Learnscapes are defined as “places where a learning program has been designed to permit users to interact with the environment”. Their purpose is to promote and extend environmental awareness, by presenting

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...

as the basis for environmental conservation and

ecologically sustainable development Ecologically sustainable development is the environmental component of sustainable development. It can be achieved partially through the use of the precautionary principle; if there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack ...

. This is achieved through developing school based

curricula In education, a curriculum (; : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to a view ...

that "engage students interactively with their surrounding environment". Ideally, learnscapes incorporate educational, environmental and social outcomes that reflect the character of the community as well as the school site. "A Learnscape feature, whether it be an outdoor classroom, worm farm, bush regeneration, recycling area, frog pond or herb garden, is not a Learnscape itself. It is the collaborative process within which the feature is created and plans for how it will be maintained and used for learning once it is created that make the feature a Learnscape". Learncape programs also have a “calming effect” on classes, by invoking deeper relationships between students and their teachers.Skamp, K & Bergmann, I Teachers’ perceptions of the value and impact of Learnscapes: Implications for practice. School of Education, Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW 2480, Australia.{{cite web , url=http://www.mesa.edu.au/aaee_conf/Skamp-Bergmann.PDF , title=Archived copy , accessdate=2006-05-13 , url-status=dead, archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060904061030/http://www.mesa.edu.au/aaee_conf/Skamp-Bergmann.PDF , archivedate=2006-09-04

References

Environmental education Learning programs Science education