ABSTRACT
This chapter advocates clear and intentional “cairns”—or learning and teaching decision-making points—that foster fuller assessment of courses and projects that use place-based pedagogies. It provides a pliable heuristic or taxonomy able to guide students and teachers to and through points of decision-making that build an articulate, flexible, and ethical learning, teaching, and self-assessment experience, which others can assess. Whether drawing on concepts studied in class, and/or working with community members for political organizing, or ethically deciding to take up a community’s invitation to join in political action, all these decision-points reflect serious opportunities for learning and teaching including ethics. Self-assessment work would press on ways participants’ own histories and contexts, interests, and ethical commitments impact their investigative work and understanding. Shorter papers engaging text-based concepts with fieldwork could also require discussion of the ethical dimensions of choosing one analytic frame over another.
