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Approaches to Environmental Education

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The Inclusion of Environmental Education in Science Teacher Education

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of various approaches that exist within the field of environmental education (EE). Like science education, environmental education is an interdisciplinary and complex field that offers a multitude of strategies for learning, dependent on the variables of resources, time, space, curriculum, student characteristics, plus a full range of factors that can affect any kind of educational implementation. Seven approaches are briefly described: EE and the schoolyard; place-based education; the Projects curricula (PLT, WILD, and WET) and Population Connection; science and EE in nature centers, zoos, and museums; investigating and evaluating environmental issues and actions; action research and EE; and the Science-Technology-Society approach to EE. Each of these approaches individually addresses several important goals of EE, but none of these is totally prescriptive or comprehensive. There are many different EE teaching and learning approaches one can select from. It is up to the individual educator to select and apply the approach that will be most effective in specific settings.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Graduate Education, Leadership, and Counseling, Rider University, 2083 Lawrenceville Road, Lawrenceville, NJ, 08648-3099, USA

    Austin A. Winther

  2. Biology/MTSU Center for the Study of Cedar Glades, Middle Tennessee State University, 60, Murfreesboro, TN, 37132, USA

    Kim Cleary Sadler

  3. Center for Experiential and Environmental Education, Unity College, 90 Quaker Hill Road, Unity, ME, 04988-9502, USA

    Gerry Saunders (Director of Teacher Education)

Authors
  1. Austin A. Winther
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  2. Kim Cleary Sadler
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  3. Gerry Saunders
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Austin A. Winther .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , College of Education, Lehigh University, Research Drive, A113 Lacocca Hall 111, Bethlehem, 18015, Pennsylvania, USA

    Alec M. Bodzin

  2. SUNY Cortland, Cortland, 13045, New York, USA

    Beth Shiner Klein

  3. Seidel School of Education and Professio, Department of Education Specialties, Salisbury University, Camden Ave. 1101, Salisbury, 21801, Maryland, USA

    Starlin Weaver

Appendices

Appendix 1:

Representative Programs Providing Training and Support for Educational Use of Schoolyards

There are several programs available to provide support and training for teachers interested in using their schoolyards as learning sites. Some examples include:

  • The National Wildlife Federation Schoolyard Habitat Program – http://www.nwf.org/schoolyard/. This program provides encouragement, rationale, and examples of how to develop school grounds as wildlife habitats.

  • Many states have a “Homes for Wildlife” program. These are usually administered through a state’s Fish and Game Department or Department of Conservation or Natural Resources. New Hampshire has developed an excellent guide that has been adapted by many states for their specific ecosystem (Wyzga 1995).

  • Project Learning Tree’s Greenworks! grant program can provide grants for environment-related service learning projects. Information available at: http://www.plt.org/cms/pages/21_22_18.html

  • The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education – http://www.maeoe.org/habitat/. This organization provides support and training for teachers interested in schoolyard habitat projects.

  • The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – http://www.fws.gov/chesapeakebay/schoolyd.htm. This government organization coordinates schoolyard habitat programs with state agencies and school districts to promote the development of school grounds as wildlife habitats. They provide resources, training, and funding.

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Winther, A.A., Sadler, K.C., Saunders, G. (2010). Approaches to Environmental Education. In: Bodzin, A., Shiner Klein, B., Weaver, S. (eds) The Inclusion of Environmental Education in Science Teacher Education. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9222-9_3

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