Effects of Pre- and Posttrip Activities Associated With a Residential Environmental Education Experience on Students' Attitudes Toward the Environment

Abstract

The authors measured the impact of adding pre- and posttrip in-class activities to the residential environmental education program at the New Jersey School of Conservation (NJSOC). Seventh-grade students (N = 169) from a suburban, northern New Jersey school district participated in a 3-day, 2-night experience. The Environmental Adaptation, Environmental Trust, and Pastoralism subscales of the Children's Environmental Response Inventory developed by Bunting and Cousins (1983, 1985) were used to assess the impact of the NJSOC program and the supplemental activities on students' attitudes toward the environment. Statistically significant results were found only for students who received both the pre- and posttrip activity and only for the Environmental Adaptation subscale.

Keywords:

• attitudes
• children
• evaluation
• residential environmental education
• pre/post activities