What strategies can you use to engage students in environmental education?

1 Connect with local issues

One way to make environmental education more relevant and meaningful for your students is to connect it with local issues and contexts. For example, you can explore the environmental impacts and solutions of a nearby landfill, river, park, or farm, and invite local experts, activists, or community members to share their perspectives and experiences. You can also involve your students in authentic projects or actions that address local environmental problems or needs, such as conducting a waste audit, planting a school garden, or organizing a clean-up campaign.

2 Integrate with other subjects

Another way to enhance student engagement in environmental education is to integrate it with other subjects and disciplines, such as math, science, language arts, social studies, or art. This can help you create interdisciplinary and cross-curricular connections that enrich your students' learning and understanding of environmental issues and concepts. For example, you can use math to calculate the carbon footprint of your school, science to investigate the effects of climate change on biodiversity, language arts to write persuasive letters or speeches on environmental topics, social studies to examine the social and cultural dimensions of environmental justice, or art to create posters or sculptures that raise awareness or express emotions about environmental issues.

3 Incorporate student voice and choice

A third way to increase student engagement in environmental education is to incorporate student voice and choice in your planning and delivery. This can help you tap into your students' interests, passions, and strengths, and empower them to take ownership and responsibility for their learning. For example, you can use surveys, interviews, or brainstorming sessions to elicit your students' input and feedback on environmental topics, activities, or projects that they want to learn about or work on. You can also offer your students different options or pathways for learning and demonstrating their understanding of environmental issues and concepts, such as creating a podcast, a video, a presentation, a brochure, or a portfolio.

4 Foster collaboration and dialogue

A fourth way to boost student engagement in environmental education is to foster collaboration and dialogue among your students and with other stakeholders. This can help you create a supportive and respectful learning community that values diverse perspectives and experiences, and encourages critical thinking and problem-solving. For example, you can use cooperative learning strategies, such as jigsaw, think-pair-share, or gallery walk, to promote peer interaction and exchange of ideas on environmental topics. You can also use online platforms, such as blogs, forums, or podcasts, to facilitate communication and collaboration with other students, teachers, or experts from different schools, regions, or countries.

5 Model and celebrate environmental values and actions

A fifth way to inspire student engagement in environmental education is to model and celebrate environmental values and actions in your own practice and school culture. This can help you demonstrate your commitment and leadership for environmental education, and recognize and appreciate your students' efforts and achievements. For example, you can share your own environmental stories, beliefs, or actions with your students, and invite them to do the same. You can also create and implement a school-wide environmental policy or vision, and celebrate your students' environmental projects or actions through newsletters, assemblies, or awards.