69´«Ă˝

Teaching Video

Using America’s National Parks as Classrooms

By Carmen Rojas — November 23, 2016 7:10
Email Copy URL

America’s national parks have been called the country’s “largest classroom,” in part because they provide millions of hours in free educational programming every year.

The National Park Service has worked to encourage “experiential learning” through the creation of hundreds of lesson plans, virtual resources for schools, and professional development for teachers. Their “place based” learning programs—in subjects such as ecology, history, and geology—have academic, developmental, and health benefits.

Sustaining such programming takes on greater importance, parks advocates say, in the midst of ongoing funding challenges and a need to draw more and more diverse visitors to parks facilities and programs.

In this PBS NewsHour segment, Education Week correspondent Kavitha Cardoza reports from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area near San Francisco.

This video aired on PBS NewsHour on November 22, 2016.

Carmen Rojas
Carmen Rojas formerly was a Video Administration and Communications Assistant for Education Week.

This video also appeared on On Air: A Video Blog.

Video

School & District Management Video Everything You Need to Know About Electric School Buses
While electric school bus usage is growing nationally, it's not without its challenges. Here's a look at the state of transportation.
Zum electric buses are parked before a news conference announcing the Oakland Unified School District as being the first major school district in the country to use 100% electric school buses at the Zum/OUSD bus yard in Oakland, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024.
Zum electric buses are parked before a news conference announcing the Oakland Unified School District as being the first major school district in the country to use 100% electric school buses at the Zum/OUSD bus yard in Oakland, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024.
Jeff Chiu/AP
69´«Ă˝ & Literacy Video Teaching Content and Supporting 69´«Ă˝ Through Disciplinary Literacy
Get up to speed on what disciplinary literacy is and how teachers can start thinking about it—no matter their subject.
School & District Management Video How This Principal Manages Student Behavior—Without Too Many Rules
Principal Tracie Anderson Swilley brought students on board to make big changes to her school’s culture.
Recruitment & Retention Video Recruiting and Retaining STEM Teachers: A Former White House Adviser's Take
A retired teacher and former White House policy adviser has some ideas for schools leaders looking to recruit and retain in STEM.
Teacher Nathalie Roy, left, talks to her Glasgow Middle School students about using papyrus and learning about writing with smelly squid ink on the papyrus in Baton Rouge, La., on Aug. 23, 2019. This unlikely elective course open to students at Glasgow Middle School in Baton Rouge connects traditional classical studies with STEM.
Teacher Nathalie Roy, left, talks to her Glasgow Middle School students about using papyrus and learning about writing with smelly squid ink on the papyrus in Baton Rouge, La., on Aug. 23, 2019. This unlikely elective course open to students at Glasgow Middle School in Baton Rouge connects traditional classical studies with STEM.
Bill Feig/The Advocate via AP