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National Environmental Education Advancement Project, Winter 2004 This is a text only version of the NEEAP newsletter. If you would like paper copies, please contact our office at 715-346-4748 or neeap@uwsp.edu. |
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EE Certification Takes Leaps and Bounds by Abby Ruskey, NEEAP Co-Director and NAAEE president EE certification programs at the state and national level are continuing to evolve significantly this year. This moves us closer to raising the numbers of qualified environmental educators needed for environmental literacy. Progress has come through a variety of interconnected efforts. EE Leaders in the states of Utah, Texas and Kentucky have worked with assessment and evaluation experts to develop EE competencies, assessments and measurement tools built around the six themes in the North American Association for Environmental Education’s (NAAEE) Initial Preparation Guidelines. The six themes are: Environmental Literacy, Foundations of Environmental Education, Professional Responsibilities of the Environmental Educator, Planning and Implementing EE Programs, Fostering Learning, Assessment and Evaluation. Certification programs based upon the work described above have been launched in Utah, Kentucky and Texas. EE leaders in North Carolina have also begun the process to pursue competency-based training. While a handful of states had begun to investigate and plan certification initiatives, the linkage between state efforts and a nationally coordinated program began at the NAAEE board meeting in December 2002. At this meeting the NAAEE Affiliates Partnership proposed to provide a set of recommendations. In Spring 2004 the NAAEE board received and acted upon the recommendations of the Affiliates led EE Quality Assurance (EEQA) Lead Team. In addition to providing recommendations for EE
certification, the report provided direction in the areas of EE materials
review (see "Progress on the EE Materials Review Front" in next column).
The report called upon the NAAEE board to create a Certification Advisory
Council among other recommendations. This Council will be formally
launched in summer 2004 and comprised of state EE association and agency
leaders, technical experts in certification and assessment, and NAAEE
board and staff Within the next two years, state EE leaders can expect to have a range of models to choose from and practical "lessons-learned" to draw upon in designing their own state EE certification program. If your state EE association or agency is interested in pursuing a state-level EE certification initiative, being kept apprised of this important initiative or coordinating with NAAEE, contact Bill Dent, Executive Director at the NAAEE headquarters (wdent@naaee.org). NAAEE plans to collaboratively explore administrative, promotional and funding support together with states. The EE certification efforts referred to in this article have been supported by NAAEE with funding from the EE and Training Partnership (EETAP) through a grant from the U.S. EPA Office of Environmental Education. A variety of state agencies and associations including the Colorado Alliance for EE, Kentucky EE Council, Utah Society for EE, and Texas EE Partnership have also contributed significantly to this initiative. Progress on the EE Materials Review Front The field of Environmental Education has a wealth of learning and teaching materials, and a series of quality review guidelines through the NAAEE National Project for Excellence in Environmental Education (NPEEE). There is, at the same time, a paucity of systematic material reviews. This need has begun to be addressed in the state of Colorado and by NAAEE as an element of the association’s strategic planning process. The Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education (CAEE) Materials Review Pilot Project is testing the viability of conducting EE materials reviews within the state of Colorado. This is being performed by trained reviewers and through self-reviews by material developers. The EE Advocate will keep readers apprised as these important initiatives unfold. NCATE Writing Team Meets by Bora Simmons, Northern Illinois University NAAEE and EETAP have embarked on an exciting venture – writing standards which, if approved by NCATE, could impact teacher education throughout the United States. NCATE (National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education) is a coalition of 35 specialty area professional associations (e.g., ASCD, NSTA, NCSS, NABSE) that promotes high quality teacher education through the accreditation of over 500 higher education institutions. Another 100 are candidates or pre candidates for accreditation. As an indication of NCATE’s reach, the number of candidates for accreditation has tripled in the last five years. NAAEE (North American Association for Environmental Education) is now in the process of developing Environmental Education Program Standards for the Preparation of Teachers. A three-day writing team meeting was held at the Project Learning Tree headquarters in Washington, DC in late April. The eleven-person writing team will draft performance standards and submit these drafts for wide review. These standards, if approved, would be used by NCATE in their accreditation process of college and university teacher education programs across the country. Consequently, the approved standards could serve as a catalyst and encourage further development of environmental education programs for pre-service teachers. The standards writing process is anticipated to take two years. The writing team includes Louise Fleming (OH), Paulette Johnson (PA), Martha Kuntz (WA), Tom Marcinkowski (FL), Kathy McGlauflin (VA), Bora Simmons (IL), Dan Sivek (WI), Al Stenstrup (DC), Margaret Tudor (WA), Brenda Weiser (TX), and Terry Wilson (KY). For more information about the project, please contact Bora Simmons at boras@niu.edu. The NEEAP Rap Dear Readers of the EE Advocate: There are a few initiatives underway that will significantcly influence the development and impact of the EE field in the next 2-5 years. These initiatives include a state and nationally coordinated system for EE certification, national guidelines for preservice training in EE, and EE materials review. Imagine the demand for quality EE training and positions, not to mention materials and programs once a well coordinated system of EE quality assurance is in place. These three initiatives are being tested in strong pilot programs at the state and national levels. The article in "News From Here and There" highlights Kentucky, one state that has launched EE certification. The "In the Spotlight: EETAP States Updates" also references related and additional initiatives underway. Funding support for all of the initiatives reported on in this issue has been provided by EETAP through a grant from the U.S EPA’s Office of Environmental Education. Also in this issue is a pocket reference to holding green conferences. As a field we can help increase the demand for model green conference centers like those listed on page 3. Be sure to read about the latest online EE course update from EETAP on page 6 as well as our Resources and Opportunities listed on the back page. Wishing you a wonderful summer season, Abby Ruskey, NEEAP Co-Director Nonformal Certification In Kentucky by Jane Eller, Kentucky Environmental Education Council Kentucky has begun implementation of its certification program for nonformal environmental educators. The program asks applicants to attend four weekend workshops over the course of a year and complete a series of fifteen readings. The first class has 40 applicants and three instructors who also serve as mentors to the first class. Graduates of this first class (known affectionately as the guinea pig class) will serve as mentors to future applicants. Kentucky’s program is based on the NAAEE Guidelines for the Initial Preparation of Environmental Educators and requires applicants to complete a number of rigorous assessments including a debate, which is the assessment for a portion of the environmental literacy section. To date, applicants have attended the first two workshops, which focused on environmental literacy, and are currently in the midst of the readings course, which looks at the history and philosophy of environmental education. The final two workshops this fall will cover instructional strategies and assessment techniques. All instruction in the program models best practices in environmental education in that it is hands-on, inquiry-based and often outdoors. For more information contact Jane Eller at jeller@kde.state.ky.us or 800 882-5271.
Green Living Away From Home: With all the technology available in today’s world, there are still valuable reasons to meet with each other face to face. Conferences and meetings are common for environmental educators, but many who plan or organize meetings are often left wondering what can be done to have less negative impact on our planet. Why Green Your Event? In the environmental education field, we have a responsibility to lead by example. We need to make strides to reduce our impact on the earth when we host meetings. We cannot expect hotels, meeting venues, or businesses to incorporate these changes if we do not make this a priority in our event planning. We can be an example to other industries, government agencies, and suppliers. Imagine you are attending a workshop. You arrive by public transportation. The hotel reminds you to turn off the lights in your room to conserve energy. Workshop materials are printed double-sided with soy based inks. As a name tag, you wear your own business card inserted in a reusable name tag holder, which is collected as you leave. Coffee is served in reusable mugs. Meals are mainly locally-grown food, served on small reusable plates, and you are asked to throw your discarded food items in a collection unit for a worm composting bin. This is not an impossible task. The key to planning such an environmentally aware meeting or event is to set environmental priorities early in the planning process and incorporate them into as many facets of the event as possible. Tips for a Green Meeting Make it a priority. Create a "Green Meeting" statement or policy. You can use this to share your expectations and concerns with possible venues, locations, and speakers. Everyone involved in your planning needs to know your wishes early. Consider the location. Choose a host city that’s close to as many
participants as possible. Choose a venue that is Cut down on paper. Take steps to reduce paper use, such as putting conference proceedings on a website or CD. If printed materials are necessary, print only what is needed, print double-sided, on recycled paper (at least 30% post consumer) with soy-based inks. Choose a progressive site. Choose a hotel or meeting space that has an active recycling program, and will work with you to provide recycling bins in the meeting rooms and guest rooms. Coordinate with the meeting venue to ensure that heat, lights and air conditioning will be turned off when rooms are not in use. Reduce and Reuse. They should also use reusable items for food and beverage service, rather than disposable items such as Styrofoam or plastic. Use bulk dispensers for sugar, salt, pepper, cream and other condiments. Eat green. Include vegetarian meals, and have meals planned using local, seasonal produce. More info. on Green Meetings http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/neeap/programs/LCDW/Green_meetings.html www.epa.gov/oppt/greenmeetings www.eecom.org/english/greenconf.html www.mogreen.org/greening_the_conference.html
Example Green Meeting Venues
In the Spotlight: EETAP State Updates The Environmental Education and Training Partnership (EETAP) is continuing support for its largest activity, the EETAP States Program, during 2004 and 2005. The priority objective of the EETAP States Program is "to provide environmental educators in the United States with at least eight models for building state-level environmental education (EE) capacity for enhanced EE Training programs." The eight EETAP States (AZ, CA, IL, MO, OH, OK, UT and WA) will continue to receive federal funding to support the following efforts. For more information go to www.uwsp.edu/cnr/neeap. The Arizona Association for Environmental Education (AAEE) is working hard to accomplish their goals of being the recognized leader for EE in Arizona and representing more diverse stakeholders as well. They have successfully populated the new EE resource database with over 300 providers. Visit this exciting new networking and informational tool at www.arizonaee.org. Hoping to expand the success they realized last summer with the Arizona Studies Academy, the AZ EETAP team planned to host another Academy this summer. However, due to low registration by the deadline, the planners opted to cancel this summer’s event. Determined to discover what happened to result in this drastically different outcome, the team is going to conduct focus groups and interviews with target audiences in an effort to prevent similar results in the future. Furthermore, the team intends on broadcasting their finding to other organizations which hold similar events so they too can gain from this research. For more information contact Susan Williams, AZ EETAP project coordinator, at 520-400-4117 or susanleewilliams@cox.net. The California EETAP team has been busy making a myriad of connections with non-traditional EE stakeholders over the past several months. Some examples of their activities include contacting more than 200 educators at the California Association for Bilingual Educators conference, creating a new list-serv with more than 70 active participants and recruiting dozens of new leaders from diverse backgrounds into the Golden State EE Consortium (a state-wide network of EE stakeholders). Additionally, the "community engagement" initiatives are taking root in San Rafael through a gardening project and in Santa Barbara several partners, including the Housing Authority, 4-H Youth Development Program, agency staff and local businesses, are collaborating to redevelop some of the open space in their community. The team was also successful in arranging for a diversity-related strand at the Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education conference this summer. For more information contact Sandi Funke, CA EETAP project manager, at 707-939-3869 or funkewoman72@yahoo.com. The IL EETAP team has been working to expand the effectiveness of the Centers of Regional Environmental Education (CORE2) through two popular initiatives. One is the development of a checklist aimed at coordinating the professional development opportunities throughout the state. The checklist is aptly named "Elements of a Coordinated Approach to Professional Development for Educators" and can be viewed on the NEEAP website www.uwsp.edu/cnr/neeap (click Programs, then EETAP States Program, then Illinois). The second activity was representatives from the CORE2
regions participating in an EETAP sponsored CASES workshop. More than 50
representatives from throughout the state attended this very popular
opportunity to learn about diversity-related issues and how they affect
our work. The participants now have a better understanding of some of the
issues facing people of different cultural backgrounds than their own, and
can help spread the word about this valuable resource through their The MO EETAP team is implementing a plan to strengthen the Missouri EE Association (MEEA) through the development of a long-term strategic plan and greater participation statewide. The team is intending to collaborate with a broad spectrum of EE stakeholders during a 10th anniversary review of the 1994 document "Report and Recommendations of the Governor’s Task Force on Environmental Education: Creating an Environmentally Literate Citizenry." Additionally, this partnership will conduct a survey of environmental educators, a series of regional forums and a Networking and Visioning Summit. These activities are all aimed at providing both environmental education organizations/agencies and individual educators with a clear direction for their work in the next several years. For more information contact Ollie Bogdon, MO EETAP project manager, at 816-918-2586 or obogdon@aol.com. The Ohio EETAP team recently completed a very successful "Rising Star" leadership clinic. Representatives from 10 of the 12 regions came together to create action plans for working with their targeted underserved audiences (each region has selected a specific audience to focus on during the EETAP grant funding period), as well as exchange information with colleagues from throughout the state. An on-line EE resource database has been developed and is ready to be populated by 800+ EE-related organizations in the state. The team publicized the database during the annual EECO conference this spring and has also mailed out announcements to all of the organizations. The hope for the on-line database is that both EE providers and educators will benefit from having up-to-date contact information available through an easily accessible format. For more information contact Brenda Metcalf, OH EETAP project manager, at 330-322-3953 or director@eeco-online.org. NEEAP would like to welcome Kathy Draper, the new project manager for the OK EETAP team, to the program. Kathy has been a part of the OK team for some time and is looking forward to increasing her participation in this new role. NEEAP would also like to thank Suzanne Spradling for her long-time dedication to the OK EETAP efforts as project manager and look forward to continuing our collaboration as she moves into an advisory role with the team. The OK EETAP team recently completed a leadership clinic aimed at creating action plans for the four primary goals identified for the Environmental Education Master Plan for Oklahoma. Participants were able to dedicate two days of meeting time to drafting plans and came away from the event re-energized and unified. Next steps include refining the draft plans, finalizing them and beginning implementation as the Master Plan is completed. For more information contact Kathy Draper, OK EETAP project manager, at 405-314-8629 or kathygdraper@msn.com. The UT EETAP team is in its third round of pilot testing the Utah Environmental Education Certification Program. Currently, there are over ten people enrolled in this competency-based certification program and dozens more have indicated an interest in applying. The team is in the process of developing a mentor manual and will host a training in September to provide adequate resources to mentors in an effort to assist them in assessing their applicant’s competencies. In addition, the certification development team is working with NAAEE and other states (TX and KY), who are also working on competency-based certification programs, to develop common measurable objectives and assessment tools that would enable reciprocity of certification programs in the future. For more information: UT EETAP Project Manager Jennifer Tucker Visitación at 801-328-1549 or jenv@usee.org. The WA EETAP team is successfully working on a variety of initiatives at different administrative and programmatic levels to effectively integrate EE into three demonstration school districts. Recent achievements include hosting several workshops where both administrators and educators were able to learn about EE best practices for curriculum, instruction, assessment and community involvement. Participants were able to see the benefits of including EE in their classrooms, as well as how EE can help students achieve higher scores on the state’s standardized tests. The team is assessing the results of these activities in the three school districts in an effort to demonstrate the value of including EE in the classroom to the state’s education system. For more information contact WA EETAP co-project managers Margaret Tudor, WA EETAP co-project manager (360-902-8309 or tudormtt@dfw.wa.gov) or Lynne Ferguson (360-705-9282 or lferguson@wfpa.org). What’s New With EETAP? by Dr. Augusto Medina New Online Course: Applied EE Program Evaluation A new 9-week online course entitled Applied Environmental Education Program Evaluation will be offered October 11 - December 13, 2004 through the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. The course is designed to assist environmental educators and natural resource professionals in evaluating their education programs. Participants will have the opportunity to apply skills in designing evaluation tools such as surveys, observation forms, and interview and focus group guides. The course was developed as a cooperative effort between the Environmental Education and Training Partnership (EETAP) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) National Conservation Training Center. Participants may obtain three undergraduate or graduate
credits from the FWS Employees should register online through the National Conservation Training Center at https://otis.fws.gov using the following Course Number (OUT8W02). Contact Georgia Jeppesen at 304-876-7388 or georgia_jeppesen@fws.gov if you have questions. All others should register through the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point by contacting Angela Arkin in the Extension Office at 715-346-3854 or Angela.Arkin@uwsp.edu to request a registration form. Fundamentals of EE: Enrollment Open for Fall There is still space available in the Fundamentals of Environmental Education online course that will be offered this fall. This 10-week course will be held September 13 through November 19, 2004. To learn more about these online courses, visit the EETAP web site at www.eetap.org and click on "Online EE Courses" under "Resources." EE and Training Partnership NAAEE 2004 Conference Biloxi, Mississippi November 6-10, 2004 Casting a Wider Net
for
Event Design Workshops NEEAP is offering Leadership Clinic Mini-workshops at both the North American Association for Environmental Education International Conference in Biloxi, MS and at the National Interpreters Workshop in Grand Rapids, MI this November. Patterned after the Leadership Clinic Manual: Tools for Transforming Conference Design, this workshop shares a new approach and tools to designing your conferences, meetings and workshops that will inspire creativity, action and results! For more information go to http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/neeap/programs/Mini-workshops/index.html.
Resources & Opportunities In order to assist states and communities who are building capacity for environmental education and developing sustainable grassroots organizations, NEEAP offers Resources and Opportunities. In this section, you will find information and contacts geared towards networking, partnering and funding opportunities, new initiatives, and relevant Internet links and listserves. Nonformal Guidelines - Volume Nine NAAEE announced that the ninth volume in the National Project for Excellence in Environmental Education series has been published. The guidelines describe six key characteristics that can help guide the program development process. Copies of Nonformal Environmental Education Programs – Guidelines for Excellence are being distributed by NAAEE and through workshops. For more information about this set of guidelines or the National Project for Excellence in Environmental Education, please contact Bora Simmons (boras@niu.edu) or visit www.naaee.org/npeee. Newsletter for Nonprofit Boards Board Café is an electronic newsletter exclusively for members of nonprofit boards of directors. Short enough to read over a cup of coffee, Board Café offers a menu of ideas, information, opinion, news, and resources to help board members give and get the most out of board service. www.boardcafe.org Free EE Support Site for Educators The National EE Training Foundation has created a new website called www.ClassroomEarth.org. This is a free website with key information on how K-12, after-school, and home-school educators can obtain the best and most usable environmental education programs available today. Affiliate Resources on the WEB The Affiliate Network Resources is a compilation of resources for and by NAAEE Affiliate organizations. The goal is to have each category contain multiple examples from a variety of states. If you have information that you would like to contribute to the site, please send it to Jennifer Visitacion at jenv@usee.org. Check out these resources at www.naaee.org/affiliates/index.php then click on Proceeed to Affiliate Log-in Login: partnership Password: naaee Capacity Building News Needs NEEAP needs your help to better serve the capacity building information needs of the EE field. Please complete an online survey of EE publications at www.uwsp.edu/cnr/neeap by August 31, 2004. This survey seeks to document the value and use of various EE publications by those involved in EE capacity building efforts at the national, state and local levels. Thank You! Are You Moving? If you are moving or changing positions and would like to stay informed about environmental education capacity building efforts by receiving the EE Advocate, send us your updated contact information at neeap@uwsp.edu or 715-346-4748. |