Students at Lively Middle School are upset, as they thought they were taking World Outside this year, but they are actually taking a class that is more like Environmental Science. The class on their official schedule is still listed as World Outside.
Students are not going to the garden like they normally did in World Outside. It is unlikely that they will be able to go outside to the gardens for at least the Fall Semester. “It is unfortunate that the Lively gardens have lost the Texas heat battle over the summer, and it is also unfortunate that the Texas heat has kept us from going outside and attempting to revive them,” said Linda Lopez, who teaches the class known as World Outside.
While they certainly understand the Texas heat, students are disappointed as they took the class to specifically learn how to take care of the garden and gain this gardening experience first hand. “I hate it so much that’s the whole reason why I signed up for that class and they changed all of it,” said 8th grader Avery Knox-Broyles. “Also I tried to move out of it because of it but they (the counselors) did not accept (the change request).”
Knox-Broyles isn’t the only student who feels this way. “It’s Pretty bad, I mean it’s basically just 7th grade science again,” said 8th grader Destin Connolly.
It’s not all bad. The teacher is finding a way to immerse the kids into learning about plants and animals without being able to expose them to the actual gardens. “What we have been doing is actually teaching this class as an environmental science class. My students create projects that include inquiry research, proposing solutions, and campaigning for environmental concerns,” said Lopez.
All in all, while several Lively students are inconvenienced by this change, they still learn the same concepts even if it is just in theory without the practical experience of being in the Lively gardens or in the Texas heat.
