Exploration + Education + CitSci = Students as ‘Agents of Change’
The seventh episode of our CitSciAsia Meets… interview series has been posted, with Darrell Sharp interviewed by Smriti Safaya. With the City Nature Challenge underway every April, Darrell shares how he uses iNaturalist to satiate personal curiosity about the natural world and how he tries to apply it in his profession as a science teacher in an international school in Hong Kong.
“I don’t know what that is.”
A rather uncommon phrase to hear from a science teacher.
Yet Darrell Sharp has no qualms about admitting it when he is out and about in the Hong Kong hills.
A life-long curiosity for the natural world has led Darrell to explore this city that, in fact, is 60% covered in natural vegetation, contrary to its ‘concrete jungle’ moniker. Hong Kong has been his home for more than 7.5 years and part of the draw about living here is how much there is still to discover.
With an eye for educational application, Darrell, having worked in schools in Vietnam and now Hong Kong as a Biology and Science teacher, translates his inquisitiveness about the world in a professional capacity with his students through project-based learning, maker culture and field trips. A firm believer in helping students formulate their own questions, Darrell guides them through the scientific process and design thinking that highlights creativity as well as critical thinking.
Using citizen science is one of the ways he channels his appetite for seeking new knowledge, and a project of choice is popular biodiversity observation app, “iNaturalist”. He is one of many Hong Kongers who enjoy observing the variety of insects, plants, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and marine organisms, of which Hong Kong has over 5600 species. For a place with an area just over 1000 sq. km., it boasts more biodiversity than many realize; e.g. Hong Kong has more hard coral species than all of the Caribbean!
In a move to boost the awareness and appreciation of Hong Kong’s natural assets, and affirm greater conservation action in areas of natural beauty, the Hong Kong government adopted the “Biodiversity & Strategy Action Plan” (BSAP). Darrell’s personal and professional work addresses Action 21 of BSAP, “Promoting biodiversity in education”, by exposing students to nature and delving deeper into understanding what exists by using “iNaturalist” as an inquiry tool. Darrell and his students even helped Hong Kong smash expectations in the 2019 City Nature Challenge, with a 2nd place finish for the most number of different species recorded in the world!
“We’ll do these City Nature Challenges with the students, let them know about iNaturalist and how citizen science can work, and how they can contribute.”
This idea of contribution and connecting with a community of like-minded people and experts makes this particular app especially engaging to use. Sometimes an observation published on the platform will be verified by an expert within minutes, and that feedback draws participants into a conversation about that aspect of nature. As Darrell explains:
“The learning becomes much more authentic, and if they are literally contributing data to someone’s research, then it’s so much more powerful a learning experience!”
Delving into how citizen science can be used to explore the world and how we can help make it better, can ultimately encourage students to take action and become “agents of change”.
What more could an educator want?
And before the spring morning’s sun gets too high, Darrell sets off on an inclined path up “Victoria Peak”, with his iNaturalist app ready to snap another observation of what may pique his curiosity.
