Value education and environmental education

After the completion of this article, you will be able to –

1. To understand the concept of value education
2. To understand the nature and scope of value education with regard to the Indian Education system
3. To understand the concept of environment ecology and Education
4. To grasp the significance of environmental education
5. To understand the nature and scope of environmental education with regard to Indian policies.
6. You will be able to answer questions based on Value education and environmental education
7. To appreciate the need for Value education and environmental education.

Value education

According to C. V. Good —” Value-education is the aggregate of all the process by means of which a person develops abilities, attitudes and other forms of behavior of the positive values in the society in which he lives.”

According to Father of Indian Nation M.K.Gandhi:  “If wealth is lost nothing is lost If health is lost something is lost If a character is lost everything is lost”

• Accordingly, the National Conference On Minimum Curriculum Standards for primary stage organized by NCERT (National Council For Educational Research and Training) in July 1970, emphasized the importance of inculcating in the students moral and spiritual values which form a part of our culture viz., honesty, kindness, charity, tolerance, courtesy, sympathy and compassion.
• The National Seminar on Primary and Work-oriented Education organized by NCERT in November 1976, in the context of International Education Year recognized the relevance and importance of the Gandhian Values in reforming education.
• The National Policy on Education has laid considerable emphasis on Value Education by highlighting the need to make education a forceful tool for the cultivation of social and moral values.  The policy has stated that in our culturally plural society education should factor universal and eternal values oriented towards the unity and integration of our people.

Dr. Kothari (1964-66) tried to emphasize the value viz., democracy, socialism, and equality of all religions. He attached great importance to achieving skills through science and technology and also balanced the development of human values.

• National Education Policy (1986) studied the Indian background and came to the conclusion that religious education is not possible in India as India is a country with many religions. N.E.P. (1986) therefore advocated the concept of value education, giving extensive meaning to the term moral education.
• In pre-independence and after independence, several commissions and committees recommended character education, religious education and moral education. According to
• National Education policy of 1986, moral and religious education were broadly defined and coined into value education.

Dr. Gawande (1994) had tried to investigate types of value and their areas. He noticed the following types of value and their areas:

Definition of human value

1. Truthfulness – To have constant practice to approach reality or truthfulness.
2. Constructivity – To help for the good undertaking.
3. Sacrifice – To help without selfish motive.
4. Sincerity -To work in stipulated time as assigned.
5. Self-control – To have control over an individual’s mind for action.
6. Altruism – To behave with others with love and to consider their well-being and happiness first.
7. Scientific vision – To find out the scientific reasons for a problem.

National value or constitutional value:

Each country has its own independent constitution in which specific values are included. They are called national values or constitutional values, e.g. Following values are included in the Indian Constitution.

Social value:

Each country preserves some values according to its culture and these values are preserved in land protected. Dr. Chilan has fixed the following values of Indian society viz. Pity, Self Control, Universal brotherhood, honesty, respect, and faith.

Professional Value:

Many professionals are in existence and each profession has got its own independent values e.g. the Following are the values of the teaching profession:  Knowledge thrust, Sincerity in profession, Regularity, and Faith.

Religious Value:

Each religion has got its independent status, principles, and rules e.g. Following values are included in the Boudha religion. Wisdom, Character, and Pity. Some values are common to all religions, whereas some values are attached to a particular religion only and are the specialties of that particular religion.

Aesthetic Value:

Environmental Education

Environmental education enables learners to develop a structure of knowledge about the world and seek knowledge that they can use and develop throughout their lives. Environmental education empowers learners by enabling them to participate in a sustainable future. Thus the foundation for lifelong learning is laid by environmental education.

Environmental study is based upon a comprehensive view of various environmental systems. It aims to make the citizens competent to do scientific work and find out practical solutions to current environmental problems. The citizens acquire the ability to analyze the environmental parameters like the aquatic, terrestrial and atmospheric systems and their interactions with the biosphere and atmosphere.

Meaning of Environmental Education

• The concept of environmental education (EE) was first formalized by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), in 1970 at a meeting in Nevada, USA, as a process of recognizing values and classifying concepts in order to develop skills and attitudes necessary to understand and appreciate the inter-relatedness among man, his culture and his biophysical surroundings.
• Subsequently, Environmental Education was recognized and its development was recommended by the World Community as a measure for the understanding, protection, and improvement of the environment and its quality(United Nations, 1972; UNESCO-UNEP, 1976).
• The world’s first Intergovernmental Conference on Environmental Education was held in Tbilisi, Georgia.
• A major outcome of Tbilisi gave a detailed description of the objectives of environmental education viz: awareness, knowledge, attitudes, skills, and participation.
• The 4th International Conference on Environmental Education was held at Center for Environment Education, Ahmadabad from November 24th to November 28th, 2007.
• The aim of this Conference was to understand what has emerged out of the discipline of Environment Education (EE) since the Tbilisi declaration and the role of EE within Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

The Evolution of Environmental Education-An Indian perspective

• The honorable Supreme Court of India in 1991 made environmental education compulsory at all levels of education.
• The Centre for Environment Education (CEE), in partnership with the Departments of Education and academic institutions, carry out teacher training in EE.
• The State’s responsibility with regard to environmental protection has been laid down under Article 48-A of our Constitution, which reads as follows: “The State shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country”.
• The National Policy on Education 1986 (renewed in 1992) stated: There is a paramount need to create a consciousness of the environment. It must permeate all ages and all sections of society, beginning with the child.
• The National Curriculum Framework 2005 envisages that Environmental Education be imparted in an infusion model in the Upper Primary and Secondary stages of school education with an aim to bring about sensitivity towards the
• International bodies and programs, such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MoEF), and Centre for Environmental Education (CEE) have also been active in supporting environmental education
• Today EE in the formal educational system in India is handled at three levels. It is a composite subject called Environment at the primary school level; it is infused into the environment in regular school subjects at the middle and secondary school level and is a separate subject at the college level. For EE to be effectively taken up in the curricular, co-curricular, and extracurricular mode, resources and facilities have to be built up and strengthened both within and outside the school and college system.
• The State Departments of Education in the respective states administer the institutions for pre-service teacher training courses. The teaching of Environmental Studies (EVS) is placed under both science and Social Studies syllabi recommended by the NCERT.
• The National Council of Teacher Education has recommended EE as a chapter in its overall syllabus and guidelines for B. Ed. Colleges in the country.
• The NCERT, State Councils of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), and the District Institute of Educational Technology (DIET) are largely involved in in-service training in India.
• ‘Green Teacher’ is a distance education course in Environment Education, for practicing teachers launched by the Centre for Environment Education, Ahmedabad, India in collaboration with the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), Canada in 2005. It is a one-year diploma program for teachers and educators.

Characteristics of Environmental Education

• Environmental Education is one of the most effective tools for increasing the general level of public environmental awareness, developing skills for solving environmental problems, and maintaining and improving the quality of life and the
• The aim of environmental education has been modified to emphasize ―environmental education for sustainable development‖ (EESD) which has broader implications not only for environmental education but also for development, poverty, population, and gender (DESD, 2005-2014).
• It is expected that environmental education will promote environmentally sustainable societies throughout the world through EESD (DESD, 2005-2014).
• EE can develop students ‘skills and knowledge to deal with the current environment Environmental learning can increase students ‘critical ecological awareness of both local and global environments.
• Environmental education often develops environment-related school-community partnerships and youth programs outside formal education

Need for Environmental Education

The need to protect the environment hence the rationales for environmental education arise as a result of the following:

• The environment is the basis of all life and therefore deserves proper care and management.
• If the environment is threatened on a continuous basis, numerous problems which would constitute a danger to human existence could arise.
• The environment is part of our cultural heritage which should be handed down to prosperity.
• Some resources of the environment are not easily replaceable and should be managed on a sustainable basis, to prevent the extinction of certain components of the environment such as plants and animals.
• There is a need to enhance the sanity and aesthetic quality of our environment in order to promote healthy living.
• The environment is part of nature and needs to be preserved for its own sake.

Objectives of Environmental Education

• Awareness: To acquire an awareness and sensitivity to the total environment and its allied problems;

• Knowledge: To gain a variety of experiences in and acquire a basic understanding of, the environment and its associated problems;

• Attitudes: To acquire a set of values and feelings of concern for the environment and motivation for actively participating in environmental improvement and protection;

• Skills: To acquire the skills for identifying and solving environmental problems;

• Participation: To encourage citizens to be actively involved at all levels in working toward the resolution of environmental problems (UNESCO, 1978).

• Evaluation ability: To evaluate environmental measures and education programs in terms of social, economic, ecological, and aesthetic factors.

Environmental Education for Sustainable Development (EESD)

• Environmental education is a learning process that increases people’s knowledge and awareness about the environment and associated challenges develops the necessary skills and expertise to address the challenges and fosters attitudes, motivations, and commitments to make informed decisions and take responsible action (UNESCO, Tbilisi Declaration, 1977).
• Environmental education has been placed at the center of efforts to achieve sustainable development for the last several decades. International agreements such as Agenda 21, for example, have called for a re-orientation of all education towards sustainability (UNCED, 1992, Chapter 36).
• India adopted a new paradigm of thinking and experience of development post-Stockholm Conference of 1972 called Sustainable Development (SD), following which, India became a part of 187 countries agreeing on carrying out an important commitment toward SD by signing the Rio Declaration during the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development.
• The Government of India’s sensitivity and commitment to sustainable and inclusive growth is reflected in the major policies of various ministries and also specific initiatives and programs adopted through its Five Year Plans so as to achieve sustainability and MDGs (Millennium Development Goals).
• In order to achieve the goals of sustainable development, one of the first steps taken was in the direction of environment conservation and protection by promoting Environment education. This strategy was adopted post-Stockholm conference by setting up centers of Excellence for Environment Education under the Ministry of Environment in the early 1980s

SUGGESTED READINGS

1. ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION.pdf (bdu.ac.in)
2. Role of Various Values in Education