Environmentalizing the curriculum: a critical dialogue of south-north framings

In this case‐study, we present a longitudinal study of one elementary (grades 1–6) school's environmental education (EE) in order to understand the ways in which the school culture supports outdoor EE as a critical component of their science education program. The school, which was known for its school‐based EE curriculum that encompasses an intensive outdoor‐education component, has gone through changes in the staff, and the student population. Our study is aimed at understanding the current challenges of the school outdoor education, in light of its two decade tradition of environmental and outdoor education school‐based curriculum. We observed three field trips and interviewed the principal and teachers. Our critical analysis indicated key tensions regarding outdoor EE: (1) the place of the school's tradition in light of current staff's challenges and agenda; (2) power struggle between the EE teacher and the newer teachers in school; and (3) the separation between the EE program that was an integrative holistic program in the past, and the other fields taught in school. In conclusion, we argue that the main issue is the change in the school culture that reflects the changes the community went through. We suggest that the school should examine old assumptions and revise its EE curriculum in light of changes in the school social and physical environment and in accordance to development in the field of EE. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 50: 1019–1046, 2013

The Literacy of Environmental Education Assessment Framework (LEEAF) is a pre and post-assessment survey to evaluate the current Environmental Education (EE) curriculum and learn how it supports the Science / Environmental Education Curricular Standards (Connell, 2019). LEEAF provides a systematic approach to aligning the existing and self-adopted EE science standards based on NAAEE (2010), GCDEE (1980), and Tbilisi (1978). The three categories: Fully Aligned - EE curricula and science professional development questions (100% - 70%); Partially Aligned - science curricula and professional development questions that also discuss the possible implementation of the EE curriculum (69% - 30%); Not Aligned - questions, discussing the current science curricula and which areas are successful and the other regions in which improvement requires an implementation of an EE curriculum (29% - 0%). LEEAF is a two-year assessment comprising four assessments submitted to school educators, administrators, students, and community stakeholders to determine EE alignment. LEEAF works per Tscion Research Environmental Education, Enrichment & Stewardship (TREEES). TREEES is an environmental education framework that provides activities that improve EE literacy for students, teachers, and community efforts. The LEEAF assessment allows TREEES to determine EE alignment and apply the appropriate percentage of activities based on science curricular deficiencies and strengths. During the evaluation, public and private school data are analyzed through qualitative and content analysis to assess the pedagogical content knowledge (PCK, Schulman, 1987) of the school or institution, to check for curricular’ understanding or misunderstandings, and teachers’ reflection on their teaching( Tan, Yap & Wan, 2002). Introduction The Literacy of Environmental Education Assessment Framework (LEEAF) is a pre-assessment portion of a two-part survey administered to the X school district. This survey aims to evaluate the current culture and climate of the X school district and how it supports the Science / Environmental Education Curricular Standards. This survey would be administered districtwide to a total of X schools. Participants of this survey would include X Teachers, grade levels: K-12, and School & District Administrators. This data of X schools would be assessed to determine the proper alignment category and development of the LEEAF Post-Assessment surveys. The three categories are: Fully Aligned, direct Environmental Education curricula and science professional development questions Partially Aligned, direct science curricula and professional development questions that also discuss the possible implementation of the Environmental Education curriculum. Not Aligned, direct questions discuss the current science curricula, which areas are successful, and other areas where improvement is needed to implement an Environmental Education curriculum. The first initial stages of assessment would require evaluating the overall data of the X and X. This data would be evaluated through the adapted National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) surveys to determine the general relevancy of the X and the NAAEE Guidelines Coding System. All data would be analyzed using the Qualtrics Data Analysis Software (QDA). Method The methodology of this proposal refers to the dissertation, A Systematic Approach to Understanding Alignment Between The Existing And Self-Adopted Environmental Education Standards: United States Sixth to Twelfth Grade Environmental Science Standards (Connell, 2019), Excellence in Environmental Education: Guidelines for Learning (NAAEE Guidelines) (Simmons/NAAEE, 2010a), the Tbilisi Declaration Objectives (UNESCO, 1978), and the Goals for Curriculum Development in Environmental Education (GCDEE) (Hungerford, Peyton & Wilke, 1980). Results Connell, 2019 conducted a systematic approach to determine the alignment between the existing and self-adopted science 6th-12th grade EE science standards. Based on NAAEE (2010), GCDEE (1980), and Tbilisi (1978), Connell, 2019 determined how ten randomly selected States within U.S. EPA Regions aligned with Existing Environmental Education Standards (EEES). This research addressed if each State’s alignment was implicit or explicit with environmental education standards. The Connell 2019 research design was conducted by means of deductive content analysis (DCA) (Mayring, 2002) and coding procedures based on the theoretical formulation of Krippendorff (2004). Therefore, measures were put in place by Goals of Curriculum Development of Environmental Education (GCDEE/ Hungerford et al., 1980) to create specific goals and objectives appropriate for curricular and instructional implementation as follows: Level I: Ecological Foundation Level Level II: Conceptual Awareness Level – Issues and Values Level III: Investigation and Evaluation Level Level IV: Action Skills Level – Training and Application Discussion Data analysis would be conducted through quantitative and qualitative deductive content analysis (Mayring, 2000; Connell, 2019). Connell notes that deductive content analysis examines textual documents with established themes for coding and evaluation purposes. Quantitative Methods for the TREEES’ LEEAF Pre-Assessment Survey would be analyzed with Qualtrics Data Analysis System based on a Coding System developed by Connell, 2019. Results from the Post Assessment Survey determine the level of support and types of for Culturally Relevant Professional Learning Experiences to determine how Sci./Soc. Studies Curricular Standards align with the NAAEE Guidelines (Simmons, 2010).

The goal of environmental education, according to UNESCO’s Belgrade Charter is to educate the public so that they are aware of, and concerned about, the environment and its associated problems in order to have the knowledge, skills, attitudes, motivations, and commitment to solve current and future problems. This set of abilities is referred to as environmental literacy. Environmental education curriculum in schools began in the United States in the late nineteenth century as nature studies. It was transformed into conservation education in the 1930s in response to the ecological disaster of the dust bowl. Environmental education in its current form began in the late 1960s and 1970s with the establishment of the US Environmental Protection Agency. There are a number of positive effects of including environmental topics in school science curricula, such as increasing students’ motivation to learn; connecting the school subjects to students lives; and providing a context of the engagement in the practices of science. However, environmental science typically appears in school curricula in a non-coherent scattering of topics in the traditional science courses: biology, chemistry, and physics. The exceptions are special courses such as Advanced Placement Environmental Science, and magnet, charter, or private schools that have an environmental focus. In addition to school settings, environmental education takes place in informal settings such as aquariums, museums, and zoos; science and nature centres; boys’ and girls’ clubs and scouting; and afterschool and summer programmes. There are areas of focus in environmental education that have received particular attention in recent years. They include environmental justice, climate change, and education for sustainability. Education for environmental justice helps people to learn about and act to eliminate unfair treatment of marginalised or impoverished groups in regard to environmental regulation, and laws. Climate change education brings to the forefront the learning of climate science, and ways to mitigate the production of greenhouse gases and the effects of global warming. Education for sustainability tackles the somewhat conflicting goals of increasing the quality of life for all people and doing so in a way that can be sustained for generations into the future, while considering not only the environment but economic and social policies as well. As with more general approaches to environmental education, these special topics are usually not addressed in school curricula or in ways that are piecemeal and even capricious.

Purpose: The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of an environmental education curriculum on shaping the environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Recognizing the importance of environmental awareness and stewardship, particularly within educational settings, this research seeks to assess the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention in fostering a culture of environmental responsibility and sustainability among students. Methods: The research methodology employed is an experimental approach involving 107 participants from three Islamic boarding schools located in Surabaya, Indonesia. The environmental education intervention consists of two stages: the delivery of educational materials and practical implementation in everyday life, spanning across 14 sessions. Data analysis is conducted using the product moment correlation test, with a significance level set at 0.05, to examine the relationship between the environmental education curriculum and the development of environmental culture among students. Results and Discussion: The study findings reveal that the environmental education curriculum significantly influences the development of environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Additionally, the analysis indicates correlations between knowledge, attitude, and behavior related to environmental management, as well as between cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care. These findings underscore the interconnectedness of various components within the framework of environmental education and highlight the importance of fostering a holistic approach to environmental awareness and action among students. Implications of the Research: The results of this study have significant implications for educational policymakers, curriculum developers, and practitioners in Islamic boarding schools and beyond. By demonstrating the positive impact of environmental education on shaping environmental culture, the research advocates for the integration of comprehensive environmental education curricula into the academic framework of Islamic boarding schools. Furthermore, the findings underscore the importance of promoting active engagement and practical application of environmental principles to foster sustainable environmental practices among students. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the growing body of literature on environmental education by focusing specifically on its impact within the context of Islamic boarding schools. By empirically assessing the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention and identifying correlations between knowledge, attitude, behavior, cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care, the research offers valuable insights into the mechanisms through which environmental education can promote a culture of environmental stewardship among students. The findings provide a basis for informed decision-making and curriculum development aimed at enhancing environmental awareness and action within educational settings.

This article illustrates and discusses ‘dialectical pedagogy’ through reflections on five lectures on plants composed for Environmental Education postgraduates and Initial Teacher science educators. It argues for dialectical pedagogy’s place in ‘ecologising’ environmental education curriculum. Ecologising represents the fallible, ongoing attempt to attend to and improve ecological relations, and ecologising education entails doing so while perceiving educational processes as ecologies arising through open-ended, dynamic, co-constituting relations between living beings. To do so, this article’s dialectical approach draws from Hegelian tradition but rejects its deterministic and teleological assumptions, emphasising the flowing and inclusive interplay of thought, where earlier ideas contribute to an organic development rather than being invalidated and dichotomised. My approach considers both the dialectics of thought, the dialectical development of that which thought attends – in this case, plant life – and the dialectic between them. The article presents lecture segments as artistic compositions, demonstrating how dialectical pedagogy can unshackle the life of the mind and its relation to the world. This approach aims to interrupt conceptualisations that deaden perception and participation in arising ecologies, inviting students into considering thinking as a living movement that builds itself up and breaks itself apart while reaching into and caring for the world.

The aim of this research was to review and compare investigations of researches that have done significant contributions to the topic of environmental education in higher education in Latin America. A review of 51 works of different researchers of nine countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Spain, Mexico and Venezuela) that contribute with sufficient conceptual arguments to derive the criteria with which environmental education has been carried out in higher education institutions in the last 15 years in the countries of the region. The analysis criteria used for the review and comparison between researches were: areas of environmental education in the universities; and the pedagogical and the didactic and the curriculum in environmental education at the university. As principal results it is found that, though there are interesting and relevant experiences directed to curricular innovation, there are still many processes with trends towards the fragmented vision of reality, with curricula similar to plans of study and environmental education centered in disciplines. As a conclusion, the research proposes an alternative university environmental education.

The purpose of this study was to assess perceived environmental education (EE) curriculum needs in the United States (K-16). The Environmental Education Curriculum Needs Assessment Questionnaire (EECNAQ) was developed, validated, and direct-mailed to 169 randomly selected professional environmental educators (58.6% return rate). The EECNAQ elicited perceptions about the desired status and the current state of EE curricula, the need for curriculum development, the anticipated use of curricula teachers, and the need for inservice teacher education. These five major questions were posed relative to fifteen goals which reflected the Tbilisi objectives and four levels of environmental literacy. The findings reveal a consensus among the professional participants that the EE goals are important ones, that they are not being met to a large extent in existing curricula, that extensive needs exist for both goal-oriented curricula and teacher education, and that the goaloriented curricula would be used by t...

This study assessed the influence of teacher’s characteristics and other related factors in the implementation of Environmental Education curriculum in secondary schools in Cross River State, Nigeria. Two research designs were used, survey inferential and Expost facto research design. The study is located in the department of Environmental Education, University of Calabar, Nigeria. Two research questions converted into two hypotheses were formulated for the study. A sample of three hundred (300) respondents were selected using the multistage random sampling technique comprising of twenty five (25) lecturers and two hundred and seventy five (275) postgraduate and final year undergraduate students in the department of Environmental Education, University of Calabar. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire, the instrument administration was done by the researchers and same were collected 100%. Pearson Product Moment Correlation Analysis and regression analysis were used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 significance level and 298 and 290 degrees of freedom respectively. The result shows that teacher’s characteristics do significantly influence Environmental Education curriculum implementation in secondary schools. The regression analysis also shows that 6 factors listed impedes the implementation of Environmental Education curriculum, while four were not significant factors influencing Environmental Education curriculum in secondary schools. It was however recommended that teachers with competence in pedagogic knowledge of Environmental Education with classroom management skill should be employed to drive the process, while arrangement should be put in place to make Environmental Education a subject for students to offer and write in final senior secondary school examination among other.

Tscion Research, Environmental Education, Enrichments, and Stewardship (TREEES) is a framework designed to improve environmental education (EE) and EE literacy for student learning and teacher curricular development. TREEES curriculum is determined by the Literacy of Environmental Education Assessment Framework (LEEAF, 2020). LEEAF (Connell, 2019) is an EE assessment that reviews school and classroom EE alignment with North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE, 2010) standards. TREEES - Research requires EE alignment determined by pre and post-LEEAF assessments. LEEAF assessments are defined by EE alignment. TREEES - Environmental Education allows participants to improve EE Literacy by providing lessons that detail Environmental Social Awareness, learning the process of scientific innovation, and introducing participants to EE-based career interests. TREEES - Enrichment participation include science-themed labs and field trips. TREEES - Stewardship participation involves community organizations and a supporting research institution that provides agricultural training, sustainability presentations, and nature study. Introduction Tscion Research, Environmental Education, Enrichments, and Stewardship (TREEES) is a framework designed to improve environmental education (EE) and EE literacy for student learning and teacher curricular development. TREEES curriculum is determined by the Literacy of Environmental Education Assessment Framework (LEEAF, 2020). LEEAF (Connell, 2019) is an EE assessment that reviews school and classroom EE alignment with North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE, 2010) standards. Methods TREEES - Research requires EE alignment determined by pre-and post-LEEAF assessments (Figure 1). LEEAF assessments are defined by EE alignment. Fully-Aligned, allowing an expansion of the current EE Curriculum; Partially-Aligned, reviewing a solid science curriculum that can support an implemented EE Curriculum; Not-Aligned, improving the current science Curriculum to prepare for an EE implementation. EE classifications are then applied to determine the proper percentage of learning activities based on science curricular deficiencies and strengths. TREEES' overall project success is evaluated with survey results collected from teachers and selects activity providers for 11 months. Successful research data assesses the TREEES feasibility of EE-themed lessons and an understanding of what culturally relevant curricular adjustments are required to improve EE alignment. TREEES - Environmental Education allows participants to improve EE Literacy (Figure 2) by providing lessons that detail Environmental Social Awareness, learning the process of scientific innovation, and introducing participants to EE-based career interests. Improvement in EE Literacy increases EE Social Awareness. Participating in EE-based lessons allows students and teachers to provide the feedback necessary for culturally relevant learning. TREEES - Enrichment participation include science-themed labs and field trips. Enrichment provides a better explanation for green industries. Labs provide hands-on training (Figure 3) for participants with EE-themed activities focusing on Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Applied Science, and EE Solutions. Successful labs should develop critical thinking for participant lessons. Enrichment-Labs should consist of at least seven labs per school year. The 7th or 8th lab educates students on participating in research and development, designing concept presentations based on EE literacy learned from prior Enrichments and Labs, learning team-building, and content management in science. The concept lab aims to introduce skills needed to compete in EE-related industries and encourage innovation through creative thinking. Enrichment field trips provide participants with additional information on how Environmental science is applied within real-world scenarios and the skills required to contribute to each field. Enrichments should encourage career interest in the participant. TREEES - Stewardship participation (Figure 4) involves community organizations and a supporting research institution that provides agricultural training, sustainability presentations, and nature study. At least two stewardships are provided per year. Student and teacher participation involves instruction on environmental awareness that allows participants to research scientific data that assist in social action for community improvements and increase environmental literacy. Collected data from this stewardship enable students to learn the science attestation necessary to develop environmental justice evidence that can encourage state or local policy changes.

There has been a major effort in Australian academic circles over the past fifteen years to develop a critical discourse in environmental education curriculum, pedagogy, history, and research (Henry et al 1981, Di Chiro 1987, Gough 1987, 1994, Robottom 1987, Greenall 1987, Fien 1993 a,b, Greenall Gough 1993, Robottom & Hart 1993). This discourse is critical of ‘mainstream’ approaches to environmental education that are alleged to be positivist, behaviourist, masculinist, and instrumentalist. Internationally, environmental educators have also considered various shortcomings of environmental education. There is general concern about unrealised aspirations, unrealistic expectations, definitional problems, values issues, conceptual obfuscation and questionable research endeavours (Brennan 1979, Disinger 1979, 1985, Williams 1979, Baer 1980, 1981, 1985, Knapp 1983, Roth 1988, Iozzi 1989 a,b, Gigliotti 1990, Marcinkowski 1990, Wals, Beringer & Stapp 1990, Ham & Sewing 1992, Leming 1992, Pinar & Bowers 1992, Ramsey, Hungerford & Volk 1992). Consequently, it can be asserted there are practical deficiencies of a moral, social, political, and ecological nature. If so, one conclusion about the development of the field of environmental education is that it is problematic and often contradictory.

The risk of neutralizing the political dimension in environmental education through the depoliticization of its thematic objects, its intended learning, and its educational purposes, is a curricular phenomenon identified by recent research in the field. The aim of this article is to develop a conceptual and analytical framework to identify clarification of the political dimension. The framework on the political dimension as part of environmental education provides political learning entry that help to avoid the vanishing of this dimension. Nevertheless, this is not without themes and cannot be decoupled from its educational aims. Therefore, establishing a conceptual and analytical framework considering environmental themes, political learning and educational purposes together can effectively support the curricular construction of environmental education’s political dimension. Thus, we define six environmental issue meta-themes by politicization and depoliticization trends that cross them; draw on environmental and political education research to identify political learning components in an environmental education context; and discuss linking political learning to possible educational purposes. We believe that within the dialectic of politicization/depoliticization that crosses the thematic subjects, learning and purposes of environmental education’s political dimension, the path leading to the democratic subjectification of learners guarantees its non-neutralization.

One of the fundamental goals of environmental education (EE) is to equip students with the skills to make more thoughtful decisions about environmental issues. Many examples of environmental and science education curricula work to address this goal by providing students with up-to-date information about a myriad of environmental issues from a variety of scientific disciplines. As noted by previous researchers in EE, an emphasis on scientific information, however, does not help to overcome many of the barriers to improved decision making. To help students become better environmental decision makers, educators must also work to incorporate lessons about decision making in conventional EE curricula. This article provides an overview of findings from the decision sciences and behavioral decision research to highlight some of the most common impediments to high-quality decision making. The authors end with suggestions for curriculum development that might help to improve students' decision-making skills regarding environmental issues.

In this research, in the Environmental Education and Climate Change Course (6th, 7th or 8th grades) Curriculum; What specific goals, skills, achievements, topics/concepts related to water literacy are included and their place in the program are investigated. Document review, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the research. The research was based on the Environmental Education and Climate Change Curriculum revised in 2022. The document examined in the context of the research was analyzed with descriptive analysis. As a result of the research, water literacy is indirectly included in the special purpose dimension of the Environmental Education and Climate Change Course Curriculum; directly in the skill dimension; It has been determined that it is included directly and indirectly in the dimension of achievement and subject/concepts. It is seen that the achievements and topics/concepts that may be important for the reflection of water literacy in the curriculum are included in the "Environmental Problems" and "Sustainable Development and Environmentally Friendly Technologies" units. Within the scope of the results obtained, it can be said that the 2022 Environmental Education and Climate Change Course Curriculum includes content aimed at raising awareness and awareness about water literacy. The inclusion of water literacy in different teaching programs can be determined.

As K-12 audiences represent a major proportion of environmental education (EE) audiences, academics should be an outcome of interest in EE research and evaluation. However, research around links between EE and academic outcomes (e.g., grades, test scores) is scant. Reasons for limited research on EE and academic outcomes may include disinterest in academic outcomes, assertion that academic outcomes are poor measures of learning, and normative biases against publishing null or negative effects within academia. We argue for adoption of a null effects framework for linking EE and academic outcomes. We begin by outlining what we mean by a null effects framework and then suggest reasons why the EE community should adopt it. Specifically, a null effects framework embraces and celebrates research demonstrating no difference in traditional academic outcomes associated with EE curricula and more traditional classroom instruction. We describe key aspects of operationalizing a null effects framework, including use of key statistical procedures (e.g., measuring power), and changes in peer review associated with emphasizing measures of evidence beyond hypotheses testing and p values. We conclude by describing how this approach matches EE objectives, strengthens links to academic outcomes without being bound by them, avoids setting unrealistic expectations for EE, and highlights the myriad of non-academic co-benefits offered by EE. As including EE in schools is the best opportunity for reaching the most learners in terms of numbers and diversity, we offer a null effects framework as an approach that can boost adoption of EE where it is arguably needed most.

(1969). Toward A Curriculum in Environmental Education. Environmental Education: Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 11-12.