With MICDS’s luscious campus grounds filled with diverse greenery and panoramic scenery, many within the Upper School have begun to debate on whether or not to shift certain lessons and class activities to an outdoor session. 

Some students are in favor of utilizing the outdoors more as they see the Holekamp area as a useful study space. Sophomore Ishika Kanjerla loves being outside and going on long nature hikes and bike rides to enjoy the outdoors. She states, “if the weather permits, being outside and listening to the sounds of nature might actually help people focus more.” She states, “we have a beautiful campus and I actually wish we used the outdoor spaces more.”

However others argue that the outdoors might pose as a hindrance to their study and learning  environments. Hannah Forsberg, a current junior, reflects on her classes and feels that “ being inside is a better work environment because if I’m outside I’ll be talking to other people and looking around and I’ll lose focus and fall behind in class.” Additionally Forsberg mentioned that sometimes when working on paper, a simple breeze can be a major problem in being able to work effectively. 

Noticing the conflicting opinions on having outdoor classes, Forsberg contemplates a potential compromise. “Maybe if [MICDS] had a quiet, outdoor space for learning I might be open to it,” Forsberg mentions. “But it really depends on the subject. For languages or even sciences I can see how being outside can be beneficial for learning, but for computer science for example it can be tricky to learn with fewer charging outlets or whiteboards outside.” 

Forsberg and Kanjerla both agree that if the school decides to engage in this academic shift, MICDS would need additional supplies and resources to do so. Additional outdoor seating, expanded Wi-Fi network reach, and portable writing boards would be potential options for outdoor learning to occur smoothly. “If the school invests in these learning supplies, I think it will bring a new dimension to learning and teaching that MICDS has never seen before,” Kanjerla affirms.