Place and Nature-based Experiential Learning (Delivered Online) - Summer 2021

OVERVIEW

This interactive, online Graduate Diploma in Advanced Professional Studies in Education (GDE) is for K - 12 educators seeking to weave place and nature-based experiential learning opportunities into their practice. In this cohort program, educators will explore how the natural world informs who we are, how we relate to our students - and them to each other - and how we might braid holistic and Indigenous pedagogies into practice. The focus will be on deepening ecological knowledge, developing pedagogical approaches and fostering social-emotional well-being.

GDE programs are designed in collaboration with British Columbia school districts for educators whose primary focus is school-based practice within BC. This online, site-based program focuses on environmental awareness through experiential pedagogies and local connections to place.

Join us for a transformative journey into learning about how educational practice can be informed by the natural world and resources within local communities.

PROGRAM THEMES

Examine teacher values, beliefs, and experiences relating to place and nature-based learning and how these may influence educational decisions and interactions
Critically examine current directions in BC Education through the perspective of place and nature-based experiential learning and explore implications for practice
Learn from Indigenous worldviews and perspectives and how these can inform relationship with place and practice
Integrate place and nature-based experiential learning across subject areas in the context of individual and collective practice
Explore theories and principles of place and nature-based experiential learning and its place within educational change
Engage in teacher inquiry and reflective practice stemming from encounters with place and relationships with the natural world

This two-year, 30-unit program of study is for educators whose primary focus is school-based educational practice. It provides the opportunity to engage in focused, sustained reflective inquiry. Completion of the diploma allows educators to move from TQS category 4 to 5 or from category 5 to 5+.

Suited for: Elementary, middle and secondary teachers
Format: Interactive, experiential online sessions with a combination of synchronous and asynchronous classes. Potential that the one-week, Summer Institutes in August 2021 and August 2022 are face-to-face.
Classes: Tuesdays
Start Term: Summer 2021 (late April)
End Term: Spring 2023 (Jan)
Apply Now!
Application Deadline: March 19, 2021
2020/21 Tuition*: $320.28/unit
(Students register for 5 units per term)
*Subject to estimated 2% fee increase each September.