Falkirk school features in promotional film for educational nature software
Teachers and pupils at a Falkirk high school have been featured in a promotional video for a new educational software.
The tech, Nature Discovery Map Scotland, promotes nature-based learning across multiple subjects including maths, emotional wellbeing, and literacy.
Braes High School’s experience of the map-based tools is included in the film, along with a set of free lesson plans and a webinar programme for teachers. The software supports pupils in STEM, digital literacy, and cross-curricular learning while promoting climate education and outdoor learning.
Pupils can use the mobile apps to learn about the environment and record information about local habitats and sustainability features, such as solar panels, bird boxes, trees, and hedgehogs. NatureScot also hopes this new form of learning will encourage schools to become more environmentally friendly and bring greener improvements, such as installing bird boxes, creating mini meadows, or planting trees, to school grounds and local greenspaces.
The data can be shown on interactive dashboards in the classroom and compared with other schools with hopes of creating classroom discussions and planned activities on a local and national scale.
Developed by NatureScot on behalf of the Scottish government, the toolkit supports the Target 2030 aim to make every place of education for three to 18 year olds a sustainable learning setting. Falkirk is one of the local authorities that have already signed up to the toolkit to track the habitats within their school grounds.
Dr Wilson-McCaw, a teacher from Braes High, said: “Our whole class was able to access the app, and the young people found it incredibly exciting to be able to take photos to show their space and their world. The app is a fantastic tool for teachers who may not be confident working in STEM and helps change how young people see the world around them.”
Mairi McAllan, Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, said: “Children and young people are instinctively aware of the imperative of tackling climate change. Relating it to their daily experiences through technology and outdoor learning means this will form a real and meaningful part of their daily learning.