LOCATION LEARNING ASSOCIATION


History of Location Learning 

Lucille Ella Sheets, the founder of Location Learning Association, was born in Portland, Oregon in 1937.   During her 37 years in the Portland Public Schools, Lucille developed the teaching method that she called Location Learning.   She believed passionately in getting students outside of the classroom and into the real world.  With her students, she explored the community through travel and created change along the way.  Through her guidance:

  • Students launched a campaign to stop the Federal Aviation Administration from removing the historic aircraft-warning beacon atop Rocky Butte in Portland, Oregon.
  • Students campaigned successfully to make chocolate milk a school lunch option as a result of conducting research on its benefits.
  • Students passed a bill in the State Senate to fund a feasibility study for holding a World’s Fair in Portland in 2005.   This followed 5 years of research, and travel around the Northwest to visit past fair sites, mayors, and civic planners.  The students traveled to the state capitol to meet with Governor Kitzhaber for the signing of the bill.

She was a creative and dynamic person who was always searching for ways to improve the world.  She founded Location Learning, a non-profit educational institute, and taught at PSU in the Division of Continuing Education, sharing her ideas about getting children out to experience the real world and to discover their own power in making changes in that world. Though she passed away in 2007, her mission to educate through experiential and place-based learning thrives through  the Association, and the numerous educators that have studied and applied her ideas to enrich their own classrooms.

 

 



 

ALUMNI REGISTRATION


Register as a LLA Alumni here


 


CURRENT OFFICERS



President
Lucille Sheets

VP - Administrative Services
Donna Mathew

VP - Community Relations
Jeanne Sagoo

Secretary / Treasurer
Fevrel Pratt

The Philosophy of Location Learning

The philosophy of Location Learning is centered on bringing the student out into the community.  The student is able to use the community as a “living” text, and at the same time develops invaluable skills in planning, communicating, analyzing, creating and taking action.  Location learning aims to make learning relevant and energizing to the student.  Location learning recognizes that there are many ways to “travel” with students, but that the goal is always increased awareness and compassion for the world in which the student lives.  Both student and community gain from the connection that is developed.

In what ways can you bring your classroom and the community together?

  • On campus trips – exploring the school building and the playground
  • Bringing the outside in – speakers and class exchanges
  • Virtual trips – online exchanges, storybook travels, imaginary journeys
  • Neighborhood trips – short walks and visits to the park
  • Community based trips – visiting businesses, museums, government offices, etc
  • Nature based trips – exploring natural sites (more than science)
  • Extended travel – overnight experiences and making connections with other communities

 

It’s not just about where you are going. . . 

How do we get there?    Think carefully in choosing your means of transportation.  Consider factors of time, cost, and ecology, as well as your school district’s policies.  Also remember that how you get there is part of the learning experience.

Who is going ?   Most trips will involve an entire class with their teacher and chaperones or a group of classes along with several teachers. Some travel experiences may involve smaller groups acting as ambassadors or individuals investigating something more personal.

Why are we going?  This is the most important question.  The trip is something that is part of your classroom and teaching.  It should evolve from what is happening in your class, support the curriculum you are teaching, and be generated by the interests of your students.

What are the outcomes? What are students supposed to be getting out of this experience?  What do they show to demonstrate gained knowledge or pursue further study?  Most trips will involve students completing a FST sheet during the trip.  These trip sheets are ideally designed by student committees and make direct connections to the curriculum being taught.  Students might also keep travel journals where they can write questions, takes notes, record information, and make observations of their travel experiences.