Biggest Challenges Faced by a Park Naturalist at California State Parks
Michelle's biggest challenge as a California State Park Interpreter is adapting "teaching style to whoever is in front" due to the unpredictable and diverse demographics of park visitors, ranging from young children to adults, requiring on-the-spot adjustments to ensure all participants understand and enjoy the programs. This necessitates a dynamic approach and makes the role both challenging and rewarding, developing a valuable skill of "making sure that programs are beneficial to anyone".
Communication, Adaptability, Education, Environmental Interpretation, Public Speaking
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Michelle Claassen
California State Park Interpreter (Naturalist)
CA State Parks
Cuesta College and Liberty University
Communications
Climate, Environment, Sustainability & Waste Management, Government & Public Sector
Climate, Environment and Sustainability
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Adapting teaching styles to diverse audiences is a major challenge. Park interpreters must be able to connect with people of all ages and backgrounds, often without knowing the audience beforehand.
2. Balancing spontaneous interactions with planned programs requires flexibility. The job demands quick adaptation to unexpected groups and age ranges, particularly during peak seasons.
3. The ability to engage diverse audiences and make the subject matter accessible to all is a key skill. The role values the ability to connect with and teach individuals across a wide spectrum of ages and understanding, developing programs that cater to a broad range of knowledge levels and interests.
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your role?
The biggest challenge in my role is that we present to a wide range of demographics. As I mentioned, you have to adapt your teaching style to whoever is in front of you. Most of the time, you don't know who will be in front of you when you're speaking.
While we do schedule school programs and field trips, so we know the classroom, their age group, and a general sense of who will be with us that morning, we never know during the summer. For junior ranger programs, campfire programs, or when I'm out walking, I have to adapt.
Whatever program I'm giving, I need to be prepared to adjust. For example, if I'm giving a junior ranger program on animal schools, I don't know who will be in front of me. Our stated age range is between seven and 12, but we don't turn anyone away.
I might have children younger than that, or even adults joining to learn. When giving a program, I have to adapt to ensure everyone understands what I'm saying and is enjoying it. It's very different speaking to a 6-year-old versus a 40-year-old person.
So, ensuring my programs are beneficial to anyone in front of me is done on the spot. That can be challenging, but it's also a really cool skill to acquire.
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