TE402PinkPenguins: New Literacy Research

Environmental Literacy

Definitions:

The test of environmental literacy is the capacity of an individual to act successfully in daily life on a broad understanding of how people and societies relate to each other and to natural systems, and how they might do so sustainably.

This requires sufficient awareness, knowledge, skills, and attitudes in order to incorporate appropriate environmental considerations into daily decisions about consumption, lifestyle, career, and civics, and to engage in individual and collective action.

Environmental education is a process that allows individuals to explore environmental issues, engage in problem solving, and take action to improve the environment. As a result, individuals develop a deeper understanding of environmental issues and have the skills to make informed and responsible decisions.

5 Components:

Attitudes of concern for the environment and motivation to improve or maintain environmental quality

Need to adapt a new behavior
Requires the other steps as well as personal mentors, life-changing experiences, etc.

Participation in activities that lead to the resolution of environmental challenges

Education is not deterministic: literacy alone does not guarantee that the learner will exhibit a specified set of behaviors. Rather, it guarantees only that the learner has the capacity for such behaviors. Put another way, the primary beneficiary of education is intended to be the learner him/herself.

Education:

Americans still widely lack the environmental knowledge that would enable them to safeguard public health, protect natural resources, support energy conservation efforts, and engage in the movement towards a more sustainable future.

the belief that nature is ours to exploit is very deeply rooted and pervasive not only within American society but within most academic disciplines and subjects as well.
Environmental education:

the K-12 education establishment has yet to take EE seriously.
Compounding this problem is the fact that certain elements of the No Child Left Behind Act are causing teachers to unnecessarily drop EE from their classes in favor of material that is more directly related to state competency tests. (Ironically, EE is proven to be effective in actually improving students' scores on these mandated tests.)

while the demand and need for EE is great, a number of reasons have inhibited EE from reaching its capacity - thereby leaving an environmentally illiterate America in its wake. The result: an American society incapable of achieving the environmentally sustainable growth that alone will maintain and enhance a high quality of life.

Benefits of environmental education:

many schools and educators have come to recognize EE programming as a reliable way to boost standardized testing - often dramatically.
EE has also been shown to help level the "learning field" across socio-economic boundaries.
Effective environmental education has been clearly shown to spark interest and higher performance in science learning.
The enthusiasm students feel for the environment and natural world and its relevance to their lives makes EE a remarkable tool for reading proficiency and learning skill.
Studies of EE program impacts reveal positive effects on children's character education and responsible behavior.
Environmental education offers schools and others many opportunities to enhance the diversity of society and education.
Environmental Education

The environment has become one of the most important issues of our time and will continue to be well into the future. The challenge is to find approaches to environmental management that give people the quality of life they seek while protecting the environmental systems that are also the foundations of our well being.

In order to face these challenges, students today will need more than superficial knowledge or awareness of disconnected environmental issues. A multidisciplinary approach to learning can build upon the strengths of a wide range of fields of study, providing a deeper understanding of the technological, political, and social options and strategies for both studying and managing the relationship between our society and the environment.

Games:

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