Ecologically minded teaching

Abstract

This study builds upon ongoing research of ecological mindedness by exploring how teachers appraise and incorporate ecological care, interconnectedness, and ecological integrity into lesson planning, as well as how teachers reconcile these qualities with their current professional responsibilities. These topics are explored through educational connoisseurship and criticism, using think alouds to learn from teachers as they plan lessons with the qualities of ecological mindedness as a framework. Findings indicate that teachers view ecological mindedness as relevant for schools in terms of content, engagement, and students’ lives; as compatible with standards and other external mandates; and as a form of character education.

Keywords:

• Environmental education
• curriculum
• teacher planning

Notes

1. While we embrace a more thorough inclusion of environmental ethics and associated topics such as anthropocentrism, ecocentrism, individualism, ecofeminism and others (see Armstrong and Botzler 1993) for potential inclusion in K-12 education, ecological mindedness has a different aim as a thematic thread across disciplines.

2. For a full elaboration of the theoretical basis of the qualities, please see (Moroye and Ingman 2013).

3. In our research we refer to the ‘qualities’ of ecological mindedness. In our think alouds with teachers, we also used the term ‘themes’.

4. During World War I, on and around Christmas Day in 1914, British and German soldiers engaged in an unofficial cease fire, even singing carols to each other across enemy lines.

5. Different parameters for the think alouds, such as introducing the key concepts in advance, increasing the time for work, or allowing independent work time, may have increased the production of lesson plans within this study.

6. Colorado Senate Bill 191 (2012), The Teacher Effectiveness Law.

7. See http://www.corestandards.org for information on the US Common Core initiative (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers 2010).

8. For a discussion of essential questions, see Wiggins and McTighe (2005), Understanding by Design.

9. We were unable to locate a Common Core standard that directly addressed interconnectedness. Because Amanda was referring to her district website, it may have been a combination of her district and state standards.

10. Our particular objection to character education deals with what Spring (2014) refers to as ‘associating poverty with a failure in individual character and values’ (111). We disagree with the deficit perspective of those experiencing poverty and do not suggest that ecological mindedness is a match with the conservative notion of character education, even though we note that NCLB legislation and ecological mindedness both speak of caring as a value (see Spring 2014, 112).