EE and the Reauthorization of the "No Child Left Behind" Act

Take Action: Tell Congress to support including environmental education in NCLB

Studies consistently confirm that the U.S. public suffers from a tremendous environmental literacy gap that appears actually be increasing rather than decreasing. For example, 2/3rds of the public fail even a basic environmental quiz¹ (and a whopping 88% of the public fail a basic energy quiz²). Thus, while the public?s environmental awareness is significantly improving due to the increasing visibility of these issues, individuals remain functionally illiterate about the environment, as well as divorced from a sense of personal responsibility about solving environmental problems.

The "No Child Left Behind" Act (NCLB) is contributing to this increasing literacy gap by reducing the already modest amount of environmental education taking place in k-12 classrooms. Its emphasis on testing for core subjects is causing many administrators to eliminate environmental education in favor of investing more resources in math and language arts, and also causing science teachers to eliminate those aspects of science class that do not appear to relate directly to questions on state science tests³. And more importantly, many critical aspects of cutting-edge environmental education (e.g., understanding the critical relationship between environment and economy) do not correlate at all to state science test questions.

NCLB will likely be considered for reauthorization by Congress in 2007. While NCLB is highly controversial, indications at this early stage are that it is likely to be reauthorized and that the new Congress will insist upon significant changes. This gives the environmental education community an opportunity to try to use the reauthorized version of NCLB, flawed as it is or may be, to actually help - instead of continue to hurt - EE. Thus, the reauthorization of LNCB presents an opportunity to not only reverse the unintended negative impact of the original Act on EE, but also to prepare the next generation for the challenges they will face.

What changes should be sought in NCLB? Virtually every title of NCLB could incorporate environmental education, and thus we are initially seeking to include EE in as many titles as possible. We also are proposing that some portion of the $250 million of environmental fines generated by EPA each year be allocated to a new environmental education grant program.

CEL, with the help of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, is enlisting the support of the environmental education community, as well as our allies in business and health, in the home districts of key legislators. We are helping these groups reach out to those legislators and enlist them in this campaign.

Our first meeting with Senator Kennedy?s staff in October was encouraging (see the EE community?s "Letter to Senator Kennedy"). We are currently looking to arrange meetings with Senators Clinton, Boxer, Reed, Mikulski and Gregg, and Representatives George Miller and Michael Castle. We encourage you to contact CEL if you are willing and able to help with reaching out to these Members of Congress.

¹The National Report Card on Environmental Attitudes, Knowledge, and Behavior, Roper Starch Worldwide, National Environmental Education and Training Foundation, 2001.

²America's Low "Energy IQ:" A Risk to Our Energy Future, National Environmental Education and Training Foundation, RoperASW, 2002.

³While many aspects of environmental education actually can help improve student science test scores, often teachers are not sufficiently trained in environmental education to make these connections.