Young people need motives, in order to become active and try to protect the environment. So, I think that we do not need only a school lesson about environmental issues, which can be even boring, we need something more. Teachers in schools should organise programmes concerning the enviroment, encourage students to conduct reasearch, arrange visits to places that have a nice natural environment ( for example trips in the forest or a mountain) or places that face problems like water scarcity. In this way, young people get more involved with environmental issues and care more about finding solutions, because they find such methods more interesting. In my school, we have programmes like that organized every year, and they are always a great success!
What do you think? Do you have any more ideas about programmes like that? Do you have environmental programmes at you schools? Can you think of possible programmes about water?
Environmental programmes at schools
verfasst von Athanasia Mylona am January 17, 2010
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Projects in Slovakia
I'm a secondary school teacher and we have recently received a few info leaflets about projects we could participate in. Let me give you their brief description.
One of the projects is "Stockholm Junior Water Prize" - www.sjwp.sk, about which you may have heard. It's international so basically, you can participate too. In Slovakia, this project is under the patronage of the Bratislava Water Company. Since a group of our students have been discussing the water issues here, we are planning to choose one specific water issue in our country and apply.
Also, there is an educational programme called "Blue School", also sponsored by the Bratislava Water Company. You can get basic info at http://www.modraskola.sk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27...
It's possible to play games (water-related, naturally) and this is a great and entertaining way for people of all ages to learn.
Sadly, the truth is that very few young students and pupils are truly interested in the environmental issues. I hope that thanks to projects and challenges like the ESP and those mentioned above, we'll be able to make young people more aware of what's going on around them/us.
The ECOclub in my school
The ECOclub in my school organized a presentation about the World Day of the Humid Zones (February 2.) It was shown in front of the student in the school and showed the most important characteristics of these zones.
I am now translating the presentation and when I finish I'll post it here for you to download.
I think it is one great example of the Environmental education in schools. Personally, I have never heard for such a day and it was interesting and educational to me.
EarthCARE
EarthCARE is an action-oriented, curriculum-aligned program focusing on energy conservation, waste reduction, and water conservation. It is a part of the Better Schools Partnership Model (BSP) of Ameresco Canada. Ameresco Canada works with MUSH (Municipalities, Universities, Schools and Hospitals) sector clients on energy management. Their Energy Management Model has two components: the first addresses facility needs (retrofitting buildings and systems to make them more energy efficient); the second component addresses occupant behaviours and building operation. EarthCARE is a program that not only promotes more effective conservation behaviours but also provides a mechanism and process for turning awareness into action.
Ther should be founded more programs like that at more countries!
Ideas at School
I totally agree that young people need to realize that water is a limited ressource. By means of questionnaires about their daily consumption:( for ex. if they stay under the shower 15-20 minutes they waste too many liters (1 minute=12 liters), specific lectures, water exhibitions, research works about different aspects of water, documentaries about water problems in some countries where they have to walk in order to get water and not always good water, ads by famous people,....
The most important is that we all have to become actors in our daily life and not only spectators, try to convince our families, friends,... and not to forget
We have to change and to do a reasonable use of water. Students involvement is crucial..
some important messages
I think that a lesson about the environment should help students realize that the environmental problems are REAL, not something not-so-important or funny, and also that everyone can contribute to their solution. Emphasising the importance of personal responsibility is really... important! Even if someone personally may not be threatened right now, they must always remember that other people are suffering, and also that, in the future, they will also experience problems due to environmental disasters unless we act now.
Ideas for a lesson plan?
Hello everyone,
thank you for your comments on this. As you still go to school yourselves, do you have ideas how teachers could make a lesson about water more interesting? What should be the main messages and how could they be communicated?
Young people need a real
Young people need a real proof of what it is happening, because when I talk to my friends of the problems of water, some of them laugh, another say that it is not a problem NOW so we should not care about it... and they maybe spent in the shower half an hour, do not save water for water... Things like this.
The future harmful effects should be shown in advertisement, in the streets...
..
I think you're right: young people need motivation to fight for any topic. If we make lessons about water more interesting and interactive, we will achieve more than by making boring and dull speeches.
I like your idea about trips to nice landscapes with water, and we can algo add a visit to a place where water is needed, to see the result of having no water.