From Module 3 of LLED 469
–“ Students benefit by using a wide array of resources that fit their individual interests, abilities and learning styles and teachers benefit by acquiring a teaching partner who assists in planning and teaching curriculum units of study.”
Last weekend, my wife Jill and I went to the Surrey Art Gallery to witness a canoe blessing and steaming ceremony. The canoe is being carved by First Nations artist Mike Dangeli, who led the event. As part of the tradition we were invited to place a hot stone in the canoe to help create the steam which softens the cedar and allows it to be spread. This cultural event planted the seed of inquiry into my head and I decided to plan a unit around First Nations canoe making for assignment 3. Jill is working on her PHD in Curriculum Studies in Haida Gwaii, where the Haida are in the process of building 3 canoes. I hope to build a resource for her to use while there. She will be working with a museum team and with teachers from the local school.
Unit Rationale:
It is important for all of us in BC to understand and appreciate the diversity of our cultural makeup. We live in a province with an incredible variety of language, lifestyles, histories, and art. It is incumbent upon educators to introduce their students to all these things, which this unit will attempt to address. The central resource is the canoe carving. The timeliness of the canoe carving in Haida Gwaii and Sir Charles Tupper Secondary is important for maximum success, but not critical in the long run.
Tupper is a secondary school in mid-town Vancouver. The school population is diverse, made up of mainly Asian, South Asian first and second generation students. There are about 930 students in our school this year. We have several special programs, including Pacific Storm, for gr. 8-9, a social behaviour education class, Tupper alternative, for gr. 8-10 students finding it difficult to cope in regular programming, ESL Pre-employment, which helps low functioning ESL students with work experience type curriculum, Tupper Young Parents, for teen moms, offering a variety of support and regular programming in a min-school situation, Tupper Mini for higher functioning, self-motivated students who are mostly university bound, a full day BAA Tech Studies and Trades class offering a wide selection of trades-based learning, a Learning Assistance class, for students 8-12 who need extra help not normally available in regular classes, and a Life Skills program for students with more severe special challenges, including physical and cognitive.
My position at Tupper is Culinary Arts teacher. I am a teaching chef, with my other teaching area being Social Studies, although I am not presently employed in that department.
Tupper has had some hardships over the years, but the school community has made great strides in the area of social responsibility. Last year Martin Sparrow from Musqueam carved his first pole, which stands proudly at our front entrance. Since Musqueam does not have a history of carving, this was an interesting undertaking, and it turned out wonderfully. Our school community wanted to recognize the fact that Musqueam is the only Reserve in Vancouver, and that the people are important. There are not a large percentage of First Nations students in our population, but students, -and adults, should be aware that Tupper lies on traditional Musqueam territory. Every student in the school had an opportunity to put a hand on the pole and even carve, sand, paint, or help design it.
Martin is now planning to carve a canoe at Tupper, and has applied to the Vancouver Parks board to get a log from Stanley Park, as the ‘clean-up’ continues there. I hope to create a unit that will be useful to this new carving adventure, while supporting teachers in Haida Gwaii.
The cultural importance of western Red Cedar is central to the BC First Nations people, and the canoes are an extension of the trees. Forest practices are important as well therefore stewardship of the forests is a key issue in this unit.
The IRP for BC First Nations 12 helps me form some lesson ideas: “Students are expected to explain the cultural significance of various artistic expressions (e.g., weaving, carving, painting, dance, song).”
The Integrated Resource Package for BC First Nations 12 state, under the heading “Student Achievement, Key Elements, Skills and Processes,” this unit addresses these learning objectives:
Land and Relationships
• locations of BC First Nations
• the relationship of First Nations peoples and
the natural world
• education in traditional BC First Nations societies
• interactions among BC First Nations (pre-contact and post-contact, up to the present)
• cultural relationships between BC First Nations and other societies (especially European).
There are 3 sub units of this assignment, each with 1 or more lessons, all using the canoe as a focus:
1. how to research, including topics such as materials, technology, history
2. issues of forest practices, land use, sustainability, and stewardship
3. the cultural and artistic role of the canoe
Advance Preparation: (since most of the books, and videos are in the Tupper Library, or available at Vancouver School Board MediaNet, the TL will pull them from selves, or order them for the CT)
• Organizing field trips to Stanley Park, Haida Gwaii, Seymour Demonstration Forest and the Fish Hatchery, Musqueam Creek
• Ensure there is access to computer lab, websites are current
• Print off any handouts –graphic organizers, from Kathy Schrock website
Activity list:
• String Web game
• Filling out graphic organizers
• Field trips
• Answering the critical questions from each chosen resource, orally or in written form
The TL will conduct the research lessons in the computer lab, or library, depending on where the computers are, ensure they are available for collaboration, research and identify the resources, and will write annotations critical questions as teaching ideas. The TL will assess the learning of the research section. Students will be assessed on the process of correctly completing the information from the research lessons:
evaluating websites, for clarity, accuracy, truthfulness
how to cite, the proper formatting of a bibliography
identifying plagiarism, why it is wrong, and how not to do it
The CT will conduct the field trips, research the curriculum, and set a date for collaboration with the TL, design the lesson plans, create handouts, learning timeline, and lead any classroom activities. The CT will assess the student’s progress in the areas of:
sensitivity and understanding of First Nations people, of their culture, art, and connection to the land, especially the forests and monumental trees.
their behaviour on the fieldtrips
their attitude towards stewardship and sustainability as demonstrated by their post lesson writing
the learning progress they have made as evidenced through the daily discussions based on the critical questions from each resource
Research:
To meet our learning goals, students will need to learn good research skills, which is fundamental to this unit. The lesson included will be on developing these skills.
“Developing strategies that will ensure young people gain insight and understanding from information is an essential part of education (LLED 469, Module 4).”
The BC First Nations 12 Integrated Resource Package includes Prescribed Learning Outcomes, under the heading ‘Skills and Processes’ that state students should be able to:
• demonstrate effective research skills, including
− accessing information
− assessing information
− collecting data
− evaluating data
− organizing information
− presenting information
− citing sources
1. Use the ‘BIG 6 model, direct them to the website, http://www.big6.com/
Once the students have learned how to access information in the library, the research process can begin. I have chosen the ‘Big 6’ model, which has a good website for teachers to refer to. Students must be given direction as they work through the Big 6:
1. task definition. What is it that you are asking of them? –define/clarify the question
2. information seeking strategies. How do you expect them to find out? –(lesson)
3. location and access. Where is the information kept? –show them print, electronic, etc.
4. use of information. How do they sort and filter through it all? –re-visit the question, teach documenting sources as they go.
5. synthesis. How do they put it all together? –give examples of a finished product.
6. evaluation. Was it a good assignment? –ask students for feedback, reflections, -what did they learn, and how are they going to change.
The canoes:
Under ‘Cultural Expressions,’ the PLO’s include:
• explain the significance of traditional and contemporary Aboriginal art objects.
Under Land and Relationships,” the PLO’s include:
• analyse the relationship of First Nations peoples with the natural world
• explain the significance of traditional education with respect to land and relationships
2. http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/English/index_flash.html. The Virtual Museum has a picture gallery of several canoes and images of the carving, steaming, and painting process, plus a video. It is a good start for this unit.
-have the students review the site, use a KWL graphic organizer to get them started thinking about what is to come in the unit.
3. http://www.civilization.ca/aborig/haida/havct01e.html. This site has a picture gallery of Haida art including canoes, as well as a brief history of canoe carving on the islands.
-why do you think the artists were so revered in Haida tradition, especially the canoe carvers?
http://www.canoemuseum.net/education/highschool.asp. How about a field trip to Peterborough? They have lots of exhibits and a high-school educational program, or maybe a virtual tour of the museum will do. The site states that the canoe is uniquely Canadian, and is one of the Seven Wonders of Canada.
4. The Great Canoes: Reviving a Northwest Coast Tradition, by Neel, David is a beautiful picture and story book by Kwakiutl photographer David Neel. The stories are about carving from the artists who tell about what the canoes mean to them.
-write a story one page long that describes your feeling of your family car, and compare it to how Neel presents the canoe, -does it have an aura, a spirit, can you or have you already given it a name that suits its personality?
5. http://tribaljourneys.com. This website is about organized canoe trips made by First Nations people. There are several trips each year that are for fun, and to connect with others in First Nations communities up and down the coast. They do it the traditional way to reclaim some of their culture. The trips are used for healing and are spiritual in nature. Often the trips culminate in a Potlatch. There are videos of the canoe families paddling and of people singing and drumming at:
6. http://www.bellinghamherald.com/static/multimedia/paddle/
-Why are they called ‘canoe families?’
7. Song of the Haida Canoe, is about Haida artist Bill Reid carving Lootaas. The narrator states that the mother art of the Haida people was the making of canoes. Lootaas was the first canoe in Skidegate in 3 generations, 50 years, and they had no model to use when they started, but miraculously it worked. A hard and truthful look at the difficulties Bill had negotiating the carving process between his native and non-native crew. The steaming process is explained.
-Why did Guujaaw quit the project?
8. http://www.sealaskaheritage.org/news/index.html for live canoe cam from Juneau. It will take several months of carving to complete, and the artists work from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm Monday to Friday. The web cam runs 24 hrs a day, and the video is being archived for later use.
-students can witness canoe carving virtually live.
9. http://tlaook.com/tlaook-canoe.html is a site dedicated to Nuu-chah-nulth canoe carving, and has nice photos of carving. It is a commercial tourist site called Tla-ook Cultural Adventures. They offer a paddling trip in which the customer paddles a Nuu-chah-nulth cedar canoe. The Meares Island trip takes 4.5 hours and includes a walk on the island, featuring many cultural highlights including a Culturally Modified Tree. Use it for filed trip planning to Tofino.
10. http://www.trailtribes.org/fortclatsop/canoe-people.htm. This site has information about the culture of carving. It is a great large site with information about Columbia River American Indians, Tillamook etc.
-watch the videos esp George Lagergren, read the text, and try to list all the reasons that canoe building was/is important to the Chinookans.
11. http://www.edutopia.org/search/node/canoe+carving. This site is about the Carving Cultural Connections Project in Seattle, an 8 min. video on an American Haida carver, Saaduuts Peele, the 3 year project to carve with students a 40 foot canoe.
-why do you think the logs for the canoe came all the way from Alaska, considering that the Columbia River area has been home to monumental trees in the past?
12. http://www.skidegate.ca/shed3.html. This site has information about Qay’ Ilnagaay, the new museum in Skidegate.
-find Bill Reid’s famous big canoe, what is it called?
13. http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=5301 This is a site about the Makah, and their fight to start traditional whaling in canoes.
-Why is whaling so important to the Makah? How do they do it? What is the name of the boat they used?
14. http://members.aol.com/Donnclass/NWIndianlife.html. Here you can find all types of information on American/Canadian First Nations of the west coast. The site’s main heading is “Daily Life in Ancient Times.” The teacher must ensure that students understand the difference between past and present practices of First Nations people, and that much of what is shown here still happens, despite the title.
-find the tree/canoe section and learn about the trees that worked for canoe building on the west coast, why did the people chose this way to make canoes?
-what are the factors that led them to pick the type of tree?
-find the section on canoes, Can you find one historical inaccuracy in the text? (it states that ‘the ancient canoe makers steamed the boat with hot rocks’ but we know that they still do this, the culture is not antiquated, it is still alive and thriving, too bad for the assimilationists!
15. http://www.haidaheritagecentre.com/houses_canoe.html, links to articles about Bill Reid and his canoe carving.
http://www.civilization.ca/aborig/nwca/nwca01e.html#menu, for some nice art pictures of west coat canoes, Bill Reid arriving at Skidegate in Loo Taas.
The trees:
Under ‘Land and Relationships,’ the PLO’s include:
• analyse the relationship of First Nations peoples with the natural world, and under ”Suggested Achievement Indicators” –Stewardship of resources.
• explain the significance of traditional education with respect to land and relationships
Under ‘Skills and processes,’ the PO’s include:
• demonstrate skills and attitudes of active citizenship, including ethical behaviour, open-mindedness, respect for diversity, and collaboration
16. Ancient Forests, Prod. Larison, Jim and Elaine. 1992. This National Geographic nature film in VHS format looks at the American coastal rain forest, although parallels can be drawn to the Canadian coast. It describes the ecosystem, and gives some history of logging. A valuable resource because it shows a wide variety of flora and fauna, including how rivers work in the system, and the interrelationship between salmon, deadfall, bears, birds the forest and the First Nations people and art.
17. Old –Growth Forest: An Ecosystem. This VHS, made by National Geographic offers a sensitive and beautiful look at the animals and plants that make up the coastal rainforest. It discusses the incredibly complex ecosystem found in our local forests and the interconnection of all flora and fauna living here. The video comes with a small teachers’ guide pamphlet.
-create a web that demonstrates your understanding of the coastal rainforest ecosystem as described in the video.
-have students complete a vocabulary list, use the teachers’ guide to help
-one of the suggested activities is to take the class into the forest and have them look for examples of decomposition, nurse logs, human effects on the forest, predator–prey relationships, and try to identify species, etc. The field trip to Stanley Park would be good for this activity, and help student make the connections mentioned in the film.
String Web Activity: Another activity is the ‘string-web’ game, where a circle of students pass a ball of string to each other representing the interconnectedness of animal and plant species. Everyone picks an animal or plant they want to represent then the first student holds one end of the string and tells a short story about their species. They pass the ball to another, who must do the same, but will also talk about how their species is connected to the last one. Each student holds on to the string as they pass it around. Soon there is a web in the middle of the circle.
This video and the activities demonstrate the importance of maintaining a healthy forest through stewardship.
18. http://www.spruceroots.org/ This site, by Gowgaia, the foundation/group putting it together, has an excellent video titled ‘Logging Haida Gwaii, 1901-2004. It is animated graphic time line of the massive extent of logging on the islands. There is also a link to Yahgulanaas’ ‘Comix,’ information about logging, maps of the ‘Riparian Fish Forest’ that shows in great detail the fish streams which are key to the stewardship of the forest.
-check this site carefully, since there is so much specific information on the protection of the forests. What was your reaction to the video of logging on the islands since 1901?
-try to find the poster “Lost Streams of the Lower Fraser River” by the DFO, 1995, and compare it to the Riparian Fish Forest map, -why the difference, and how does logging interfere with the fish reproduction?
19. The Last Voyage of the Black Ship, by Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas is subtitled ‘Haida Manga’, and is written in the graphic novel style. It is full of beautiful art and tells a mystical story of saving wilderness and sacred places from the big logging companies.
-describe the conflict presented by Yahgulanaas between the loggers and the people who use the forest.
-what is the author saying in these images?
-try to figure out why he is using his artistic abilities to make this type of art.
-search the Museum of Anthropology website, http://www.moa.ubc.ca/ for Mike’s “Meddling in the Museum” piece using Bill Reid’s canoe on top of a car. Why is Mike thinking carefully about using the canoe in this way, why is it so important to be careful with it?
20. http://www.spruceroots.org/BlackShip.html. This is a story by Mike of the Haida Brave taking away logs.
-very pertinent to this unit, and full of feelings for the trees, the connection between the people and the forest.
21. Cedar: Tree of Life to the Northwest Coast Indians, by Hillary Stewart is a respectful and knowledgeable description, as the title implies, of all the ways the people used the cedars, demonstrating its importance to all the coastal cultures.
-list some of the items the cedar gave to the people. How many of these things are still in common use today?
22. http://www.cathedralgrove.se/text/06-Totem-Poles-1.htm. This site is about Culturally Modified Trees, searching for monumental trees for carving, and many videos of tree falling, logging practices, environmental activism, etc.
-what is the 1000 years plan?
-what is meant by environmental politics?
-what exactly is an ‘old growth forest’
23. http://www.smfra.ca/index.php?id=library. This is the site of the South Moresby Forest Replacement Account.
“The intent of the Account was to mitigate the impacts of loss in timber supply and forest-based employment resulting from the creation of Gwaii Haanas, by developing employment opportunities in long-term forest management, research, and education.
The site links to
http://www.smfra.ca/fileadmin/smfra/home/Forest_Education_Program_2004.pdf, and has a very good education plan that includes:
Forest Education
Introduction to the Forest Education Program
Field Trip Activities
Forest Education Program: Lesson 1 - What Lives in the Forest
Forest Education Program: Lesson 2 - Trees, Shrubs, Plants
Forest Education Program: Lesson 3 - Connections in the Forest
Forest Education Program: Lesson 4 - Use of Trees
The stewardship:
This was taken from Students and the Broader Community section from http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/annualreport/97_98/97_98-annual-31.htm, the Ministry of Education’s Annual Report, 1997-98:
“The ministry's 1998 in-school survey also confirmed that most students feel that environmental and cultural awareness should be a teaching priority, confirming that many students are already sensitive, socially-aware individuals. Environmental stewardship remains an important issue among high school students. A majority of grades 11 and 12 students (60 per cent) in the 1998 in-school survey felt that the school system should place high priority on teaching knowledge and appreciation of the environment.”
24. http://www.wcel.org/4976/29/02/07.htm, news on FIRST NATIONS rights,
-in what way are FIRST NATIONS rights being challenged?
25. http://www.wcwcvictoria.org/vipetition/ The Western Canadian Wilderness Committee (WCWC) latest advocacy campaign is saving the ancient rain forests. This website has many internal links, including a petition students can sign to help lobby the government, news updates on the campaign, and information on why the campaign is so important.
-how does the WCWC plan to save jobs and limit Old Growth logging?
26. http://www.sarahpullman.com/blog/sarahfelicity/big-trees-not-big-stumps-book-launch
This is a blog. Sarah Pullman has some very beautiful photos of the big trees of Elaho Valley, which may be useful for the teacher to show students the beauty of a wild natural forest. It could also be used to open discussion on logging practices and environmental activism, given the history of the valley to the north of Squamish. The author is also an advocate for lifestyle change, and her blog has many links to other like-minded sites.
27. Big Trees, Not Big Stumps: 25 years of campaigning to save wilderness with the Wilderness Committee, by Paul George, co-founder of the WCWC, and environmental activist. Paul has dedicated much of his life to the preservation of the BC wilderness. This is a great resource with valuable insights advocating for Deep Ecology. The book includes a DVD of over 560 photos, cartoons, videos, video and more stories.
-what is meant by the term Deep Ecology? What can you do to practice Deep Ecology in your life?
28. http://www.fsc.org/en/, the site of the Forest Stewardship Council. “The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international organization that brings people together to find solutions which promote responsible stewardship of the world’s forests.”
The FSC are big, international, and have pushed big changes in forestry throughout the world. It could be used to show students what type of advocacy groups are working to protect our future, or to inspire the class to get involved.
29. Whose Land is This? A good video explanation of the treaty history of BC, how Douglas’ and Trutchs’ policies affected the people, how epidemics decimated the FIRST NATIONS people, the Reserve system and the different uses of land from European and FIRST NATIONS views, land rights outside the Reserve system, the people’s connection to the land, the development of the modern land claim system. This all shows why the use of BC’s lands has been difficult to control from a FIRST NATIONS perspective. The issue of timber royalties being paid to non-FIRST NATIONS companies on treaty lands is mentioned, logging is briefly discussed as the type of commercial development that could be shared.
30. http://www.davidsuzuki.org/files/Forests/cedarreport2.pdf, A Vanishing Heritage: The Loss of Ancient Red Cedar from Canada’s Rainforests. Here is a wonderful report highlighting the loss of Western Red Cedar due to ‘high grading’, where a logging company will take the best trees out of the forest to make more money. The report has graphs, photos, a discussion on the cultural impact of logging monumental cedars, and quotes from artists etc.
-what is high grading, and what is the impact on the forest in the years to come?
On the home page, there is a video of Suzuki talking about the forests.
The section “Vanishing Cedars=Vanishing Totems” also pinpoints the theme of this unit, and is excellent.
31. Haida Gwaii/The Queen Charlottes: Islands in the Web of Life. This is a 58 minute film, in 3 parts, with parts 2 and 3 being the most interesting for this unit, about logging and the differing opinions of sustainable forestry. The film shows the importance of creating a sustainable system of logging on Haida Gwaii, as well as showing the relationship between the land and the people.
-what are the 2 key arguments for and against continuing logging the old growth forest as it is shown in 1990?
Salmon Stewardship
32. http://www.seymoursalmon.com/GDS.htm, this site has a comprehensive education program including a DVD and VHS put together by the Seymour Salmonid Society, for low cost purchase. The program is called “Gently Down the Seymour” and it describes the life of the fish as they leave the hatchery, make their way down the Seymour, and return years later. Salmon stewardship is important for the health of the forest. The issue of the Seymour Dam is an important one to learn about since it is a key link to the human effects on the forest. While this program is aimed at younger students, the field trip can easily be adapted for our grade 12 classes.
-why is there a need for the hatchery?
33. http://www.gvrd.bc.ca/water/watersheds.htm, The Lower Seymour Conservation Area offers free tours of the forest watershed on certain days. They also have a $60 educational program for all age groups, with links to curriculum, as well as many inexpensive -$4.00, programs on weekends.
There are also many short videos online at: http://www.gvrd.bc.ca/education/resources-clips.htm about green initiatives, all worth watching for stewardship ideas, but not specifically about the issues of focus in this unit.
The GVRD also has a $15 satellite poster of the region, (Greater Vancouver) that can be used to promote discussion on the ‘greenness’ of the area.
34. Google Earth is a wonderful resource for identifying the vast extent of cut blocks from a bird’s eye view along the coast of BC.
-pick a sensitive area of the coast, such as Meares Island, and zoom in with GoogleEarth, how many clear cuts are evident? Why did the loggers choose to log in these areas?
-locate a river or stream where there has been logging, and discuss the impact on wildlife. Download the free software at: http://earth.google.com
33. Stanley Park field trip:
Have students read the short history at: http://www.discovervancouver.com/GVB/stanley-park.asp. Go to: http://www.stanleyparkecology.ca/programs/school/urbanStewards/index.php, for more education programs on stewardship, further knowledge of the ecosystem, etc.
-when were the trees cut down? What type of trees do you think they were?
It is a 1 hour walk through the forest, with the aim being to teach the class about the nature of the forest. Also, to identify ‘natural’ logging, and show them what logging looks like without having to go very far, thereby cutting costs.
Take the bus to the park, meet at Lumberman’s Arch. Walk with class pointing out the effects of the storms, the large stumps which were logged in 1868, and the recovery of the forest, the way of nature, describe a nurse log, find the patterns of the fallen trees, how they crashed, and ask the std. how they think the forest will recover now.
–should it be ‘cleaned-up?’
-should the downed wood be sold?
http://www.discovervancouver.com/Maps/stanley_park_Map.asp
After the field trips, ask students to write a short essay about the forest from the viewpoint of an environmentalist, a logger, a homebuilder/carpenter, a tourist, or a photographer. Read these stories in class and start a discussion on the activity as a whole.
34. Field Trip to Musqueam Creek, one of the last salmon spawning creeks in Vancouver, rehabilitated by Musqueam and the city:
http://www.mecsweb.org/Welcome.html is a lovely site about the city’s ‘first sustainable street.” The story is told with photos and text about how the street was turned into something special.
http://www.davidgreer.ca/walking/vancouver/lowerfraser/fraser01.html, for a virtual tour of the creek, and to promote visual literacy. Primarily this is a photo site, and a walking tour of the Fraser river estuary. The class discussion here should be about rehabilitating the riparian zone around the creek so that salmon can return to it and spawn, thereby enhancing the ecosystem.
35. Field Trip to Seymour Demonstration forest to see the how forest management works, and t see the fish hatchery. Using the Metro Vancouver website, and the Seymour Salmonid Society resources, plan this inexpensive trip for a first-hand view of how forests recover when clear-cut and then maintained.
http://www.sierraclub.ca/bc/programs/education/educators/resources.shtml has downloadable lesson plans for watershed stewardship.
-how has the forest recovered after being logged?
-will the trees ever become monumental again?
-discuss the value of the fish hatchery, the effects of the dam pro and con.
-have students do the hydrologic cycle from the Sierra Club’s lesson on the watershed, then see it first-hand at the creek, point out all the things mentioned in the lesson, ask std to find evidence of the hydrologic cycle.
36. Battle for the Trees. Prod. Edington, John, Darling, Gillian and Silberman Jack. National Film Board. 1993. About Mt. Paxton, on Vancouver Island. The 57 minute video is a very effective look at the impact of clear-cutting and alternatives that balance economic needs with forest stewardship. It questions the escalation of old growth logging.
--how does logging relate to the destabilization of the soil?
37. Humans in the Forest, VHS, Vol.2. Prod. and written by Honick, Alan. 1994. The Video Project. Subtitled Forests for the Future. An American look at the west coast forests, discusses the impact of humans on the ecosystem, the renewability of forests, calls forests ‘tree farms,’ differentiates public and private land ownership, the conflict between economics and the forestry, “A system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopsided.”
-what is meant by agricultural forestry?
-why is diversity in the forest important?
-what is the difference between the soil in the old growth forest and a plantation forest, or second growth forest?
38. Managing the Forest: Support Material for a Secondary Course in Intense Forest Management. Jaques, Don. 1989. This is a teacher manual for teaching about trees, de-forestation, stewardship and sustainable forest management.
-compare the re-forestation methods described in the book
39. Field Trip to Haida Gwaii. The ‘Trail Hikes’ booklet is very good for planning trips with the students in the old growth forest.
Henderson, Fern. Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte Islands Trail Hikes and Beach Walks. Haida Gwaii Museum at Qay’Ilnagaay, Skidegate, BC. 2005.
For an alternative view on the state of BC/s forests:
Stumped: the Forest Industry in Transition, by Ken Drushka, especially the chapter titled “Will the Supply Last,” pages 115-134, in which the author states that every study done on our forests are ‘crying wolf,’ and that there is no crisis.
Pacific Spirit: the Forest Reborn, by Patrick Moore, the copy in Tupper’s library was donated by the Truck Loggers Association.
The Working Forest of British Columbia, by I.K. Barber, who donated 2000 copies to BC schools.
The last two books are questionable sources because they were donated, not acquired independently by a Teacher Librarian. Students should be shown the reasons, political or otherwise, why these books may or may not be objective.
For an example of how First Nations art can be usurped and turned into a hand craft, see Carving Totem Poles and Masks, a book on how to take patterns and create your own art using others’ work. In this book, almost none of the designs are cited, and there is very little cultural sensitivity. The authors have no, or only a questionable and dubious right to use the styles, images, and art of others. It appears that they have infringed on the intellectual property of west Coast artists. Students should be made aware of this type of plagiarism and intellectual integrity.
Raven's Cry, by Christie Harris, with illustrations by Bill Reid is for ages 12 and up, and could be used as a literary component, as another perspective, so that students gain a wider understanding of the culture. It is a story told from a First Nations perspective.
LLED 469 Assignment #3
Research, 3 Lessons
Rationale/Introduction
For this assignment I chose to teach information literacy considering that: “Consistent and comprehensive implementation of information literacy programs is critical for 20th century learners (Achieving Information Literacy, 9).” Information literacy is a key component of administering a vibrant and purposeful library, and a key component to the Librarianship Diploma Program. Information literacy supports all curriculum aspects, and so it is important to teach and promote it in the library.
There are three lessons included in this section;
1. introduction to information literacy, including website evaluation, to make sure the students get off to a good start.
2. effective note-taking, to help students get organized during the research.
3. documenting sources, citations, honouring intellectual property to ensure they respect others work.
In Dr. Marlene Asselin’s PowerPoint presentation on information literacy, several good points are brought up, including:
“Information literacy skills are critical for student success.” Teachers in all curricular content areas need their students to learn these skills, in collaboration with the TL.
“The library provides information and ideas that are fundamental to functioning successfully in today’s information and knowledge based society.” It is incumbent on us as TLs to teach our students how to access, process and evaluate this information.
“Teacher librarians are full instructional partners with all school educators.” If this is not the case, students will not be getting the full benefit of the TLs expertise, and will lose out.
The organizational chart on teaching information literacy at http://www.lerc.educ.ubc.ca/LERC/courses/461/infolit/overview.htm is a good guide to follow while teaching this, or similar units.
INFORMATION LITERACY LESSON PLAN
“Evaluating Websites”
Introduction:
During this lesson, students will learn what makes a website an acceptable resource to use when gathering information for a research project. Students will be directed to a bogus website (Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus) and fill out an evaluation checklist to determine relevance, authenticity, authority, and currency of the information.
Prescribed Learning Outcomes:
Information Literacy (CSLA, 2003)
1. Uses information critically (Outcome #4) – Students will use information critically to evaluate the relevance, authenticity, and validity of information and its source.
Rationale:
Information can be found anywhere, and in many forms. When using the Internet to find information sources for a research project students have to sift through thousands if not millions of hits from a search engine. Since anyone can have a webpage, and millions are created every year, students need information literacy skills in order to make good decisions about which websites to use. Students must be taught how to evaluate the authenticity, relevance, and authority of a website to ensure that they are receiving genuine information, unbiased by hidden agendas. Information can be dangerous!
Objectives:
1. Students will learn that just because something is on the Internet, it does not make it automatically true.
2. Students will learn how to evaluate a website to determine if it is a reliable source of information.
Resources:
1. Kathy Schrock’s, “Critical Evaluation of A Web Page, Brainstorming Sheet” graphic organizer
2. Kathy Schrock’s, “The Five Ws of Web Site Evaluation” chart
3. Kathy Schrock’s, “Critical Evaluation of A Web Site, Middle School Level” checklist
4. Internet access (or a printout) to the “Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus” web site at: http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/
Procedure:
Intro:
- ask students, “What makes a good web site?” and TL records answers onto graphic organizer (Brainstorming Sheet)
- TL says, “Keeping these points in mind, I would like you to go to this website (Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus) and with your partner, discuss what you like and dislike about the web site.”
- After approximately 10 minutes, as a class, discuss whether the web site fits any of the brainstormed criteria
Body:
- if students have not already figured it out, reveal that the web site is bogus, and that there is no such thing as a tree octopus
- display chart (Five Ws of Web Site Evaluation) and discuss who, what, where, when, and why of the tree octopus web site
- hand out the checklist (Critical Evaluation of A Web Site, Middle School Level), and go over each item to make sure students understand
Closure:
- tell students that during the next session, they will be evaluating a true web site to see if it meets the criteria on the checklist
- review the Five Ws of Web Site Evaluation chart, and discuss any further questions that the students may have
Assessment:
- informal assessment of each student’s participation during the class brainstorming activity, during the partner discussions, and during the discussion of whether or not the tree octopus web site meets any of the brainstormed criteria
- formal assessment will occur during the second part of the lesson when students evaluate and fill out the checklist for another web site
Extension:
Compare the website http://members.aol.com/Donnclass/NWIndianlife.html to any of the others on the Resource list, and ask students for feedback. They will see that Mr.Donn’s site is colourful, but not particularly relative to this unit, and that the information on a site such as.http://www.cathedralgrove.se is far more adult-like, and intellectual.
Students may write a paragraph explaining what they learned about the Five Ws of web site evaluation, linking it to what they experienced while viewing the bogus tree octopus web site.
Works Cited (for above lesson)
Asselin, Marlene. "What is Information Literacy?" Lerc.Educ.Ubc.Ca. 27 Oct. 2003. Department of Language and Literacy Education, University of British Columbia. 14 July 2007
Asselin, Marlene, Jennifer L. Branch, and Dianne Oberg, eds. Achieving Information Literacy: Standards for School Library Programs in Canada. Ottawa: Canadian School Library Association and the Association for Teacher-Librarianship in Canada, 2003. 9.
Bens, Shirley, Burton Barbara, Dianne Driscoll, Judy McConnell, Linda Nelson, and Janet Oliver. "Learning Outcomes for INFORMATION LITERACY K – 12." Lerc.Educ.Ubc.Ca. Sept. 1999. School District #43, Coquitlam BC. 14 July 2007
"Big Trees, Big Totems." Cathedral Grove. 12 July 2004. 10 Oct. 2007
"Daily Life in Ancient Times." MrDonn.Org. 2006. 10 Oct. 2007
Doiron, Ray, and Marlene Asselin, eds. Literacy, Libraries, and Learning: Using Books and Online Resources to Promote Reading, Writing, and Research. Markham, Ontario: Pembroke Ltd., 2005. 19-32.
Jaschik, Scott. "Inside Higher Ed." Insidehighered.Com. 26 Jan. 2007. 11 July 2007
Naslund, Jo-Anne M. "Subject Resources for Achieving Information Literacy." UBC Library. 18 Feb. 2005. University of British Columbia. 14 July 2007
Schrock, Kathleen. "Kathy Schrock's Internet Curriculum Critical Evaluation of a Web Site, Brainstorming Sheet." Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators. 25 Apr 2002. Discovery Education. 12 Jul 2007
Schrock, Kathleen. "The Five Ws of Web Site Evaluation." Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators. 2003. Discovery Education. 14 Jul 2007
Schrock, Kathleen. "Teacher Helpers Critical Evaluation Information." Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators. 2003. Discovery Education. 12 Jul 2007
"Students' Information Literacy Needs in the 21st Century: Competencies for Teacher-Librarians." Canadian Association of School Libraries. Nov. 1997. Canadian Library Association. 10 July 2007
Zapato, Lyle. "Help Save the Endangered Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus from Extinction." The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. 09 Mar 2007. Zapato Productions. 12 Jul 2007
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