We are planning to organize courses about the environment and water sustainability for school children at the Regional Environmental Center, where I work.
The idea is to educate the children to protect the environment from young age. We wanted to implement the “blue school concept” and we are currently making a program for the course.
Blue school concept is an education model which combines elements of other approaches and unique elements of its own and has water as central theme.
Has anyone had experience with such water programs at community level? Which approach and methods do you propose? Is there a concept based on PRA or something similar?
Please share your experience of conducting and designing similar courses for children and the technical approach you took.
Might change the 'blue', but to expose them to air and earth (soils) might provide a valuable view on interrelation and interaction. Furthermore, if the idea of water as 'H2O' can rather be convayed as a liquid with varying quality, it might open the student up for diversities in water utilisation.
Great idea. But please avoid the feel good politics and be very factual and scientific. Much of the environmental education that teachers and public receive in the USA is from the press, and much of it is biased and not valid.
Minja, there are several child related methodologies that have been developed and tested globally by likes of UNICEF, Wateraid etc including PHAST modules
Great initiative! One aspect, that is mostly not taken into consideration when explaining the wastewater treatment process, is that what we do in a WWTP is closing the cycle from photosynthesis (water + CO2 + sunlight energy > energy rich organic matter + O2), via human and animal consumption and digestion (including O2 uptake) for energy and growth, producing loaded wastewater in the process, back to water and CO2 in the WWTP by supplying micro organisms with atmospheric oxygen, which these use for the digestion of the organic matter in the wastewater.
I had an experience to work on a model called "Eco-water Literacy". This model was implemented in West Bengal where I was a key resource person. This was a community level programme. I have a couple of academic papers based on my experience with this project. If you are interested please mail me at: sengupta_pradip@yahoo.com. The paper is available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279456355_Role_of_Science_Communication_for_Grass_Root_Level_Capacity_Building_in_Eco-Hydrology_-_Case_Study_in_West_Bengal_India
The Centre for Science and Environment in New Delhi, India has been doing some interesting work in setting up information/resource centres around community water management for quite some time now. you may want to get in touch with them for some interesting ideas on interactive demonstration models to explain concepts and technologies in water management.
I think it is a good idea the water programme. I got some experience about the water now. I mostly focus on social science aspects related to water supply such as privatization, health and socio-economic factors. The methods I used are mostly econometrics.
I would like to propose that this course should be activity based. First Explain what is hydro logical cycle through activities and examples. Difference between Freshwater and Marine water. Water is essential for life explain through examples. Different uses of water and their dependency on each other (ecosystem approach). You can also link it with climate change factors and mentioned about any disturbance in Hyrological can also create problems for all biodiversity including humans.
Minja, what a wonderful idea. The MARE curriculum by Lawrence Hall of Science and Project WET are both excellent. All the best to you and this important, timely effort.