Over the past year, a group of Nayland teachers have been involved in a project looking at the way local places and stories can be used to engage students in their learning.

Head of Visual Arts teacher Diana Maskill has led the project alongside Deputy Principal Jane Townsend. Their team, made up of teachers from different learning areas, has been looking at how to integrate a “place-responsive” approach across curriculum areas throughout the school. They have been part of a TLIF project, (Teacher Led Innovation Fund,) which provides funding to encourage teachers to try new strategies with their students.

A place responsive approach involves students and teachers being present in a place related to the topic of learning and utilising the power of storytelling, making the learning real and relevant for the learner. In the process, this often creates a sense of belonging, as learning the stories behind something can make us feel more connected to it.

For example, hospitality tutor Matt Robinson took his students to visit an organic farm, where they not only learnt about how the food they used for cooking was grown, but how Māori used to grow kumara in the area and how the Richmond Plains were farmed post-colonialism. The class then went to the Nelson Museum to further learn the history behind the area. 

Ms Maskill explained that this story-based approach to learning was key to what a place-responsive approach was all about.

“There is a story: the land is a teacher, this place has a history, it has a present and it has a future,” she said. “By engaging with a place, there are some powerful experiences we can have that help us understand our identity.”

Other teachers in the group have used the approach in different ways. Maths teacher Rachael Purdie took her class to Poorman Valley Stream to help inspire classes on 3D geometry. Fellow maths teacher Jacqueline de Jong taught her class about measurement concepts by researching and building a scale model of Whakatu Marae.  

Closer to home, horticulture teacher Cristina Armstrong utilised the environment around the school to allow students to become more connected to their surroundings and to incorporate Māori concepts into the tikanga (culture) of her classroom.

"Students learnt the tikanga around harvesting/weaving harakeke by sharing stories we knew from past experiences," Ms Armstrong said. "To connect to place, students found harakeke around the school, made observations by taking photos and made a map of the harakeke in the school. We harvested some harakeke and students made a little flower each, taught to them by one of the students, reminding ourselves of our tikanga....start with a karakia...gift our first project and to persevere until finished."

PE teacher, Matua Bruno Watkins, used the principles of the place-responsive approach to facilitate a group of Māori students to independently organise a camp in the Able Tasman National Park, with an emphasis on learning the stories of each area that they visited, understanding the meaning behind those stories and incorporating Māori traditions such as saying a karakia before taking from nature. 

"The great part about this was getting students to think about what we can learn from a story rather than focusing on the mythological nature of it," Matua Watkins said. "Questioning students about their learnings was useful in terms of getting them to relate to the story. It also highlighted to them that our tupuna did not make these stories for no reason. (The stories) were ways of teaching tikanga and kawa (protocol), the values and beliefs of how to be, how to act, and how to pass on knowledge."

Matua Watkins explained how the place itself became incorporated into the learning, with even potential distractions being harnessed into powerful impromptu learning opportunities. 

"Two boys began playfighting with sticks. I asked them if they knew much about mau rākau  (traditional Māori weaponry). They said they knew a little. So I sent them to collect the tree stalks of the harakeke from a local swamp. They asked, “Should we do a karakia matua?” I replied, "What do you think?" and they responded by doing one. I was then able to show them some of the basic strikes and blocks. One student then went on to teach another boy who became interested," Matua Watkins explained.

Matua Watkins also incorporated a place-responsive approach into building a better team culture in his Year 10 PE/Health class. He wanted the students to do a Pepeha (a way of introducing yourself in Māori, telling the story of the places and people you are connected to.) Instead of doing it in the classroom, he elected to take the students out to the places that they were connected to.

"Instead of learning about the aspects or environments (that make up a student's) Pepeha just in the classroom by looking at pictures or worksheets, actually getting out there and visiting local maunga (mountain) and awa (river)....helps the kids connect with the significance of those places,” he said.

Māori student leaders within the school also went on a waka ama journey out to the French Pass to learn the history of the area.

The trip allowed the students to learn the history and stories of significant sites in and around Te Aumiti/French Pass and Rangitoto ki te Tonga/Durville Island. The students planned aspects of the camp such as the menu and an area of interest to present to the other students while visiting the sites during the camp.

Later in the year, the same leaders also identified junior students to include in the leadership programme next year and organised a Waka Haerenga where the leaders shared the stories and histories of the Boulder Bank, Haulashore Island, Tahunanui Beach, Rocks Road and Fifeshire Rock.

The next steps for these leaders will be to run a Teacher Only Day for Nayland's new staff at the start of next year. This will allow new staff to connect with their new place and community. 

Ms Maskill explained that the other benefit from a place-responsive approach was the positive effect it had on the wellbeing of students.

“Connecting with nature, the experience of being in a waka and putting your hand in the water, of sitting quietly in a space, or of doing really hard physical activity….those experiences give you a sense of accomplishment and achievement. There is enough evidence that being in natural spaces is good for our wellbeing,” Ms Maskill said.

Learning was also accentuated by the experience of being in a place, and learning the stories behind these places, allowed for better retention of new knowledge and more enjoyment of learning.

“When they’re talking about a story, they are remembering that place, not just remembering knowledge but remembering the experience and how they felt,” Ms Maskill said.

It has been just as much a learning experience for the teachers involved. Despite being a fifth-generation Nelsonian, Ms Maskill had become increasingly aware of the gaps in her own local knowledge, particularly from a Māori perspective. Being part of this project allowed her to learn more about stories that not only pertain to her and her family’s history, but those of her colleagues as well.

“That has been an exciting thing for me, to go on a journey with other teachers who bring their own stories. It gives permission for everyone to tell a story, and even though their place might not be here, they can talk about another place. Before you know it, you’ve got a very human interaction and dialogue about who we are. It’s not just the students, it is also about building capabilities in the teachers,” she said.

Ms Maskill feels that the TLIF project is just a starting point and was quick to acknowledge that many departments within the school already use a place-responsive approach towards learning really well. She is however keen to see other teachers take up the challenge of incorporating it into their practice, especially as a way of reaching disenfranchised students.

“Culture is changed through us. We have an amazing opportunity as educators, as we are the people that can speak into these students’ lives,” she said.