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Offers guidelines for choosing a structured open-ended interview as a tool in program evaluation. Provides three cases to demonstrate how interviews can be used to gather important evaluative information. (DDR)

Suggests that stories serve as a singularly effective replacement for direct experience, a useful but sometimes difficult environmental education technique. Argues that the effectiveness of stories is derived from their ability to engage the attention of the reader. Lists elements that can be used to create cognitively engaging stories. Contains 91 references. (Author/MKR)

This booklet is one in a series of resource manuals to help teacher educators conduct environmental education (EE) teacher workshops or promote EE programs. This unit is intended for workshop facilitators to help teachers integrate environmental themes into their teaching. It provides ideas for making connections between environmental content and other disciplines. An introduction presents a rationale for integrating EE into traditional school curricula. The unit is presented in five sections that describe: (1) three workshop strategies for providing resources that meet teachers' curricular objectives, helping teachers make the content connection, and integrating EE to teach process skills; (2) information for making sense of the mix; (3) the infusion and insertion approaches to integrating EE into the curriculum; (4) 10 activities for use during the workshop; and (5) a list of 23 resources listed under the categories of trainer reference materials, teacher materials for content infusion, and teacher material for process infusion. The activities are presented in four sections that exemplify the multidisciplinary nature of EE, use the content integration strategy to help teachers select activities for their classrooms, use process integration to guide teachers in developing EE that build critical thinking and communication, and help get integration workshops started. (MDH)

This booklet is one in a series of resource manuals to help teacher educators conduct environmental education (EE) teacher workshops or promote EE programs. This unit offers background information and strategies for designing and leading teacher education workshops and programs and benefits those unfamiliar with adult education methods and workshop design. An introduction provides six training tips on which the unit is based: building support by the teachers; knowing the audience; engaging the participants; setting the right tone; evaluating and revising previous workshops; and being prepared. The unit is presented in eight sections that describe: (1) methods of building support; (2) seven steps to design an experiential workshop; (3) selecting an appropriate strategy from among lectures, small groups, role plays, case studies, field trips, and educational media; (4) four key facilitation skills; (5) planning for ongoing support; (6) evaluating the program; (7) a checklist for the perfect workshop; and (8) a list of 17 resources from books and articles. (MDH)

This booklet is one in a series of resource manuals to help teacher educators conduct environmental education (EE) teacher workshops or promote EE programs. This unit is an orientation to the field of EE. It offers a definition of EE and some ways to explain its value to educators and environmental managers. The unit explains current and historical notions of what children need to learn and how they can be taught if they are to become environmental problem solvers. The unit is presented in six sections that describe: (1) the essence of EE; (2) the value of EE; (3) the evolution of EE from the classic interpretation to the contemporary view of EE; (4) current EE issues in the school; (5) activities and masters for teaching the unit; and (6) a list of 14 resources. The activities make up the majority of the booklet and offer suggestions to help teacher educators conduct workshops that give teachers an understanding of the objectives of EE and how these might be translated into the curricula. (MDH)

Discusses the infusion of environmental education across the entire school curriculum as mandated by the state of Washington. Specifies suggestions for agriculture education, art education, foreign language, health education, home economics, industrial education, language arts, mathematics, physical education, science, and social studies. (MCO)

Experiences in nature benefit humans in a variety of ways, including increasing health and well-being, reducing stress, inspiring creativity, enhancing learning, and fostering environmental stewardship values. These experiences help define the relationship people have with nature which is often correlated with a person’s level of environmental concern as well as their engagement in pro-environmental behaviors. A more informed understanding of the ways in which interactions with the natural environment can foster connection to nature requires that we are able to measure our perceived relationship to the environment. Dozens of tools measure people’s connection to nature—the strength of those perceived relationships with the natural world. Although the tools have been primarily developed to answer research questions, practitioners are increasingly interested in understanding whether and in what ways their work— in areas including environmental education, urban planning, and park management, for example—influences people’s connection to nature. In 2018, we launched a participatory process involving researchers and practitioners in a review of existing connection to nature assessment tools with the intention of identifying tools that would be useful to practitioners, as well as defining needs in research. This paper chronicles the process’s outcomes, including a discussion of opportunities for future research.