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| Prof Development for Environmental education |
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| Author : Kerry Stewart
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Taking action
More than 45 schools throughout New Zealand are taking part in a pilot professional development programme to incorporate the Guidelines for Environmental Education in New Zealand Schools. Kerry Stewart reports.
Otari School co-deputy principal Verena Watson is an environmental education professional development facilitator in the Wellington area and her school is one of those involved in the pilot programme.
The school has had an environmental education programme for a number of years, including the establishment of a nursery, edible garden and recycling scheme. Wellington College of Education students are regular visitors to the school to trial and observe environmental education activities. Children from the school are also involved in a guiding programme at the neighbouring Otari Native Plant Museum and are trying to raise public awareness of the health of the Kaiwharawhara Stream as part of the Wellington Regional Council �Take Action for Water� programme.
Watson says the school would like to go a step further and develop a whole-school approach to environmental education, incorporating it into management policy and every-day practices.
Christchurch Girls� High School is also working with regional facilitators to develop a whole-school approach to environmental education and hopes to offer a Year 12 course in environmental studies in 2003. Head of geography Jocelyn Papprill attended the environmental education professional development training this year with colleague Dr Felicity Cutten and was encouraged by some of the �exciting� programmes under way in primary schools.
�Primary schools operate in a much more hands-on environment. They�ve done some wonderful things � we have to match that challenge. I�d like to see more action-based learning in environmental education at a secondary level.�
Papprill says Christchurch Girls� already offers an environmental component in many of its subject areas, but she would like to encourage more heads of department to integrate environmental education into their programmes. She agrees that many teachers, particularly at a secondary level, see environmental education as being on the fringe because they have not seen a growth in the job market in this area. �This is the type of thing we look at in secondary schools � where will it lead for our students? However, a number of our girls are interested in doing environmental law so they are really keen to see environmental studies offered at the school. In other subjects they get bits and pieces of it, but with an environmental studies course they will have a fully integrated, cross-curricular programme.�
Mt Aspiring College in Wanaka specialises in outdoor education courses. Teacher, senior dean and environmental consultant Steve Henry believes it is ideally placed to focus on environmental education. �Because we have so many students using the outdoors I am keen to promote an appreciation of that. It comes down to values � that�s the difference between environmental education and just going out and playing.�
Students are already involved in a number of environmental projects, including an energy audit of the school, a trout study at a local hatchery and glaciation studies in the Matukituki Valley.
Regional facilitators will be visiting the school next term not only to celebrate what has already been achieved in the environmental education arena, but also to review the school�s outdoor pursuits programme with a view to exploring how environmental education can be incorporated. �We want to explore our options and look at where we want to go from here. It�s very clear that kids want to learn this stuff. I think it�s more a case of the adults catching up,� says Henry.
Henry agrees that primary schools are doing better when it comes to implementing environmental programmes and is keen to adopt a similar thematic approach at Mt Aspiring.
Articles on environmental education initiatives and the Guidelines for Environmental Education in New Zealand Schools appeared in the Education Gazette on 2 August 1999, vol 78 no 13. An article on Mt Aspiring College�s outdoor education programme appeared in the Education Gazette on 17 May 1999, vol 78 no 8. All articles can be found in our archives at this location
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