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The Benefits of Environmental Education
E
xperts at Stanford University systematically searched the academic literature and identified 119 peer-reviewed studies published over a 20-year period that measured the impacts of environmental education for K-12
students.The review found clear evidence that environmental education programs provide a variety of benefits. Not surprisingly, the studies clearly showed that students taking part in environmental education programming gained knowledge about the environment. But the studies also showed that learning about the environment is just the tip of the iceberg.
Studies in the review demonstrated that environmental education has led to a number of positive impacts, from improving academic performance, to enhancing critical thinking skills, to developing personal growth and life-building skills, including confidence, autonomy, and leadership. In addition, a number of the studies showed that environmental education increased civic engagement and positive environmental behaviors.
Dozens of peer-reviewed studies found environmental education has a positive academic impact. Because children are often naturally interested in and curious about the environment, environmental education can be an effective tool to teach an array of topics. Studies documented that students gained knowledge in a variety of areas, including the environment, mathematics, chemistry, biology, ecology, and more. In various studies, students and teachers reported that the students enjoyed taking part in environmental education activities, and that the “fun” factor enhanced motivation to learn.
Environmental education imparts more than knowledge. It has been shown to develop academic skills, such as critical thinking, decision making, and synthesizing complex information. Environmental education has helped produce effective problem solvers, lifelong learners, and thoughtful community leaders and participants.
A dozen peer-reviewed articles found environmental education had positive civic outcomes, such as instilling a sense of personal responsibility and motivation to address community and environmental issues.
The emotional and social skill-related benefits that a number of studies in the review documented include self-esteem, autonomy, character development, maturity, empowerment, verbal communication, leadership, poise, and the ability to collaborate with others.
Environmental Education Goals:
to foster clear awareness of and concern about economic, social, political, and ecological inter-dependence in urban and rural areas;
to provide every person with opportunities to acquire the knowledge, values, attitudes, commitment, and skills needed to protect and improve the environment;
to create new patterns of behavior of individals, groups, and society as a whole toward the environment.
Environmental Education Objectives:
• Awareness: to help social groups and individuals acquire an awareness of and sensitivity to the total environment and its allied problems.
• Knowledge: to help social groups and individuals gain a variety of experience in, and acquire a basic understanding of, the environment and its associate problems.
• Attitudes: to help social groups and individuals acquire a set of values and feelings of concern for the environment, and the motivation for actively participating in environmental improvement and protection.
• Skills: to help social groups and individuals acquire the skills for identifying and solving environmental problems.
• Participation: to provide social groups and individuals with an opportunity to be actively involved at all levels in working toward resolution of environmental problems.
From Anecdotes to Evidence: Demonstrating the power of environmental education, North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) with support from: Gray Family Foundation, Storer Foundation, Pisces Foundation, U.S. EPA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service.
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www.clearingmagazine.org CLEARING Spring 2018
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