Preparing Students to Experience Place and Interconnection at Yarra Bend Park
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| Title: | Preparing Students to Experience Place and Interconnection at Yarra Bend Park |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Jefferson Kinsman |
| Source: | Geographical Education. 2025 38:5-22. |
| Availability: | Australian Geography Teachers' Association. PO Box 315 Artarmon NSW 1570, Australia. Tel: 0437-897-993; Web site: https://agta.au/resources/geographical-education/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 18 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Evaluative |
| Descriptors: | Place Based Education, Class Activities, Urban Environment, Parks, Geography Instruction, Human Geography, Foreign Countries, Maps, Field Trips, History, Indigenous Populations, Land Settlement |
| Geographic Terms: | Australia |
| ISSN: | 0085-0969 2204-0242 |
| Abstract: | As contemporary education grapples with increasing placelessness, the research advocates for place-responsive pedagogy that reconnects students with local environments before fieldwork experiences. The case study presents a comprehensive framework for pre-excursion preparation, demonstrating how classroom-based activities can enhance students' subsequent encounters with complex urban-natural environments. Using the example of Melbourne's Yarra Bend Park, on the lands of the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people, the article explores three primary preparatory strategies: mapwork and spatial contextualisation, narrative-based inquiry using the park's rich Indigenous and colonial histories, and hands-on analysis of physical and ecological samples from the site. These approaches are designed to develop students' understanding of interconnectivity--a foundational geographical concept that places derive meaning from their relationships with other places and processes. The research emphasises the integration of Wurundjeri perspectives through resources such as "Wilam, a Birrarung Story," whilst acknowledging the complexities of teaching contested histories. It demonstrates approaches designed to foster sophisticated conceptual understanding and interest before students encounter the park's ecosystems and historical remnants. This pedagogical framework addresses practical teaching constraints whilst maintaining academic rigour and cultural sensitivity, providing concrete strategies for transforming abstract geographical concepts into embodied, meaningful learning experiences that prepare students for deeper engagement with place, and enhance subsequent fieldwork encounters. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1504986 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | As contemporary education grapples with increasing placelessness, the research advocates for place-responsive pedagogy that reconnects students with local environments before fieldwork experiences. The case study presents a comprehensive framework for pre-excursion preparation, demonstrating how classroom-based activities can enhance students' subsequent encounters with complex urban-natural environments. Using the example of Melbourne's Yarra Bend Park, on the lands of the Wurundjeri Woiwurrung people, the article explores three primary preparatory strategies: mapwork and spatial contextualisation, narrative-based inquiry using the park's rich Indigenous and colonial histories, and hands-on analysis of physical and ecological samples from the site. These approaches are designed to develop students' understanding of interconnectivity--a foundational geographical concept that places derive meaning from their relationships with other places and processes. The research emphasises the integration of Wurundjeri perspectives through resources such as "Wilam, a Birrarung Story," whilst acknowledging the complexities of teaching contested histories. It demonstrates approaches designed to foster sophisticated conceptual understanding and interest before students encounter the park's ecosystems and historical remnants. This pedagogical framework addresses practical teaching constraints whilst maintaining academic rigour and cultural sensitivity, providing concrete strategies for transforming abstract geographical concepts into embodied, meaningful learning experiences that prepare students for deeper engagement with place, and enhance subsequent fieldwork encounters. |
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| ISSN: | 0085-0969 2204-0242 |
