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The aim of this study is to provide training for science teachers on batteries, areas of use of batteries, types of batteries, things that should be paid attention to while using batteries, waste batteries, and collection, handling, recovery and/or disposal of waste batteries, and help teachers receiving the training to raise awareness among grade 5 students on these issues. The study was carried out with 58 science teachers and 575 secondary school grade 5 students. Within the scope of the study, a detailed training on the issue was provided to the teachers and attempts at raising awareness among students in four lessons were made by the teachers receiving the training. Data were obtained by making students draw "adventure of the waste battery" themed pictures and write "story of the waste battery" themed compositions as a pre-test before the workshop and a post-test after the workshop. Data were analyzed using content analysis. As a result of the study, it was observed that awareness was raised among students on the elements available in batteries, battery powered objects, points of disposal for waste batteries, places of waste battery bins, recycling of waste batteries, positive effects of collection of waste batteries, negative effects of waste batteries, and things to be done to avoid these negative effects. [This study was presented as an oral presentation at 6th National Chemistry Education Congress, Hacettepe University on 2-4 May 2019.]

The objectives of this paper were to 1) study the learning model of the smart crematorium system, 2) create a learning manual on smart cremation management, and 3) promote the development of learning for undertakers to use the smart crematorium. This was mixed method research with qualitative research and action research as parts of the conduct of quantitative research. The samples were from informants that consisted of 10 monks, 5 community leaders, 5 academicians, 17 seminars, 30 participants, a total of 67 people, and content analysis according to the study issues. The research instruments consisted of 1) an interview form, 2) a focus group meeting, 3) an activity participation form, and 4) an activity assessment form. The data collection was as follows: 1) secondary sources, documents, books, journals, and research reports related to concepts, and theories, 2) workshops, 3) in-depth interviews, 4) specific group discussions, and 5) collecting data from measurement reports and analysis of dioxin/furans compounds to categorize the data and analyzed according to the study issues. The findings revealed that 1. A learning model for using a smart crematorium system for the undertakers: 1) filling the fielder with the reaper into the storage tank 2) turning on the air compressor to fill the tank 3) opening the valve to let air into the system 4) checking the wind pressure and 5) checking the air flowing through the system along the main pipes which would pass the Vimutti substances into the crematorium and smoke furnace room continued to for about 30 minutes continuously. 2. Operations of creating a learning manual on smart cremation management that contained details in the book: 1) the problem of pollution from cremation 2) the smart crematorium with new options 3) the benefits of using the smart crematorium. This would introduce the features of a new smart crematorium, how to use and the benefits of using a smart crematorium. 3. To promote and develop knowledge for undertakers to use smart crematoriums and Vimutti substance sprayers by organizing training to educate about dioxins and furans, organized training and demonstrating how to use the smart crematorium and the Vimutti substance sprayers. This was the development of a learning model to enhance the Buddhist way of temples and urban communities as a cremation model.

The research aims to reveal the awareness of children's parents about the hazards of their children's toys from the age groups (1-9 years). To examine the extent of their awareness of toy hazards and assess their attitudes towards them, the "case study" method was used. A survey was also built on the hazards of children's toys for this age group. The research attempted to cover most of the common toys available in the Saudi market. A random sample of 422 individuals who deal with children participated in the research. The findings revealed that the sample's responses to the hazards of toys were not reflective of the real risks. Also, most of the respondents do not read the instructions and warnings attached to the game, due to the lack of an approach or plan. In addition, those instructions and warnings are ambiguous and written in a foreign language which makes them difficult to read. They are often covered by the price tag of the game. The results of the qualitative analysis revealed the sample's perceptions of the forms of hazards in toys. Interpretations varied about the sources of hazards and the interpretation of the instructions attached to them. In light of the current findings, the research recommends that the relevant bodies examine toys according to agreed international standards, and increase consumers' awareness of the role of the GCC Standardization Organization (GSO). There should also be a website for them to communicate directly with the consumer, similar to CPSC, and design national notices directed to the Arab consumer in the Arabic language to impose control over these products and thus protect children from threatening their lives.

Petroleum products are very flammable and can ignite at extremely low temperatures if exposed to an open flame source or not handled appropriately. Individuals who handle petroleum products in the petroleum industry and fuelling stations are known as "petrol station attendants". The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out among petrol station attendants working in a filling station owned by independent petroleum marketers in Sapele metropolis of Delta state from November 2022 to January 2023. The assessment was done with an adapted instrument for data collection, a 12-item questionnaire titled "Chemistry of Petroleum Products: Assessment of Fuel Attendants Knowledge around Sapele Metropolis". Most petrol attendants within Sapele metropolis fell within the age range of 18-35 years, predominantly 22-28 years being the highest with a respondent of 16 constituting 39% representation. There were more females working within Sapele as petrol attendants with 26 females out of 41 respondents representing 63% of the total sample population. About 51.21% of respondents did science or chemistry-related courses but their skills were limited, 58.53% of petrol attendants which was the highest proportion per qualification had Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) qualification, and those with a higher degree (National Diploma and Bachelor of Science) had a combined total of 14 respondents (34.1%), 48.78% of respondents which was below average were given chemistry and safety training of petroleum product by their employers, about 80.48% of respondents had managed to learn either by convention or practice safety techniques and were using safety protocol when handling petroleum product. 87.80% knew nothing about chemistry quality control tests such as octane rating, flash point, pour point, and smoke point. The percentage of science oriented graduate who work as petrol attendant in Sapele metropolis is very low. Hence, the study recommends science expertise with regards to chemistry knowledge in relation to safety practices among fuel attendants.

Within the scope of the current study, the researchers developed activities for middle school students to raise their awareness on the harm of plastics and microplastics, which are detrimental to nature and living things. In addition, through the activities developed, the study aimed to provide students with knowledge of and experience with bioplastics, which have emerged as an alternative to plastic materials and are environmentally friendly. Twelve eighth grade students participated in the current study. The activities developed by the researchers within the framework of the REACT strategy covered a four-week period. The researchers made sure that the activities designed included each step of the REACT strategy (Relating, Experiencing, Applying, Cooperating, Transferring) and the researchers used different tools (mind map, concept map, Vee diagram). The study suggests that activities designed for classroom use should be integrated with tools such as Vee diagram, concept map and mind map in order to increase students' knowledge and awareness about global environmental problems as well as support students' ability to produce solutions to such problems.

The discovery of frog abnormalities by students on a school field trip in 1995 sparked hundreds of scientific studies in search of the cause of abnormality. This Socio-Scientific Issue has been used as an inquiry-based learning exercise for training in the practice of science, but it is also well-suited to teaching the nature of science. Our goal here is to provide an integrative resource for biology and environmental educators to integrate the nature of science into their course context. We introduce frog abnormalities in the context of a socio-scientific issue for teaching the nature of science, review the frog abnormality phenomenon, suggest appropriate educational methods for this SSI, and offer ideas for non-science educators to connect to the sciences.

A material commonly known as Flubber, with properties that are excellent for teaching about glaciers, has been widely used in geosciences education. Yet, the original recipe contains borax, which has health risks that should be avoided. A new recipe is shared containing low-cost, readily available ingredients that produces a reformulated Flubber with properties similar to the original without the associated health risks.

This article focused on the voice of resistance and activism in Imbolo Mbue's "How Beautiful We Were" (2021). The novel voices the environmental injustices and the disastrous consequences of oil corporations. The people of Kosawa know that something is wrong with the land they're living on. They receive acid rain, rivers have grown sickly green, and people are dizzy with the diseases. They also know that Pexton, the oil company is to blame for their loss of life and livelihood. The natives decide to rise up and fight back against an American Oil Company that has been polluting the land. This study investigated how this ecological destruction in Kosawa has triggered eco-activism and resistance from the natives. The study used the qualitative approach employing an analytical research design comprising research methods of content analysis and close textual reading. The research was further informed by Lawrence Buell's (2005) second wave of eco-criticism, which advocates for environmental justice for the victims of environmental degradation. It is also concerned about the destruction of plants and animals. This study depicts ecocriticism as a theory that displays the tools of activism and resistance. The findings of this research show that oil spillage has shattering effects on humans, animals, and aquatic life. The findings also show that the author uses various resistance approaches to fight against environmental degradation such as media, education, revolution, and age mates among others. Mbue's text calls on the African nations to vehemently resist environmental degradation.

Over the past 20 years, root cause analysis (RCA) has become one of the most widely used retrospective methods for detecting safety hazards in medicine and healthcare. Despite its wide use in management practice and growing popularity in academic research, there is currently a dearth of coverage of RCA in popular healthcare management textbooks and pedagogical publications. This paper addresses this gap by presenting innovative instructional materials and recommendations for teaching RCA in healthcare management. Using an episode of "Grey's Anatomy" TV show, this experiential learning exercise takes students through the steps of RCA and makes use of a range of RCA tools, including high-level flowchart, fishbone diagram, "five whys", corrective action plan, and others. The exercise, which was classroom tested and received positive student feedback, can be adapted to a range of healthcare management classes. Because RCA can have widespread, lifesaving consequences, healthcare management courses can significantly benefit from integrating this exercise into classroom pedagogies.

Conducting K-12 outreach programs on university or college campuses focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines is an essential part of the multifaceted effort for preparing future generations of engineers and scientists. However, the lack of structured frameworks to design and deliver activities and programs that maximize potential impacts poses a challenge. This case study contributes to filling this gap by presenting a six-step adaptable pedagogical framework whose intent is to provide meaningful structure for on-campus STEM outreach activities that emphasize collaborative, hands-on learning experiences for pre-college students. Successful implementation of the framework is demonstrated through the design of a civil engineering workshop on sustainable and hazard-resistant earth masonry, and its evaluation through the analysis of the feedback of 85 participants from three summer workshops for high school students between 2017 and 2019.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of the analytical chemistry laboratory (ACL) course, designed, and conducted according to the flipped learning approach (FL) on prospective science teachers' (PSTs) meaningful understanding and interpretation of knowledge in the context of the environment. Seventy-three second grade PSTs participated in this action research, and the interventions lasted for 13 weeks. The ACL course was reorganized by replacing the traditional laboratory approach with the FL approach that established the context with the environment. The data were obtained through a conceptual understanding test (CUT) which was developed by the researchers, which consisted of five open-ended questions. The CUT was used as a pre-test and post-test along with an interview form. Results showed that the reorganization of the traditional laboratory course in accordance with the nature of action research and its integration with the FL approach had a positive effect on the prospective teachers' learning and opinions about the course. Furthermore, it was determined that PSTs' interpretation ability related to environmental problems in the chemical dimension improved significantly. However, despite this increase, it was concluded that they could not reach a sufficient level in terms of producing solutions to environmental problems. Considering that the effectiveness of FL practices both teaching subjects and environmental problems in ACL course, it is thought to be beneficial to use this approach in another laboratory course.

School principals are responsible for occupational health and safety (OHS) issues that may arise, and they play a critical role in ensuring that health and safety procedures in schools. The purpose of this study is to determine how occupational health and safety practices in schools can be improved with reference to the views of school principals. Twenty-one principals from kindergarten, primary, secondary and high schools participated in this qualitative research. The research data were collected via official documents and semi-structured interviews. Document and content analyses were utilized to examine the data. At the end of the research, the findings show that the OHS activities for school administrations are listed under the following headings: 'Occupational health and safety services', 'training and information, 'emergency drills', 'projects and activities, 'chemical waste and zero waste project', 'audit, guidance and supervision activities', 'health observation', 'precautions, measurements, safety and periodic checks', 'notifications', and 'OHS module'. The expectations of school administrations from senior management for the development of OHS practices address budget/financial support; directing the solutions to the school; the appointment of an OHS specialist, health and security personnel; more training, seminars, audit and technical support; cooperation among institutions. However, school administrators are expected to properly follow work and operations, assess risks and take action, and use school sources or apply for funds. The research results reveal important insights to achieve high standards of school health and safety by concluding with implications for successful school leadership, and recommendations for practice and research.

Home to nine Tribal Nations, the northeastern corner of Oklahoma (US) is a place of immense resilience, cultural beauty and attachment to place. Horrifically, however, this same area is also home to massive environmental assaults that have occurred as a result of decades of lead and zinc mining. The improperly managed mine waste that has accumulated since the late 1800s now severely contaminates the water, land and air, having adverse impacts on the health of the ecosystem and the local human community alike. Leading the fight for cleanup and support of place and people since 1997 is the non-profit organisation called Local Environmental Action Demanded (LEAD Agency). One of LEAD's primary tools for education and advocacy has been leading toxic tours across these harmed lands and waters. This contribution draws upon the nearly three decades of toxic tours that Rebecca and Earl have led by sharing key stories and experiences of important sites visited along the way, offering a snapshot of toxic tour experience. Drawing on Indigenous storywork and autoethnographic methodologies, this contribution aims to spotlight the potential of Indigenous-led toxic tours for helping to (re)connect people -- both locals and visitors -- to place and a responsibility of stewardship.

Background: Faculty in nursing and history at Creighton University directed two service-learning courses on the history and public health implications of lead (Pb) exposure in Omaha, NE. As part of their service requirements, students conducted or observed blood lead screenings in area schools and reflected on these shared experiences in discipline-specific coursework. Strong student response encouraged the faculty to enrich transdisciplinary teaching and learning between these two courses. Although studies supply numerous best practices to develop collaborative experiences and service-oriented pedagogies, little work focuses on enriching collaborations between preexisting courses. Purpose: This study examines the outcomes of a partnership between nursing and history and presents a practical model that instructors can use to foster and deepen transdisciplinary service-learning. Methodology: Employing a hybrid grounded theory/topic modeling analysis of student reflection papers, we identify course outcomes of closest convergence. Findings/Conclusions: We argue that instructors can deepen transdisciplinary partnerships between service-learning courses by focusing on a common exemplar, encouraging collaborative experiences in the classroom and at service sites, and employing civic health as a shared concept in curricula. Implications: Beyond nursing and history, our model may be employed by faculty in preexisting service-learning courses to bring their courses into transdisciplinary convergence.

Background: The threat of a disaster or potential for a disaster is something that may be experienced by individuals globally. Schools are places of daily mass gatherings which make them an ideal target for mass casualty, natural disasters, and biological incidents. Methods: An integrative review using Whittemore and Knafl's model was conducted to explore peer-reviewed publications about K-12 schools and natural disasters and pandemic preparedness and planning. Results: Themes identified from the systematic review of 12 articles reflected determinants and level of school preparedness, disaster plan components, compliance with government requirements, emergency equipment, supplies, drills, and training, collaboration with outside agencies, and perceptions of school preparedness. Preparedness for disasters and biological events among schools varies and multiple factors contribute to the level of preparedness. Perceptions of school preparedness differ among school community members. Schools perceive more preparedness for disasters than their actual level. Conclusions: Our nation's schools are not adequately prepared for disasters. There is a need for further research in schools to identify and understand preparedness for disasters.

Integration of computational data science (CDS) into the university curriculum offers several advantages for students, faculty and the institution. This article discusses the benefits to students of introducing CDS into the university curriculum with a focus on developing skills in cheminformatics, data analysis, structure--activity relationships, modelling and simulation. Moreover, CDS can enable students to engage with complex chemical and toxicological data in new and dynamic ways, helping them to develop a more nuanced understanding of the potential hazards and risks associated with different chemicals and substances. On the other hand, it can foster greater collaboration between students and faculty and with external partners in industry and government. This can lead to the development of more effective and efficient toxicological testing methods and tools to screen chemicals for potential hazards and aid the development of environmentally friendly chemicals. Overall, the integration of CDS into the university curriculum will help prepare the next generation of scientists giving them a competitive edge to make considerable contributions to green chemistry, designing safer chemicals and non-animal testing methods. It will enable them to tackle modern challenges facing society including identifying safer and more sustainable chemicals and predicting the health and environmental impacts of novel chemical substances.

Chemicals used in academic teaching laboratories, research institutions, and industrial facilities are mostly dual-use chemicals. They provide many desired benefits but at the same time may cause adverse effects to human health and environments. In the case of Somalia, there are gaps in terms of chemical security (CS) awareness and implementations, and this has resulted in terrorist attack involving dual-use chemicals. To fill this gap, over the past 5 years, the Somali Chemical Society has conducted CS training for CS practitioners from both academia and industry. These training sessions have uncovered a lack of basic knowledge among chemical practitioners about chemical safety and security. The aim of this study was to assess the safety and security systems in Somalia. The research method was an investigative survey to explore information related to the chemical safety and security systems in Somalia. The study was conducted with 20 universities in the country to evaluate their understanding of chemical safety and security. The questionnaire was answered by chemistry lecturers, university students, laboratory managers, and government lab personnel. One hundred and ten participants were selected through cluster sampling. Data were collected through a closed ended questionnaire. The reliability of the study resulted Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of 0.933. A noteworthy finding indicated that the chemical safety and security status in Somalia was inadequate, and coordinated efforts by all stakeholders including Government, university leaders, and scientists from different disciplines are urgently needed for effective reforming of chemical safety and security in Somalia.

The objective of our program is to foster and facilitate authentic research experiences in middle and high school science courses. We do so by providing students with a complete experience in scientific experimentation and communication. The centerpiece is a set of experiment modules in which students investigate the effects of toxic chemicals on living organisms through the use of model organisms such as the earthworm, fathead minnow, and the zebrafish, and chemical contaminants commonly found in the environment. In parallel, we partner with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee science teacher certification program to prepare pre-service teachers to offer real research experiences in their future classrooms. With the COVID-19 virus restricting or eliminating in-person learning, the program's challenges were (i) to create new ways to conduct experiments virtually that retain elements of the authentic research experience and (ii) to move all of the accompanying facets of the program to online formats. This paper will describe the new online materials and activities that were introduced this past year as well as the challenges they presented and opportunities for the future that they offer.

Early care and education (ECE) environments influence children's lifelong health behaviors, growth, and development. Although the number of interventions to improve health in ECE environments is increasing, few have been designed for and tested in family child care homes (FCCHs). This study reports the process evaluation of two interventions to improve FCCH health environments, both part of Happy Healthy Homes, a matched-attention randomized-controlled intervention trial conducted in Oklahoma FCCHs. Participating child care providers received one of two multicomponent interventions: (a) an intervention focused on enhancing the quality of the nutrition environment, self-efficacy, and practices or (b) an intervention focused on improving providers' environmental health literacy, self-efficacy, and practices. Guided by "Implementation" constructs of the RE-AIM framework (i.e., reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, maintenance), intervention report forms and participant tracking were used to assess intervention dose delivered and interventionist-perceived challenges and successes to implementation. Interviews were conducted to obtain participant feedback after the intervention. Dose delivered was high for both interventions overall and across individual sessions, and provider feedback was positive. Implementation challenges and strengths identified for both interventions may be useful for further enhancing intervention appropriateness and success, particularly for interventions with FCCHs. Process evaluation findings indicate that the two Happy Healthy Home interventions can be conducted with high delivery and are well attended and considered to be valuable to FCCH providers.

A problem-based learning (PBL) methodology was implemented to a project, whose main objectives were to discuss and apply the Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry to the study of poly(vinyl alcohol)'s cross-linking reaction with dicarboxylic acids. The five participating students were oriented to be responsible for their own learning and the professor participated as an advisor. The problem was proposed and students planned all their activities to accomplish the objectives and goals, reviewed recent information in scientific literature and summarized it, made experimental work, prepared written reports, and were evaluated in seminars. The results obtained by the students were assessed through the generation of a final report and also with a final oral presentation in front of faculty members. The experience lived by the collaborative workgroup during the development and execution of the project, is described. This research is an example of how the PBL methodology can motivate the active participation of students when solving problems. The next step is to introduce this tool to teachers and students of other undergraduate courses or laboratories, since it causes a difference in the way education is being perceived in our university, because it emphasizes the application and understanding of concepts over simple memorization.

Bangladesh has been experiencing serious environmental degradation for last few years specially for textile and apparel industries. The objective of this research is to evaluate the level of environmental education of outgoing textile undergraduate students and their perception about the environmental degradation. A questionnaire was developed and administered to textile outgoing and 1st semester students to assess their environmental concern, knowledge and responsibility. Two sample mean test was applied to differentiate the level of understanding of these two groups of students. Binary logistic regression was used to identify the most potential source to build up the consciousness among the students about pollution. The multiple regression analysis was done to assess the comparative role of knowledge and concern for showing the responsibility towards the environment. The result indicated that the level of understanding of outgoing students on environmental sustainability is not up to the mark, there is potential for further enhancing environmental learning. It revealed that responsibility toward the environment is directly proportional to knowledge and concern. Findings also suggested that the university and the electronic media have a significant role to increase the environmental awareness among the students.

The purpose of this work is, before the mission, training of personnel searching for explosives with metallic mine detectors for their operations in the battlefield and gaining experience by searching for explosives in a virtual environment. In this context, a search model was created by determining the factors affecting the search for explosives in the methodology. In this study, first of all, a scene where explosive materials will be detected was prepared. In this scene, three-dimensional models of the explosives and detector to be used were made from the first point of view of the character. In addition, a signal model proposal for how to detect explosives placed on the field by the detector operator using the Unity game engine is presented. In this model proposal, detectors, explosives, land and user-related issues have been evaluated and added to the model. With the prepared model, the reaction of the search coil to the signal source was observed, and it was ensured that the speed and method of the operator affected the signal. In addition, soil structure change in different types of land has been added to the model. A generic flow chart showing the behaviors to be applied by the detector operator during the intervention to the signal was prepared and this scheme was requested to be used for control purposes in the application. As a result of the study, a realistic and cost-effective training aid that can be used in the training of detector operators has been prepared.

With the rapid growth in the manufacturing industry and increased urbanization, higher amounts of composite material waste are being produced, causing severe threats to the environment. These environmental concerns, coupled with the fact that undergraduate students typically have minimal experience in research, have initiated the need at the UAE University to promote research among undergraduate students, leading to the development of a summer undergraduate research program. In this study, a recycling methodology is presented to test lab-fabricated Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) for potential applications in industrial composite waste. The work was conducted by two groups of undergraduate students at the UAE University. The methodology involved the chemical dissolution of the composite waste, followed by compression molding and adequate heat treatment for rapid curing of CFRP. Subsequently, the CFRP samples were divided into three groups based on their geometrical distinctions. The mechanical properties (i.e., modulus of elasticity and compressive strength) were determined through material testing, and the results were then compared with steel for prompt reference. The results revealed that the values of mechanical properties range from 2 to 4.3 GPa for the modulus of elasticity and from 203.7 to 301.5 MPa for the compressive strength. These values are considered competitive and optimal, and as such, carbon fiber waste can be used as an alternate material for various structural applications. The inconsistencies in the values are due to discrepancies in the procedure as a result of the lack of specialized equipment for handling CFRP waste material. The study concluded that the properties of CFRP composite prepreg scrap tend to be reusable instead of disposable. Despite the meager experimental discrepancies, test values and mechanical properties indicate that CFRP composite can be successfully used as a material for nonstructural applications.

The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of project on children's attitude toward environmental balance. This study is a qualitative study using a holistic single case study design involving "compost cases", at a kindergarten in Perak, Malaysia. The participants consisted of a focus group of 18 children and an educator. The data was obtained through triangulation results from unstructured interview, observation, and unofficial documents such as children notebooks, sketches, and pictures of investigative activities. The findings showed that the children understand the negative impact of using chemicals on Earth. The finding also showed that children able to give suggestions on producing compost, burying food scraps in the soil and use the compost dining set for banquet to deal with waste management problems. In addition, the finding showed that children able to classify waste materials which is easily decompose for compost production. The finding also showed that activities project able to develop entrepreneurial attitudes in children to sell the product produced. The valuable experience through observation and hands-on activities from early childhood will help the continuity of learning process throughout their lives.

It is widely known that systematically developed training manuals can be used to improve knowledge and practical skills and promote positive attitude of trainees. This research thus aimed to develop a training manual to help reduce the use of pesticides by para rubber farmers in Nonkheng Sub-district, So Phisai District, Bueng Khan Province, Thailand. The research was divided in to 3 stages. The first stage investigated the scenarios in which pesticides were used of the para rubber famers while the second stage dealt with the development of a training manual for promoting the reduction of the use of pesticides and hazardous chemicals by the farmers. The final stage was the evaluation for the efficiency of the developed training manual by applying it with 48 volunteered para rubber famers for 2 days. The findings revealed that the training manual had an efficiency of index at 80.38/80.89. After training with the manual, the farmers' levels of knowledge increased tal 67.40%, while the overall post-test scores on knowledge, attitude, and practice skills in reducing the use of pesticides were found to be significantly higher (p < 0.05) than those of the pre-test. It can be concluded that the developed training manual can be effectively used to improve the knowledge, attitude, and practical skills of the trainees.

The main aim of this paper was to analyze how medicinal gardens in secondary schools can improve teaching-learning processes in rural settings. The sample comprised 179 students (69.3% girls) from a rural public secondary school in the province of Huila (Colombia). The age of the participants ranged from 15 to 17 years with a mean of 15.86 years (SD = 0.86). Seeking school motivation strategies for rural students from a rural institution in the municipality of Guadalupe, teachers of the natural sciences designed didactic-pedagogical alternatives employing situated learning that would allow them to contribute to solving school problems and environmental issues affecting rural areas. The environmental phenomena included the loss of fertile soils and the harmful effects of the use of agrochemicals. Medicinal gardens together with situated learning activities proved a useful teaching tool in formal rural educational settings.

Although evidence of heritability for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is strong, studies of twin pairs suggest that at least some portion of the etiology is attributable to environmental factors, either directly or through interaction with genes. Given the multitude of environmental and psychosocial exposures that have been reported to increase atypical neurodevelopment in offspring, in this article, we summarize what prenatal air pollutant, chemical, and occupational exposures and psychosocial stressors have been reportedly associated with ASD and co-occurring neurodevelopmental disorders. We highlight the consistencies in reported associations and recommend areas for research to close gaps in our understanding of environmental risk for ASD. Because this issue is of particular importance in historically marginalized communities and low- and middle-income countries, we also discuss the importance of environmental justice issues and exposure disparities in research, and we advocate for prioritizing policies to reduce disparities and improve service provision in vulnerable populations.

Biosphere contamination is a current environmental and social issue that must be included in the school programme. It is essential that students recognise their responsibility, and be knowledgeable about the generation and reduction of environmental pollution. Dyes are usually used in school activities and discharged into household effluents, constituting potential toxic agents. To offer solutions to this problem, it was proposed to evaluate the ability of "Lemna" sp. plants to remove synthetic dyes. For this, activities that require accessible resources and minimum safety precautions were designed, which could be carried out by students at home in the virtual education modality imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The practical experience integrated theoretical-practical contents from different disciplines, achieving a true interdisciplinary dialogue. The use of "Lemna" sp. secured a fast and significant dye decolourisation, demonstrating the importance of biodiversity in the attenuation of environmental changes due to anthropogenic activities. This experience allowed us to arrive at an interdisciplinary, significant and situated learning experience through the implementation of the scientific method.

At a time when traditional fieldwork is coming under pressure, be it from shrinking budgets, reducing carbon footprints, increased concerns for personal safety or the desire to make field skills accessible to all, how do we ensure that the key skills of observation, data collection and landscape analysis can still be developed in our students? This paper evaluates the experiences of students using immersive virtual reality (VR) to interrogate highly accurate georeferenced landscape models, made from data collected by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, through the medium of Q methodology. It finds that there appears to be an association between prior engagement and expertise with IT and gaming technologies, such that those who declare some degree of prowess engage with and embrace the opportunities of using VR. This suggests that to allow more students to adopt positive approaches to learning in this manner, educators need to worry less about ever complex and realistic models, and invest more into positive prior experiences of using technology. Moreover, an important voice in the narrative around the physical nature of "being in the field" and social interaction with peers and tutors questions an approach that is still a relatively solitary experience.

Purpose: The sustainability of the global food system hinges on its environmental resiliency and safety, including the health and well-being of its labor force. Single disciplinary courses in liberal arts or science often fail to highlight the overlap between environmental and social vulnerabilities that lead to food insecurity and diminish the sustainability of food systems. This paper aims to present the design and delivery of a successfully co-taught, interdisciplinary module on agricultural labor and sustainable food systems as a case study. Design/methodology/approach: The authors designed a co-taught module in which they joined each other's respective history and science class sessions at the undergraduate business college where they teach. Innovating the cross-disciplinary content of food security, immigration status, labor exploitation and pesticide exposure, they approached sustainability from the disciplinary perspectives of labor history and environmental science to show how these elements had both unique and overlapping impacts across food systems levels. Comparisons between pre- and post-module survey responses, alongside assessments of a co-authored exam question, measured the effectiveness of this module is changing students' perspectives as food consumers and as citizens. Findings This module altered students' understanding and perspectives around issues of food systems sustainability. Assessments indicated that students increased their awareness of agricultural workers at the front end of the food system, during production; students also gained awareness beyond consumption as they came to see the connections between workforce invisibility and ecosystem degradation. Originality/value: These insights are valuable to educators at all institutional levels who seek to collaborate on sustainability initiatives and teaching, both in the singular, robust modules and in building modules that will lead to the development of entire courses focused on sustainability. The module described here builds on previous demonstrations of the value, significance and effectiveness of cross-disciplinary collaborations; it pioneers the use of the food system as the link between social and environmental sustainability education.

Developmental science has increasingly scrutinized how environmental hazards influence child outcomes, but few studies examine how contaminants affect disparities in early skill formation. Linking research on environmental inequality and early childhood development, this study assessed whether differences in exposure to neurotoxic lead explain sociodemographic gaps in school readiness. Using panel data tracking a representative sample of 1266 Chicago children (50% female, 16% White, 30% Black, 49% Hispanic, [mu][subscript age] = 5.2 months at baseline, collected 1994-2002), analyses quantified the contribution of lead contamination to class and racial disparities in vocabulary skills and attention problems at ages 4 and 5. Results suggested that lead contamination explains 15%-25% and 33%-66% of the disparities in each outcome, respectively, although imprecise estimates preclude drawing firm inferences about attention problems.

Children from economically disadvantaged communities have a disproportionate risk of exposure to chemicals, social stress, and learning difficulties. Although animal models and epidemiologic studies link exposures and neurodevelopment, little focus has been paid to academic outcomes in environmental health studies. Similarly, in the educational literature, environmental "chemical" exposures are overlooked as potential etiologic factors in learning difficulties. We propose "a theoretical framework for the etiology of learning difficulties that focuses on these understudied exogenous factors." We discuss findings from animal models and longitudinal, prospective birth cohort studies that support this theoretical framework. Studies reviewed point to the effects of prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on reading comprehension and math skills via effects on inhibitory control processes. Long term, this work will help "close the achievement gap in the United States" by identifying behavioral and neural pathways from prenatal exposures to learning difficulties in children from economically disadvantaged families.

Environmental justice is an important topic that can be better understood by using the tools of economics. The author of this article describes a data integration exercise that connects data available through government portals: the Environmental Protection Agency's "Superfund Sites Where You Live" interactive map, data on Net Present Values from Superfund Records of Decisions (ROD), and FRED. Created with the principles of backward design, the exercise uses cooperative learning by having students take ownership of sites chosen for investigation, as well as build and test hypotheses regarding the relationship between per capita GDP and site location/cleanup cost.

Journalists have reported large-scale lead poisoning affecting children in cities such as Flint, Michigan. Unfortunately, children's exposure to lead is not isolated and occurs throughout the country in both urban and rural settings. The effects of lead exposure can cause children to develop disabilities, potentially requiring special education services to address their academic and behavioral difficulties. In this paper, we detail three areas where special education has a major role in addressing the lead crisis: special education identification; intervention; and advocacy, awareness, and prevention. For each area, we provide concrete suggestions for special educators to implement in order to ensure children exposed to lead receive the special education services they need.

An uptick in online enrollments at higher institutions in recent years serves as the driving force behind an increase in the number of science courses available online. The shift to online science courses introduced a new laboratory environment vastly different from the traditional laboratory, giving rise to doubts on how safe these nontraditional laboratories are with the safety competency of these online students uncertain. This study aims to investigate the safety competency of students who worked hands-on with mail-order laboratory kits in an introductory chemistry course. A survey to measure students' safety knowledge, attitudes, and practice, as well as a prelab assessment were used for data collection. Most students displayed competency in safety awareness, hazard communication, knowledge of emergency equipment and procedures, and safe chemical use, but deficiencies in their knowledge were evident in several areas.

This article examines how Chinese language textbooks, produced for ethnic Koreans by ethnic Koreans in China, portray environmental issues in China. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Visual Image Analysis (VIA) are used to investigate what environmental content is integrated and what ideologies these textbooks construct. Chinese language textbooks published in 2012 and 2022 were chosen as they are the most recently published versions for primary school students of Korean ethnic background. The analytical findings show that the textbooks defer responsibility for environmental problems to the global community rather than portraying them as China's problem and responsibility to solve. The causes and nature of these problems are simplified--only dumping and deforestation are addressed. It is found that the textbooks analyzed in this paper serve the interests of the owners of domestic and multinational companies and of the government officials and agents who collaborate with them, while ignoring the needs of the citizens and students who are suffering the effects of serious pollution. Thus, educators using these textbooks should strongly consider introducing more real and specific Chinese pollution data to raise awareness of the reality of global environmental problems, and introduce critical perspectives, in order to develop environmentally-aware students.

The aim of this study is to determine how primary school pre-service teachers approach environmental issues via public service announcements and their opinions on them. This study was conducted with case survey model. The study group consisted of 34 primary school pre-service teachers. Data were gathered via public service announcements which are prepared by primary school pre-service teachers and structured interview form. For the analysis of the data, descriptive and content analysis was used. It is determined that pre-service teachers addressed mostly environmental issues about wastes. Primary school pre-service teachers' opinion is more effective to raise awareness if individuals see their behaviors' negative effects and its results on environment on public service announcements. Content which is not definitive does not make sense to primary school pre-service teachers. They appreciate more if the content is more emotional and unique. For this reason, in environmental education, it can be recommended that environmental issues should be reviewed with their different aspects during environmental education. Also it can be recommended that there should be different perspectives about this matter and environmental issues should be associated with real life at environmental education. [This study was presented as an oral presentation at ERPA International Congresses on Education, April 10-12, 2020.]

The association of overweight/obesity, and central obesity with thiocyanate (SCN), perchlorate (CIO), and nitrate (NO) in childhood and adolescence is unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to explore this association in 4447 participants comprising children and adolescents (aged 6-19 years) using data from the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005-2016. SCN level was positively associated with overweight/obesity in both children and adolescents, while CIO level was negatively associated with overweight/obesity only in children; however, no significant association was found for NO level. Similar associations were found between SCN level and central obesity. Thus, our results suggest that SCN exposure was associated with overweight/obesity and central obesity in both children and adolescents, while a negative association was observed for CIO in children. Strategies to monitor the exposure levels and the mechanisms underlying the relationship between exposure and the weight parameters are recommended.

Investigations into the etiology of autism spectrum disorders have been largely confined to two realms: variations in DNA sequence and somatic developmental exposures. Here we suggest a third route--disruption of the germline epigenome induced by exogenous toxicants during a parent's gamete development. Similar to cases of germline mutation, these molecular perturbations may produce dysregulated transcription of brain-related genes during fetal and early development, resulting in abnormal neurobehavioral phenotypes in offspring. Many types of exposures may have these impacts, and here we discuss examples of anesthetic gases, tobacco components, synthetic steroids, and valproic acid. Alterations in parental germline could help explain some unsolved phenomena of autism, including increased prevalence, missing heritability, skewed sex ratio, and heterogeneity of neurobiology and behavior.