Why Environmental Education Is Important.docx

WHY ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION IS IMPORTANT “Environmental education provides important opportunities for students to become engaged in real world issues that transcend classroom walls. They can see the relevance of their classroom studies to the complex environmental issues confronting our planet and they can acquire the skills they’ll need to be creative problem solvers and powerful advocates.”

Environmental Education Benefits Students by… 

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Improving Academic Achievement. EE improves test scores by providing students with engaging lessons about the natural world that can be applied to all subject areas and grades. Breaking the Indoor Habit. EE offers an antidote to the plugged-in lives of today’s generation, which is the first to grow up indoors. Children who experience school grounds or play areas with diverse natural settings are more physically active, more aware of good nutrition, more creative, and more civil to one another. Improving Student Health. EE gets students outdoors and active, and helps to address common health issues in children today, such as obesity, attention deficit disorder, and depression. Supporting STEM. EE offers an engaging platform for gaining and applying knowledge and skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Meeting 21st Century Needs. EE emphasizes skills essential for succeeding in tomorrow’s world, such as questioning, investigating, defining problems, analyzing, interpreting, reasoning, developing conclusions, and solving problems.

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Cultivating Leadership Qualities. EE emphasizes cooperative learning with others, critical thinking and discussion, and a focus on action strategies with real-world applications. Improving Focus and Cognition. EE increases the ability of students to focus and improves their cognitive abilities. Children with attentiondeficit disorder also benefit from more exposure to nature–the greener a child’s everyday environment, the more manageable are their symptoms. Creating Enthusiastic Students. EE offers opportunities for rich, hands-on, real world and authentic learning across the curriculum. This relevance to students’ lives engages and inspires them more than traditional pedagogy. Fostering Innovative Teacher-Leaders. EE gives educators the confidence to take students outdoor and to design more dynamic, interactive learning experiences that spark students’ engagement. Addressing Academic Standards. EE offers an engaging way to meet the content and skills identified in Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts and mathematics, as well Next Generation Science Standards and C3 Framework for Social Studies. Saving Schools Money. When students investigate and take action to improve the environmental performance of their school buildings and grounds, they often cut costs in electricity, water, waste management, and more.

It is estimated that by 2030, the world population of 7 billion will demand twice as many resources as the planet can supply (The Economist). Meeting the needs of our global citizenry—ecologically, economically, culturally, spiritually, and more— requires understanding and creative problem solving. Environmental education equips learners with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to address complex environmental challenges in the 21st Century.

Importance to have a clean environment? Importance of clean environment is to live healthy,wealthy,disease free and pollution free. In our world there almost live 7 billion people and regularly we produce a huge amount of waste from our daily life. If the waste does not manage in a regular basis then the amount of waste will increase gradually and we will be unable to live just because of polluted environment.

If waste put into farmilng soil it reduces the fertilization power of the soil and if we through waste into water it will effect the marine eco system hardly. Radio active waste material create a big threat for our environment. We should do waste managemnetproperly to make our environment clean. Those are the reasons that’s why it is very important to have a clean environment. You want clean air so you can breathe. Toxins in the air we breathe cause health problems for us and other living beings. Factories and power plants belch pollutants into the air we breathe. Filtering and treating before releasing into the air would reduce the pollution. You need clean water to drink and to make food with. When water is contaminated (e.g. dyes from garment factories, sewage, toxic chemicals from run-off from fertilizers and pesticides, plastic litter and more), water is contaminated. That’s bad for our health, and bad for the fish and marine life that live in it (and that we eat).

Today various kind of serious health problems like cancer are increasing fast across the world and the main reason behind the increase of these health problems is increasing pollution of our environment. The pollution of all kinds is bad whether it is created by people or by the industry. We can find many examples of industries in the world which have polluted the water system in the area where they are located.

Environmental Awareness Maybe some of you have seen posters, ads, and the like carrying the exhortation ''Go Green!'' But, what does it mean to ''go green''? It takes a variety of forms, but essentially, going green means being mindful of the natural environment and making economic choices that aren't harmful to the earth. For example, this might mean purchasing a glass or ceramic water bottle instead of using disposable plastic water bottles. Plastic takes an incredibly long time to break down, and a significant percentage of plastic makes it to the oceans, where it kills plant and animal life. Going green might also involve using an all-natural hair-care product, instead of a can of aerosol spray containing toxic chemicals. When people ''go green,'' they are practicing environmental awareness. The term means exactly what you expect it to: being aware of the natural environment and making choices that benefit--rather than hurt--the earth. In recent years, environmental awareness has gained increased attention. It is fair to say it has become a bit of a trend: from environmentally friendly tiny homes to organic food, environmental awareness is a hot topic. However, it is nothing new and it ought to be more than just a passing fad because of its importance. Let's dig deeper and learn more about environmental awareness.

Examples

Homes We have already cited a few examples of environmental awareness, but let's look at a few more. Environmentally friendly homes and building materials are a great place to start. In recent years, advanced nations have become more aware of harmful building materials, such as asbestos, lead-based paint, lead pipes, and others. People can demonstrate environmental awareness by choosing to use building materials that are natural and that do not hurt the environment. Wood, stone, brick, copper, and other materials are excellent choices.

Conserving Energy and Water Going along with the home theme, conserving energy is another way to demonstrate environmental awareness. One easy way to conserve energy is to turn off lights when not in use. Some people even install solar panels and other types of alternative energy sources. There is much potential for solar power to become mainstream and efficient in the future. Going along with energy conservation is water conservation. People should be mindful to not waste water by leaving the faucet running while brushing teeth. Water is a valuable natural resource that we often take for granted. In many parts of the world, clean water is scarce. Being mindful of this is a huge step in demonstrating environmental awareness.

Purchases, Recycling, and Activism Some people choose to buy clothing and products that contain natural fibers/materials, rather than synthetic ones. Obviously, recycling is another huge part of demonstrating environmental awareness. Still, others who are extremely passionate about this issue become activists. They might march in protests or organize rallies/events. As we can see, environmental awareness takes many forms, and each person must figure out what specific practices work for them.

Environmental Awareness Environmental conservation and protection from pollution has become a central and important issue at the international level. Therefore, environmental awareness has been a necessity of life, and it must be developed for all, especially young people, to adopt the future of countries and civilizations. Environmental awareness is the individual's understanding of the requirements of the environment and the development of his correct behaviors towards the environment, through the definition of the components of the environment and the relationship between these components together, and knowledge of the problems caused by the imbalance, and ways to solve these

problems to return to the square balance of environmental sound, and environmental awareness is not Innate nature of many people, but the learned behaviors that can be instilled in them and modify their behavior towards the environment. Ways to achieve environmental awareness

Objectives of Environmental Education: The following are the objectives of environmental education: 1. Awareness: To help the social groups and individuals to acquire knowledge of pollution and environmental degradation. 2. Knowledge: To help social groups and individuals to acquire knowledge of the environment beyond the immediate environment including distant environment. 3. Attitudes: To help social groups and individuals to acquire a set of values for environmental protection. 4. Skills and Capacity Building: To help social groups and individuals to develop skills required for making discriminations in form, shape, sound, touch, habits and habitats. Further, to develop ability to draw unbiased inferences and conclusions. 5. Participation: To provide social groups and individuals with an opportunity to be actively involved at all levels in environmental decision making.

Meaning of Environment The word Environment is derived from the French word “Environ” which means “surrounding”. Our surrounding includes biotic factors like human beings, Plants, animals, microbes, etc and abiotic factors such as light, air, water, soil, etc. Environment is a complex of many variables, which surrounds man as well as the living organisms. Environment includes water, air and land and the interrelation ships which exist among and between water, air and land and human beings and other living creatures such as plants, animals and microorganisms . Environment consists of an inseparable whole system constituted by physical, chemical, biological, social and cultural elements, which are interlinked individually and collectively in myriad ways. The natural environment consist of four interlinking systems namely, the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the lithosphere and the biosphere. These four systems are in constant change and such changes are affected by human activities and vice versa.

Components of Environment: Our environment has been classified into four major components: 1.Hydrosphere, 2.Lithosphere, 3.Atmosphere, 4.Biosphere.

Hydrosphere Hydrosphere: Includes all water bodies such as lakes, ponds, rivers, streams and ocean etc. Hydrosphere functions in a cyclic nature, which is termed as hydrological cycle or water cycle.

Lithosphere Lithosphere Means the mantle of rocks constituting the earth’s crust. The earth is a cold spherical solid planet of the solar system, which spins in its axis and revolves around the sun at a certain

constant distance .Lithosphere mainly, contains soil, earth rocks, mountain etc. Lithosphere is divided into three layers-crusts, mantle and core (outer and inner).

Atmosphere: The cover of the air, those envelopes the earth is known as the atmosphere. Atmosphere is a thin layer which contains gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide etc. and which protects the solid earth and human beings from the harmful radiations of the sun.

Biosphere It is otherwise known as the life layer, it refers to all organisms on the earth’s surface and their interaction with water and air. It consists of plants, animals and micro-organisms, ranging from the tiniest microscopic organism to the largest whales in the sea. Biology is concerned with how millions of species of animals, plants and other organisms grow, feed, move, reproduce and evolve over long periods of time in different environments.

Q. Why is environmental education important? A. Environmental education is important for three key reasons: • It has a positive impact on student achievement in core subjects. When integrated into the core curricula or used as an integrating theme across the curriculum, environmental education has a measurably positive impact not only on student achievement in science but also in reading, math, and social studies. Moreover, outdoor activities increase student engagement and interest in science and in all core subjects.

• It helps improve the health of children. Field experiences and related programs as part of the regular school curriculum contribute to healthy lifestyles through outdoor recreation and sound nutrition. Getting kids outdoors to exercise, play and experience their natural world is an important tool in the battle to prevent obesity, alleviate attention deficit disorder and address other related health problems. • It provides critical tools for a 21st Century workforce. We will be passing on complicated environmental problems to future generations. We must give the next generation a solid understanding of these problems and the basic tools to overcome them and make informed choices in their own lives. Business leaders also increasingly believe that an environmentally literate workforce is critical to their long term success. Finally, environmental education helps prepare students for real-world challenges.

What is Soil Conservation? Soil Conservation is the name given to a handful of techniques aimed at preserving the soil. Soil loss and loss of soil fertility can be traced back to a number of causes including over-use, erosion, salinization and chemical contamination. Unsustainable subsistence farming and the slash and burn clearing methods used in some less developed regions, can often cause deforestation, loss of soil nutrients, erosion on a massive scale and sometimes even complete desertification. Soil erosion removes the top soil that is necessary for organic matter, nutrients, microorganisms that are requires for plants to grow and shine. Soil conservation is one such step that protects the soil from being washed away. The soil then ends up in aquatic resources bringing in pesticides and fertilizers used on agricultural land. Healthy soil is important for plants to grow and flourish. Taking necessary steps to conserve the soil is

part of environmentally friendly lifestyle. There are several ways to conserve soil that can be done through agricultural practices or measures you take at home. “Soil conservation is the prevention of soil loss from erosion or reduced fertility caused by over usage, acidification, salinization or other chemical soil contamination. Slashand-burn and other unsustainable methods of subsistence farming are practiced in some lesser developed areas. A sequel to the deforestation is typically large scale erosion, loss of soil nutrients and sometimes total desertification.”

Methods and Techniques of Soil Conservation 1. Contour Plowing –2. Terrace Farming –3. Keyline Design –4. Perimeter Runoff Control –5. Windbreaks –6. Cover Crops/ Crop Rotation –7. Soil Conservation Farming –8. Agrostological Measures 9. No till farming –10. Green Manures –11. Salinity

Management –12.

Stream

Bank

Protection –.13.

Earthworms –14.

Mineralization –16. Reduction Of Impervious Surfaces –17. Dry Farming – 18. Rain Gardens –19. Re-establish Forest Cover –20. Maintaining PH levels of soil –21. Indigenous Crops 22. Prevent Overgrazing .23. The Sharing of Knowledge