167
11.3 Education for Environmental Citizenship in Curricular
Materials
The idea of promoting competence for Environmental Citizenship in curricular
materials has been repeatedly supported. Guidelines for excellence published by the
North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE 2004) recommend that:
Environmental education materials should promote civic responsibility, encouraging learners to use their knowledge, personal skills and assessments of environmental problems and
issues as a basis for environmental problem solving and action (p. 4).
The materials should also focus on skills building enabling students to address
environmental issues (p. 4). Specifically, learners should be “provided with opportunities to develop a variety of citizenship skills, including participation in the political or regulatory process, consumer action, using the media and community
service” (p. 10).
In light of Education for Environmental Citizenship a recommendation to engage
students into community-based projects should also be mentioned:
Individual and community strategies for citizen involvement and provide learners with
opportunities to practice these strategies through projects they generate individually in their
school or in the larger community (p. 12).
From the curricular analysis perspective, such studies as the Citizenship
Education at School in Europe (2017) reveal the importance to directly link critical
citizenship and environment from a prescriptive point of view. Therefore, the socalled eco-pedagogy (Misiaszek 2015, 2016; Vilches et al. 2016; Kahn 2010) advocates a critical curriculum linking of the teaching and learning of environmental
concepts to citizenship education.
However, these recommendations are not always met in curricular materials. The
analysis of curricular materials (mainly textbooks) shows how these topics are
introduced in the classroom in relation to particular topics and how meanings are
presented worked and constructed. Unver et al. (2004) identified gaps in providing
information about environmental issues in science textbooks for grades 6–12 in the
United States. Other authors found an inadequate promotion of students’ involvement in civic participation in selected textbooks for grades 1, 2 and 8 in Chile
(Acuna 2015) and the lack of skills development in environmental education textbooks for grades 5–7 in India (Sarmah and Bhuyan 2015).
Even if the concept of Education for Environmental Citizenship is supported in
existing guidelines and curricular analysis, it seems to be often neglected in relevant
textbooks.
11 Environmental Citizenship in Primary Formal Education
11.3 Education for Environmental Citizenship in Curricular
Materials
The idea of promoting competence for Environmental Citizenship in curricular
materials has been repeatedly supported. Guidelines for excellence published by the
North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE 2004) recommend that:
Environmental education materials should promote civic responsibility, encouraging learners to use their knowledge, personal skills and assessments of environmental problems and
issues as a basis for environmental problem solving and action (p. 4).
The materials should also focus on skills building enabling students to address
environmental issues (p. 4). Specifically, learners should be “provided with opportunities to develop a variety of citizenship skills, including participation in the political or regulatory process, consumer action, using the media and community
service” (p. 10).
In light of Education for Environmental Citizenship a recommendation to engage
students into community-based projects should also be mentioned:
Individual and community strategies for citizen involvement and provide learners with
opportunities to practice these strategies through projects they generate individually in their
school or in the larger community (p. 12).
From the curricular analysis perspective, such studies as the Citizenship
Education at School in Europe (2017) reveal the importance to directly link critical
citizenship and environment from a prescriptive point of view. Therefore, the socalled eco-pedagogy (Misiaszek 2015, 2016; Vilches et al. 2016; Kahn 2010) advocates a critical curriculum linking of the teaching and learning of environmental
concepts to citizenship education.
However, these recommendations are not always met in curricular materials. The
analysis of curricular materials (mainly textbooks) shows how these topics are
introduced in the classroom in relation to particular topics and how meanings are
presented worked and constructed. Unver et al. (2004) identified gaps in providing
information about environmental issues in science textbooks for grades 6–12 in the
United States. Other authors found an inadequate promotion of students’ involvement in civic participation in selected textbooks for grades 1, 2 and 8 in Chile
(Acuna 2015) and the lack of skills development in environmental education textbooks for grades 5–7 in India (Sarmah and Bhuyan 2015).
Even if the concept of Education for Environmental Citizenship is supported in
existing guidelines and curricular analysis, it seems to be often neglected in relevant
textbooks.
11 Environmental Citizenship in Primary Formal Education