The Failure of Environmental Education (And How We Can Fix It)


Book Description

“The hope for the future depends on teaching current and future students the analytical and critical thinking skills for dealing with the most critical problems. My own hope is for this book to be read by everyone, even those outside the field of environmental education. Read this book, read it again, share it widely, and do something - anything - to help our needy and wounded planet."-Marc Bekoff, author of The Animal Manifesto: Six Reasons For Expanding Our Compassion Footprint "Saylan and Blumstein provide a compelling vision of what can be, and what should be, if we have the courage to open our eyes and the boldness to act.”-Peter Saundry, Ph.D., Executive Director of the National Council for Science and the Environment “A clarion call to incorporate environmental education in all grades K-12, across all academic disciplines, in order to produce future generations of environmental stewards."-Mark Gold, President, Heal The Bay "We need a sea change in the educational system. After all, if we can teach schoolchildren that vandalism is wrong, why can we not teach them that environmental destruction is wrong? This book is a haunting call to action. A beautifully written manifesto that gets it right."-Ron Swaisgood, Director of Applied Animal Ecology, Institute for Conservation Research, San Diego Zoo Global “The greatest threat to the future of all species on the planet is the huge gap between what is understood about global climate change by the scientific community and what is known about climate change by the people who need to know -- the public. The sound prescriptions in this book need to be read now. We are running out of time.”-Dr. James Hansen, world-renowned climatologist and author of Storms of My Grandchildren: The Truth About the Coming Climate Catastrophe and Our Last Chance to Save Humanity “Environmental education is a disaster and educating the public on environmental issues is the greatest challenge facing humanity today. This book will help us understand why we are headed toward the collapse of civilization, and more important, how to fix it. Packed with sound science, useful information, and brilliant ideas, it is a book we must read, and give, to our local school boards and principals nationwide. Our children will thank us."-Paul R. Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb and Humanity on a Tightrope




Understanding Environmental Issues


Book Description

"Understanding Environmental Issues provides an excellent foundation for developing critical thinking about contemporary environmental concerns and the ways in which these are debated, represented and managed. The book should achieve its aim of stimulating students to engage with how ideas of sustainability and environmental justice can be applied both in policy and in practical action." - Gordon Walker, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University "The arena of environmental issues is a minefield for undergraduate students seeking clarity about key problems and solutions. This is where Understanding Environmental Issues will play a major role, providing a stimulating guide through the wealth of material and complex ideas. In particular the unification of social and physical science in the case studies provides a holistic approach to the subject that is essential for students and a refreshing innovation for environmental textbooks." - Anna R. Davies, Trinity College, University of Dublin There is now an unprecedented interest in, and concern about, environmental problems. Understanding Environmental Issues explains the science behind these problems, as well as the economic, political, social, and cultural factors which produce and reproduce them. This book: Explains, clearly and concisely, the science and social science necessary to understand environmental issues. Describes - in section one - the philosophies, values, politics, and technologies which contribute to the production of environmental issues. Uses cases on climate change, waste, food, and natural hazards in section two to provide detailed illustration and exemplification of the ideas described in section one. The conclusion, a case study of Mexico City, draws together the key themes Vivid, accessible and pedagogically informed, Understanding Environmental Issues will be a key resource for undergraduate and taught postgraduate students in Geography, Environment, and Ecology; as well as students of the social sciences with an interest in environmental issues.




Understanding Environmental Pollution


Book Description

Understanding Environmental Pollution systematically introduces pollution issues to students and others with little scientific background. The first edition received excellent reviews, and the new edition has been completely refined and updated. The book moves from the definition of pollution and how pollutants behave, to air and water pollution basics, pollution and global change, solid waste, and pollution in the home. It also discusses persistent and bioaccumulative chemicals, and pesticides, and it places greater stress on global pollutants. The relationship between energy generation and use, and pollution is stressed, as well as the importance of going beyond pollution control, to pollution prevention. Impacts on human and environmental health are emphasized throughout. Students are often invited to come to their own conclusions after having been presented with a variety of opinions. This textbook provides the basic concepts of pollution, toxicology and risk assessment for non-science majors as well as environmental science students.




Understanding Environmental Education


Book Description

The book establishes the importance of environmental education by tracing its history and the developments that have taken place subsequently to date. It provides basic understanding about environmental education as well as valuable suggestions for its effective incorporation in the school curriculum. The strength of the book lies in its content as all major areas of environmental education have been addressed such as school curriculum, professional development, and policies, especially in the context of India, thus making it a unique and go-to resource for all stakeholders working in the field of environmental education. The well-balanced content will help readers appreciate the nature of environmental education and its distinctiveness from other subject disciplines as well as environmental studies and environmental science substantiated with several examples and illustrations. What is striking about the book is its proposed road map which is critical for successful implementation of environmental education in India with the launch of the National Education Policy 2020 and the subsequent introduction of new curriculum frameworks. The book will be useful to students, preservice teachers, and teacher educators. It will also be of much value to in-service teachers, practitioners in different settings, teachers, policy makers, curriculum developers, and researchers in the field of environmental education.




Urban Environmental Education Review


Book Description

Urban Environmental Education Review explores how environmental education can contribute to urban sustainability. Urban environmental education includes any practices that create learning opportunities to foster individual and community well-being and environmental quality in cities. It fosters novel educational approaches and helps debunk common assumptions that cities are ecologically barren and that city people don't care for, or need, urban nature or a healthy environment. Topics in Urban Environmental Education Review range from the urban context to theoretical underpinnings, educational settings, participants, and educational approaches in urban environmental education. Chapters integrate research and practice to help aspiring and practicing environmental educators, urban planners, and other environmental leaders achieve their goals in terms of education, youth and community development, and environmental quality in cities. The ten-essay series Urban EE Essays, excerpted from Urban Environmental Education Review, may be found here: naaee.org/eepro/resources/urban-ee-essays. These essays explore various perspectives on urban environmental education and may be reprinted/reproduced only with permission from Cornell University Press.




The Handbook of Environmental Education


Book Description

First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.




Young Children's Play and Environmental Education in Early Childhood Education


Book Description

In an era in which environmental education has been described as one of the most pressing educational concerns of our time, further insights are needed to understand how best to approach the learning and teaching of environmental education in early childhood education. In this book we address this concern by identifying two principles for using play-based learning early childhood environmental education. The principles we identify are the result of research conducted with teachers and children using different types of play-based learning whilst engaged in environmental education. Such play-types connect with the historical use of play-based learning in early childhood education as a basis for pedagogy. In the book ‘Beyond Quality in ECE and Care’ authors Dahlberg, Moss and Pence implore readers to ask critical questions about commonly held images of how young children come to construct themselves within social institutions. In similar fashion, this little book problematizes the taken-for-grantedness of the childhood development project in service to the certain cultural narratives. Cutter-Mackenzie, Edwards, Moore and Boyd challenge traditional conceptions of play-based learning through the medium of environmental education. This book signals a turning point in social thought grounded in a relational view of (environmental) education as experiential, intergenerational, interspecies, embodied learning in the third space. As Barad says, such work is based in inter-actions that can account for the tangled spaces of agencies. Through the deceptive simplicity of children’s play, the book stimulates deliberation of the real purposes of pedagogy and of schooling. Paul Hart, University of Regina, Canada




Environmental Education and Advocacy


Book Description

Environmental education has often blurred the distinction between ecological science and environmental advocacy. Growing public awareness of environmental problems and desire for action may be contributing to this blurring. There is a need to clarify the distinction between the role of ecological science and the role of social and political values for the environment within environmental education. This book addresses this need by examining the changing perspectives of ecology in education and the changing perspectives of education in environmental education. Guidelines are provided for assessing the science and education perspectives within environmental education, along with suggested frameworks for development of programs and resources that integrate current science, education and action. This book will be of interest to environmental educators, ecologists interested in environmental education, and curriculum and resource developers.




Handbook of Research on Environmental Education Strategies for Addressing Climate Change and Sustainability


Book Description

Due to the increasing trend of international interest in education for climate change and the environment, there has been an increase of research in the area. There is a current question on what the best methods and tools are for integrating climate change education and sustainability into school programs. These educational methods can create the development of effective responses, attitudes, and behaviors to adapt to climate change. Empirical and conceptual models must be explored to help those interested in learning and teaching environmental education and climate change and adding it to modern school curriculum. The Handbook of Research on Environmental Education Strategies for Addressing Climate Change and Sustainability produces innovative approaches, methods, and ideas in education for climate change, environment strategies, and sustainability along with the development of curriculum and strategies for sustainable development goals. The chapters encompass multiple disciplines such as geology, geography, remote sensing, geographic information systems, environmental science, and environmental engineering. This book is ideal for in-service and preservice teachers, administrators, teacher educators, practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students interested in educational strategies and curriculum for climate change and sustainability.




Earth Science


Book Description

Earth Science: Understanding Environmental Systemsis intended for introductory courses in Earth Science and Earth Systems Science, which place emphasis on the systems approach to earth science with special attention to the impact these systems have on the environment. It is appropriate for non-science majors with no previous college science or mathematics courses.The primary goals of this book are to provide the background the general student needs to understand the way Earth works, how knowledge of Earth relates to the environmental issues confronting our society, and how scientists go about examining these issues.