Soil scientists affirm that there is not life nor science without soil. However, increasing public awareness of the importance of soil for sustaining life in the human society implies effords towards development of programmes, training and dissemination at different levels. Primary school is the main place in which science (chemistry, physics, biology, etc.) can be teached through investigating an environmental compartment such as soil. Thus, developing multidisciplinary studies in field for students and training courses for teachers of primary and high schools can be a powerfull tool to increase social domand toward soil. Here some actions carried out in Italy within the infancy and primary school will be presented, since we are convinced that no teaching can be effective if an interest (in a holistic science) towards soil science is not induced during the first years of school. In the infancy school playing represents the preminent educational style, since it is a lerning methodology for children, which is being lived as open research and continous experimentation. The Soil Game involved experiences of sampling musks, soils and rocks, classification of leaves, realisation of herbariums, exploration of fantastic worlds such as organic matter transformation and recycling in “domestic” composting. Finally, an interaction between different spheres was experimented, in which the work on soil was connected to that on art by exploring the landscape of some paints present in a museum collection. In the primary and high school a more “scientific” approach was adopted, which allowed students to read and realise soil maps, to sample and describe soils in field, to analise water quality. These activities were supported by the organisation of training courses for teachers and by the production of specific didactical tools such as manuals.
Soil science meets school
VIANELLO, GILMO
2004
Abstract
Soil scientists affirm that there is not life nor science without soil. However, increasing public awareness of the importance of soil for sustaining life in the human society implies effords towards development of programmes, training and dissemination at different levels. Primary school is the main place in which science (chemistry, physics, biology, etc.) can be teached through investigating an environmental compartment such as soil. Thus, developing multidisciplinary studies in field for students and training courses for teachers of primary and high schools can be a powerfull tool to increase social domand toward soil. Here some actions carried out in Italy within the infancy and primary school will be presented, since we are convinced that no teaching can be effective if an interest (in a holistic science) towards soil science is not induced during the first years of school. In the infancy school playing represents the preminent educational style, since it is a lerning methodology for children, which is being lived as open research and continous experimentation. The Soil Game involved experiences of sampling musks, soils and rocks, classification of leaves, realisation of herbariums, exploration of fantastic worlds such as organic matter transformation and recycling in “domestic” composting. Finally, an interaction between different spheres was experimented, in which the work on soil was connected to that on art by exploring the landscape of some paints present in a museum collection. In the primary and high school a more “scientific” approach was adopted, which allowed students to read and realise soil maps, to sample and describe soils in field, to analise water quality. These activities were supported by the organisation of training courses for teachers and by the production of specific didactical tools such as manuals.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
