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Project
Goal
To
develop and disseminate K-12 science curricula that is
both standards based and culturally relevant to Hawaii's
students, especially of those of Hawaiian ancestry.
To
provide K-12 teachers with culturally relevant professional
development.
Malama
I Ka `Aina aims to improve and expand the education of
Hawai`i's children by developing and disseminating new
science curricular materials based on an understanding
and appreciation of the ways in which traditional Hawaiians
effectively managed the environment for sustainability.
The
parallels among traditional Hawaiian methods of environmental
management and modern, sustainable methods of waste treatment
form the basis of many of the materials produced in this
program.
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How
It Works
Elementary,
middle, high school and University of Hawai'i teachers
work together to develop and implement curricula
that are especially relevant to a particular school's
science or ag-science program, students, community
and geographical location.
Teachers
who have developed exemplary, standards-based culture-science
curricula play a key role in the
program by providing outreach to colleagues and the
community. |
Concept "Malama
I Ka `Aina, Sustainability" is a Science Content
Standard in the state of Hawai`i.
Translated
as "caring for the land," it is based on
the way traditional Hawaiians viewed interactions
among people and their environment.
It
mandates that "students make decisions needed
to sustain life on Earth now and for future generations
by considering limited resources and fragile environmental
conditions.
In
pre-contact Hawaii, Hawaiians living in land divisions
called ahupua`a understood, respected, and made decisions
based on the connections between mauka (upslope)
and makai (coastal) activities.
Self-sufficiency
was attained through exchanging products and conserving
resources within an ahupua`a which typically was
a land unit extending from mountain top to the edge
of the reef, containing a stream and bordered by
ridges on either side.
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Funding Malama
I Ka `Aina: Using Traditional Hawaiian and Modern Environmental
Practices to Develop Standards-Based K-12 Science Curricula
for Teachers of Hawaiian and Part-Hawaiian Students
is funded by the US Department of Education, Native
Hawaiian Curriculum Development, Teacher Training and
Recruitment Program. |
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Overview
