Resources for Educational Materials Related to Environmental Education, K-12. ERIC/SMEAC Environmental Education Digest No. 4

Are you looking for sources of materials to use to supplement your environmental education curriculum? This digest identifies selected sources of materials for environmental education.WHAT ARE SOME SOURCES FOR LOCATING A VARIETY OF K-12

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION MATERIALS?

ERICThe ERIC system includes 16 clearinghouses, ACCESS ERIC, the ERIC Document Reproduction Service, the ERIC Facility, nearly 900 sites with ERIC collections, ORYX Press and vendors who make ERIC available for online or CD-ROM searching.

ERIC system products include (1) RESOURCES IN EDUCATION (RIE), a publication containing abstracts of selected documents including environmental education curriculum guides, activity manuals, and teacher guides; and (2) CURRENT INDEX TO JOURNALS IN EDUCATION (CIJE), a monthly publication containing annotations of selected education journal articles including environmental education items.

Microfiche are available to view for most items abstracted in RESOURCES IN EDUCATION at many libraries. Microfiche and paper copy of most items are available for purchase from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service.

Each clearinghouse produces digests and other publications related to its scope areas and serves as an information source for its scope area. A list of environmental education publications produced by ERIC/SMEAC can be requested by mail or phone.

ACCESS ERIC was established to help users obtain general information about ERIC. For information about sites with ERIC collections, how to search ERIC, or other general ERIC questions you can write ACCESS ERIC or call toll free 1-800-USE-ERIC.UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (US EPA)The US EPA's Public Information Center provides access to a variety of publications on environmental topics. Most materials are nontechnical.

The US EPA has produced "Environmental Education Materials for Teachers and Young People (Grades K-12)," an annotated list of educational materials and sources related to a variety of environmental issues. Entries indicate materials available and range from workbooks and lesson plans to newsletters, films, and computer software.

Some technical documents on the environment are available through the EPA Library and other EPA sources.PUBLIC BROADCASTING SYSTEM (PBS)PBS has produced the "Environmental Resource Compendium--1990: The Year of the Environment," a listing of many materials and sources on the environment. Included are lists of (1) broadcast videos; (2) nonbroadcast videos; (3) slide shows and filmstrips; (4) books for grades K-12; (5) resource periodicals and publications; (6) computer resources, including online resources; (7) environmental groups and program distributors (a good list of organizations and corporations that distribute educational resource materials for grades K-12); and (8) environmental education resource facilities.NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATIONThe National Wildlife Federation annually produces "The Conservation Directory," a reference guide to environmental conservation in North America. It provides an up-to-date reference on organizations, federal and state agencies, colleges and universities with programs, national forests and parks, and publications. It has a subject index that includes more than 60 categories.

The National Wildlife Federation also produces many environmental education materials, including "Nature Scope."

National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)

The National Science Teachers Association produces an annual publication entitled "Education Suppliers." The 1990 edition contains sections with addresses and descriptions of materials available from (1) equipment suppliers, (2) computer software suppliers, (3) media producers, (4) textbook publishers, (5) program and resource material publishers, and (6) tradebook publishers. Included are many sources of information for environmental education.WHAT ARE SOME REFERENCES TO REVIEWS OF PRINT MATERIALS?The previous sources contain references to titles and commercial and non-commercial sources of print materials. Other publications contain descriptions and reviews of materials.

"Booklist," published by the American Library Association, contains descriptions and reviews of many environmental publications including reference books, books for supplementing the curriculum, and books for recreational reading. It is available at many college and public libraries.

"Books in Print," published by Bowker, is a compilation of reviews on books and also contains many references related to environmental education.WHAT ARE SOME SELECTED REFERENCES TO REVIEWS OF AUDIOVISUAL

AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE MATERIALS?"The AudioVideo Review Digest: A Guide to Reviews of Audio and Video Materials Appearing in General and Specialized Periodicals" indexes and abstracts reviews from about 600 periodicals. It is published three times a year with an annual cumulation.

The Education Products Information Exchange (EPIE) publishes "T.E.S.S.: The Educational Software Selector." This guide provides a comprehensive listing of courseware with evaluations obtained from a variety of review sources.

The Northwest Regional Education Laboratory produces a computer software database entitled "Resources in Computer Education" (RICE). RICE is available on floppy disc or in print form and includes descriptions and evaluations of materials.

Bowker has produced "Only the Best, The Annual Guide to Highest Rated Educational Software Preschool - Grade 12" (1990) and "Only the Best, The Cumulative Guide to Highest-Rated Educational Software, 1985-1989 Preschool - Grade 12." Bowker also publishes "Software for Schools" and "The Software Encyclopedia."WHAT IS ECONET?There are several online computer services that contain information of interest to environmental educators. Online services such as Dialog and BRS contain databases, including ERIC. EcoNet, however, is designed solely to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas concerning the environment, environmental issues, and environmental education.

EcoNet is a communication system operated by the Institute for Global Communications (IGC) based in San Francisco. EcoNet provides three major services: data bases, computer conferences, and electronic mail. The data bases include bibliographies for various environmental issues and technical data on numerous subjects. The computer conferences serve as "bulletin boards" that allow a user to post information on a topic and respond to statements by others. These conferences provide a forum for communication between EcoNet users on a wide range of topics. Private conferences are useful for joint research and group decisions. Public conferences are well suited for news, announcements, calendars, and general information. Electronic mail allows users to send private messages to each other instantly.

Additional bulletin boards are being added to EcoNet to make it even more useful to educators.WHAT IS A GOOD SOURCE OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION ON THE

ENVIRONMENT?The single most comprehensive source of information is the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). NTIS abstracts and indexes many types of technical publications including research studies, reports, and bibliographies. Copies of most materials can be obtained in microfiche or paper copy. NTIS can be searched online through commercial vendors such as Dialog and BRS. NTIS also produces "The Environmental Pollution and Control" abstract newsletter that lists publications on a variety of environmental topics. While most of the publications are for postsecondary level people, many are of use to teachers developing curricula and instructional materials and for secondary school students doing research projects.WHAT LOCAL AND STATE SOURCES CAN BE OF ASSISTANCE?Many excellent resources are available from county or the State Department of Education, Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Agriculture, State Energy Office, and others.

Local sources that should be contacted are: museums and nature centers, zoos, parks, environmental organizations, business and industry, and colleges and universities.WHAT PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS HAVE SPECIAL MATERIALS ANDSERVICES FOR K-12 TEACHERS?

Environmental education is an interdisciplinary area of study. Therefore, many associations in the sciences, social sciences, and the arts have journals, publications, conferences and services of interest. Two groups that focus exclusively on environmental education are the Alliance for Environmental Education and the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE).

The Alliance for Environmental Education, a coalition of corporations and non-profit organizations, has developed a Network for Environmental Education of colleges and universities that have environmental education programs; these centers provide services to schools in their areas. The Alliance also has a useful periodical called the NETWORK EXCHANGE that contains descriptions of programs and materials. It is available by subscription.

The NAAEE holds conferences each year that include teachers of environmental education and produces a variety of publications of interest to teachers. The proceedings of the annual conferences contain descriptions of programs and materials for K-12 as well as postsecondary levels.SELECTED SOURCES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION INFORMATION

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ACCESS ERICAspen Systems Corporation

1600 Research Blvd.

Rockville, MD 20850

800-873-3742

--Alliance for Environmental Education

10751 Ambassador Dr., Suite 201

Manassas, VA 22110 (703) 631-6754

--EcoNet

3228 Sacramento St.

San Francisco, CA 94115 (415) 923-0900

--Education Products Information Exchange (EPIE)

P.O. Box 839

Water Mill, NY 11976 (516) 283-4922

--North American Association for Environmental Education

P.O. Box 400

Troy, OH 45373 (513) 698-6493

--National Science Teachers Association

1742 Connecticut Ave., NW

Washington, DC 20009 (202) 328-5800

--National Technical Information Service (NTIS)

U.S. Dept. of Commerce

Springfield, VA 22161 (703) 487-4650

--National Wildlife Federation

1400 - 16th St., NW

Washington, DC 20036 (202) 797-6800

--Northwest Regional Education Laboratory

101 SW Main St., Suite 500

Portland, OR 97204 (503) 275-9500

--Public Broadcasting Service

PBS Elementary/Secondary Service

1320 Braddock Place

Alexandria, VA 22314 (703) 739-5038

--R. R. Bowker

245 W. 17th St.

New York, NY 10011 (212) 645-9700

--United States Environmental Protection Agency

Public Information Center

401 "M" Street, SW

Washington, DC 20460 (202) 475-7751

SELECTED REFERENCESEducation Suppliers. National Science Teachers Association, Washington, DC, 1990.

Environmental Education Materials for Teachers and Young People (Grades K-12). United States Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Community and Intergovernmental Relations, Washington, DC, 1988. ED 301 461.

Environmental Resource Compendium-1990: The Year of the Environment. Public Broadcasting Service, Alexandria, VA, 1990. Price $10.00.

Science and Environmental Education Resource Guide, 1989. California State Department of Education, Sacramento, CA, 1989.

The Audiovideo Review Digest: A Guide to Reviews of Audio and Video Materials Appearing in General and Specialized Periodicals. Produced quarterly, Gale Research, Inc., Detroit, MI.

The Conservation Directory-1990. National Wildlife Federation, Washington, DC, 1990.