Building and Enhancing New Literacies Across the Curriculum (EDUC 2)

Submitted to: MS. CRYSTALYN GALINDO

Prepared by:
 MAGPAYO, ANGELICA
 MANGRUBANG, RHEYNAN
 MENDOZA, TRICIA
 RAMIRO, HERMYL
(BEED 1-2)

ECOLITERACY
As humans strive for development, some of our activities cause damage to the environment. We
do not want an earth that is not livable by 2050. So, what can we do? Our group believes that we
can achieve sustainable development by being eco-literate – the answer is ecoliteracy!
CONTENT
 Explain ecoliteracy in developing sustainable environment QUOTE FOR THE DAY
 Discuss the seven environmental principles of nature ‘'One of the first conditions
 Describe a green school of happiness is that the link
 Articulate how ecoliteracy can be integrated in the between man and nature
curriculum, practice in the school and demonstrated in shall not be broken.”
the classroom
Leo Tolstoy

1. ECOLITERACY IN DEVELOPING SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

Developments, technological advancements, and
innovations greatly improved our lives. As this is
a fact, human should be mindful of possible harm
it could bring our planet. This is where ecoliteracy
and sustainable development come in picture.
Ecoliteracy is the ability to understand the
organization of the natural system and the
processes that maintain the healthy functioning
 of living systems and sustain life on earth. To be ecoliterate means
understanding the principles of organization of ecological
YET ANOTHER QUOTE
communities and using those principles for creating sustainable
“One of the most urgent human communities.
issues facing humanity is
fixing our broken How about sustainable environment? What is it?
relationship with the earth, Environmental sustainability is responsibly interacting with the
on which all life depends." planet to maintain natural resources and not jeopardize the ability
Sir Ken Robinson for future generations. It is meeting today’s needs without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
needs. It is concerned with whether environmental resources will be protected and maintained for future
generations.
Ecoliteracy is the first step to sustainability; that's why it must be included in our education.
Ecological literacy aims to replace fragmented thinking with cognitive and social capabilities
necessary to design sustainable ways of living.
Ecologically literate person and Society- is a person can apply such understanding to the design
and organization of communities and the creation of a regenerative culture. An ecologically
literate person understands the essence of independence and interconnectedness and that we
are all part of all living system. On other hand, an ecologically literate society would be sustainable
society, which does not destroy the natural environment on which they depend.
These ways it help to educators foster socially and emotionally engaged Eco literacy. Following are
identified practices in age-appropriate ways for students and others.
Ways to Develop Eco literacy in Schools:

1. Develop empathy for all forms of life at a basic level, all organisms—including humans—
need food, water, space, and conditions that support dynamic equilibrium to survive.
2. Embrace sustainability as a community practice - Communities that 'go green' by practicing
sustainability and/or sustainable development tend to see noticeable improvements in the
lives of their members and in their ability to be independent.
3. Make the invisible visible - If we strive to develop ways of living that are more life affirming,
we must find ways to make visible the things that seems invisible by using web-based tools,
such as Google earth and Good guide
4. Anticipated unintended consequences - purposeful action may create consequences which
are. not intended (unintended) not anticipated (unanticipated)
5. Understand how nature sustains life - To understand how nature sustains life, we need to
move from biology to ecology, because sustained life is a property of an ecosystem rather
than a single organism or species.
2. THE SEVEN ENVIRONMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF NATURE

1. Everything is connected to everything else. (Ang lahat ng bagay ay

magkakaugnay.)
The relationships of various elements of the ecosystem bind the
components together into one functional unit. The trees in the forest
are home to ferns, orchids, birds, insects and mammals. When these
plants and animals die, their products of decomposition contribute to
soil fertility. Plants provide oxygen to animals for aerobic respiration
while animals furnish carbon dioxide to plants for photosynthesis. All
these relationships provide dependencies, check and balances that
compose the details of our life-support systems. Human interaction with nature oftentimes alters
the ecosystems.

2. All forms of life are important. (Ang lahat ng may buhay ay mahalaga.)
All living organisms were created for a purpose in relation to us humans, other species on earth
and global ecosystem in general. The variety of life forms, manifested by the different levels of
biological diversity, community, species and genes it contributes to the stability of the
environment. Food webs, food chains and even bacteria, insects, snakes and rats have ecological
functions even though we humans perceive them as parasites or pests they are all important. We
human can still keep trees, patches of forests and garden as home for wildlife like birds, butterflies,
and insects. So, we as human let’s continue the biodiversity conservation.

3. Everything must go somewhere. (Ang lahat ng bagay ay may patutunguhan.)

Everything that we throw away pieces of paper, left-over food,
peelings of fruits, plastic wrappers, and used containers must go
somewhere. In short, they enter into a material cycle that is an
integral part of the ecosystem. But what happens if what we throw is
an artificial product such as plastic? Thus, we human need to know
how to do the proper waste management and the reduce reuse, and
recycle, so that they do not pollute land and water habitats. We
should maximize the use of resources. In that way, habitats for
organisms are not destroyed or deteriorate, and everything, every
living organism will fall into good place.

4. Ours is a finite earth. (Ang kalikasan ay may hangganan.)

Everything that we need is provided by the nature from the food we eat, water, energy, minerals
and air. However, some resources that we depend upon nowadays are extracted excessively but
are slow to replace. It experience limits of supply. Some energy sources like water and wood may
be replaced easier but become inaccessible due to pollution and excessive extraction. Diminishing
forest has resulted from illegal logging, and continued land conversion. Many solutions have been
suggested to solve this problem but we humans are the main solution to solve this so we should
treat properly our earth by using only what we need, we should buy and consume only what we
need and leave some for the less privileged and for the next generation.

5. Nature knows best. (Ang kalikasan ang mas nakakaalam.)

Our nature enables to maintain balance and remain in a state of equilibrium. The air, water and
land indicates that we have today are utilized within the confines of the earth. The flow of energy
from the sun enables light, food chains and food webs allow transfer of energy from producers
and consumers and provide the means for all living organisms to acquire nutrition. The equilibrium
in the ecosystem is maintained, thus if humans did not take care properly the nature negative
impacts known as ecological backlash, may arise. Floods are often times backlashes of excessive
felling of trees. So we human we should always remember and apply the ecological principles and
stay close to natural products and processes. We should patronize natural food and consumable
materials. Organically grown vegetables provide healthy food without the side effects that may
arise from pesticides in that way we can help our nature to remain beautiful for the next many
years.

6. Nature is beautiful, and we are stewards of God’s creation. (Ang kalikasan ay maganda
at tayo ang tagapangasiwa ng lahat ng nilikha ng Diyos.)
The beautiful nature around us, perfect by itself, a
Human-Creator relationship is translated in our attitude
towards creation because this was given by God. The
book of Genesis says “have dominions over the fish of
the sea and the birds of the air we humans are not
owners but guardians of the integrity of nature. We
humans are no higher than the birds and fishes of the
sea, where nature becomes a testimony of God’s love.
Protection of the earth is a life mission manifested in
the things that we do and say, so we humans are responsible in developing an eco-spirituality that
moves us them into a more meaningful relationship with nature to make this world a better place
to live in.

7. Everything changes. (Ang lahat ay nagbabago.)

Change is inevitable; there is nothing more permanent in
this world than change. Like this following examples. YET ANOTHER QUOTE
Metamorphosis of caterpillars to butterflies illustrates
changes that occur in living forms. Seasons are cyclic “The only constant in life is change”
changes that contribute to the diversity of flowers, fruits, Heraclitus
vegetables and other crops during the year. Changes
that causes by natural catastrophe such as typhoons floods, and earthquake. Especially in this time
that lands change to human settlements. Human-induced changes can be managed so that the
negative impacts are minimized and positive changes accentuated. So we human must find a ways
as early from now to prevent any hazardous effect which nature may bring to us. Let’s make a
change, so we human should start it and be the change.

3. A GREEN SCHOOL
A “Green School “is identified with those elements and practices that
inculcate environmental sensitivity to promote environmental
sustainability through various environment-friendly means and
encourage judicious use of resources. It also caters to the physical,
mental, and emotional needs of a child by ensuring a school
environment that is physically safe, emotionally secure, and
psychologically enabling.

Essential aspects of Green School Environment. The 'greenness' of a school finds expression in
various aspects of the environment. The Green School has clean, healthy, protective, and green
surroundings. It also promotes both the physical and the psychosocial health of learners and
others in school; ensures a healthy (provision of health services, such as nutritional
supplementation and counseling), hygienic (safe drinking water, neat and clean classrooms,
playground and parks, etc.), safe learning environment with healthy practices (e.g., a school free
of drugs, corporal punishment and harassment); and brings children closer to nature and involves
them in taking care of it.
A Green School adheres to the following precepts:
 Learning about the environment
 Learning through environment
 Learning for the environment

Creating a Green School

A Green School is a school that creates a healthy
environment conducive to learning, while saving energy YET ANOTHER QUOTE
environmental resources and money. Therefore, a Green “Healthy isn’t a goal. It is a way of
School living”

1. reduces environmental impacts and costs

2. improves occupants’ health and performance; and
3. increases environmental and sustainability literacy
Characteristics of a Green School
Green, healthy, and high performing are the characteristics of a green school that provides many
benefits to students, teachers, parents and the community, at large.
1. It protects health.
2. It increases student performance.
3. Improve energy and money.
4. It reduces carbon emissions.
5. It reduces water usage.
6. It improves teacher retention.
7. It improves daily attendance. It reduces absenteeism
8. It provides a unique educational opportunity Schools can 15%.
9. It creates green jobs.
10. It improves equity.

4. ECOLITERACY INTEGRATION IN THE CURRICULUM, PRACTICE IN THE SCHOOL AND

DEMONSTRATION IN THE CLASSROOM
Below highlight the different strategies to teach ecoliteracy, as
FOR YOUR INFORMATION promoted by the Center of Ecoliteracy (2015):

Students learn best when A. PLACE-BASED LEARNING

teaching strategies include B. PROJECT-BASED LEARNING
hands-on activities, combined C. SOCRATIC INQUIRY
indoor and outdoor activities D. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
etc. (Sly, 2015) E. INTERDISCIPLINARY LEARNING

A. PLACE-BASED LEARNING
It is experiential learning that lets the
students be engaged in their environment
and community and at the same time
incorporates strategies that capture
student's imagination about environmental
stewardship and civic engagement.
Activities may include involvement in the
local community's ecological projects such
as habitat restoration projects, clean-and-
green programs, working with local citizens
to improve the quality of life in their communities, etc.
Research shows the benefits of place-based learning:
B. PROJECT-BASED LEARNING
 Project-based learning is a student-
centered teaching approach where
students acquire knowledge while
answering and solving the driving
question through real-world and
meaningful projects. Students
develop deep content knowledge as
well as critical thinking, collaboration,
creativity, and communication skills.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

Impact of PBL:
 Increased critical thinking
skills
 Fostered positive attitude
towards subjects
 Improved positive study
and work habits, problem-
solving activities and self-
esteem.

C. SOCRATIC INQUIRY
Socratic inquiry is named for the Greek
philosopher Socrates, who believed
that questions — not answers —
stimulate learning. In this technique,
the teacher acts as facilitator by asking
questions.

D. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
It promotes students’ involvement in the real world and defines the teacher’s role as a facilitator
of learning. The process of learning leads to behavioral outcome. It is based on the premise that
learning is an active and a continuous process, with experience as its foundation.
 For example, when studying decomposition
using a worm bin, students start by examining
a scoop of the bin's contents. After having
time to explore, they identify questions to
pursue (concept formation). They design and
carry out further investigations and report
their findings to the class (concept
application). The cycle is repeated as students
test ideas and refine or change their
assumptions and understandings.

INTERDISCIPLINARY LEARNING
Interdisciplinary learning emphasizes connections between traditionally discrete disciplines such
as math, science, history, and language arts, rather than limiting learning to one content area at a
time.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

The Center for Ecoliteracy

advocates for interdisciplinary
teaching and learning as the
best approach for grasping the
principles that help define
sustainable living.