Open Collections

A case for composting at school : food system literacy and sustainability education in action

Mann, Jessica R.

This paper explores the phenomenon of composting at school through a pragmatic mixed-method research lens and makes the case for its potential as a transformative teaching tool. It delves into the history and science of composting to explore past and present practices and outlines its social and environmental impacts. Composting benefits include reducing greenhouse gas emissions, limiting landfill expansion, and the advantages to soil health and fertility. Composting connections to the curriculum and current educational movements are explored, including education for sustainability, place-based education, and new literacies. A case study of one specific experience of composting at school is examined in depth to draw conclusions surrounding the practice and develop a guide for future educators interested in implementing the practice into their pedagogy. In exploring and reflecting on all angles of the experience of composting at school, the conclusion has been made that composting is a transformative teaching tool that can provide students with knowledge, skills, and hope for a more sustainable future.

Text

University of British Columbia. EDCP 590

Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library

10.14288/1.0437742

Education, Faculty of; Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of

Graduate

DSpace