How does knowledge of natural systems inform our understanding of cultural systems?
Having a basic understanding of the physical and atmospheric characteristics of a region is important for educators while addressing and interacting with people from that region. These characteristics are directly correlated with how they hunt, what they do to earn money to buy the food they can't get from the land or oil to provide heat, and what they do with their leisure time.
Knowing that a large portion of the Alaska Native population rely on subsistence hunting for survival and that there are certain times of year that they hunt will help the educator understand how the people of this culture manage their time.
Examine Question:
What are some roles of the cryosphere in regulating global climate?
I wanted to look at this question because the term, cryosphere, was a new one to me. The Teachers Domain's (TD) in this class have been an invaluable resource and really bring home some of these newer concepts to me.
Before reading the second module I had a rudimentary understanding of the glacier's role in the earth's system. Now I see that the north and south polar regions act like an air-conditioner for the mid-region. The TD video also discussed how the polar caps are quickly diminishing and that they may be completely gone by the end of this century. This brings up two questions to me: One, is the diminishing ice caps part of a longer cycle that the earth goes through? And two; how will this impact the food source for people in the arctic region that this change will impact in the near future?
What's really alarming is that this warming process builds on itself and gains speed - kind of like the snowball effect (the snowball itself, however, wouldn't last that long). The following is a graph showing the decline of the polar ice cap over the last 100 year's. It's amazing how quickly it's disappearing.
Fishing is also extremely important for many people in our community. I agree with you about how essential it is for educators to understand natural systems and cultural systems of their community.
ReplyDeletePeter Frank also makes a good point in Module II. when he says that being in tune with the Alaska Native population's "subsistence clock", is important in lesson planning. Knowing if a large part of the class will be engaged in subsistence activities instead of school work at different times of the year is vital.
ReplyDeleteThis is true not only for Alaska Native students. Appreciation of the value of outdoor activities is important to many Alaska families across the cultural spectrum. Teachers need to take this, and its impact on student engagement and attendance, into account when lesson planning.