A trip through the soil to raise public awareness
Résumé
Created specifically for the International Year of Soil, a pedagogical project focused on soil has been developed by the University of Lorraine, and since regularly renewed. The aim of this project is to elaborate an educational activity about soils, through observations and experiments designed for a young audience and for a general public.
Therefore, the authors and students from bachelor and master levels have jointly developed this activity and make it evolve every year. Students had thus the opportunity i) to practice and improve their knowledge about soil sciences, and ii) to debate about teaching methods and sharing their knowledge with different people (public, schoolchildren). This kind of active learning is regarded as one of the effective educational methods (Field et al., 2011).
This educational activity has been built as a trip to explore different aspects of soils. Students drive pupils from primary school toward different stands where they can observe soil biodiversity, experiment on soil composition, learn about soil properties and functions (soil retention, biodegradation…). The session end with a discussion on some of the essential services provided by soils and their protection.
For the general public session, people are free to switch from one stand to another, while students and authors answers to their questions and initiate debates. Since a few years, a special activity is proposed in relation with the World Soil Day theme. This project is a good opportunity to promote the role of soil to a large audience, from children to students and general public.
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