Environmental Education and Related Fields in Idaho Secondary Schools

Abstract

The fields of environmental education, outdoor education, adventure education, and experiential education are linked by shared goals, objectives, and characteristics. National standards connect these fields to secondary education. In this preliminary study, the authors describe how aspects of the 4 fields are used by environmental educators in Idaho secondary schools and what importance such educators place on goals related to the fields under study. Environmental educators (N = 52) completed an online survey. Results suggest that although the goals of environmental education are important to respondents, the programs represented depart from key characteristics described in the literature. The goals of outdoor, adventure, and experiential education were of mixed importance to respondents, and the characteristics of these fields were variably present in Idaho secondary schools.