Distance Learning: Stepping Up to the Challenge

By David Kappelhoff, Education Coordinator, Mississippi Park Connection, dkappelhoff@parkconnection.org

Thanks to the support of the National Park Foundation and Union Pacific Railroad and an existing partnership with Hamline University’s Center for Global Environmental Education (CGEE), we were able to pivot the park’s Big River Journey field trip, pictured here, to a distance learning website by the end of April.

When the pandemic began limiting in-person education earlier this year, our park education team had an opportunity to pivot in a new direction to provide opportunities for distance learning.

First we surveyed teachers in and around the Twin Cities to see what they needed. Teachers were looking for distance learning tools in the form of slide decks, pre-recorded videos, interactive lessons, and digital tools like websites, and were specifically in need of content related to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), including ecosystems, water, and environmental science activities. We knew our strongest path forward was to continue collaborating with park partners and teachers to transform existing programs into distance learning content.

The transformation of our most popular field trip, Big River Journey, to a distance learning program was an instant success. In its first two months, the site had already served about 7,000 users—most from the Twin Cities metro area—but also attracting a broad audience from around the nation and other parts of the world. The site will continue to be a valuable resource well beyond the pandemic. Supplementing the in-park program, the website can give students a feel for what they will experience live on the Mississippi River prior to their field trips.

The Living River field trip emphasizes reaching 3rd and 4th grade classes from Title I schools, which is a critical audience for the park. Our River Educator team, a group of retired teachers who help facilitate our programs, was instrumental in the in-house development of Living River Online. The new program connects students to the river by helping them understand the relationship between floodplain forests and two important species—mussels and pike fish.

We knew from our initial conversations with teachers that connecting with the park virtually was important for student engagement. Park Ranger Brian Goodspeed and a team of education rangers, as well as River Educators and partners at Friends of the Mississippi River and the Minnesota DNR, will visit classrooms virtually throughout the fall and winter—with a focus on 3rd-6th graders. Now, a teacher can browse classroom-visit topics on Mississippi Park Connection’s website, register, and have a ranger visit virtually within the week!

Virtual camps are yet another innovative program, developed in partnership with the park and Wilderness Inquiry. Mississippi River Explorers started as a virtual summer camp for 5th-8th grade, featuring games, crafts, and activities associated with the river park. The program will continue into the fall to offer a fun, social, and emotional learning experience while keeping kids safe.

Distance learning will never replace the wonder and awe of a national park visit, but it does afford the possibility of widening the audience, engaging students who may not be able to visit in person, and providing equitable virtual access to parks.