Goal IV: Formal Education
Integrate EE into the formal education system (pre-K through post-secondary schools). Facilitate traditional education as a natural conduit for EE.
- Involve
and attract more formal teachers and administrators to EE. Help
teachers understand that EE improves student learning and is easily
incorporated into general education.
- Create campaign (print media, e.g., brochure) targeted at current classroom teachers for improved awareness and public relations using all relevant research, which supports idea that EE really does improve student learning. Coordinate a major EE program evaluation project that gathers more supporting evidence for Colorado-based programs.
- Increase membership of public school educators (teachers and administrators) in EE focused organizations based upon an increased involvement in programs and workshops (e.g., Project Learning Tree).
- Identify working groups of select and willing formal
educators (e.g., teacher liaisons) to design and implement relevant
projects. Such projects should at least include the following:
- Examining the Colorado Model Content Standards for opportunities to inject EE based examples, stories, articles, concepts, etc. Campaign should also address how EE can effectively support CSAP performance. Strengthen effort to add many more EE correlations to State academic standards on the electronic information clearinghouse.
- Engaging educational niche communities (e.g., gifted and talented programs frequently need to develop challenging alternative/parallel assignments for their learners).
- Partnering with professional teacher organizations that do staff development (e.g., CAST, CBTA, social studies, CCIRA, COGA), and hosting a conference or workshop for curriculum specialists.
- Developing and providing interdisciplinary units and other resources/curriculum samples using environment as the primary example.
- Promoting curriculum that uses the environment as a primary example.
- Identifying, creating, and informing about bibliographies of children's and young adult's literature which has an EE focus (at various ability and grade levels).
-
Integrate EE elements into pre-service and in-service teacher training programs in Colorado.
- Develop a working group of formal educators to design and implement the following (including setting time frames):
- Establish contacts in pre-service teacher training programs at Colorado higher education institutions to explore possibilities in this area.
- Establish a liaison or other formal point of contact at Colorado Department of Education (CDE) to identify opportunities of introducing EE elements into CDE and higher education requirements for teacher preparation and licensing.
- Explore college-level course development or enhancement that would provide parallel or replacement hours in required course work for pre-service teachers.
- Explore possibility of an EE endorsement to State-issued professional teaching license that teachers could earn through completion of specific course work. (This would also have possibilities for the continuing education course work that teachers take to maintain their license.)
- Get endorsements from parent-teacher organizations and/or school boards that they support the use of EE in the classroom and subsequently seek affirmation from school districts that they are using EE.
- Develop a working group of formal educators to design and implement the following (including setting time frames):
-
Develop a working group of post-secondary educators to explore how to
integrate EE elements into graduation requirements in Colorado higher
education institutions.
- Identify existing models.
- Establish contacts at Colorado higher education institutions to explore possibilities in this area.
- Consider requirements in degree programs that are not typically associated with EE (e.g., business, construction, engineering, etc.)
How are you contributing - or - how will you contribute to Goal IV: Formal Education?
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