Education Commons^™

Nature-Based Education For Elementary Students With Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder, Kayleigh Morrison

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

There are several advantages to including a nature-based curriculum and outdoor learning into state standards, and the consequences of students who do not have access to outside learning and activities can be severe. The term “Attention Restoration Theory” (ART) was coined by psychology professors Rachel and Stephen Kaplan in 1989 and claims that exposure to nature can improve mental fatigue and concentration. This senior capstone examines Kaplan’s Attention Restoration Theory and academic studies rooted in its philosophy as it applies to nature-based curriculum and outdoor learning. There are certain advantages for students who are exposed to a nature-based curriculum and …

Measuring Students' Pro-Environmental Attitudes And Behaviors Before And After Demonstration-Based Instruction, Collin Ryan

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

A growing amount of research exists on environmental education programs which incorporates the viewpoints of students into its assessment of the program’s efficacy. This research seeks to add to that body and evaluate an environmental education program about the sustainability of plastics, using both quantitative and qualitative data collected from participating students. The data was collected after a 90-minute instructional block of demonstration-based environmental education meant to inform students on the variability of plastics’ properties and the sorting and remolding processes of recycling. It also aimed to help build pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors in the students, and a sense of …

Development Of Sense Of Place Through An Urban Citizen Science Program, Cornelia Harris

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Citizen science programs are a way for participants to develop a sense of place, which has been theorized to lead to pro-environmental behaviors. In this mixed-methods study, I document how a citizen science program encourages urban youth to connect with their place, and notice how both joy and wonder are developed as they experience a stunning migratory event with a unique organism, the American eel. Students were excited to be in a creek and to ‘discover’ a new creature in a place that they had walked past for years, one that was merely a backdrop to their lives prior to …

Teaching For Transformation: Developing Agency And Solidarity Consciousness In A Critical-Transdisciplinary, Garden-Based Urban Environmental Studies Program, Pieranna Pieroni

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation focuses on “Community Roots,” an instantiation of urban, garden-based environmental education that employs a “critical-transdisciplinary” design framework and pedagogies. The “crit-trans” construct, articulated by the Urban Environmental Studies Research Coven (Strong et. al., 2016) is offered as both a generative approach to liberatory (environmental) pedagogies with applications across the curriculum and as a form of resistance to neoliberal logics shaping educational (and other) settings. After situating Community Roots in its socio-environmental, institutional, historical and theoretical contexts, a detailed description of the course’s instantiation of crit-trans pedagogy is offered. Additionally, reflections of 14 youth and adult participants are analyzed, …

Teaching Place-Based Science In Kindergarten, Lucy Atkins

Capstones, Research Projects, and Curricula

This action research explores how kindergarten students learn about forces and motion through inquiry-based, place-based methods. The learning took place as part of an existing day spent learning outdoors, known as Forest Monday, that includes extended time for free play. The three sub-questions addressed 1) science content learning, 2) science practice application, and 3) the incorporation of science content and practices into free play time outdoors. It was a mixed-methods study, with science assessment data supporting observations and interviews. The participants were 12 kindergarten students in a rural elementary school. All students were assessed and interviewed but observations were focused …

The Relationship Between Knowledge, Attitudes, And Behaviors Regarding Eco-Justice Issues Among Middle And High School Students In Eco-Schools In Puerto Rico, Elsie Aquino

Wayne State University Dissertations

The conservation, preservation, and protection of the environment are responsibilities that must be globally shared by human beings to “meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED, 1987, p. 43). When citizens acquire the knowledge and skills needed to become agents of change, the lack of interconnectedness – a relationship to nature as one of dominion and control – that presently exists between humans and nature might subside (Winograd, 2016). Through the re-orientation of the present educational system and the development of curricula …

Growing Youth Programming At Garden City Harvest Through Participatory Action Research, Hannah B. Oblock

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This professional paper presents a program evaluation and strategic plan for the youth development farming programs at Garden City Harvest (GCH), a non-profit in Missoula, Montana, which coordinates community-centered agriculture projects and facilitates sustainable agriculture education. The youth programs, Youth Harvest (YH) and Youth Farm (YF), hire adolescents of 15-18 years of age to work on their urban farms to learn about sustainable agriculture, job readiness skills, and social-emotional well-being. As the organization continues to expand, especially with the addition of a new facility, GCH administration and staff are interested in learning how the programs impact the youth employees and …

A Retro Development In Education: Evaluating The Feasibility Of Integrating Place-Based Education Into Mississippi Curriculum Standards, Colby K. Mcclain

Honors Theses

This thesis evaluates the feasibility of integrating place-based environmental education activities from Think Green, Take Action: Books and Activities for Kids into the Mississippi Department of Education’s (MDE) Frameworks for Science and Social Studies for K-5. As children develop and experience the world, their ability to understand and interpret the surrounding environments expand; however, Mississippi schools are not focused on experiential environmental education, even though experiencing and understanding the surrounding environment is vital in fostering eagerness to learn. Due to a growing disconnect between humans and the natural world, this thesis examined 37 place- and environment-based activities for children, sixteen …

Treble In The Environment: Incorporating Music Into Environmental Education, Shinara Sunderlal

Pitzer Senior Theses

In this era where global sustainability is challenged, environmental education plays a vital role in building environmental awareness. Other roles of environmental education include the promotion of responsible citizenship and the fostering of environmental advocacy in children. As a way to strengthen these goals of environmental education, this thesis explores the dynamic uses of music to compound on the fields impact. I argue that the benefits of music outlined suggest music’s power to heighten environmental sensitivity from a young age. I use narratives from the environmental education, music, education, and psychology discourses to demonstrate the theoretical advantages of music in …

Exploring German And American Modes Of Pedagogical And Institutional Sustainability: Forging A Way Into The Future, Lindon N. Pronto

Pitzer Senior Theses

Rooted deep in Germany's past is its modern socio-political grounding for environmental respect and sustainability. This translates into individual and collective action and extends equally to the economic and policy realm as it does to educational institutions. This thesis evaluates research conducted in Germany with a view to what best approaches are transferable to the United States liberal arts setting. Furthermore, exemplary American models of institutional sustainability and environmental education are explored and combined with those from abroad to produce a blueprint and action plan fitting for the American college and university.

Creating An Environmental Education Program For Camp Fire Usa, Shannon Diaz

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

The topic area for this Senior Project is Environmental Education. There were four environmental hands-on lesson plans that were created for the non-profit organization Camp Fire USA, Central Coast Council. These lessons will be implemented at Camp Natoma, the resident camp the Central Coast Council owns in Paso Robles, California. The lesson plans take up hour-long increments and have been created for youth ages eight through fifteen. The topics covered in the lessons include: composting; reduce, reuse, and recycle; solar energy; and wetlands. These lesson plans will be implemented as a new “Nature Class” that campers can choose to take …

Elementary Teachers' Views Of Environmental Education, Rose M. Hotchkiss

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to examine teachers' views of environmental education (EE) at the elementary level. The study addresses teachers' attitudes toward the EE at the elementary school level and their self-efficacy in teaching EE.

The study's sample consisted of 201 randomly selected kindergarten through fifth grade United States public school teachers. The participants completed an on-line survey with eight percent of the respondents participating in follow up interviews. The questionnaire measured two constructs; Teachers Attitudes Toward EE and Teacher Efficacy in EE. Teachers Attitudes Toward EE had 3 subscales; Advocacy for EE, Stewardship in EE, …

Environmental Economics A Teacher's Guide, Sandra Allmond Bagley

Theses & Honors Papers

The purpose of this thesis is to incorporate economics into lectures on environmental issues. This guide introduces several environmental issues, discusses the laws and regulations governing these issues, and discusses the economic instruments discussed in this guide are those that have been incorporated into environmental laws. These instruments allow environmental protection goals to be met at the least cost. Economic instruments are more flexible than command and control regulations and allow firms to choose the least cost method of reaching goals. Economic instruments also encourage advances in new technology. Students will be more receptive to the concept of using economics …

Tertiary Wastewater Treatment Using Riparian Wetlands: A Curriculum Guide For High School Students, Robert Lee Norwood

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

A Guide For Extending Nature Lessons At The Yakima Arboretum, Kathleen D. Brown

All Graduate Projects

The importance of providing a hands on natural environment curriculum was examined. Sources from 1938-1996 were found supporting the importance of such a curriculum. A search was conducted on the availability of a natural habitat curriculum that used a local resource. The search discovered the Yakima Arboretum had seven areas of interest along with a packet of brief lesson suggestions. These lessons were extended to include classroom activities that would provide students with background knowledge prior to a field trip to the Arboretum.

A Guide For Extending Nature Lessons At The Yakima Arboretum, Marilou Cori Kinder

All Graduate Projects

The importance of providing a hands on natural environment curriculum was examined. Sources from 1938-1996 were found supporting the importance of such a curriculum. A search was conducted on the availability of a natural habitat curriculum that used a local resource. The search discovered the Yakima Arboretum had seven areas of interest along with a packet of brief lesson suggestions. These lessons were extended to include classroom activities that would provide students with background knowledge prior to a field trip to the Arboretum.

Development Of A Hypermedia Database For The Elementary Classroom, Jane Pattison Brown

All Graduate Projects

A hypermedia database including selected flora and fauna in Kittitas County, Washington, was developed using HyperCard software for researching information about 400+ species. students had the opportunity to use the database in school libraries and in the author's fifth-grade classroom. The database cards accessed videodisc images where available. On the basis of limited study to date, it appears that when studying the environment, student learning was enhanced by the use of database material created by the author.

A Student Handbook For The Environmental Education / Outdoor School Program In The Middle School, Robert Charles Kenck Jr.

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to develop a student handbook that can be used from the onset of an environmental study through the inter-active field study. Students will use the handbook as they begin to study environmental education in the classroom. The handbook will continue to be used as each student attends a three day outdoor school to study firsthand their environment through field activities. The handbook will remain the property of the students.