#FieldworkLive has challenged FSC to be agile and responsive; it was a success thanks to the expertise of colleagues from across centres and teams to collectively develop and deliver #FieldworkLive.
#FieldworkLive has encompassed:
Thanks to our admin, sales and marketing colleagues- Dawn, Jess, Jess, Lottie, Mary and Mel- who so effectively communicated #FieldworkLive and swiftly dealt with customer queries and communications.
To our fantastic live presenters Lou, Sam, Maryanne, Charlie, Jack and their brilliant non-FSC lock-down camera/sound/tech-support- Jonathan, Ciara, Steve, Tim and Sarah.
To Simon in Publications who so beautifully crafted our resource packs. To Javi, who ordered new equipment for our presenters and Phil and Owain who helped fix connectivity issues on the morning of live broadcasts.
To the rest of the Education Project team who developed ideas, resources, presented webinars and were critical friends reviewing resources: Jo, Simon, Dan, Andrew and James.
As well as the larger project team at the beginning of the project: Robyn, Ben, Steph, Jenni, Ian, their centre teams and anyone else that they collected resources and ideas from.
And, of course, Simon’s direction and motivation.
Thank You!
The headline numbers for #FieldworkLive have been overwhelming (we laughed when Jamie from Encounter Edu told us “we normally get 1,000 for the arctic”!), but as a project team the stories, photos and qualitative measures have been the things that have really helped us feel connected to our learners and make all the hard work worth it.
As we wrap up #FieldworkLive and look towards further digital development within FSC. We can reflect on what makes FSC online remote delivery special.
Throughout #FieldworkLive FSC have built a community of support, where schools, teachers, pupils and parents have shared and celebrated their lockdown learning using the hashtag #FieldworkLive.
“A great online learning and great forum to learn from fellow geographers about fieldwork techniques to help my delivery to students.”
“Thank you so much for providing these sessions! It’s great for our students to still connect with field work (and people!).”
“Thank you very much, it has made all the difference to feel part of the Geography community and be more ambitious for my own teaching too!”
“Making kids smile in a lockdown is wonderful. Thank you! We had done work in soil earlier in the school year, so it was great reinforcement for them. We will be offering them the habitats next week too!”
Digital delivery shouldn’t replace outdoor learning. It should provide broader delivery channels, widening FSC’s reach and capacity to promote the values of FSC.
“I really enjoyed it! It was very interesting and provided a different sort of lesson compared to what we normally have. It was also interactive and engaging because we could get involved using the SACFOR abundance scale which we had access to and we were given time to see if we could work out the abundances of the species using the images of the quadrats. I also really liked the part when he [Jack] showed us different species that he had collected at low tide”.
“Lively and engaging – the tutor was one of the best online tutors giving a live session that we have encountered. Good mixture of information and hands on activity. We liked that we could pause the live session to complete the activities and come back to it without missing anything.”
“The teacher sessions, as well as the student ones, are superb! They are very engaging for students, who actually complete the work during the session (so it is more like an actual lesson, and less a lecture).”
“THANKS everyone, another reminder why we love the FSC!”
“Keep up the good work 🙂 You have brought Geography alive and into many homes up and down the country at a difficult time. Conducting convincing ‘virtual’ fieldwork without leaving home is no mean feat.”
#FieldworkLive was developed and delivered within 10 weeks, adapting to changing circumstances along the way.
“Also, can I thank everyone at FSC who has made these live sessions possible. I am acquainted with a lovely gentleman who was instrumental in setting up FSC and he always emphasised the need for the charity to change with the times – you have totally epitomised this and I know he would be so proud.”
“I’ve just done Reviews with my learners where I phone or video chat via Teams and it gave real texture and depth to our discussions. The sessions made them think! And once they’d attended one, some went back to catch the recordings of others which was really exciting – to see that engagement. The Live Lessons were a breath of fresh air.”
“Although it seemed a bit weird at first, I’ve really recognised the value in presenting this from my own ‘patch’. Students watching at home know I’m at my own home too and I think that connection, when we shared observations each made in our own area, really highlighted the value of engaging with ultra-local geographies and taking a moment to notice what’s going on around us and why. We wouldn’t normally do that and what an unforeseen, great opportunity!”
Charlie Foster, Flatford Mill
“At a time when we haven’t been able to get out and work with groups #Fieldworklive has been a great opportunity to re-engage with what we all love to do… deliver some fieldwork and help people learn and experience the outdoors (even if it is in a different way!). It has also been a great way to work with others across the FSC who I wouldn’t normally interact with much and has built some new relationships across centres; that has been a positive outcome too.’
Maryanne Wills, Slapton Ley
Here is some of the constructive feedback and how we are working towards it.
What they said?
“If there were a way to have a live webinar exclusively with our centre, that would be great. Also, some more guidance and use of GIS within the fieldwork experience.“
What we are doing?
FSC is providing new teacher follow-up webinars on GIS in May/June 2020. FSC is exploring the option of bespoke digital delivery with individual schools.
What they said?
“Some children don’t have access to a printer, so resources they could use and edit on a smart phone or PC.“
What we are doing?
FSC amended the resource packs for #FieldworkLive to editable PDFs. FSC is constantly looking for ways to support the most disadvantaged learners to access outdoor learning, through its own subsidised support schemes and through partnership working. FSC would welcome approaches from other organisations, who work closely with disadvantaged learners, to find ways of offering real and meaningful solutions to their needs.
What they said?
“Clarity on what we need to do before, for preparation. A page on materials needed, what to print, what to tell kids about before.”
What we are doing?
FSC have shared good practice within follow-up teacher webinars, of schools and teachers who have prepared their students to engage with #FieldworkLive.
Reflecting and expanding upon what is included within the Teacher Guidance document for FSC’s future digital delivery.