“Learning in Your Own Backyard: Place-Based Education for Museums” and “The Best of Both Worlds: A Critical Pedagogy of Place” are both articles that emphasize the importance of place based learning and how it contributes to a more complete learning experience. Place based learning can sometimes be a crucial factor in the overall learning experience of an individual. Learning in the environment that you are studying about allows you to draw unique connections and discover information not found in the text. This concept is seen in the structure of our seminar class because we formulate genuine thoughts from just being in New York City. During the Bioblitz, we were directly in contact with the setting and the subject that we were learning about. The ability to see first hand information on what I was learning about was amusing and memorable. This stems from the idea that informal learning allow for deeper learning when involving numerous interactions.

I believe that place based learning can be extended to all genre’s of learning. The reason I believe this is because I   attended the Tenement Museum and I remember most of the information that the tour guide provided. The Tenement museum was mentioned in the articles and is essentially an old building in which immigrants had lived in during their stay in New York. I remember being amazed at how crammed the living conditions were and how simple the lifestyles were. All the family members would help make extra money in anyway possible and they all had a heavy religious background. The fact that the images of the museum and the information that I learned are so vivid only further supports that place based learning can provide an incredible boost in learning, retaining information, and thinking critically.