Education and the Environment, Creating Standards-Based Programs for Schools and Districts
Abstract
This book is a guide to creating and implementing environment-based education—combining standards-based instruction on English language arts, math, history, and science with community-based investigations and environmental service-learning.
It summarizes lessons learned, over the past 32 years, seeking to more fully integrate the environment into the K-12 education system. It pulls together my experiences working with schools, districts, and state departments of education in 17 states, as well as in Central and South America. A chapter and extensive appendix summarize the research into the benefits of implementing environment-based education programs.
It covers a wide range of topics including strategies for designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating environment-based education. Numerous real-world examples provide insight into the opportunities and challenges involved in achieving success—based on my national work with the EIC Model and the state of California’s Education and the Environment Initiative.
... Because EE closely aligns with current understandings of how to build scientific literacy, it is not surprising that research supports EE as a useful tool for boosting science achievement. The relevance of EE has been shown to increase student engagement and enthusiasm (Lieberman, 2013), and raise test scores, even among those populations who traditionally EURASIA J. of Math Sci and Tech Edu 5 / 17 underperform on these tests (Ardoin et al., 2018). ...
... Students' environmental self-efficacy increased and a noted shift from economic development to environmental protection and sustainability occurred (Wang et al., 2018). Other studies report that EE increases student engagement and enthusiasm as well as decreasing discipline and classroom management problems (Lieberman, 2013). Taken together, this research suggests that integrating EE into science classrooms may not only build scientific literacy, including environmental knowledge, affect, problem solving skills, and behavior (Stevenson, Peterson, Bondell, Mertig & Moore, 2013;Hollweg et al., 2011), but also equip students with the awareness and skills needed in STEM jobs. ...
... Choi and Hannafin (1995) surmised that in developing memorization strategies for standardized tests, students actively decontextualize knowledge such that "traditional testing strategies are often counterproductive for the solving of real-world problems" (Choi & Hannafin, 1995, p. 63). Some studies found EE students performed better on standardized tests in science and math (Lieberman, 2013). A gap in the literature is the influence of EE themes in providing relevancy to constructivist teaching approach in improving science literacy and access to the STEM pipeline. ...
... To minimize the conflicts between outdoor activities and learning, many scholars have proposed new models of outdoor instruction such as Outdoor Learning, Environmental Learning, Place-Based Learning, Environment-based Education (EBE). For example, EBE has proven effective at facilitating learning on standard tests (Lieberman, 2013). More schools and states are attempting to include it in their formal curriculum. ...
... Its goal is to help students "achieve higher levels of academic success, as well as an understanding of and appreciation for the environment and issues related to sustainability" (SEER, 2014). This educational model was developed and copyrighted by the State Education and Environment Roundtable (SEER) (Lieberman, 2013). ...
... They provide quantitative evaluations of bank erosion using the math knowledge learned in the classrooms before. Because EBE programs are site specific, a good site is the first and most important step (Lieberman, 2013). Every school has to develop their own EBE curriculum based on their site conditions. ...
Human beings, especially children, need natural environments and outdoor play for
their physical, mental, and spiritual well-being (Louv, 2008). Even though parents and
teachers recognize the value of outdoor play, schoolchildren spend a diminishing amount of
time engaging in outdoor activities (Clements, 2004). Furthermore, addressing strict state
learning standards is the first priority for schools. Outdoor activities are often seen as
extracurricular to those subjects typically emphasized and tested. As a result, outdoor
landscapes such as science gardens, playgrounds, and experiential classrooms are often
underutilized, discouraged since they can take away from more important, standard forms
of pedagogy. Thus, traditional academic expectations associated with test scores can conflict with outdoor learning and play, this conflict becomes major obstacles to the implementation and use of outdoor learning environments. However, Lieberman (1998) has shown that environment-based education (EBE) actually facilitates standardized achievement in subjects like math, language arts, and science if specific EBE curriculums are developed based on a school’s surrounding natural resources.
By borrowing from the EBE and other relevant learning theories, a new environmental design framework called landscape manipulatives (LM) is proposed. It explores the spatial and behavioral possibilities associated with learning. This study will look at how the design of LM can enhance student mathematics achievement in concepts like geometry and fractions.
The goal of this study is to help increase student achievement, particularly math scores, using LM. If successful, this new framework of LM will help environmental designers and educators create learning landscapes that are essential counterparts to traditional math education.
... Jeho cílem je zlepšit vzdělávání, s využitím životního prostředí žáků, přírody i společnosti v okolí škol, jako přirozeného a smysluplného obsahu učení. 124,125,146,179,180 Jedním z hlavních propagátorů reformy vzdělávání pomocí učení zakotveného v životním prostředí byla organizace SEER. Pod vedením Geralda Liebermana, autora výzkumu Jak dohnat rozdíly ve výsledcích žáků představeného na straně 18, SEER vytvořil program pro školy, jak využívat prostředí ve svém okolí jako propojujícího rámce k učení. ...
... Jeho oficiálnímu schválení v roce 2010 předcházelo téměř 7 let intenzivního vývoje a testování se zapojením tisíců odborníků, vědců, úředníků, učitelů, žáků a dalších zájemců. 124 53,80,169,212 přední neziskové organizace působící v ochraně přírody, 79,83,198,202,221 komerční subjekty 155 i veřejné orgány jako vzdělávací komise Parlamentu Velké Británie 91 či školní inspekce. 152 V roce 2012 nechala vládní organizace Natural England zpracovat analýzu překážek pro výuku venku v přírodě, která ukázala, že hlavní problémy se točí kolem nedostatku sebedůvěry učitelů učit venku a rozdrobenosti poskytovaných podpůrných služeb. ...
Publikace ukazuje, jak učení venku v přírodě přináší uspokojení základních psychologických potřeb dětí, vyšší vnitřní motivací k učení, zlepšené chování ve škole a lepší vzdělávací výsledky napříč předměty. Popisuje také hlavní překážky, které učení venku brání, představuje inspirativní příklady ze zahraničí a shrnuje doporučení, co vše bychom měli udělat, aby se učení venku v přírodě v naší zemi mohlo více rozšířit.
Kniha čerpá z více než 200 výzkumů a dalších titulů odborné literatury z různých koutů světa a představuje tak dosud největší a nejkomplexnější práci o tématu učení venku v českém jazyce. Navzdory svému odbornému zaměření je psána srozumitelně a čtivě. Text doprovází přitažlivé fotografie a grafika. Díky tomu je kniha přístupná nejenom teoretikům ve vzdělávání, ale také učitelům a ředitelům, vychovatelům, úředníkům a rodičům.
... First, this study found that students in classrooms with a cooperative based teaching approach performed better on the final exam, one measure of student learning. Studies including Lieberman (2013) have found that cooperation with other students builds problem solving skills, decreases behavior issues and increases student engagement. More research is needed to better understand the mechanism of how student engagement might be impacted in science classrooms. ...
... Literatürde okul dışı öğrenme ortamları olarak; bilim merkezleri, akvaryumlar, botanik bahçeler, hayvanat bahçeleri, doğal yaşam alanları, müzeler, planetaryumlar, meteoroloji tesisleri, sanayi kuruluşları, milli parklar, seralar, bahçeler ve ormanlık alanlar gibi pek çok etkinliğin gerçekleştirildiği alanlar verilmektedir (Bozdoğan, 2019;Gerber, Marek & Cavallo, 2001;Laçin Şimşek, 2011). Okul dışı öğrenme ortamları; öğrencilerin derslere karşı olumlu tutum kazandırdığını, derse olan akademik başarıyı, ilgiyi, motivasyonu artırdığını (Bakioğlu ve Karamustafaoğlu, 2016;Bozdoğan, 2008;Graham, Beall, Lussier, McLaughlin, & Zidenberg-Cherr, 2005;Karademir, 2018;Miller, 2007;Tatar ve Bağrıyanık, 2012;Weinstein, Whitesell & Schwartz, 2014), öğrencilerin üst düzey bilişsel becerileri ile problem çözme becerilerine olanak sağladığını (Lieberman, 2013), kalıcı öğrenmeye doğrudan katkı sağladığını (Han ve Bilican, 2016) ortaya koymaktadır. ...
Outdoor learning activities enable individuals to increase their sensitivity,awareness and responsibility for nature and the environment. The aim of thisstudy is to determine the opinions of prospective biology teachers about theoutdoor learning activities within the scope of nature and environmentaleducation. The study group of the research consists of 78 prospective teachersselected by convenience sampling and registered in the Biology EducationDepartment of a state university. The participants were selected on a voluntarybasis. A case study, which is one of the qualitative research methods, was appliedin this study. Within the scope of the research, the data were obtained from asemi-structured interview form. In the analysis of the data, the content analysistechnique was applied to review and assess the opinions of the prospectivebiology teachers by using the ATLAS.ti program. The encoder reliability for thestudy was calculated as (56/62) *100) = 90.3%. According to the results of thestudy, the prospective biology teachers’ opinions about outdoor learningactivities towards nature and environmental education were categorized as: thevariety of these activities, the importance of these activities in the educationsystem, the contribution of these activities to their professional development, theinteresting aspects of these activities, and the difficulties of these activities. As aresult of this study, it was determined that field trips and nature walks weremostly included in outdoor learning activities in terms of the variety of natureand environmental education. It was emphasized that these activities caused anincrease in sensitivity and awareness towards the environment, enabled therealization of permanent learning, provided the opportunity to learn by doingand to examine living things in nature, and created more fun learningenvironments in terms of the place and importance of outdoor learning activitiesin education. It was also stated that these activities contribute to teachers’professional development, as they enable teachers to gain experience in theteaching profession and to gain more knowledge about nature and theenvironment. Thanks to the outdoor learning activities carried out in accordancewith their purpose, a more interesting, effective and permanent learningenvironment can be realized in an interactive environment. It is recommendedthat based on the integration of education in different areas of life, departmentscan carry out outdoor learning activities which are directly related to their fieldsand prospective teachers can be directed towards the outdoor learning course,which is an elective course in their departments.
... Indeed, Cheeseman et al.'s (2019Cheeseman et al.'s ( , 1707 review of ESE policy research in higher education calls for more 'scholars to connect with local policy makers throughout the research process'. The ESE research field has less commonly demonstrated assumptions about the role of evidence in policy making, though with some emphasis on providing evidence that ESE can increase academic achievement in order to influence policy making (Bartosh et al. 2006;Lieberman 2013). These and other trends have contributed to a relative lack of broader contextual, collaborative, and nuanced approaches to work on the ESE research-policy interface. ...
This paper looks beyond the environmental and sustainability education (ESE) field for ideas on understanding the research-policy relationship. It examines two specific bodies of literature that have analysed the interplay of research and policy in different ways – critical policy studies and evidence use studies. Bringing these two literatures into conversation, we draw out insights in relation to: what counts as evidence in policy decision-making, what influences policy processes beyond evidence, and what roles research can play in relation to policy making. We then consider how these issues from beyond the field might advance research and policy in ESE. We argue that ESE policy is distinctive in its scale, breadth and contestation, and that there is a need for more diverse work in relation to the ESE research-policy interface.
... Outdoor education provides teachers with the opportunity to engage students in active learning while guiding them through a process of inquiry that uses scientific processes, such as exploring and investigating, to transcend into all areas of learning (Lieberman, 2013). In addition, students can gain new knowledge from active learning experiences, such as developing an appreciation for nature through a walk in the woods, capturing observations through drawings and words in a nature journal, or having an opportunity to touch and learn about artifacts brought by a visiting science presenter (Hammerman et al., 2001). ...
K-8 teachers who do not consider themselves as scientists may have difficulty connecting literacy development to science standards. However, with effective tools and experience, teachers can integrate literacy skills with scientific inquiry fostering dynamic learning for students. The implications can be a deepening of students’ competence with communicating science concepts, while cultivating curiosity
about the world around them. The purposes of this paper were to emphasize the importance of children’s literature that connects nature to scientific processes; highlight the accessibility of informal science education providers in the community; and offer ideas for extended writing activities that integrate nature and science with students’ personal experiences.
Keywords: writing, reading, STEM, inquiry, outdoor education
... Outdoor education provides teachers with the opportunity to engage students in active learning while guiding them through a process of inquiry that uses scientific processes, such as exploring and investigating, to transcend into all areas of learning (Lieberman, 2013). In addition, students can gain new knowledge from active learning experiences, such as developing an appreciation for nature through a walk in the woods, capturing observations through drawings and words in a nature journal, or having an opportunity to touch and learn about artifacts brought by a visiting science presenter (Hammerman et al., 2001). ...
Literacy experts herald the educational benefits of using graphic novels across the curriculum and with different types of students. This study involved an analysis of the graphic novel format compared to the traditional text format for a variety of stories. A comparison of five books and their graphic novel counterparts provided insight into significant likenesses and differences among literary elements, which have implications for classroom teachers. Literacy elements of focus included plot, theme, setting,
character development, and conflict found in the two formats. Findings revealed differences between the two formats that need to be addressed in the classroom to enhance students’ understanding of graphic novels.
... Also, the Appendix describes 10 Ways to Go Green and Save Green ((Worldwatch Institute, 2010). These may be adequately considered as quite sufficient for Going Green and Living Green in any human community (Lieberman, 2013;Stohr, 2013;Malone, 1999;Cheng, 2013;Dala Lama, 1990) and in a university community in particular. ...
Rarely are English language arts (ELA) educators actively encouraging outdoor exploration in the learning process. Yet, ELA skills (writing, reading, researching, and communication) can be used to communicate elements of environmental literacy for the 21st century learner in Virginia (VA) and beyond. This can be done in alignment with VA's standards of learning (SOL) through nature-based learning (NBL), which encourages thinking beyond science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Including ELA skills and strategies, historically not the focal point of environmental education (EE) initiatives, encourages outdoor exploration in 6-12 secondary ELA curriculum development. Educators, nature centers, parents, and community leaders can all be stakeholders in communicating elements of environmental literacy through NBL-ELA instruction. Therefore, this chapter promotes NBL as a sound option for improved teaching and learning when creating and implementing interdisciplinary curriculum. It provides research-based tools, strategies, tips, and resources useful for various ELA stakeholders.
Research was conducted with six leading professionals in the whitewater adventure sports industry to learn about the literacies of their vocations. Interviewees included Olympic and world champion athletes, international explorers, a safety expert, whitewater garment manufacturers, and whitewater outfitters. Findings reveal the interviewees’ formative experiences with outdoor exploration and literacy, literature that influenced their callings, and identification of essential print and multimedia literacies used in the industry, like guidebooks, websites, and business administration practices. Suggestions are made for adventure sports programs to incorporate these literacy practices in their curricula and for K-high school education to recognize outdoor experiential education and associated literacies in school curricula.KeywordsLiteraciesMultiple literaciesAdventure sportsOutdoor experiential education
e busca determinar tendencias generales respecto a la percepción del riesgo que plantea el mercurio a la salud pública en Costa Rica, Guatemala y Nicaragua, y el papel que cumplen las distintas unidades demográficas/sectores sociales en su manejo. Esto con el propósito de compararlas con fuentes que las respalden, complementen o contradigan para colaborar así con el diseño de una estrategia colectiva e integral para la promoción de la salud. Se realizó un estudio mixto en el que se aplicó un cuestionario a los participantes de los cursos de mercurio “Educación en salud ambiental para el control de la contaminación por mercurio, la exposición y el riesgo a la salud”, ESAM 2020-2021 que desarrolló e implementó la Universidad de Costa Rica, Sede Rodrigo Facio, posterior a cada uno de sus módulos. Las respuestas se clasificaron manualmente en una serie de categorías estadísticas excluyentes y, para la comparación, se realizó una revisión de la literatura existente y relevante. Se observan las siguientes tendencias generales: “compra, reducción y sustitución de productos con mercurio”es relacionado con el ámbito doméstico, “clasificación y manejo de residuos que contengan mercurio” y “procesos de educación ambiental” se asocian con el ámbito comunal y “toma de medidas a nivel institucional, legal, reglamentario o con respecto al Convenio de Minamata” y “articulación entre la empresa estatal y privada” se asocian con el ámbito nacional. El análisis respectivo, apoyado en la literatura, no solo valida la postura de los participantes, sino que evidencia la existencia de otras posturas no mencionadas. Solo mediante la colaboración coordinada de todas las unidades demográficas es que puede abordarse la problemática del mercurio. La educación ambiental representa un eje fundamental para desarrollar actitudes y hábitos sostenibles que contribuyan al equilibro del sistema natural y el bienestar social.
The emergence of the United States Green Schools movement is rooted in a combination of growing acceptance of new green school buildings, improving the environmental performance of the nation’s 130,000 existing schools, a growth in popularity of school gardens and outdoor classrooms and, importantly, a green school’s ability to provide critical educational benefits to students of science, technology, mathematics, social sciences and community service. United States K-12 education is far from centralized with each state having its own education governance along with some 30,000 privately run schools. The U.S. must, therefore, rely on schools volunteering to become part of a school greening program. Fortunately, education decision-makers are increasingly seeing economic, social, environmental and educational value in making schools greener. They are likewise seeing sustainability education as rising in overall importance. This has meant that as many as 9–12% of U.S. K-12 schools have, as of 2019, school greening programs and more than one third of all K-12 schools use outdoor gardens, natural classrooms and onsite habitats as part of their educational approach. Elective programs such as Eco Schools USA, and other NGO-hosted efforts are proving helpful to schools which also receive encouragement from the U.S. Department of Education, many state education agencies and numerous local public school districts.
Environmental education is not a separate branch of science but a lifelong interdisciplinary field of study and a way of implementing the goals of environmental protection. It helps us to inculcate the necessary awareness, skills, attitudes, knowledge, and participatory potential in people so that they adjust their day-to-day activities in such a way that they never clash with the environment. Environmental Impact Assessment helps us to analyze both the positive and negative impacts of any proposed activity and the subjective reduction of their negative impacts with the purpose of identification, examination, assessment, and evaluation of the likely and probable impacts and, thereby, helps to work out remedial action plans to minimize the adverse impacts. It is an important management tool for ensuring the justified use of natural resources during developmental process by focusing on the problems, conflicts, or natural resource constraints that could affect the viability of a project. It also examines the implications of a project that might harm people, their homeland or their livelihoods, or other nearby developments. The chapter combines the considerations of how impacts from human activities can be predicted and assessed with the utility of these tools in decision-making, how environmental, economic and social concerns can be balanced, and the potential of the tool to enhance the “spirit of the age,” i.e., sustainable development.
This study utilizes a sociocultural approach to explore how pre-service elementary teachers’ experiences in both outdoor and formal school settings have contributed to their intentions for taking their students outdoors and perceived obstacles to doing so. The participants were pre-service elementary teachers (N = 95) enrolled in an elementary science education methods course at a public university in the Midwestern United States. This study builds on the qualitative research methodology established in a prior research study, whereby after reading Richard Louv’s book entitled Last Child in the Woods, pre-service teachers completed written essay responses to prompts about their past outdoor experiences, their intentions for taking their students outdoors, and additionally in this study, perceived obstacles to doing so once they become teachers. Analysis of the data indicates the importance of participants’ youth experiences in the outdoors and positive intentions for taking students outside. In addition, findings describe major obstacles discussed by pre-service teachers, and we use sociocultural theory to analyse the context of these findings. Implications for teacher educators working to better equip pre-service teachers to overcome these perceived obstacles are discussed.
Fascinující výzkumy z celého světa nám skládají obrázek o tom, že všichni lidé – a děti především – potřebují pobyt venku v přírodě pro své plné fyzické, duševní i sociální zdraví. Kontakt s přírodou dětem usnadňuje učení a přispívá k celkovému rozvoji jejich osobnosti. I v Česku jsou však děti, které se ven nedostanou téměř vůbec. Rozpor mezi tím, co nám říká věda o zdravém a podnětném prostředí pro život dětí, a skutečností, jak a kde děti tráví svůj čas, je varovný. To musíme změnit. Musíme o tom více mluvit a musíme s tím něco udělat.
The goal of this paper is to characterize the current state of literature that explores the importance of local contexts in the uptake of sustainability in education policy enactment and practice, with a particular focus on land and place in relation to education policy. Place has been studied by various fields in distinctive ways, and each discipline tends to privilege a certain aspect of place based upon their disciplinary frameworks. As opposed to exploring place through a disciplinary lens, I am seeking to understand place as a holistic, multidimensional concept. Place has historically been conceptualized as static, never changing, and everlasting. In contrast, a more contemporary view describes place as always in process, always becoming; places are never complete, bounded, or finished. This transmutes place into a more subjective concept, something that is rich in imagery, memories, and history but blurred when it comes to limits, power, and hierarchy. Thus, places operate through reiterative and continual practice but can be disrupted through social change and movements, political swifts, and differing ideologies. This protean characteristic of place is significant when reviewing the policy enactments literature, which underscores the fact that schools are always specific, and they are dynamic and shift both internally and externally. This paper seeks to address the question: How can or should considerations of place (e.g., location, local-global, land as historical, contested, impacted by dominant culture) inform the engagement of sustainability in education policy enactment and practice?
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