A Study on Development of Environmental Education Curriculum Based on the Standpoint of Ecology - A Survey of Environmental Education Situations and Needs Assessment of School Teachers -

생태학적 관점에 입각한 환경 교육과정 개발 연구 - 교사에 대한 환경 교육 실태조사와 요구분석을 중심으로 -

This research aims to collect informations which is necessary to develop a curriculum for the environmental education of elementary and secondary schools. We developed a questionnaire concerning the present situations of environmental education in schools and needs assessment items about environmental education. The questionnaire were distributed to a sample of elementary and secondary school teachers with diverse grades and locations. The results of our reserch are as fellows: 1. The awareness of key concepts related to environment problems. They are not aware of ecological interdependence but just focus on the result of environmental deterioration 2. The awareness of importance of environmental education: Teachers prefer campaigns or legislations to environmental education. They want to take an Immediate action rather than a fundmental method like education in order to solve environmental problems 3. The awareness of relationships between environmental problems and natural or man-made circumstances: Most teachers emphasize recycle and reuse of the materials such as batteries, papers, plastics, cans. and bottles. but do not teach the importance of ecology. Only science and environment teachers do. 4. Environmentalism or ecology? Ideally teachers accept the importance of ecology, but in reality they cohoose environmentalism. 5. On the content and method of environmental education: Teachers insist that both environmental instruction and practical, first-hand experience should be given to not only elementary but secondary students, and that most of subject matters should deal with environmental issues. 6. On the situations and tasks of environmental education: School teachers indicate that they could not instill positive patterns of conduct toward environment in students. They think that both insufficient in-service training about environment and cooperation among teachers themselves are partially responsible for it.