ERIC Number: EJ1208464
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1350-4622
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Lifting the Cover: Developing an Analytical Tool to Unravel Environmental Education Resources
Birdsall, Sally; France, Bev
Environmental Education Research, v24 n11 p1546-1564 2018
Evaluations of environmental education (EE) programmes and resources are becoming increasingly visible and important. While benefits accrue through evaluation, many programmes and resources have yet to realise these. Issues such as a lack of clear objectives, reliance on traditional, summative approaches and inattention to context have prevented rigorous evaluation occurring. This paper reports on the development of an analytical tool designed to unravel EE resources. Its theoretical basis is a socially acute questions (SAQ) approach and educational configurations teachers use when implementing this approach. Using these configurations, a series of interrogatory questions were developed to unravel a resource writer's education intent -- what type(s) of knowledge are valued, the view of science presented and the view of learning. Two contrasting resources were analysed to test this tool. This analysis revealed that one resource viewed knowledge as universal, had a scientistic epistemic posture and a doctrinal/pragmatic didactic approach whereas the other viewed knowledge as contextualised, had a relativistic epistemic posture and a problematising/doctrinal didactic approach. Consequently, this tool showed that it was able to unravel a resource writer's intent, identify gaps so teachers could adapt a resource and build capacity for didactics of EE and its evaluation.
Descriptors: Environmental Education, Foreign Countries, Science Education, Educational Resources, Program Improvement, Program Evaluation, Sustainable Development, Program Effectiveness
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New Zealand
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A