Theme: Service Learning
— Helping Kids and Communities Grow
Growing Good Citizens
by Barbara E. Richardson
We believe that children are able to observe their environment
and assess its needs; children should be empowered to make
the kinds of changes in their environment they see as necessary;
by educating our children about environmental issues they will
become concerned, active, environmentally conscious adults.
Inspired by this mission statement, the 25 to 30 fourth and
fifth graders in Linda Keteyian’s Environmental Empowerment
Club launch campaigns to make their neighborhood and their
world a safer, greener place for everyone. They’re taking on
a challenge that would discourage many others. Higgins Elementary
School is located in southwest Detroit, MI, where urban decay
dominates the landscape. With the guidance of some mentors
and local environmental groups, they are rising to the task.
Nurturing the Roots of Service
Linda Keteyian, a science teacher for grades 3 to 5, started
a science club at the school in 1992 to stimulate and encourage
inquiry and to create mentoring relationships between club
members and younger students. From the outset, students wanted
to plant a garden as an outdoor laboratory. In 1997, armed
with grants and enthusiastic volunteers from the community
and local environmental groups, they led an extraordinary
cleanup of their school’s badly littered and neglected courtyard.
Planting days followed, and the courtyard became a green
haven.
All Higgins students and their parents were invited to participate
in maintenance and workdays, but the Science Club was primarily
responsible for its upkeep. Encouraged by their success, club
members created two more plots — a butterfly garden and a memorial
garden for a fellow student — and were inspired by the difference
their efforts made to the appearance and atmosphere of the
neighborhood. Along with the trees and gardens, strong roots
of responsibility, empowerment, and an understanding of community
interdependence grew. It was only a matter of time before the
club would segue into service-learning.
Service Blossoms with Awareness
What inspired the club to make the jump into community service?
“First, a parent said she’d like us to support the children
to be more helpful and community-focused,” says Linda. She
introduced Linda to Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision,
a group that monitors and protects the environmental interests
of their neighborhood. (Linda now sits on their board and
serves as their education coordinator.) The final push came
when the Science Club took a trip to Space Camp. “When we
went to Florida in 1998, our students were shocked by the
cleanliness, the gardens, the general difference between
where they lived and what they saw on our trip. You see,
most of our kids never leave the neighborhood and are completely
unaware of the disparities that exist. They became quite
upset and insisted that we ‘do something’.”
That’s when the club began doing neighborhood assessments.
Brother Rick Samyn, a Franciscan Friar from the nearby Capuchin
monastery, led their first assessment walk, asking students
to identify elements they liked, what they didn’t like, and
what needed attention. “We have been on a roll ever since,”
Linda says. Youngsters planted flowers at the post office,
painted murals over graffiti-covered walls, planted trees,
cleaned up litter, and encouraged others in their school and
beyond.
Pursuing Policy
Real-life lessons in citizenship unfolded as students were
compelled to engage with policymakers. After all, club members
are invested in their work. They’ve been through the entire
process of identifying problems – such as littering – and
taking action to solve them. When their accomplishments are
reversed (and illegal dumping continues, for example), they
are righteously upset. “Students have written letters to
the city council asking for action, and have been vocal at
council meetings," says Linda. In fact, at a meeting
called to address illegal dumping, a student stood up and
bravely demanded, "When are you going to send somebody
down here to clean things up?".
When the city introduced plans for a freight terminal that
would exponentially increase heavy truck traffic near the school,
the club members again made their considered statements at
a council meeting. “This goes against the core values of common
good and justice,” argued one student. “These values say the
government should make laws that are for the good of everyone.
Also, no group should be unfairly treated just because they
are poor.”
Gains All Around
Does participation in these activities have a positive impact
on learning? Absolutely. As part of their mission, club members
also tutor first graders with hands-on explorations of plants,
soil, and other science lessons. “Teaching the concepts to
younger students helps them internalize them,” explains Linda.
It also primes the younger students to aspire to membership
in the club when they reach the fourth grade.
Being part of the Environmental Empowerment Club requires
good citizenship. “I often use the club as an incentive for
students who are underachieving or just difficult in class,”
says Linda. “Just this year a very bright young man who has
been quite a challenge is part of the club. Some people complained
and said I was not choosing wisely. When he began to act out
in other classes I spoke with him in front of the teacher,
reminding him that I expected science club members to be examples.
This child's behavior has improved dramatically and I make
sure he knows I'm proud of him.”
The young stewards also reap rewards from working with Brother
Rick, who leads the club’s assessment walks. He is a certified
Master Gardener and beekeeper who shares his knowledge of organic
gardening, indicator species, and threatened pollinators with
students as they build beehives during field trips to the monastery.
The youngsters get to participate in the entire cycle: growing
flowers, building hives, and harvesting (and sampling) honey,
which is packaged for distribution to those in need through
the monastery’s soup kitchen.
Finally, Linda sees her club members scoring slightly higher
than their peers on standardized state tests, which focus heavily
on ecology concepts. The learning opportunities in language
arts and civics naturally emerge as club members create their
monthly newsletter, attend local meetings, and write letters
to the city council.
Then there are the less tangible rewards and life lessons.
“A lot of the kids are from low-income families, so they know
what it’s like to be on the receiving end, and it feels good
to give something back and help others,” says Linda. “Many
are Hispanic and are proud of their heritage and their religion,
which emphasizes giving. Families are close, and our projects
speak to their values, so they tend participate regularly in
our activities.” This is good news for southwest Detroit, and
the world.
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