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Developing a STEAM Curriculum of Place for Teacher Candidates: Integrating Environmental Field Studies and Indigenous Knowledge Systems

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Rural Teacher Education

Abstract

Through my relationships with Indigenous communities, I have a deeply held conviction that sustained deliberations on the connections between Indigenous knowledge systems and place-based thinking can provide significant opportunities for reframing teacher education practices. As a science teacher educator, I am interested in the possibilities of a teacher education program based on the principles of “place-based education” that assists teacher candidates to become better able to learn from a science curriculum of place. The purpose of this research is to investigate how teacher candidates’ experiences in environmental place-based field studies with community partners can inform an integrated STEAM practicum semester based on a curriculum of place.

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  1. Department of Education, Mount Royal University, 4825 Mount Royal Gate SW, T3E 6K6, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Kevin O’Connor

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  1. Kevin O’Connor
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  1. School of Education, Acadia University, Wolfville, NS, Canada

    Michael Corbett

  2. Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Dianne Gereluk

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O’Connor, K. (2020). Developing a STEAM Curriculum of Place for Teacher Candidates: Integrating Environmental Field Studies and Indigenous Knowledge Systems. In: Corbett, M., Gereluk, D. (eds) Rural Teacher Education. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2560-5_13

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