Student Teachers make their own aquatic sampling nets during the pandemic

Student Teachers make their own aquatic sampling nets during the pandemic

As part of the ED3053 Local Studies module of the Bachelor of Education year 3 module in order to get students to engage with the aquatic environment, previously, we would have brought the students to the Tolka River in Griffiths Park in Drumcondra to do their sampling and biotic index scoring.  With the pandemic, we had to work differently in the 'new normal' which means taking a new perspective on our common practices. So, we had to simplify things down the basic elements.

Materials:

• Long stick, pole or rod
• Coat hanger or other length of wrapping-wire, pig wire etc.
• Netting material: tuile fabric (2mm pore size), porous textile e.g., dish cloth (<1mm pore size), onion or other grocery sack (4mm pore size)
• Tape for attaching wire to handle
• Cable ties or thin wire for attaching netting to wire

Outcomes: (i) greater awareness of the aquatic environment, (ii) getting out into the aquatic environment, and (iii) discovering life in streams/catchments which is healthier both for teachers and students. Teachers are empowered to engage with the environment rather than merely speak about it.

Evidence: student teachers were asked at the end of their module what was the most rewarding part of the module. Most stated that the net manufacture and getting into the environment was the single most meaningful activity.

In one sample of 67 students, 56 stated that the net making and using the net was their most memorable experience of the module.