Page 120 - Cultural Studies of Science Education

7 Engaging the Environment 97

“they are” the people and political structure of Louisville or how they contribute
to the problem of surface coal mining and the loss of biodiversity, water quality,
and cultural traditions.

Analyzing Deeply Embedded Ideologies (Situated in Practice)

Peter: Connections to the natural world through thinking, teaching, and relationships
with nature and community in ways that involve students have also been developed
and promoted through environmental curricula such as Project Wild or Project
Learning Tree. While well-intentioned, these prepackaged curricular materials
focus on the management of natural resources and are implemented through teacher
training workshops. While the original intent of these kinds of activity-based expe-
riences might contribute to developing a sense of connections with the earth, from
an ecofeminist or ecosociocultural worldview, they have been seen by some educa-
tors as a demonstration of man’s separation from nature (dominance) because of the
reinforcement of “humans managing the land.” These kinds of environmental cur-
ricular resources seem to be a poor stepchild to the greater expectations of tradi-
tional science content standards and therefore do not hold the same ranking of
importance in school classrooms, even while they may develop important aesthetic
and affective cognitive affiliations in science. When these activities are used in
classrooms, with a focus on our “connectedness with nature,” rather than our “sepa-
ration from nature,” many schools offer them as “electives” in environmental science,
which appeals to a handful of interested students. When workshops are provided
for Project Wild and other similar Project et al. programs, they usually occur over
a period of only a few short days. This short-term training provides teachers with a
snapshot of what might be engaging and mind-provoking, or how they might chal-
lenge ideologies embedded within the curricula, as well as activities for students to
learn about the natural world, including ways in which teachers and students can
challenge popular modes of thought.
One way in which science teachers become more aware of the interconnected-
ness of the physical and living environment is to incorporate elements of these Wild
et al. projects with environmental and science concepts into their courses while
simultaneously providing opportunities for students to take responsibility for their
action. Doing so enables stronger links between the interconnectedness we all have
to nature while concomitantly eliciting a context for students to think about what
they pay attention to. Not only do these kinds of activities reinforce environmental
education and ecojustice then, but they engage a more diverse and growing popula-
tion of learners in US schools.
Before moving on, I want to address a significant issue that arises out of Teddie’s
discussion of mountain top removal. It is valuable to further explore a few
vulnerabilities.
“But the Mountain Does Nothing for Me!” A Paradox of Misunderstanding and a Rationale
to Enrich Vulnerable Environmental Education.