The Systemic Impacts of a Large-Scale Socio-Environmental Educational Program
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21664/2238-8869.2020v9i3.p09-32Palabras clave:
Environmental Awareness, Project-Based Learning, Systemic Analysis, Social-Ecological ChangeResumen
In this article we present our findings regarding the systemic impacts of the Environmental Education for the Communities (ECOA) program, an educational program sponsored by the Alcoa Institute. The program, which was developed from 2014 to 2016 in Brazil, involved one corporation (Alcoa Institute), one educational consulting firm (Evoluir), seven Municipal Departments of Education and 30 schools and its surrounding communities. The program promoted environmental awareness following a project-based learning approach: first the students became aware of certain socio-environmental problems in their areas, and then they developed projects to address these problems with support of local communities and guidance from teachers and Evoluir’s educators. Our research objective was to understand the impacts of the program. We followed a qualitative research approach, collecting data by means of document analysis and interviews, unveiling the recurrent themes and analyzing the connections between them by means of a systemic analysis. Our main findings were: 1) The use of the PBL approach, involving schools and communities in joint planning and execution processes, promoted environmental awareness and strengthened the ties between the schools and local communities. 2) The PBL approach challenged the students to solve real-life problems, improving their critical thinking, their communications and problem-solving skills, leading to the improvement of their self-confidence and in their interest in learning. 3) The PBL approach empowered the teachers, motivating them to study and to make connections with community partners, thus changing the ways the courses were conducted and the relationships between school and local communities.
Citas
Allan, J. David, Robin Abell, Zeb Hogan, Carmen Revenga, Brad W. Taylor, Robin L. Welcomme, and Kirk Winemiller. 2005. “Overfishing of Inland Waters.” BioScience 55 (12): 1041–51. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2005)055[1041:OOIW]2.0.CO.
Amaral, João Alberto Arantes do. 2018. “Reflections On Thirteen Years Directing Community-Based Learning Projects.” Collaborations: A Journal of Community-Based Research and Practice 2 (1).
Amaral, João Alberto Arantes do, and Aurélio Hess. 2017. “What Drives the Viewership of an On-Line Video-Lecture Course? A Case Study.” Anatolian Journal of Education 2 (1): 21–33.
Anderson-Butcher, Dawn. 2004. “Transforming Schools into 21st Century Community Learning Centers.” Children & Schools 26 (4): 248–52.
Ballantyne, Roy, John Fien, and Jan Packer. 2001. “School Environmental Education Programme Impacts upon Student and Family Learning: A Case Study Analysis.” Environmental Education Research 7 (1): 23–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620124123.
Bartlett, Albert A., Robert G. Fuller, Vicki L. Plano Clark, and John A. Rogers. 2004. The Essential Exponential!: For the Future of Our Planet. Lincon: University of Nebraska.
Bender, William N. 2012. Project-Based Learning: Differentiating Instruction for the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks: Corwin,Press.
Blumenfeld, Phyllis C., Elliot Soloway, Ronald W. Marx, Joseph S. Krajcik, Mark Guzdial, and Annemarie Palincsar. 1991. “Motivating Project-Based Learning: Sustaining the Doing, Supporting the Learning.” Educational Psychologist 26 (3–4): 369–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.1991.9653139.
Boks, Casper, and Jan Carel Diehl. 2006. “Integration of Sustainability in Regular Courses: Experiences in Industrial Design Engineering.” Journal of Cleaner Production 14 (9–11): 932–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2005.11.038.
Boserup, Ester. 2017. The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure. London: Routledge.
Bossel, Hartmut. 1998. Earth at a Crossroads: Paths to a Sustainable Future. London: Cambridge University Press.
———. 2007. Systems and Models: Complexity, Dynamics, Evolution, Sustainability. Norderstedt, Germany: Books on Demand Gmbh.
Bowen, Glenn A. 2009. “Document Analysis as a Qualitative Research Method.” Qualitative Research Journal 9 (2): 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027.
Brown, Lester R. 2011. World on the Edge: How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse. New York: Earth Policy Institute.
Brundiers, Katja, and Arnim Wiek. 2011. “Educating Students in Real-World Sustainability Research: Vision and Implementation.” Innovative Higher Education 36 (2): 107–24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-010-9161-9.
Brynteson, Richard. 2006. Once upon a Complex Time: Using Stories to Understand Systems. Farmington: Sparrow Media Group.
Burkholder, JoAnn, Bob Libra, Peter Weyer, Susan Heathcote, Dana Kolpin, Peter S. Thorne, and Michael Wichman. 2007. “Impacts of Waste from Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations on Water Quality.” Environmental Health Perspectives 115 (2): 308–12. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.8839.
Clover, Charles. 2008. The End of the Line: How Overfishing Is Changing the World and What We Eat. London: EburyPress.
Diamond, Jared. 1994. “Ecological Collapses of Past Civilizations.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 138 (3): 363–70.
———. 2003. “The Last Americans: Environmental Collapse and the End of Civilization.” Harper’s Magazine Foundation, 2003. https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+last+Americans%3A+environmental+collapse+and+the+end+of+...-a0103124295.
Dorst, Jean. 1970. Before Nature Dies. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Ehrlich, Paul R., and Anne H. Ehrlich. 1990. The Population Explosion. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Evoluir & Instituto Alcoa. 2014. “Programa ECOA Educação Comunitária Ambiental Relatório 2014.” São Paulo.
———. 2015. “Programa ECOA Educação Comunitária Ambiental Relatório 2015.” São Paulo.
———. 2016. “Programa ECOA Educação Comunitária Ambiental Relatório 2016.” São Paulo.
Evoluir FBF Cultural. 2014. “Missões Ecoa 2014: Juntos Pela Transformação.” São Paulo.
———. 2015. “Missões Ecoa 2015: Juntos Pela Transformação.” São Paulo.
———. 2016. “Missões Ecoa 2016: Juntos Pela Transformação.” São Paulo.
Fisman, Lianne. 2005. “The Effects of Local Learning on Environmental Awareness in Children: An Empirical Investigation.” The Journal of Environmental Education 36 (3): 39–50. https://doi.org/10.3200/JOEE.36.3.39-50.
Ford, Frederick Andrew. 1999. Modeling the Environment: An Introduction to System Dynamics Models of Environmental Systems. Washington: DCIsland press.
Forrester, Jay W. 1971. World Dynamics. Cambridge: Wright-Allen Press.
Gabrielides, G.P., A. Golik, L. Loizides, M.G. Marino, F. Bingel, and M.V. Torregrossa. 1991. “Man-Made Garbage Pollution on the Mediterranean Coastline.” Marine Pollution Bulletin 23 (January): 437–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/0025-326X(91)90713-3.
Geist, Helmut J., and Eric F. Lambin. 2002. “Proximate Causes and Underlying Driving Forces of Tropical Deforestation: Tropical Forests Are Disappearing as the Result of Many Pressures, Both Local and Regional, Acting in Various Combinations in Different Geographical Locations.” BioScience 52 (2): 143–50. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1641/0006-3568(2002)052[0143:PCAUDF]2.0.CO;2.
Gilland, Bernard. 2002. “World Population and Food Supply.” Food Policy 27 (1): 47–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0306-9192(02)00002-7.
Godfray, H. C. J., J. R. Beddington, I. R. Crute, L. Haddad, D. Lawrence, J. F. Muir, J. Pretty, S. Robinson, S. M. Thomas, and C. Toulmin. 2010. “Food Security: The Challenge of Feeding 9 Billion People.” Science 327 (5967): 812–18. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1185383.
Gonick, Larry, and Alice Outwater. 1996. The Cartoon Guide to the Environment. New York: Happer Collins.
Hart, Roger A. 2013. Children’s Participation: The Theory and Practice of Involving Young Citizens in Community Development and Environmental Care. New York: Earthscan Publications Ltd.
Hartmann, Thom. 2009. The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: Waking up to Personal and Global Transformation. New York: Three Rivers Press.
Hawken, Paul. 1993. The Ecology of Commerce a Declaration of Sustainability. New York: Harper.
Hoornweg, Daniel, Perinaz Bhada-Tata, and Chris Kennedy. 2013. “Environment: Waste Production Must Peak This Century.” Nature 502 (7473): 615–17. https://doi.org/10.1038/502615a.
Huesemann, Michael H. 2001. “Can Pollution Problems Be Effectively Solved by Environmental Science and Technology? An Analysis of Critical Limitations.” Ecological Economics 37 (2): 271–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0921-8009(00)00283-4.
Hung, Chun-Ming, Gwo-Jen Hwang, and Iwen Huang. 2012. “A Project-Based Digital Storytelling Approach for Improving Students’ Learning Motivation, Problem-Solving Competence and Learning Achievement.” Educational Technology & Society 15 (4): 368–79.
Instituto Alcoa. 2016. “Balanço Instituto Alcoa 2016.” https://www.alcoa.com/brasil/pt/pdf/balanco-ia-2016.pdf.
———. 2018. “Programa ECOA 2018.” Alcoa.Com. 2018. www.alcoa.com/brasil/pt/ecoa.asp.
Jackson, J. B. C. 2001. “Historical Overfishing and the Recent Collapse of Coastal Ecosystems.” Science 293 (5530): 629–37. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1059199.
Jacoby, Barbara. 2014. Service-Learning Essentials: Questions, Answers, and Lessons Learned. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Jambeck, J. R., R. Geyer, C. Wilcox, T. R. Siegler, M. Perryman, A. Andrady, R. Narayan, and K. L. Law. 2015. “Plastic Waste Inputs from Land into the Ocean.” Science 347 (6223): 768–71. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1260352.
Kollmuss, Anja, and Julian Agyeman. 2002. “Mind the Gap: Why Do People Act Environmentally and What Are the Barriers to pro-Environmental Behavior?” Environmental Education Research 8 (3): 239–60. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504620220145401.
Lam, Shui-fong, Rebecca Wing-yi Cheng, and Harriet C. Choy. 2010. “School Support and Teacher Motivation to Implement Project-Based Learning.” Learning and Instruction 20 (6): 487–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2009.07.003.
Leonard, Annie. 2010. The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff Is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health-and a Vision for Change. New York: Free Press.
Mage, David, Guntis Ozolins, Peter Peterson, Anthony Webster, Rudi Orthofer, Veerle Vandeweerd, and Michael Gwynne. 1996. “Urban Air Pollution in Megacities of the World.” Atmospheric Environment 30 (5): 681–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/1352-2310(95)00219-7.
Malingreau, Jean-Paul, and Compton J. Tucker. 1988. “Large-Scale Deforestation in the Southeastern Amazon Basin of Brazil.” Ambio 17 (1): 49–55.
Mallin, Michael A. 2000. “Impacts of Industrial Animal Production on Rivers and Estuaries.” American Scientist 88 (1): 1–13.
Markham, Thom, John Larmer, and Jason Ravitz. 2003. Project Based Learning Handbook: A Guide to Standards-Focused Project Based Learning for Middle and High School Teachers. Novato: Buck Institute for Education.
Martenson, Chris. 2011. The Crash Course: The Unsustainable Future of Our Economy, Energy, and Environment. Danvers: John Wiley & Sons.
Meadows, Donella H. 1991. The Global Citizen. Washington: DC Island Press.
Meadows, Donella H., Dennis L. Meadows, and Jorgen Randers. 1992. Beyond the Limits: Global Collapse or a Sustainable Future. New York: Earthscan Publications Ltd.
Meadows, Donella H., Jorgen Randers, and Dennis L. Meadows. 2012. Limits to Growth: The 30-Year Update. White River Junction: Earthscan Publications Ltd.
Meadows, Donella H., John Richardson, and Gerhart Bruckmann. 1982. Groping in the Dark: The First Decade of Global Modelling. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.
Michael Beman, J., Kevin R. Arrigo, and Pamela A. Matson. 2005. “Agricultural Runoff Fuels Large Phytoplankton Blooms in Vulnerable Areas of the Ocean.” Nature 434 (7030): 211–14. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature03370.
Morton, D. C., R. S. DeFries, Y. E. Shimabukuro, L. O. Anderson, E. Arai, F. del Bon Espirito-Santo, R. Freitas, and J. Morisette. 2006. “Cropland Expansion Changes Deforestation Dynamics in the Southern Brazilian Amazon.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 103 (39): 14637–41. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0606377103.
O’Brien, Will, and Joseph Sarkis. 2014. “The Potential of Community-Based Sustainability Projects for Deep Learning Initiatives.” Journal of Cleaner Production 62 (January): 48–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.07.001.
Oldeman, L. R., R. T. A. Hakkeling, and W. G. Sombroek. 1991. World Map of the Status of Human-Induced Soil Degradation : An Explanatory Note. The Netherlands: International Soil Reference and Information Centre.
Orr, David W., and Adam Cohen. 2013. “Promoting Partnerships for Integrated, Post-Carbon Development: Strategies at Work in the Oberlin Project at Oberlin College.” Planning for Higher Education 41 (3): 22–26.
Peet, D.‐J., K.F. Mulder, and A. Bijma. 2004. “Integrating SD into Engineering Courses at the Delft University of Technology.” International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education 5 (3): 278–88. https://doi.org/10.1108/14676370410546420.
Ramsey, Phil. 1997. Billibonk and the Thorn Patch. Waltham: Pegasus Communications.
———. 1998. Billibonk and the Big Itch. Waltham: Pegasus Communications.
Rogers, Peter. 2008. “Facing the Freshwater Crisis.” Scientific American2 299 (2): 46–53.
Ruiz-Pérez, Manuel, Fátima Franco-Múgica, José A. González, Erik Gómez-Baggethun, and Miguel A. Alberruche-Rico. 2011. “An Institutional Analysis of the Sustainability of Fisheries: Insights from FishBanks Simulation Game.” Ocean & Coastal Management 54 (8): 585–92. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2011.05.009.
Senge, Peter M., Bryan Smith, Nina Kruschwitz, Joe Laur, and Sara Schley. 2008. The Necessary Revolution: How Individuals and Organizations Are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World. New York: Crown Busines.
Sterman, John D. 2000. Business Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World. Cambridge: McGraw-Hill.
———. 2014. “Interactive Web‐based Simulations for Strategy and Sustainability: The MIT Sloan LearningEdge Management Flight Simulators, Part I.” System Dynamics Review 30 (1–2): 89–121.
Tam, E. K. L. 2007. “Developing a Sustainability Course for Graduate Engineering Students and Professionals.” The International Journal of Engineering Education 23 (6): 1133–40.
Viederman, Stephen. 1993. “A Sustainable Society: What Is It? How Do We Get There?” The George Wright Forum 10 (4): 34–47.
Wiek, Arnim, and Braden Kay. 2015. “Learning While Transforming: Solution-Oriented Learning for Urban Sustainability in Phoenix, Arizona.” Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 16 (October): 29–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2015.07.001.
Wiek, Arnim, Angela Xiong, Katja Brundiers, and Sander van der Leeuw. 2014. “Integrating Problem- and Project-Based Learning into Sustainability Programs.” International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education 15 (4): 431–49. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-02-2013-0013.
Wind, Yoram (Jerry) R., and Colin Cook. 2006. The Power of Impossible Thinking: Transform the Business of Your Life and the Life of Your Business. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education.
Wyman, Robert J. 2013. “The Effects of Population on the Depletion of Fresh Water.” Population and Development Review 39 (4): 687–704.
Yin, Robert K. 2015. Qualitative Research from Start to Finish. New York: Guilford Publications.
Descargas
Publicado
Cómo citar
Número
Sección
Licencia
Esta revista oferece acesso livre imediato ao seu conteúdo, seguindo o princípio de que disponibilizar gratuitamente o conhecimento científico ao público proporciona maior democratização mundial do conhecimento.
A partir da publicação realizada na revista os autores possuem copyright e direitos de publicação de seus artigos sem restrições.
A Revista Fronteiras: Journal of Social, Technological and Environmental Science segue os preceitos legais da licença Creative Commons - Atribuição-NãoComercial 4.0 Internacional.