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Environmental Education Increases Academic Achievement
Studies have shown that environmental education can increase scores on standardized tests in key subjects such as mathematics and reading. Environmental education (EE) programs make use of local ecosystems surrounding a school such as city parks, rivers, or urban gardens. EE activities provide opportunities for active engagement, skills building, and application of knowledge to real-world problems. Many progressive schools around the world are now incorporating EE activities within their curricula, and this nascent movement, while still relatively small, is generating large academic benefits. Environmental Education Increases Standardized Test Scores The State Education and Environmental Roundtable.
The academic benefits of environmental education are evident in the following examples: Hotchkiss Elementary (Dallas, Texas) – Fourth-graders in an EE program scored 13% higher on average in reading skills than fourth-graders at the same school before the implementation of the program.
Environmental Education Increases Student Engagement It is well known that student engagement is critical to academic achievement. Anecdotal evidence from educators indicates that EE increases student motivation and interest, thus awakening a love of learning in students who were once weak performers. This is particularly important for students of low socioeconomic status, who often have poor academic prospects.
Examples of Environmental Education Programs EE encompasses a wide variety of activities. The following are a few examples of the ways in which various schools have incorporated EE within their curricula.
Huntingdon Area Middle School (Huntingdon, Pennsylvania) – Local streams provide a place to gather data that is used for teaching various mathematical concepts, including statistics, percentages, and fractions, as well as graph and chart interpretation. Isaac Dickson (Asheville, North Carolina) – Students learn about nutrition by growing their own food products in the garden and then studying them, after which they create nutritious meals to share at the school or donate the produce to local social service organizations. Taylor County High School (Perry, Florida) – The nearby Econfina River is used to teach science, math, language arts, and economics.
Additional Benefits of Environmental Education Environmental education has been shown not only to enhance academic performance, but also to reduce discipline problems and develop leadership ability. These benefits accrue from having opportunities to engage in hands-on, constructivist, collaborative learning activities in real-world settings. |
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