The student internship programme of Can Coll Environmental Education Centre (Collserola Natural Park): over thirty years of experiences

Abstract

Can Coll Environmental Education Centre, managed by the Collserola Natural Park Consortium, has been carrying out a continuous training programme since 1987-1988 with the aim of increasing the organization’s public visibility and of improving the environmental education of children and young people in the surrounding area. Each academic year, the Collserola Natural Park presents the pedagogic programme The School Year at the Park through its Public Use, Awareness and Environmental Education Department. The programme is integrated within the Barcelona Education Consortium’s Educational Activities Plan and it has been acknowledged with the Barcelona Pedagogical Innovation Council’s Quality Seal following an evaluation process directed by the University of Barcelona’s Education Sciences Institute. The School Year at the Park includes over forty educational programmes addressed to young people from primary school to university level and special education. Internships in the Park are also part of these educational programmes and the internships at Can Coll Environmental Education Centre are aimed at university and intermediate and higher vocational training students, in addition to companies and public and private educational institutions. Internships are included in the curriculum and have academic recognition through a specific pedagogical project linked to the training pathway of each student. On the other hand, they do not involve any employment or public service commitment so they are not paid jobs, although they do require the signing of an agreement between the student, the academic institution and the Natural Park Consortium.

Keywords: Natural park, biodiversity, education for sustainability, pedagogy, nature education centre, occupational training.