High school program in Vernon takes students outside the classroom to learn

Students often ask their teachers to have class outside, but this program in Vernon is taking outdoor learning to a whole other level. Awaken Inquiry and Adventure Okanagan, also known as Awaken Education, is an alternative education program at Clarence Fulton Secondary School in Vernon that sees students from grade seven through 12 spending most of their time outside. The aim is to help students learn by applying practical, real life examples in their curriculum to their day-to-day lives. “It's a blend of learning on the land and learning in community, but the main emphasis is that experiential learning piece. So less of the ‘learning can only happen in the classroom’ or ‘those four walls’ and really breaking through those barriers and seeing that learning happens in all different ways at all different times,” Awaken Eduction teacher Caitlin McMahon said. Students take a hands-on approach to learning and make sure they understand the concepts being taught through real life experiences, ensuring they learn instead of just memorizing information. “The more experiences that students have, the more opportunities they have to connect their learning to different things,” Awaken Education teacher Robert Buchanan said. Instead of sitting at a desk, learning, and regurgitating information in a test, the students go outside, visit the wetlands surrounding the school and use the environment as a resource for lessons. Students complete the curriculum to earn a BC Certificate of Graduation otherwise know as a Dogwood Diploma. "We really get to know our learners, we really get to see where they come in and the ebbs and flows," McMahon said. "It really helps us understand their learning style and patterns and see them become and develop themselves through the program." Some students are tracking deer scat and using math and science they track the animals habits and figure out how many deer live in the area. They learn the necessary math formulas to meet the curriculum. Other students are using math to understand the proper formulas, measurements and numbers to bake a tasty treat. “We're trying to always blend what they're learning, because typically... in that more real-world context, we're not learning things in a vacuum or only learning math through this situation or only focusing on written word. It's usually a blend, and so we're trying to offer those courses and then bring attention to the mix of curriculum that's already existing,” McMahon said. READ MORE: iN PHOTOS: No kidding, Penticton farm offers lease-a-goat service https://infotel.ca/newsitem/in-photos-no-kidding-penticton-farm-offers-lease-a-goat-service/it107397 Unlike most high school programs, they don't use textbooks. Everything is learned through experience or research with lots of trips to the library and museum. All the learning is self-paced, meaning students are allowed more time to fully dive into a concept, wrap themselves around it to understand the lesson.  Once enrolled in the program, the students stick with their teachers for the whole five years, or longer if they need, to finish their diploma. “If you are learning things through, not just like reading it or hearing about it, but you're experiencing it full body, and if it's tied to things that are of interest to you, you learn them in a different way. It can make accessing some of that knowledge an easier access point for you to then dive in deeper,” McMahon said. The program brings in guest speakers including members from the Okanagan Indian Band or foresters to teach about the environment around them. The students take on more challenging roles than in typical classroom settings. Students of different ages often work together and McMahon said they've noticed younger students take charge of projects and lead older students in lessons. Awaken Education is in its fourth year and MacMahon and Buchanan are excited to see where their students will be in a few years after experiencing this unique form of outdoor, community learning. To contact a reporter for this story, email Bailey Zimmer mailto:bzimmer@infonews.ca  or call 250-808-0143 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter . Find our Journalism Ethics policy here. http://infotel.ca/newsitem/code-of-ethics/it106782