Week 3

Using National Parks as Classrooms: 2012 - 3 - 1

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

Original Manuscript

     The National Park Service in the United States will mark its one hundredth anniversary in twenty-sixteen. As it nears its second century, the Park Service plans to increase its educational programs for students and teachers.

      The plans include transportation support for one hundred thousand students each year to visit national parks to learn about nature and history.

      Yellowstone is believed to have been the world's first national park when it was established in eighteen seventy-two. Other students will get a chance to see parks in faraway places through Skype and other online programs.

    The National Park Service also works with partners to provide education. One of its partners is a nonprofit organization called NatureBridge. NatureBridge is celebrating its fortieth anniversary and says one million young people have taken part in its programs.

    The organization works with students from kindergarten through twelfth grade and uses national parks as its classrooms. It provides field science programs at Yosemite National Park and four other locations in California and the northwestern state of Washington.

    Now, NatureBridge is launching an East Coast center with a four-million-dollar grant from Google. The program will begin in April at the Prince William Forest Park in Virginia.

     Students stay for three to five days in NatureBridge programs. The activities are aimed at developing their science skills. For example, they learn about different soils and study water quality under a microscope.

    Jason Morris is executive vice president of NatureBridge. He says when they are not sleeping, eating or in a laboratory, the students spend their time outdoors.

     Julia Washburn is associate director of education and interpretation for the National Park Service. She says in a time of budget cuts, the agency has to find ways to still meet its goals.

     JULIA WASHBURN: "We are not likely to get a lot of money in this current economy. This is about doing different work with the money that we have and redirecting resources into it."

     Ms. Washburn says one of the most important services that the Park Service provides every day is nature interpretation. Park rangers try to make visiting the outdoors more meaningful.

     JULIA WASHBURN: "Interpretation is a form of informal education. Essentially, it is a word that we use for the people in parks that explain the park or help orient you. So park rangers are interpreters. They orient you to the place you are in and help you make connections, emotional and intellectual connections, with the place."

   And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. You can find captioned videos of our programs at the VOA Learning English channel on YouTube. I'm Steve Ember.

Listening skill

     Effective learning is not focused on inside the classroom. A teacher may design environment of classroom that can motivate students to gain knowledge and get new experiences. The teacher would like to apply each of teaching method into classroom such as cooperative learning, content-based learning, task-based learning, etc. In addition, the teacher should ask the students do you prefer to learn inside or outside the classroom and prepare lesson appropriately with students’ learning styles. Now, allowing students to learn outside the classroom is good teaching method because they can gain knowledge in real life situation and see authentic materials. In this section, I prefer to introduce using National park as the classroom. The National Park Service in the United States will sign that it is hundredth anniversary in twenty-sixteen. Because of its nearly second century, the National Park Service plans to increase a way in educational programs for students and teachers. In this section, I prefer to introduce using National park as the classroom.

     The National Park also services transportation for 100,000 students to visit national parks and learn about nature and history. Yellowstone is believed that it will be the first national park of the world established in 1872. Other students also get a chance to see parks in faraway places through online programs. The National Park Service works with NatureBridge to provide education. The organization works with twelfth grade students from kindergarten and uses national parks as classrooms for learning science programs at Yosemite National Park and four other locations in California and the northwestern state of Washington. Students stay for three to five days in NatureBridge programs. The purpose of activities is development about sciences skill. For example, students study of different soils and water quality under a microscope.

       Conclusion, learning outside the classroom is best for students to connect with lesson. When the students study in the classroom, someone always sleeps, talk with friends, less concentrate in learning, etc. These effects come from the teacher like to teach them by using description method. According to this essay, the teacher allows students to learn sciences at The National Park Service, so they can gain knowledge by authentic materials being easier to understand and motivate them to study. In my opinion, I agree with teaching students by guide them to real situation because they will enjoy with learning. It also is a good way to recognize what they have learned as longer. What do you have idea for this teaching method?  If you are students who have learned outside the classroom like this, I would like to know how you feel.

Reference:

Using National Parks as Classrooms: 2012 - 3 - 1. Assess information from:

                http://voa.52en.com/voa-se-html/20123/voa-20123290843.html

                        (On June 17, 2013).

Vocabularies	Pronunciation	Meaning
Fierce (adj.)	/fɪrs/	บ้าระห่ำ    showing strong feelings or a lot of activity, often in a way that is violent    Ex: Competition from abroad became fiercer in the 1990s.
Campaign (n)	/kæmˈpeɪn/	รณรงค์    a series of planned activities that are intended to achieve a particular social, commercial, or political aim    Ex: a campaign against ageism in the workplace.
Radical (adj)	/ˈrædɪkl/	สุดขีด    concerning the most basic and important parts of something; thorough and complete    Ex: the need for radical changes in education is in next year.
Influential (adj.)	/ˌɪnfluˈɛnʃl/	มีผลกระทบ    having a lot of influence on someone or something    Ex: She is one of the most influential figures in local politics.
Release (n)	/rɪˈlis/	การยกเว้น การสละสิทธิ์    the act of setting a person or an animal free; the state of being set free     Ex: The government has been working to secure the release of the hostages.