IMPLEMENTATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION, CASE STUDY: ACTIVATING THE "GREEN SCHOOL" PROGRAM AMONG ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN ISRAEL

Arny MARCUS

ABSTRACT: Environmental education is a relatively young area. It relates to a global concern, which gave birth to two historical documents: the Belgrade Charter (UNESCO, 1976) and the Tbilisi Declaration (UNESCO, 1977). These documents raised the need for environmental education, which will serve as a tool of creating a change and developing population who is aware of the environmental crisis and has the obligation to act on a personal and collective basis to solve environmental problems and prevent the creation of future ones. In Israel, an educational initiative; the "Green School" program was initiated in order to promote sustainable development and active environmental citizenship. This article portrays a study that examined the contribution of implementing this initiative in relation to students' environmental literacy in terms of its three major components: knowledge, attitudes and behavior (Simmons, 1995, 1998).Research findings indicate that implementing the "Green School" program might promote pro-environmental behavior. Furthermore, these programs were found to affect both school's curriculum and activities and the community in which it operated. The practical implication of this research suggest more clarity regarding the importance of infusing 'green school' programs as an integral part of schools' lifestyle.

Keywords: "Green School" program, environmental literacy, environmental education (EE), sustainable development (SD), place-based education.

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