Commentary on Rickinson's 'Learners and Learning in Environmental Education: A critical review of the evidence' (EER 7(3))

Abstract

Three central premises are advanced in this commentary. First, the research literature in and closely related to environmental education (EE) has grown in volume and in diverse directions over the past three decades. This alone makes the task of reviewing or synthesizing EE research difficult and problematic. Second, the task of undertaking anything approaching a comprehensive review of any significant portion of that research, such as by Rickinson for the 1993-99 period, is both enormous and complex. Such efforts are to be both respected for the skill and effort involved, and carefully analyzed due to the influence that one individual's conclusions may have on thinking, research, and practice in the field. Third, due to the volume and diversity of this research, and to the magnitude and complexity of the task of reviewing it, it is my contention that this task is better undertaken by teams of researchers rather than by individual researchers working more or less alone. Reasons to support this premise are presented and discussed. In light of these three premises, recommendations for future reviews and syntheses of the EE research literature are offered.