"Valuing place, connecting schools to communities in reciprocal relationships, and emphasizing the importance of learning to live well in community requires rare courage and self-confidence."— Toni Haas and Paul Nachtigal, Place Value: An Educator’s Guide to Good Literature on Rural Lifeways, Environments, and Purposes of Education
My journey in place conscious pedagogy began in 1997 at the first Nebraska Writing Project Rural Institue in Henderson, Nebraska where local teachers first exposed me to the concept. Since that time, I have grown as a place conscious educator who has advocated for the integration of a curriculum that acknowledges the need to understand our locale in mindful ways and asks these essential questions, "What does it mean to live well communally, ecologically, economically, politically, and spiritually? What does it mean to share a biome with other species? How do we sustain our locale for multiple generations?"
This website is a compilation of resources, i.e. readings, website links, and potential conferences that focus upon place conscious pedagogy, compostion and rhetoric. Its intended audience is educators interested in teaching a place conscious curriculum focused upon the concept of the "three-legged" stool referenced by David Sobel which includes economic, cultural and ecological sustainability. It was initially created in response to student requests at Missouri State University. In a former life, I was a secondary English teacher in Aurora, Nebraska and spent my career practicing place conscious pedagogy. I continue my on-going research into place conscious pedagogy, teacher reflective practice and teacher training.
I must include a special thanks to Missouri State University English graduate student, Katie Jones, for her dedication and expertise in designing and compiling this website on behalf of me and my students. From the bottom of my heart, "Thank you."
Dr. Cathie English
26 February 2015
My journey in place conscious pedagogy began in 1997 at the first Nebraska Writing Project Rural Institue in Henderson, Nebraska where local teachers first exposed me to the concept. Since that time, I have grown as a place conscious educator who has advocated for the integration of a curriculum that acknowledges the need to understand our locale in mindful ways and asks these essential questions, "What does it mean to live well communally, ecologically, economically, politically, and spiritually? What does it mean to share a biome with other species? How do we sustain our locale for multiple generations?"
This website is a compilation of resources, i.e. readings, website links, and potential conferences that focus upon place conscious pedagogy, compostion and rhetoric. Its intended audience is educators interested in teaching a place conscious curriculum focused upon the concept of the "three-legged" stool referenced by David Sobel which includes economic, cultural and ecological sustainability. It was initially created in response to student requests at Missouri State University. In a former life, I was a secondary English teacher in Aurora, Nebraska and spent my career practicing place conscious pedagogy. I continue my on-going research into place conscious pedagogy, teacher reflective practice and teacher training.
I must include a special thanks to Missouri State University English graduate student, Katie Jones, for her dedication and expertise in designing and compiling this website on behalf of me and my students. From the bottom of my heart, "Thank you."
Dr. Cathie English
26 February 2015