Exploring Santa Luċija, Gozo : environmental education through educational walks

Abstract

The community is a readily available resource for environmental education. Increasingly, schools are recognizing this potential and are utilizing community resources to provide students with a holistic experience of their surroundings. This project highlights the development of a resource pack to be used by teachers in the primary sector, adopting a cross-curricular approach before, during and after a set of walks. This resource pack is structured around a set of five walks, each with a particular theme, around the village of Santa Luċija, Gozo. The resource pack provides opportunities for the exploration of the historical, religious and environmental aspects of different parts and sites of this village. The resource pack was evaluated informally using evaluation forms by ten Gozitan educators in the primary sector, so as to get recommendations and feedback in terms of: suitability for students; strengths and weaknesses; and how it can be improved. The educators confirmed that the resource pack is adequate and interesting for primary students and that it addresses the objectives of environmental education.