ENGAGE
Beyond Interpretation Panels
Outdoor “open air” learning experiences
Engagement beyond the information panels displayed at the Geosites are developed in partnership between researchers, providers, and end-users. These range from lessons, field days, camps, and training.
The aim is for the Geopark’s education and learning resource development to align with current school curricula, with the Geopark being able to offer education packages for Primary and Secondary school groups - using the landscape as “open-air” classrooms.
The Geopark provides a framework or access point for Tertiary groups to undertake field days / camps and research, and short courses.
The provision of interpretation, both printed and digital, the writing of books and pamphlets, and the development of tours and activities all provide opportunities for informal education at all age levels.
The Geopark supports engagement strategies of local organisations and councils - e.g. Christchurch City Council, ECan, Department of Conservation, Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust - and provides a mechanism to convey critical information (i.e. natural hazards).
Interwoven Layers: Many Subjects
On Banks Peninsula, the underlying geology is the base layer on which rests all other significant features and aspects - the educative thrust of the Geopark will be to reveal, as if in an archaeological excavation, the successive layers (tangible and intangible) which have been necessarily shaped by, and founded on, the landscapes of Banks Peninsula.
Geology (earth sciences), apart from its study as its own discipline, can be introduced into a broad range of subjects in school curricula.
Educational opportunities within the Geopark could include, but would not be limited to: Geography, History, Science, Agriculture, Art, Mathematics, Economics, Computing, and Technology.
