A Case for Place-based Education: Learning to Make a Difference in the Raumati Wetlands

Abstract

Alongside the UNESCO Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, the New Zealand Curriculum endorses environmental education and agrees that learners need to be educated for a future in which they can safeguard the environment alongside their place in it. However, in practice, environmental education is often seen as a non-mandatory add-on which robs schools of precious time reserved for core subjects. This article builds on previous comment and shows how schools can use place-based education to effect meaningful change in their local environment, whilst effectively covering most aspects of the school curriculum. By becoming involved in local issues, students can develop understandings of the democratic process, business development, conservation and regeneration of species through the relationships between these often conflicting factors. A combination of research discussion and local media releases on current environmental debate provides a platform for meaningful contribution via the New Zealand Curriculum.