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TN virtual expeditions
A new concept of outdoor learning
COVID-19 created a new reality to which all sectors had to adapt. Seeking to reconcile social distancing and the continuity of educational activities, schools have adopted remote learning, seeking new tools and methodologies to enrich the students' experience.
The pandemic also prevented schools from engaging in outdoor activities, reducing the interchange between the students, their surroundings and nature. The importance of this relation demands that we find creative forms that can sustain it, adapted to contemporary context; alternative solutions are offered by new digital and educational technologies - such as the Virtual Expeditions.
With more than 20 years of experience with outdoor education, Terra Nativa created Virtual Expeditions with the goal of shaping field-trips to nowadays reality. Inspired by the ideas of “blended learning”, Virtual Expeditions take educational tourism to the digital environment, integrating contact with nature and local communities, and offering a significant and complex learning experience.
How does a Virtual Expedition run?
Virtual Expeditions are live presentations of pre-typed video, created personally by Terra Nativa alongside local communities and guides. The presentation includes a constant dialogue with the audience, containing also moments for activities (such as questionnaire, quizzes and tasks) that reinforce active learning methodologies and the students` engagement.
In this way, we take advantage of innovative technologies and platforms to enrich students' learning, reinforce socio-cultural knowledge and promote sustainability and protection of the environment.
Virtual Expeditions’ pedagogical guidelines
All videos have a theme and/or destination of high environmental and cultural value, and their content is guided directly by the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Brazilian BNCC (common core curriculum).
Virtual Expeditions also strengthen critical thinking skills, the construction of meaningful learning and students` engagement with social causes and actions. The experience also encourages the positive use of digital technologies as tools of positive impact and education. This way, Terra Nativa contributes to the school's formation of curious, active, and empathetic young people, prepared for the challenges of the 21st century.
Our Expeditions
Virtual Expedition - Rio de Janeiro
Albeit not its biggest city, neither the richest, nor the capital of the country, Rio de Janeiro is still considered Brazil’s most emblematic city. Sandy beaches and hills covered with Atlantic Rainforest; the Corcovado Christ statue, samba, and football - all of these are considered typically Brazilian, and symbols of the city known as A Cidade Maravilhosa (The Marvelous City). Unfortunately, this is also the case for the favelas, social tensions and inequality - just as characteristic of Rio de Janeiro.
In order to understand Rio and grasp its unicity and complexity, one must explore its roots. The Virtual Expedition - Stories and Histories of the Marvelous City offers a digital time travel, starting from the arrival of the Portuguese Royal Family until the first decades of the 20th century, the days of the Belle Époque. Along the journey, we visit locations of cultural, social and political relevance, exploring the relations between past and present, memory and identity, conflicts and conciliations.
Stories and Histories of The Marvelous City (1 episode)
Virtual Expedition - THE ATLANTIC RAINFOREST
Cananeia and Ilha do Cardoso (3 episodes)
The Atlantic Rainforest is one of the richest and most diverse biomes in the world. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most threatened biomes, due to human actions. The Virtual Expedition - The Atlantic Rainforest takes travelers to visit a region of rare preservation, where the features and exuberance of this biome can still be appreciated.
Alongside the investigation of fauna and flora, The Atlantic Rainforest experience bring us the human dimension: the caiçara way of life - the culture of the local fishermen, and their unique relation with the surrounding nature, and the history of Cananeia, one of Brazil’s first urban nucleus.
Virtual Expedition - INDIGENOUS IN THE METROPOLIS
The native-american village Kalipety (1 episode)
Often, we consider Brazilian indigenous as an exclusively amazonian population. Consequently, all aspects related to their past and present life seem distant and irrelevant to our reality. However, Indigenous Lands and populations are spread across the country, living also in Brazil's largest municipalities. Such is the case of Kalipety Village, located in the southern region of São Paulo.
Here, the historical problems caused by colonization are aggravated by the pressures of uncontrolled urbanization and the Western way of life. Nonetheless, the local populations keep alive their traditions, offering the virtual visitor a unique look at their culture and territory.
Virtual Expedition - COFFEE, MUCH MORE THAN A BEVERAGE
Everybody knows that coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world. It is even more common in Brazil: world’s biggest producer of coffee beans, with the product having a fundamental participation in the modernization of the country.
However, very few of us know the story of this product. This Virtual Expedition guides its travelers through the “Coffee Road”: the spatial ones, from the plantation field to the mug; and the temporals, from its arrival to the country until contemporary production. A unique opportunity to see that coffee is much more than a beverage...
The hinterland Coffee Farms (1 episode)
Virtual Expedition - The foundation of São Paulo, (Hi)stories
São Paulo Old downtown (1 episode)
Who founded São Paulo? Why did they choose this place? What can we learn from these answers about the contemporary city?
The Virtual Expedition Foundation of São Paulo is a time travel to the 16th century, and an invitation to explore the origins of the city. Here, traditional narratives teach us about the role of jesuits, whereas historical investigations show that other groups were at least as important… The result is a collective reflection about the role of memory and the construction of History and identities.
Virtual Expedition - Urban Parks
São Paulo (1 episode)
Am I familiar with the urban parks of my city? Do I take advantage of the open-air activities they offer me?
These are the questions that the participants of Virtual Expedition Urban Parks are invited to ask, explore, and respond. The Expedition brings up the discussion over the importance of green areas to the city and its population. After all, the public parks belong to all of us - shouldn’t we enjoy them more?...