Systems thinking

I'm pondering systems thinking and ways to teach it. What about sitting in the school yard and listening to see how many different systems one can observe? You could break it down by senses. What can you hear? What can you see? I'd expect students to be able to hear or see a variety of animal systems (mammals, birds, insects), traffic systems, heating/cooling systems, woodland systems, a classroom system. This could be a great way to introduce the idea of systems to students, and help them see how ubiquitous systems are. 

What would happen if we just let kids explore this and ask questions? Start with systems and let them ask questions to direct us. As teachers we could let them take any system, then help them look for the components of the system and learn to understand the system they are already interested in. Learn to recognize patterns, learn to look for feedback loops (negative ones as well as amplifiers), identify energy flows, learn to look for hubs--points of multiple connections. 

I'm not a teacher (just a parent volunteer), so I don't have a class of my own to try these ideas with. Maybe that's why it is so exciting to me that Tillman elementary is already thinking about systems teaching. I'm not sure to what extent they are already teaching it, but I know that the principal and some of the teachers understand the importance of imparting an understanding of systems. That's why creating a helpful outdoor space is gonna be so transformational. Because the culture of the school is primed to shift right as the outdoor space is being changed, the potential for real and lasting change is great. 

It seems to me that so many teachers are ready and knowledgeable and want to help our kids be able to care for themselves and the planet when theyre grown. And they know that systems thinking is so important for that. 

It gives me so much hope to see how much change there already has been in our society in the last 10 years. When I started this, I never encountered an administrator and very few teachers who thought about "schooling for sustainability". 

Today I find myself in 2 schools helping to coordinate new garden programs and I'm blown away by their readiness to make substantial changes. Schools are such powerful definers of culture. So,  when thinking about what can happen over the next 10 years as many many schools around the country are doing what Tillman and Nipher are, I am filled with hope. And hope, let me tell ya, it makes life a whole lot more fun.