Search

Copyright of International & Comparative Education is the property of International & Comparative Education Editorial, Beijing Normal University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Forest education has evolved significantly in recent decades due to global phenomena such as climate change and globalization, which are transforming the skill sets and competencies that should be provided by university-level education on forests. This evolution has placed pressure on educational institutions to adapt and meet these emerging needs. Previous research has identified gaps in the coverage of specific teaching topics within forest education, yet assessing the global state of education has been challenging because of the absence of comparable data. To address this gap, the Global Forest Education Project was initiated in 2020. The project developed a survey aimed at evaluating the state of forest education across all levels worldwide. In this study, we used data from this survey and conducted an analysis focusing on the perceived adequacy of teaching content and the availability of educational resources at the university level. The study revealed global concerns regarding the comprehensive coverage of the various teaching themes. Although there was some variation in coverage across different regions, the trends appeared to be consistent globally. The perceived availability of resources for education varied significantly by region, including factors that likely impede the ability of educational programs to modernize and meet new educational requirements. These findings indicate that there is a need to reevaluate and improve the coverage of many of the teaching themes in forest education. Moreover, it is evident that education providers in certain regions require increased funding to ensure sufficient resources to address these needs efficiently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flow-state is a condition where individuals are fully immersed in their mental abilities, wholeheartedly engaged in activities aimed at achieving peak performance. This study explores the relationships between teachers’ flow-state within three main learning environments: traditional classrooms, innovative open settings, and forest education. By employing Set and Setting theory which states that our environment directly affects our experience, we investigated teachers’ perception of the ‘design conditions’ through indoor environmental quality (IEQ) such as air quality and lighting and design features, such as furniture arrangement. Data on 119 teachers were collected using closed-ended questionnaires. Our findings indicate the impact of the design conditions on teachers’ flow-state. Differences in flow-state levels were observed whereby nature-centric classrooms were found to foster higher flow-state attainment than traditional classrooms. Moreover, age moderates the relationship between design conditions and the cognitive control dimension of teachers’ flow-state. Older teachers, in particular, exhibited vulnerability to inferior design conditions, leading to diminished flow-state attainment. These findings underscore the importance of tailored educational environments to optimize the pedagogical experience. They highlight the dynamic interplay between teachers, their flow-states, and the design conditions of learning spaces. This suggests that enhancing these conditions could support better teaching outcomes and teacher well-being.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has significantly changed the shape and organization of education in the State Forests, hence the purpose of this study is to assess its impact on the course, financing, forms and participation of youth and adults in forest education in Poland.

Objectives The purpose of this article is to analyse the processes related to the expansion of the role which forest management plays as an element shaping sustainable regional development. Two specific objectives will serve this purpose. The first of these concerns legal regulations governing forest management arising from both Polish and EU legal systems, and the second pertains to the pedagogical dimension of forest education as a component of education for sustainable regional development. T Material and methods The analysis of the proposed research issue will be carried out using the legal dogmatic method and, to some extent, the historical method and the legal comparative method. Results A key task is to create an appropriate legal instrument, both in the legislative and executive domains. The lack of key legal solutions in these areas may lead to legal stagnation in the implementation of sustainable forest management or the need to recognise the solutions adopted at the EU level, which are not always seen as beneficial to a given Member State. Conclusions Firstly, a de lege ferenda postulate is to legally regulate the operation of a sustainable forest management system in the Forest Act, by introducing a statutory obligation to prepare a national forestry strategy and regional forestry strategies. Secondly, the process of regulating the above issues should be intrinsically linked to the introduction of legal solutions in the field of forest education in its broadest sense

Copyright of Economic & Regional Studies/Studia Ekonomiczne i Regionalne is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In recent years, Forest Education has gained increasing traction around the world. Yet its unique features, as well as their relations with other outdoor environmental education approaches, remain undertheorized. This study explores the pedagogical practices of one emerging strand of Forest Education, and the epistemology underpinning it, in order to better position it with respect to other environmental education approaches. The study is based on ethnographic fieldwork that included participatory observations and interviews in a leading Israeli Forest Education organization. We identified four key pedagogical practices: outdoor play, primitive skills and crafts, sensing, and dwelling. These, we argue, reflect an epistemology in which knowledge and learning are situated in the immediate embodied context and sensory experiences, and are intended to facilitate a meaningful connection with nature. This epistemology prioritizes such modes of learning over abstraction, generalization and transfer, which are often central to science-oriented environmental education approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subject-matter of this paper is to perform an interdisciplinary analysis of the processes related to the growing role of forest management as an element shaping the process of sustainable regional development, from legal and pedagogical points of view. The development of legal forms of exercising supervision over the forest policy in the European Union, combined with diverse approaches to education for sustainable development, trigger the need for specific action at the level of Member States, in this case? Poland. Two specific objectives will serve this purpose. The first of these concerns legal regulations governing forest management, arising from both Polish and EU legal systems, and the second pertains to the pedagogical dimension of forest education as a component of education for sustainable regional development. The statement that legal regulations governing forest management must have a solid legal foundation, making it possible to implement the corresponding educational components, was adopted as a research hypothesis. The analysis of the research area thus identified requires a brief legal and pedagogical analysis, which will result in concrete solution proposals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discussed is the emergence of the university reform in 1933, which is one of the most important stages of the revolutions initiated by Atatürk. In this context, the foundation of Istanbul University and the curriculum at Ankara Higher Agricultural Institute, which will form the Ankara University to be opened later, has been established with German scientists contracted from Germany or persecuted by the pressure of the Nazi regime in Germany, committed to the university with a contract. The group of these German scientists have founded an association in Switzerland and as migrants they aspire to university posts in various countries of the world. The process of assigning those who are committed to the university institutions in Istanbul and Ankara with a contract is emphasized. In this context, the contributions of Prof. Schwartz and Prof. Malche are mentioned and highlighted. In the light of all the developments, it has also been shown how the forward-looking and comprehensive vision ideas of the great leader of the Turks Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk were true with regard to universityization. After providing information about the development of forestry education, which is one of the most important units of YZE, before and after the decision of the Faculty of Forestry to continue education at Istanbul University, the development of forestry education. Information was given about the faculty members of the first Turkish generation of the Faculty of Forestry who were educated abroad. An important authority in forest entomology, forest conservation, wildlife, hunting and botany of this first generation was Prof. Dr. Abdulgafur Acatay. An attempt has been made to give the important achievements and information about the accomplishments of him within the framework of his 120th birthday and his life story. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of reality technology programs in forest education by systematically reviewing prior studies that have verified the effectiveness of reality technology-aided forest education content. Additionally, we checked the current status of reality technology content-based forest-related education. We searched for data on forest education using reality technology published until November 2022 in both domestic and foreign web-based academic databases. In total, 117 research papers were identified, and 13 were selected based on the data selection criteria. After systematic analysis, we inferred the following: First, most reality technology-based forest education programs use augmented reality (AR); the software is customized and developed for mobile devices because AR is effective in two-way communication owing to the nature of the technology. Second, forest education showed greater cognitive and affective effects when reality technology was used (cognitive effect: 71.4%; affective effect: 63%) than when it was not used. Third, forest education using reality technology produced more than 90% cognitive and affective effects (cognitive effect: 90%; affective effect: 100%). Therefore, forest education using realistic technology can have a positive effect indoors. Although these results are difficult to generalize, they can be used as basic data for future research on reality technology-based forest education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As human beings, we are moving dramatically away from nature, which results in negative consequences for both mental and physical health. Highly developed countries see a special need to restore contact with nature as early as possible (Simonienko 2021, 74). Are Polish kindergartens also ready to provide children with education in nature? This article aims to describe the regulations of the educational law related to outdoor education in Polish kindergartens and to present the offer of educating teachers of early childhood education in the field of outdoor education at universities in Poland. Outdoor education is a term that does not have a clear equivalent in Polish. Depending on the translation and understanding, we can attribute different origins and meanings to it. The article presents terminological inaccuracies regarding outdoor education in Poland. The functioning of the education system is based on the activities performed by teachers, working both with the students and (indirectly) with parents. The last part of the text presents a description of selected attitudes of parents and children attending a forest kindergarten towards outdoor education.

The purpose of this study is to identify the needs and suggest a revitalization plan for School Forest Welfare Services in Korea which is defined as “school-based services that provide forest education, forest healing, and cultural and recreational activities in the forest by creating, managing, and utilizing local or in-school forest environments to help children and adolescents develop and improve their quality of life.” To this end, using a mixed method, in-depth interviews and needs surveys were conducted with School Forest Welfare Service experts and teachers and parents of middle and high school students to understand the current status of School Forest Welfare Services and to identify their needs. As regards the current status, the environment for the services was assessed at the “middle” level while the forest welfare program was assessed at the “low” level. On the other hand, all the needs asked were found to be at a “high” level; especially, the needs for the “forest therapy” program, both for the selected group of and all students, were the strongest. In regard to revitalization, “programs linked to regular school curriculum,” “policies and budgets,” “green zone in school area,” and “expert supports by forest healing instructors and forest interpreters” were found to be demanded mostly. As a conclusion of the in-depth interviews and needs surveys, a plan to revitalize School Forest Welfare Services has been derived, which includes such objectives as; (1) to strengthen awareness of the necessity (assigning experts within the responsible institution to provide expertise, strengthening awareness among principals, teachers, and parents, and building social consensus with active publicity), (2) to prepare policy and legal basis, and (3) to establish a support system. This study was conducted to revitalize School Forest Welfare Services for adolescents in Korea, but it is hoped that School Forest Welfare Services will be developed and widely implemented for many children and adolescents around the world through diverse further studies.

Copyright of ACTA Scientiarum Polonorum Silvarum Colendarum Ratio et Industria Lignaria is the property of Poznan University of Life Sciences Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

With increasing world population, it is critical to manage global forests for sustaining both human and natural systems and this requires highly educated, professional foresters. However, there are concerning lackluster enrollment trends due to negative public impressions of unsustainable practices and a lack of social diversity (e.g., gender and race/ethnicity). As inequality can shape academic and scientific practice in forest-related fields at different levels, this study aims to identify forms of inequality by utilizing a qualitative, systematic review method manifested in the forest-related higher education literature. Results are then discussed regarding how forest-related higher education can be transformed into a mechanism for more inclusive collaboration and knowledge production. Forest-related educational programs should be strategically developed to align with current and potential emerging demand for employment expertise in the field of forestry. These programs should focus on the cultivation of professional foresters, enabling them to effectively address evolving challenges in natural resources management. The forest-related education sector should also prioritize the ongoing enhancement of human diversity. • Inequality is identified in current science practices, included fields, and human diversity. • Forest-related educational programs should be designed to meet current demand for emerging new jobs in forestry and address needs of the current workforce. • Forest-related education should continue to focus on increasing diversity, both in demographic/identity and in curriculum content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest ecosystems play a fundamental role in mitigating global environmental changes. The development of environmentally sound behavior, and inter- and intragenerational equity can help counteract these global changes. One type of formal and non-formal environmental education is forest education, which aims to promote the achievement of sustainable development in forest-related ecosystems. We conducted an empirical study among forest educators in Austria, using a mixed-method approach, to investigate the potential of forest education to promote education for environmental citizenship. Our findings suggest that forest education and encounters with nature can lead to increased self-responsibility and contribute to critically reflect experience-based changes in behaviour. In conclusion, forest education is a useful tool for environmental citizenship education that contributes to improved understanding of forest ecosystems and non-anthropocentric perspectives for future development. However, forest education lacks funding, integration into formal education curricula, and the harmonization of framework conditions in non-formal education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Forum Pedagogiczne / Pedagogical Forum is the property of Uniwersytet Kardynala Stefana Wyszynskiego w Warszawie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Forum Pedagogiczne / Pedagogical Forum is the property of Uniwersytet Kardynala Stefana Wyszynskiego w Warszawie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The research objective was to determine the spread of insect species in educational forests and the diversity and abundance of insects. The research was carried out in the Educational Forest of ​​Honitetu in May - June 2020 using the method of drawing sample plots in ​​3 hectares, then an observation path was made using the path method for insect inventory and systematic sampling for vegetation inventory with the plot size. 20 m wide, 100 m long with a distance between lines of 20 m. Insects were collected using hand-collecting and pitfall trap methods at a distance of 10 m and bait traps every 10 m. The results of the study found 6462 insects consisting of 62 species in 12 orders, are Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Orthoptera, Diptera, Blattaria, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Phasmatodea, Opiliones, Araneae, Mantodea in 35 families, namely Chrysomelidae, Cerambycidae, Formicidae, Apidae, Calliphoridae, Tettigoniidae, Acrididae, Grylludae, Blaberidae, Pentatomidae, Piesmatidae, Culicidae, Carabidae, Alydidae, Nanomatidae, Eresidae, Vespidae, Asilidae, Zodaridae, Buprestidae, Phasmatidaal, Blattidae, Platypezidae, Sarcophidae, Noctuidae, Rhaphidophoridae, Sclerosomatidae, and Ichneumonidae. Most species found from the Order Hymenoptera Family Formicidae and the most diminutive species found are the Order Lepidoptera Family Danaidae, Papilionidae, Nymphalidae, Order Hymenoptera Family Braconidae, and Order Opiliones Family Sclerosomatidae. The maximum H 'value is 4.127, the evenness index of 0.628 is classified as moderate, and the dominance index is 0.111 and is classified as low.

This case study addresses the issue of climate change denial among students in their first year of vocational education. It was possible to shake the belief that man-made climate change was not happening, through letting students measure the potential of natural forest vegetation and compare their findings with those gathered by their peers nine years earlier. The comparison revealed that old forests had turned into ecosystems, which were adapted for dryer warmer climates. For education for sustainable development, forest education and biology lessons offer the opportunity to establish a long term project, in which peer-to-peer-learning over generations of students is possible, with a high rate of acceptance of the results generated by the former students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Forestry Review is the property of Commonwealth Forestry Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Forum Pedagogiczne / Pedagogical Forum is the property of Uniwersytet Kardynala Stefana Wyszynskiego w Warszawie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of ACTA Scientiarum Polonorum Silvarum Colendarum Ratio et Industria Lignaria is the property of Poznan University of Life Sciences Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Forest tourism is one of the least expensive activity since it does not require any professional equipment nor knowledge. There are 9.1 mln hectares of forests in Poland which is approximately 29.2% of country area. More than 83.5% of all forests are administered by the State Forests National Forest Holding. This organization is aware of popularity of forest tourism and basic human need of contact with nature. Several projects funded by both European Union and State Forests National Forest Holding resulted with creating multiple tracks for foot tourism, nature education tracks, bicycle paths, equestrian routes and more. This paper presents meaning and course of forest tourism from consumer perspective in relation with tourism services field using as an example unit of State Forests National Forest Holding Drewnica in Mazovia District. Educational activities held within the area of Drewnica unit has been analyzed. Further development possibilities has been set and changes has been proposed in forest tourism field based on data from project and data gathered within Drewnica unit.

This article investigates benefits and challenges of forest education in view of 257 Swiss elementary school teachers (1st-3rd grade), by means of a written questionnaire and 15 in-depth interviews. Two thirds of the teachers carried out forest education during normal lesson hours (mean visits = eight per year). Forests were clearly considered as an educational setting, and especially suitable for the enhancement of personal and social skills. Setting rules was seen as indispensable for successful forest education and a must to communicate to 'novice' teachers. Moreover, the didactic of forest education should be implemented in teacher education curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural resources of North America ensured the existence of German immigrants in the late 17th century. In Pennsylvania and North Carolina, measures for forest protection and sustainable forestry were invoked at an early date. Efforts were based on inventory of the resources and controlled use. During the 18th and 19th centuries, German emigration was boosted by the scarcity of wood. Proto-industry in Germany strongly depended on wood and coal resources, causing negative effects in the forest and environment. Increasing population and developing industrialization devastated the forests. International scientific contact in forestry started during the American Revolutionary War. German influence on American forestry began in 1873, when the Austro-Hungarian government hosted an international exhibition in Vienna. German forest scientists and politicians focused on sustainable forestry and initiated a fundamental forest education system in the United States. An intensive German--American exchange ona professional basis took place until the beginning of World War II. The acquired historical knowledge on this subject demonstrates that German and North American environmental perception had interacted considerably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa is a world leader in the forest products industry and this industry contributes significantly to the country's economy. Challenges to the industry's future include land reform, water use, global competition, regulations, outsourcing and privatisation (the decreased role of government in forest management). These issues impact forestry skills, jobs and education. As part of the Department of Forest and Wood Science's curriculum revision at Stellenbosch University, a survey was sent to forest industry representatives to better understand the transition in forestry and what is expected from upcoming forestry graduates, specifically in business and economic-related studies. Major issues that surfaced included skill shortages, timber supply constraints and land/legal issues. The most important skills lacking in future foresters were people and business management skills. The survey results confirm that, although forest managers still need a core technical toolbox, they are also required to address multiple issues and require a broader 'package' of skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest education is generally conducted in a real forest to provide learners a direct experience with reality. However, often it is not easy to participate in forest education programs carried out in remote places due to distance, limited time, or economic or physical restrictions. Therefore, we developed a walk-through system for forest education in a virtual forest and evaluated its educational efficacy as well as usability through indoor experiments. The virtual forest was constructed with omnidirectional images taken in a forest using a digital camera with an omnidirectional vision sensor. The results of the postquestionnaire showed that the developed system was highly evaluated by the participants in the experiments in terms of educational efficacy and enjoyment. Also, comparison of results of prequestionnaire and postquestionnaire showed that it had educational value. On the other hand, some technical problems in the developed system were revealed. For example, 45.0% of the participants answered that the walk-through in the virtual forest did not proceed with sufficient smoothness, and encountered unexpected slowdowns and stops. In addition, image quality was not high enough to identify small objects in the virtual forest. Regardless of these problems, we believe that the computer-based forest education was successful because 88.3% of the participants answered that they would like to join a similar program again and 90.0% answered that they would like to visit the real forest that the virtual forest imitated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Field education programs have been conducted throughout the world because learning through experience is an important process in environmental and forest education. We developed a support system for forest education that consists mainly of a Global Positioning System (GPS) and personal digital assistant (PDA). Moreover, field experiments were conducted to evaluate educational efficacy as well as usability of the developed system. Through a post-questionnaire the developed system was highly evaluated in terms of educational efficacy and enjoyment. On the other hand, the questionnaire revealed the need for technical improvements. For example, the drawing function, which involves the use of a stylus pen, was the most poorly evaluated because a drawing could not be partially erased as with an eraser and representation was not sufficiently accurate. In addition, positions where information on nature appeared were sometimes inaccurate due to positional errors caused by using the autonomous GPS. Some participants answered that walking with the developed system was also troublesome due to its shape and size. In fact, they did not feel comfortable about the cables connecting the GPS to the PDA and GPS to its antenna. Although there were some problems with the system, we believe that the field education program was successful because 95% of the participants answered that they would join a similar program again. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of research conducted in order to determine the comprehensibility (intelligibility) of the text of signs on educational paths in Warsaw's city forests. This evaluation was carried out with the use of an online IT tool—Promovolt. The obtained results were confronted with the assessment of users of educational paths and the opinion of an expert group, which consisted of people involved in the design of educational materials. The results indicate that the majority of the analyzed interpretative signs are dedicated to secondary school students because of the level of text comprehensibility. At the same time, 20% of the text is understandable only to recipients with higher education. This means that the educational paths in the urban forests of Warsaw, with interpretative signs allowing independent learning, do not sufficiently support the ecological education of children and youth from primary schools up to 15 years of age, as well as people with basic or vocational education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change affects various aspects of the economy, agriculture, economics, and politics, including forestry. There is more and more talk about the real impact of the effects of climate change. This paper presents the results of a survey on the perceptions of two groups, foresters and recreational forest users, about climate change and its impacts on forested areas; 130 foresters and 146 recreational forest users participated in the survey (total n = 276). The survey was conducted from April to November 2019 and consisted of three parts. The first part included questions about the demographic characteristics of the respondents (gender, age, education, place of residence), the second part focused on the respondents' views on climate change and its implications for forest ecosystems, and the third part focused on informal forest education and its relationship to climate change. The results of our study indicated that progressive climate change affecting forest ecosystems is clearly felt by the professional group related to forests such as foresters, and to a lesser extent by people using forests for tourism and recreation. According to foresters, the effects of climate change on forest areas include rapid changes in weather patterns and more frequent insect infestations. On the other hand, people resting in forests mainly observe the lack of snow cover and occurrence of drought. Informal forest education insufficiently covers the topic of climate change. Thus, our study can help guide informal education towards topics related to climate change and the need for sustainable forest use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]