Join us for our first BEETLES (Better Environmental Education, Teaching, Learning & Expertise Sharing) training!
In response to Docent requests and feedback, we will jump start our BEETLES training series with the topic of "Promoting Discussion" - there are more details about the specific session below from the BEETLES website.
These sessions are designed for learners, and often reference working with youth, though adults also benefit from the strategies and science included in the training. The trainings are structured and jam-packed with information, strategies, and techniques - please arrive punctually so we can start and end on time!
Training Details
Date: Saturday, November 22, 2025
Time: 9:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Location: SCVOSA Headquarters
Topic: Promoting Discussion
What is BEETLES?
BEETLES (Better Environmental Education, Teaching, Learning & Expertise Sharing) is devoted to creating:
- versatile environmental education professional learning materials;
- student activities for use in the field;
- a collaborative, resource-sharing network of environmental educators; and
- additional resources for field instructors, leaders, and classroom teachers.
All BEETLES resources are based on current research and understandings about how people learn, and tested by dozens of programs in diverse settings all over the country (and beyond!). Although BEETLES materials have been designed for residential outdoor science schools, they’ve been snatched up and used successfully in a wide variety of outdoor science education settings.
ABOUT THE PROMOTING DISCUSSION SESSION
How productive talk leads to deep learning
Deep learning takes place when we have the opportunity to struggle with ideas, and discussion is a tremendously powerful vehicle for students to engage in that mental effort. Formulating your own ideas into words, listening to others’ ideas, and becoming aware of contradictory ideas all set up learners to make better sense of the world. Promoting discussions among learners helps instructors to better understand what students are thinking, and to make better instructional decisions to help them deepen their understanding. Discussions create an open intellectual environment where ideas are exchanged. Settings in which deep learning is the goal are often teeming with discussion.
Discussion-based instruction can be challenging. Leading an effective meaning-making discussion requires curiosity, skills, knowledge, and experience on the part of both instructor and students. The tone set by the instructor is crucial. Do learners feel safe to share ideas and ask questions about what they don’t know? Outdoor science schools provide an ideal environment for developing and refining these skills, as instructors get to work with diverse groups of students and to repeat and refine activities throughout a season. This session provides valuable knowledge, strategies, and discussion practice to help instructors treat outdoor science schools as a laboratory for developing their discussion-leading skills.
Goals for this session are:
- Understand the profound role discussion plays in the learning process, specifically in scientific meaning-making.
- Learn about a wide variety of discussion routines and strategies.
- Practice leading discussions, using discussion tools and instructor moves.
