House Passes Environmental Education Bill - 9/23/2008

House Passes Environmental Education Bill Environmental education advocates have long argued that the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has pushed environmental education out of the classrooms—and now a federal bill plans to put it back into schools. The No Child Left Inside (NCLI) Act (H.R. 3036) would authorize $500 million over five years to nonprofits and state departments of education to support outdoor learning activities both at school and in non-formal environmental education centers. The bill would also support teacher training and the creation of state environmental literacy plans. As part of the package, NCLI would reauthorize $14 million in FY 2009 for the National Environmental Education Act. NCLI was created to not only get students more acquainted with nature and the complexities of issues like global warming, but to also get them moving. "I think it's responding to a number of anxieties out there, especially childhood obesity and the environment,” said the bill’s sponsor Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD). “The next generation is the one that's going to make or break us as a planet.” The bill supports developing state environmental literacy plans for the purpose of aligning environmental education activities with graduation requirements; ensuring smooth integration of environmental literacy across the curriculum; ensuring consistency in promoting content knowledge; and engaging underserved communities for equal opportunity. However, states would not be mandated to develop such plans; instead, the bill would provide expanded environmental education opportunities in school systems nationwide, according to the NCLI Coalition. Some states, like Maryland and Oregon, aren’t waiting for the bill to pass—they’ve already begun developing environmental literacy programs of their own. NCLI grants could be used to do the following: • Develop and implement challenging state academic content standards, student academic achievement standards, and state curriculum frameworks in environmental education • Provide instruction on waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and compost programs • Create middle school and high school curricula to address issues of environmental justice in which low-income communities are disproportionately affected by certain environmental problems • Develop state environmental literacy plans • Devise ways to increase the number of elementary and secondary environmental educators. In mid-September the bill was passed in the House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support. The bill now goes to the Senate, where it awaits action. School leaders can get involved now by hosting No Child Left Inside Days in their schools and districts. Visit www.cbf.org/ncli to download an action packet with suggested outdoor activities, and to track the bill in Congress. Written by Sarah McKibben, NASSP NewsLeader editor.

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