Environmental Education
Environmental education is a process that allows individuals to explore environmental issues, engage in problem solving, and take action to improve the environment. As a result, individuals develop a deeper understanding of environmental issues and have the skills to make informed and responsible decisions.
The components of environmental education are:
- Awareness and sensitivity to the environment and environmental challenges
- knowledge and understanding of the environment and environmental challenges
- Attitudes of concern for the environment and motivation to improve or maintain environmental quality
- Skills to identify and help resolve environmental challenges
- Participation in activities that lead to the resolution of environmental challenges
Environmental education does not advocate a particular view point or course of action. Rather, environmental education teaches individuals how to weigh various sides of an issue through critical thinking and it enhances their own problem-solving and decision-making skills.
Concept of Environment Education
Environment is the source of all our needs. It provides all the things for our livelihood. However, the activities of human being are not environment friendly. Environment Education is the educational process that teaches everything about the environment It teaches us the way to keep our environment clean and preserve the environmental elements.
The importances of environment education are:
- Develops the concept of wise use of natural resources: Many people do not have the concept that their activities interfere the status of the environment. They use the natural resources randomly. They do not even know the hazards of their malpractices. They do not try to replace the lack by the means of afforestation and other regeneration programmes. Environment education teaches people about wise use of natural resources.
- Encourage for the creation of healthy environment: Healthy environment refers to the environment which is free from the dust, germ and other elements that cause many hazardous diseases. Environment education provides knowledge about various things such as personal hygiene, environmental sanitation and other topic related to healthy environment which prompts us to create a healthy environment.
- Cultivates awareness about environmental: Environmental degradation has been a great threat to the existence of all flora, fauna and human beings. Environment education gives knowledge about environmental pollution, create awareness.
- Helps to provide integrated knowledge: Environment education incorporates the elements that are related with health and population education. It helps to control the rapidly growing population, to keep the surrounding clean and to give emphasis on personal hygiene.
The Scope of Environment Education
The scope of environmental education can be divided into biological, physical and sociological aspects. They are described below:
- Biological aspect: Biological aspects are one of the most important aspects of environmental education. Human being, animals, birds, insects, microorganism, plants are some of the examples of biological aspects.
- Physical aspect: It can be further divided into natural aspects and human- made aspects. Air, water, land, climate etc are included in natural physical aspects. Likewise, Human made physical aspects cover all human made things such as roads, buildings, bridges, houses etc.
- Social- cultural aspect: Social- cultural aspects are man-made social practices, rules and laws, and other religious places etc. Human beings have created them with their effort.
Thus, the environmental education is related with science, economics, geography, technology, population and health education, etc. As a result environment education becomes practical and contextual. Environment education can be implemented through formal and non-formal educational means and environment education helps us to develop integrated knowledge and attitude which will be more effective to the society.
