to provide such programming despite the COVID-19 pandemic. The ultimate goal of the Forest and Wildlife Education Project was to allow teachers to enrich environmental and natural resources education, improve their content knowledge and increase confidence in teaching these topics. Judging by the feedback received after the programs, by providing a hands-on PD program and access to content experts in the field, this goal was achieved. Due to the high demand and success of the Forest and Wildlife Education Program, Inside Education plans to offer the program again in Spring 2021 if in-person field trips are still restricted. Regardless of the environment that schools find themselves operating in, Inside Education will continue to support teachers in forestry, natural resources and environmental education through developing accessible, no-cost resources and professional development programs.
T H A N K Y O U TO O U R PA RT N E R S
MINCHAU LUMBER LTD.
W W W. I N S I D E E D U C AT I O N . C A 11428 - 100 Avenue | Edmonton, AB T5K 0J4 | info@insideeducation.ca Inside Education is a registered charity #101894319RR0001