Grounded in the Achievement Orientation Model, this qualitative case study examines participation in enrichment and environmental perceptions of gifted secondary school students. Participants included 10 gifted secondary school students, their parents, and their classroom teacher. Data included student, parent, and teacher responses in…

Recent educational studies have shown increasing lack of interest and participation of youth (ages 10-14 years old) in various STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields in the U.S. The decline in the number of youth choosing to study STEM fields in higher education and the resulting lack of STEM professionals in the society…

Since the 1980s, scholars have suggested that environmental education (EE) has a "definitional problem" represented by a multiplicity of perspectives that have critically impacted its discourse, practices, and outcomes. This study sought to investigate how North American EE practitioners from backgrounds ranging from formal and…

In this study, we used the classification and regression trees (CART) method to draw relationships between student self-reported learning outcomes in 26 field trips to natural environments and various characteristics of the field trip that include variables associated with preparation and pedagogy. We wished to examine the extent to which the…

This paper focuses on how the arts heighten cognitive experiences through the use of natural materials and sites and the engagement with the natural world. The arts expose viewers to new ways of seeing, feeling, and thinking about nature; this can lead to greater awareness of and motivation to act on behalf of nature. The author examines the…

Significant life experience research suggests that outdoor experiences foster proenvironmental outcomes. Time spent outdoors is more frequently identified as the source of proenvironmental behavior than is education, suggesting that cognition may be less important than affect. Yet, environmental education field programs are often evaluated on…

The organizers of the Decade for Childhood have formulated Ten Pillars of a Good Childhood as basic requirements for an optimal childhood. The pillars can be used to analyze the quality of childhood in homes and nations, and to guide policies and practices related to the experience of childhood. In this article, the author shall illustrate, pillar…

Proposes a framework for approaching and evaluating current global conservation conditions in terms of psychological, intellectual, and moral behavior. Applies the psychoanalytic theory of Velikovsky, the intellectual development theory of Piaget, and Kolberg's theory of moral development in analyzing the current status and future needs of global…

Presents a conceptual model of how young children learn about the physical environment, reviewing theories concerning environmental cognition and moral development. Notes that children in developed nations receive much of their information about the environment from the media and are often exposed to conflicting viewpoints about the natural world.…

Individuals may be able to exert considerable control over their perceptual experience and environmental awareness by deliberately varying their "cognitive sets" - plans for selecting and processing information. This theme is explored and a research project, which included eleven experiments, on the effects of cognitive sets is reported. (BT)

Identifies the principle types of cognitive and affective influences which contribute to the development of an individual's conceptual framework. Explains how external influences affect a child's interpretation of the environment. Urges that multidimensional experiences be offered to children and that students' perceptual levels, personal…

Traces, through an autobiographical format, the development of a model for teaching urban studies in the primary grades which addresses eight different features including cognitive development, first hand experience, key concepts, and multidisciplinarity. Provides concrete examples of how the model may be used in practice. (DC)

This digest describes a selection of environmental education research studies that were included in the ERIC system in 1985. It is noted that much of the reported research in environmental education continues to deal with the affective domain, but that there are stronger efforts toward relating affective components with knowledge gain,…

Reports the results of a longitudinal study investigating environmental cognitive sets (ways of thinking or perceiving about one's surroundings). The cognitive sets were designed to promote awareness of environmental problems and possibilities and to induce aesthetic experience, environmental understanding, and a playful and creative orientation…

Compares the results of surveys done in 1975 and 1985 with Indiana teachers regarding their physical environment and related problems. Results indicated that teachers had limited environmental literacy but had higher marks in 1985 than in 1975. (TW)