School field trips and the curriculum of public spaces |
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Authors: | Jan Nespor |
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Institution: | 1. University of Washington ‐ Bothell , Box 358531, 18115 Campus Way NE, Bothell, WA, 98011-8246wayneau@u.washington.edu |
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Abstract: | Drawing on material from an ethnographic study, I examine transformations in the nature of public spaces for children, and the school's role in producing those spaces. Space is treated as a product of social practice, not simply a frame for it. I contend that, as young children are increasingly immobilized in urban landscapes, school field trips become critical occasions for introducing them to, and framing their participation in, public spaces. I focus primarily on a field trip to an art museum in a redeveloped downtown, and then look briefly at a different type of trip, illustrated by a visit to Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. |
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Keywords: | applied science curriculum reform portfolio‐based assessment science curriculum status vocational education |
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