Features of environmental non-formal education

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to identify the most significant characteristics of the environmental educational program from the point of view of visitors and experts. The object of the study is informal environmental education, and the subject is the program of informal environmental education implemented at the ethnographic camp "Uvăs Mir Hot" (House of Northern People). Special attention is paid to the substantive and formal characteristics of the program under study. The authors' contribution to the research of the topic is to highlight the characteristics of the program that effectively affect visitors and change their attitude to the environment. At the first stage, the analysis of theoretical studies devoted to modern environmental education was carried out and basic characteristics were identified. At the second stage, the content and formal characteristics of the educational program are analyzed. At the third stage, three types of reviews were analyzed, which made it possible to identify the most effective characteristics of the educational program. The novelty of the study lies in a comprehensive research method involving the analysis of several types of reviews to determine the most effective characteristics of the educational program, as well as in the description of the unique platform on which the program is implemented. The theoretical significance of the study is related to the search for an optimal set of meaningful and formal characteristics of educational programs that form responsible environmental behavior. It is concluded that environmental education is impossible in the old educational paradigm, therefore, a variant of informal additional environmental education based on the wisdom of indigenous peoples and containing elements inherent in modern environmental education is proposed. However, a number of characteristics need further refinement. The content characteristics were not reflected in the reviews, although the formal characteristics of environmental education are recorded (emotional and aesthetic impact, informal nature, involvement in the issues discussed, the playful nature of the events). The analysis of the expertise carried out by specialist teachers shows the presence of almost all the characteristics of the educational program. The results of the study can be used to improve the program under consideration, and environmental education programs in general.