Transformative teaching: learning from Nature during Challenging Times

“How do we prepare the children in our lives to be visionary, and to love nature even when changes are frighting and incomprehensible?” ( A.M Brown)

“Scientific thinking is getting children to access wisdom as earlier as possible” ( Kirsi Lonka, University of Helsinki),” 

“Allowing students to play with their perception and description beyond the existing forms of expertise is a way open the channels of new findings (Nora Bateson, Ecoversities)

 

Transformative teaching

Transformative teaching is practicing the teacher’s process (self-actualization) to reflect in the classroom the change you see needed in the world. Inspired from biology process, biomimicry “the small scale pattern that is mirrored in the macro pattern”, or in other words ” be the change you want to see in the world”. Transformative teaching is healing teachers burnout and students learnout (moving away from results that nobody seems to want) by putting in the center co-learning and co-creating, the learning that comes from an experimental approach. Burnout and learn out are due to the lack of practice listening. ” When we listen, the way we perceive reality changes exponentially, and then any transformative change becomes possible in matters of weeks” ( Otto Scharmer, MIT). 

 Nature is the best context- we did not listen in nature, we are listening now, it has our attention! Finland has been an educational system that kept nature close, they are too getting nature closer to the learning systems, as this is part of future skills mindset. Nature learning offers the amazing environment on how do we use efficiently our resources and energies, how do we move away from cluster thinking to systems thinking and make sure we do not deplete ourselves. 

What is sustainable curriculum? Curriculum in each students and teachers learn what is most meaningful  to them and that is holding the process ( creative process of learning).

Location 

 

The course is offered in Finland, Helsinki Metropolitan area, Espoo Natural Park, participants will receive practical guide to prepare for their traveling, and accommodation. 

Module 1

The nature teachers room- how do we teach with and from nature

Skills practiced: self directed learning, centered and active listening, teachers as active researchers. You will have access all day to materials from guests, trainers: videos, podcasts, audio practices for your own learning. 

Module 2

Practicing listening skills & proprioception 

Skills practiced: creating systemic education model for the class, leadership and unlearning, supporting critical and scientific thinking

Module 3

What we do not listen in nature ( pedagogy of the heart)

Skills practiced: presencing, post-humanistic model for learning, social presencing for future skills, learn outside the classroom facilitation


Module 4

Future of assessment

Preparing for a future where we get more often confused, a future of  “wicked” problem; creating a horizontal relation in which the children can clarify their own opinions. 

Skills practiced: self directed learning, centered and active listening, teachers as active researchers. You will have access all day to materials from guests, trainers: videos, podcasts, audio practices for your own learning. 

 Awareness & learning practices to take notices in the environment around us, its changings and challenges; communities changings and challenging during COVID, prototypes of educators.  Staying with difficult questions like ” why we did not realize this change and why we did not believe what we saw, why we were not active”, it is very much into the Sissu – Finnish culture. Crystallsing and prototyping ideas about sustainable learning with your class, school, community. Accessing and working in peers for co-learning.

You can register here on the website or you can register as a group at info@actonlearning.org

At the end of the course...

 
  1. Tools for each module & support to include them in your class ( curriculum)
  2. Adaptive tools supporting rethinking resilient community of learning ( new pedagogies tools)
  3. Working on your own process, self-actualizing ( tools for teacher as an active researcher)
  4. Case studies & guests to support your inspiration

Possible learning path

  1. Practice reflection & action learning with practices for the class
  2. Practice peer learning ( instruments offered as support for peer practice- democratically led facilitation)
  3. Accelerate the learning with LIVE session ( a shares space for generating new learning
  4. Apply in real environment instruments & your prototype for each module & self reflect based on the feedback from the class

Trainers & special guests teachers practicing nature curriculum

Andreea Gatman –  ICF Certified Coach, U Lab (MIT) practitioner, Eunos Trainer in Finland for programs like Integrated Curriculum Teaching Global Skills, Coaching Strategies for Schools, New Learning Ways & Environments, School Development together with Forum Schule Germany

Tuovi Ronkainen– teacher, Principal, education expert for Finnish schools outside Finland, Open University for Future Thinking and now again class teacher :). Tuovi has graduated Open University Program for Future Skills with University of Turku.

Transformative teaching: learning from Nature during Challenging Times

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