What is Environmental Education

• It is teaching children and adults how to learn about and investigate the environment. EE helps citizens make intelligent, informed decisions about the environment and how they can take care of it.

History of EE

• Evolved from the environmental movement

• Precursors included nature study and outdoor education

• Field gained momentum in 1977 with first intergovernmental conference on EE organized by UNESCO

• In US, Environmental Education Act of 1970 was one of first major pieces of EE legislation

  • established US Office of Environmental Education

Goal of EE: Environmental Literacy

• Knowledge: understanding of the environment and environmental challenges

• Affect: attitudes of concern for the environment, sensitivity to the environment and environmental challenges, and motivation to improve or maintain environmental quality

• Skills: ability to identify and help resolve environmental challenges

• Behavior: participation in activities that lead to the resolution of environmental challenges

Characteristics of EE

• Constructivist: learner-centered and investigatory

• Experiential education: experience, reflect, connect to prior knowledge, apply

• Interdisciplinary

• Local to global

• Lifelong

• Diverse learning experiences

EE Is Not Advocacy

• Environmental education does not advocate a particular viewpoint or course of action

• Rather, environmental education teaches individuals how to weigh various sides of an issue through critical thinking and it enhances problem-solving and decision-making skills

EE vs Advocacy

EE: uses information and educational processes to analyze issues, includes varies and many points of views, value-fair

Advocacy: argues that wrongs against the environment must be stopped, one-sided, can work as a negotiator

… but what about literacy goals of affect, skills, and behavior?

Why care about EE as a wildlife

• Battling nature deficit disorder

• EE can make people aware and care

• North American style management requires communication with stakeholders

• EE training can prepare you to be an advocate of your profession

Why is wildlife a good fit for EE?

• Good entry-point for kids

• Great standards connections

• Ideologically neutral topic

What does EE look like?

• K-12 classes

• Museums

• WRC EE curriculum

EE in NC

• Within the WRC

  • Pisgah, Centennial, etc

  • Project WILD, Project CATCH

  • Seminars and workshops on hunter and boating safety

  • Resoration programs

• Beyond:

  • project WET, Project Learning Tree

  • State Park EELEs

  • Museums, aquariums, arboretums

  • TONS of NGO camps, programs, etc. (Brevard cluster)

• 

Outdoor Learning Research at NC State

• In-school opportunities and benefits

• Pathways to connection to nature, including hunting/fishing

• Differential impacts among diverse audiences

Catch-up Effects from Outdoor Education for EL

Pathways to Connection to Nature

Hunters are more likely to identify native species

Kids learn in less biased ways than adults

• Higher science literacy and numeracy associated with polarization based on worldview

• Worldview has now effect at high levels of climate change knowledge

Wildlife is more ideologically natural vehicle for climate education

• Treatment → Climate change knowledge → Climate change hope and Climate change concern → climate change behavior

• Wildlife convinces people to take better action against climate change

Model of Results

Why get involved in EE as a wildlifer?

• Career development

• Interdisciplinary skills needed in wildlife and natural resources careers

• Help make connections with public

• Might want to do more than fieldwork and research

• Rewarding/fun

CV/Resume Building

How to get involved

• Get EE certified

• Take a workshop — WRC or through NC office of EE and public affairs

• Join the NCSU EE club

• Engage with EENC

• Attend an EE conference or EE sessions at TWS

• Ask to get involved with EE research

• Take a class at NCSU

  • EE Minor

NC EE Certification

• A self-paced, experiential program which includes 6 different components and 200 hours

  • instructional workshops

  • outdoor environmental education experiences

  • knowledge of environmental education resources and facilities

  • Teaching

  • community partnership project

  • continuing education

• program requirements

  • registration is $50

  • 4 years to complete the program

  • Classes may sub for requirements