The Art of Podcasting an Environmental Issue

Art 9/10 (Bisgaard) & Earth Science 11 (Weatherby), Rick Hansen School

 Art 9/10 created paintings examining environmental topics such as water pollution, nuclear waste, air pollution, water contamination, forest fires and deforestation. These paintings were put on display in the Learning Commons and Earth Science 11 chose a piece of artwork that they felt a connection to. The artist was on hand to have a conversation and ask for insight/reflection into their artwork. The Earth Science students continued their learning by researching more about the topic depicted in the artwork. Students were grouped according to topic and shared ideas to create a podcast that demonstrated their learning in a collaborative setting.

Teacher Reflection:

Involving the community (UFV instructor, Langley Arts Council, parents, RHSS staff/students) in this project will facilitate future collaborations with our students in terms of exposure to new perspectives and additional platforms to display their artwork. - Bisgaard

Allowing voice and choice empowers students to take ownership of their learning. Also providing alternative assessment practices gives students the opportunity to individualize & personalize their learning to show deeper understanding. - Weatherby

Student Reflection:

For me this entire process was a pleasure plus it was very enjoyable. Researching the topic was a good experience since it gave me ideas of what to paint about. Coming up with my drafts was a difficult procedure since I had many ideas. While I was critiquing with peers, there were some things that needed to be adjusted. I love to paint so this was a lot of fun for me and I hope to do something similar in the future.  -Ashely Grewal

The human emotions and expressions in the painting I chose makes it seem more emotional and allows us to empathize (understand and share feelings) with the deforestation crisis. When we can empathize with a crisis such as deforestation, we are able to truly understand the depth of the problem. Losing someone and feeling helpless about it is not easy and it doesn’t feel good. Deforestation can be seen this way in the perspective of the trees being cut down. – Prusha Azez