Source: Microsoft Clip Art

Source: Alex Shogren; Oregon Coast

Rooted in Education;

Rooted in Community

Rooted in Education

rooted in communitySource: Microsoft Clip Art

Environmental Education Environmental Education is

humanity’s oldest way of learning: gaining knowledge of natural,

social, and economic systems

through observation and collaboration in order to

live successfully in the real world. 1

1 www.eeaw.org, 2004 Report Card on the Status of Environmental Education in Washington State as requested by the Washington State Legislature, pg 18

WAC 180-50-115 (2000) 1

“[I]nstruction about conservation, natural resources, and the environment shall be provided at all grades in an interdisciplinary manner through science, the social studies, the humanities, and other areas with an emphasis on solving problems of human adaptation to the environment.”

1 http://policy.nthurston.k12.wa.us

WA State Report Card

Effectiveness of EE in improving Student’s Standardized Test Scores.……A

Legal and Academic Foundations of EE……………..……….…...A

Independent, Innovative Approaches to EE….………………..….A

General Awareness of EE…………………….…………….…...C

State Support of EE……….……………………………….……D

Comments• “EE is an important subject; however, the current

WASL environment…limits opportunities for a structured and consistent EE scheduling” ~RMS Science Teacher

• “Not my area of focus.” ~RMS Block Teacher

• “I haven’t heard ‘J’ mention any EE that I can think of…even when they studied Geology. They didn’t talk about any local geology or rock outcroppings.” ~RMS Parent

• “The leave [EE] at the elementary school level with recycling and stuff, there is no theory or building of why it’s important.” ~RMS Parent

Challenges

EE utilizedas an

Effective Learning Tool

RESULTS

Behavior

Behavior

ApathyApathy Learning AbilityLearning Ability

UnawareUnaware

SUCCESSFUL SUCCESSFUL LEARNINGLEARNING

INCREASEDINCREASED

ATTENTIVENESSATTENTIVENESS

DECREASED BEHAVIORALDECREASED BEHAVIORAL

CHALLENGESCHALLENGES

INCREASED TESTINCREASED TEST

SCORESSCORES

AWARE AWARE CITIZENSCITIZENS

ENGAGED LEARNINGENGAGED LEARNING

Resources Local Resources

~Komachin Middle School~Tumwater Elementary School~Chehalis Basin Education Consortium

Literature ~ Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv~ Place-Based Education, David Sobel~project WILD, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife

Agencies & Western Regional Environmental Education Council

On-Line Resources~Environmental Education Association of WA;

www.eeaw.org~Pacific Education Institute;

www.pacificeducationinstitute.org ~NW Environmental Education Council; www.nweec.org

Rooted in Education;

Rooted in Community

Rooted in Education

rooted in communitySource: Microsoft Clip Art