Summary of the Guidelines for the Preparation and Professional Development of Environmental Educators

1. Environmental Literacy: Educators must be competent in the skills and understandings outlined in Excellence in Environmental Education-Guidelines for Learning (Pre K-12).
1.1     Questioning, analysis, and interpretation skills
1.2     Knowledge of environmental processes and systems
1.3     Skills for understanding and addressing environmental issues
1.4     Personal and civic responsibility

2. Foundations of environmental education: Educators must have a basic understanding of the goals, theory, practice, and history of the field of environmental education.
2.1    Fundamental characteristics and goals of environmental education
2.2    How environmental education is implemented
2.3    The evolution of the field

3. Professional responsibilities of the environmental educator: Educators must understand and accept the responsibilities associated with practicing environmental education.
3.1    Exemplary environmental education practice
3.2    Emphasis on education, not advocacy
3.3    Ongoing learning and professional development

4. Planning and implementing environmental education: Educators must combine the fundamentals of high-quality education with the unique features of environmental education to design and implement effective instruction.
4.1    Knowledge of learners
4.2    Knowledge of instructional methodologies
4.3    Planning for instruction
4.4    Knowledge of environmental education materials and resources
4.5    Technologies that assist learning
4.6    Settings for instruction
4.7    Curriculum planning

5. Fostering learning: Educators must enable learners to engage in open inquiry and investigation, especially when considering environmental issues that are controversial and require students to seriously reflect on their own and others’ perspectives.
5.1    A climate for learning about and exploring the environment
5.2    An inclusive and collaborative learning environment
5.3    Flexible and responsive instruction

6. Assessment and evaluation: Environmental educators must possess the knowledge, abilities, and commitment to make assessment and evaluation integral to instruction and programs.
6.1    Learners outcomes
6.2    Assessment that is part of instruction
6.3    Improving instruction
6.4    Evaluating programs