Current models of best practice in science education advocate for students to learn science by engaging in applied contexts that integrate the various science disciplines. Permaculture offers one such integrated context for elementary science. Although permaculture is relatively new in PK-12 education, the broader practice of school gardening has…

This study explored practices that Canadian soil scientists use to educate postsecondary students, K-12 students, and the general public. The most commonly used type of educational activities described by survey respondents, regardless of the settings and the type of target audience, were field-based hands-on activities. The other two commonly…

Human activities such as inequitable and unsustainable production and consumption of earth resources cause "environmental problems." There is need to develop research and innovative techniques towards public understanding of these environmental problems and sustainable development. This paper contains the first edition of…

This paper reports on the results of several geotechnical engineering-related science activities conducted with elementary-school students. Activities presented include soil permeability, contact stress, soil stratigraphy, shallow and deep foundations, and erosion in rivers. The permeability activity employed the LEGO NXT platform for data…

Given the present pace of educational globalization, educators--especially in rural schools--will benefit from an awareness of traditional knowledge as a significant contributor to sustainability. Many countries operate through a system whereby major decision making, especially in such areas as education and health, emanate from state levels of…

Urban students often have limited access to field sites for ecological studies. Ubiquitous ants and their mounds can be used to study and test ecology-based questions. We describe how soil collected from ant mounds can be used to investigate how biotic factors (ants) can affect abiotic factors in the soil that can, in turn, influence plant growth.

The aim of this study is to investigate how Greek students and teachers perceive and interpret a cultural landscape element, namely cultivation terraces, in terms of the various uses and values (economic, environmental, ecological and cultural) that they may represent for those involved in the educational system. The study was carried out with a…

The importance of healthy soil and of conveying the importance of soils starts by conveying a few basic concepts of soil science cannot be overstated. This article provides three hands-on exercises Extension professionals can add to natural resources or Master Gardener education curricula. These natural sciences exercises are easy to prepare for…

In this article, the author shares some of the observations he gained when he started researching soil degradation, climate change, global warming, and water quality. First, he observed that there were not many websites that focused solely on soil-related issues. Second, not very many of these would be useful to teachers because, while they…

This article discusses Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE), a worldwide, hands-on science and education program for primary and secondary students. GLOBE brings together students, teachers, scientists, and community members to collaborate on inquiry-based investigations of the environment. Now in its 13th year, more…

In several States one day in the fall of the year is set apart as "Agriculture and Rural-Life Day," to be observed in the schools in such ways as to emphasize the importance of agriculture to the nation and to the world of mankind, to call attention to the worth and worthiness of the tillage of the soil, the cultivation of plants, and the breeding…

An investigation is described that would be suitable for A-level or first year degree Biology or Environmental Science students. Crop plants were grown in different concentrations of lead chloride and lead nitrate. French beans, carrots and Brussels sprouts were all inhibited at concentrations over 0.01 mol dm[superscript -3] showing stunted root…

In view of increasing concern about the Nation's serious waste of natural resources and the growing interest in a permanent program of conservation education, it is fitting and desirable that schools should be able to secure help from the U.S. Office of Education in introducing the subject into the regular school curriculum. Courses of study and…