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What Teachers Did on Summer Vacation--Thanks to FAS
By Jill Lee
In September, students nationwide are asked to compose that dreaded–and sometimes dreadful, essay–"What I Did on My Summer Vacation." But for some lucky children at three District of Columbia elementary schools, it was a time to listen, as their teachers had quite a story to tell!
The Foreign Agricultural Service sent 11 D.C. teachers on a 3-week research project in South Africa.
The trip marked the intersection of two presidential programs–the Initiative for the District of Columbia and the Education for Democracy Initiative for South Africa.
The goal of this exchange was twofold: building relationships between South Africa and the United States, and inspiring an interest in science in generations of District of Columbia school children through their teachers. The project was also designed to help the teachers understand issues surrounding biodiversity.
"We are glad the trip went so well," said the principal U.S. investigator, Diane Bellis. "We wanted the teachers to experience what it is like to work as a scientist and to understand the complexity behind environmental issues."
"I keep re-living it. Everything I see and hear brings me back to that experience," said Sheila Garner-Allen who teaches at Patterson Elementary. "I hear a news story about the drought here in Maryland and I think about how water is worth more than money for some people in Africa–and we in the United States so often waste it."
Projects like this can, over time, advance the world’s agricultural practices, which makes them ideal for USDA sponsorship, according to one FAS official.
"This scientific research explores how certain farming practices affect the environment. This is a concern not only to South Africans, but to many people in the United States as well," said Richard Affleck, International Research Administrator for FAS’ Research and Scientific Exchanges Division.
"Moreover, South Africa’s flowering plants have long been important to the U.S. floriculture industry. The "Star-of-Bethlehem" lilies so many people enjoy during the U.S. holidays originally came from Africa."
As the lead scientist for the plant survey, Roger Ellis, director of the plant genetic resources unit of South Africa’s Agriculture Research Council, traveled along with the teachers.
"Even 50 years ago, little of South Africa’s ecology was in its original condition," he said. "As farming systems change under new land use policies, we have a chance to build conservation policies to protect South Africa’s floral diversity. Our survey will help us do this."
The South African government also recognizes the connection between research, education and conservation. The Landcare Program, established in the southern part of South Africa, involves local schools. Teachers from these schools work with rural communities on sustaining natural resources–and some of the same teachers worked alongside their D.C. counterparts.
In the Beginning
The three elementary schools involved, Patterson, Leckie and Malcolm X, were chosen because their faculties had expressed an interest in working with USDA to build stronger science education prorams.
Teachers Become Scientists
First, the teachers attended courses on plant identification and ecology at Southern African Wildlife College and the Agricultural Research Center at Roodeplaat, near Pretoria. Next, together with South African scientists, they surveyed floral plant diversity at several parks and conservation areas. Then they helped the Plant Genetic Resources group develop a checklist with all known South African plant species on a single CD-rom data base. It’s to be used by farmers, extensionists, local communities and educators. The database will include general information on the plants, such as the reproduction, flowers and plant uses.
The floral plant survey retraced some of the areas covered by a famous South African ecologist, J.P.H. Acocks, who, from 1939 to 1976 sampled the plants at over 2,700 locations. The purpose of the research, which will continue, is to resurvey these sites.
The teachers and scientists assessed the relationship between soil type and plants and how they affect the species of wildlife seen throughout Kruger National Park, bigger than the state of Connecticut and home to 227 species of butterflies, 493 birds and 400 species of trees as well as lions, giraffes and elephants.
Although half a world away, the District teachers stayed in touch, posting regular e-mail messages back to their students and families at home. Later this fall they plan to put lesson plans, based on their experiences, on a web site.
Some even brought back souvenirs to give their students hands-on contact with African culture. Leckie school librarian Thelma Blue Younger watched a young African woman use a traditional pestle corn grinder to make meal, then purchased a smaller version for her students’ use. She also learned recipes which she plans to replicate during the school’s multi-cultural day.
Another outgrowth: a student pen-pal program that will bring the D.C. children new friends 7,000 miles away.
Doing the hands-on science meant camping outdoors and learning to use transects to mark off squares of land.
The teachers also were able to personally observe the nation’s transition from apartheid to democracy.
Hendri Williams, who teaches at Leckie, described a memorable experience working with an 18-year-old Afrikaaner college student from the University of Pretoria.
"I think we were able to change his perceptions of Americans and of black people. It was tremendous to see how he grew during our time together," said Williams. "I hugged him when we left and said ‘You have an opportunity to make a difference for your country because of what you’ve experienced and learned.’"
Will There Be a Return to Africa?
This initiative was a pilot project, so it will be closely followed to track its benefits to teachers and their students.
Follow-up is in the hands of the University of Pittsburgh’s Learning Research and Development Center (LRDC), which specializes in science education. A graduate student who accompanied the teachers to Africa will sit in on their classes this year to evaluate benefits to the teachers and their students. Her findings will be instrumental in determining the effectiveness of this approach for the professional development of teachers in the areas of the environmental sciences.
Some teachers from throughout the United States and South Africa have already expressed an interest in applying for next summer’s trip. Fortunately for the program, there are many more areas of J.P.H. Acock’s historic survey left to cover.
For those who want to read the teachers’ poems and stories–or see their lesson plans from this trip–check out the following web site: http://www.fas.usda.gov/icd/Safrica.html
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This program was developed by FAS’ Research and
Scientific Exchanges Division, Washington, D.C., Tel.: (202)
720-2589; Fax: (202) 690-0892.
Jill Lee is a public affairs specialist with the FAS Information Division, USDA, Washington, D.C. Tel.: (202) 720-7939; Fax: (202) 720-1727; e-mail: leejill@fas.usda.gov
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