My students and I have been invited to Greenbuild International Conference!!
Through our participation with the School of the Future Design Competition, we came to know the folks at the US Green Building Council. The work of the USGBC is inspiring in so many ways, but what intrigues me most is the Education Sector, and the outreach work they do on behalf of schools and educators. What is important here is the active role this organization is taking in transforming the way learning happens. Offering opportunity to students and support to teachers, the USGBC is taking steps towards a fresh and imperative vision of education that transcends ” learning within the four walls ” and moves us into a model of shared responsibility and community enhancement.
Typically, a school is a building in a neighborhood where students enter in the morning and leave some hours later. Usually there is little interaction between the school and its surrounding community. What would learning look like if schools and communities developed collaborative relationships? What if every business, association, etc. had a presence in the schools, offering expertise to teachers, staff, and students, enhancing curriculum and creating innovative and collaborative opportunities? And what if students were encouraged to learn outside of the school walls, with hands-on projects that provide application for classroom learning and draw upon community resources? How could the presence of a school in a neighborhood serve to elevate the surrounding community, as my students asked last year while designing their school? What if communities took responsibility for schools, not just because they may or may not have children in a particular school, but because quality education is a basic right, and schools need and deserve the support? I believe that that this kind of collaboration can move us towards more sustainable learning models by building bridges between classroom and community, and by transforming curriculum so that it is moved beyond mandated standards towards relevant and equitable learning for all students.
I am thrilled to have the chance to attend Greenbuild and am so excited for my students and for what they they will learn there. Mostly, I want them to own this learning and move it into their lives towards the end of becoming advocates for equitable housing, education, and employment in their own communities.
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