Free-choice Learning and the Environment

by Falk, John H.; Heimlich, Joe E.; Foutz, Susan; Ady, Janet; Andrews, Elaine; Ardoin, Nicole; Ballantyne, Roy; Bexell, Sarah M.; Braus, Judy; Brochu, Lisa; Brody, Michael; Bronnenkant, Kerry; Merriman, Tim; Monroe, Corinne; Myers, Olin E., Jr.; Packer, Jan;

• ISBN13: 9780759111233
• ISBN10: 0759111235
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-05-16
• Publisher: AltaMira Press

Summary

Most environmental learning takes place outside of the formal education system, but our understanding of how this learning actually occurs is in its infancy. By surfing the internet, watching nature documentaries, and visiting parks, forests, marine sanctuaries, and zoos, people make active choices to learn about various aspects of their environment every day. Free-Choice Learning and the Environment explores the theoretical foundations of free-choice environmental education, the practical implications for applying theory to the education of learners of all ages, and the policy implications for creating new and sustainable environmental education opportunities.

Author Biography

John H. Falk is Sea Grant Professor in free-choice learning at Oregon State University and founder and former president of the Institute for Learning Innovation. He is coauthor of Thriving in the Knowledge Age, Lessons without Limit, and Free-Choice Science Education, as well as coeditor of In Principle, In Practice: Museums as Learning Institutions. Joe E. Heimlich is Specialist, OSUExtension@COSI, a professor at The Ohio State University, and a senior research associate with the Institute for Learning Innovation. He has worked in the arena of free-choice environmental education for more than twenty years. Susan Foutz is a research associate at the Institute for Learning Innovation and is Coeditor of In Principle, In Practice.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Introduction	p. 1
Background and Theory
Free-Choice Learning and the Environment	p. 11
Who is the Free-Choice Environmental Education Learner?	p. 23
Fostering Empathy with Wildlife: Factors Affecting Free-Choice Learning for Conservation Concer and Behavior	p. 39
Behavior Change Theories and Free-Choice Environmental Learning Nicole Ardoin	p. 57
Informing Practice
From Mission to Practice	p. 77
Tools of Engagement: How Education and Other Social Strategies Can Engage People in Conservation Action	p. 87
How Can Participatory Action Research Inform Free-Choice Learning Pedagogy and Research in Environmental Education Contexts?	p. 105
Environmental Literacy through the Lens of Aquarium Ocean Literacy Efforts	p. 123
Envisioning the Future
Free-Choice Environmental Learning in Practice: Research to Inform Environmental Education Practice	p. 141
Future Directions for Research in Free-Choice Environmental Learning	p. 157
The Federal Government and Free-Choice Learning	p. 171
References	p. 181
Index	p. 207
About the Contributors	p. 211
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