| OCR Text |
Show ural resources has been incorporated quite widely in the curriculum of schools at all levels, and local and national organizations of citizens concerned with the problem have exerted wide influence over the thinking of the general public. The need for a comprehensive program of conservation education was ably expressed in the middle 1930's by the committee which prepared the report on The Future of the Great Plains in 1936. It said: In a democracy, education is even more funda- mental than legislation as a force directing national programs. It is the basis of wise legislation, pro- motes general acceptance of legislative and admin- istrative measures, and guides individuals to action along lines consistent with the requirements of the society of which they are members. * * * Re- ports of conditions, causes, and recommended lines of action for solution of national problems remain but so much dead printed matter if not vitalized by some dynamic force. In a democracy, the primary dynamic force is education, for the processes of democracy require common understanding and an inspired impulse among its citizens to action lead- ing to every commonly accepted objective. By this time important changes were well under way in the psychology and the philosophy of pub- lic education. Realistic leaders were seeing to it that our schools assumed greater responsibility for developing and understanding the current social and economic problems with which our Nation must cope. The first National Conference on Conservation Education was called by the United States Office of Education in 1937. This conference was at- tended by representatives of Federal agencies, State education departments, specialists in con- servation and education from colleges and universities, and officers of lay organizations inter- ested in the promotion of conservation education. The conference resulted in (1) a statement of seven guiding principles to be followed when introducing the study of resources into the school program, (2) the publication of a series of bibli- ographies of available books and supplementary audio-visual aids for use by classroom teachers, and (3) the preparation of the bulletin Conser- vation in the Education Program, a practical manual of representative practices in conserva- tion education already tried in the elementary and secondary schools and in teacher-training institutions. A Good Beginning Much has been done. Much remains to be done. It is well to note the main points of ad- vance in our achievement to date. Colleges and Universities.-In 1910 only one institution offered a course in general conserva- tion. By 1940, 138 institutions of higher learn- ing (15 percent of the total of such institutions, and these located in 35 States) were offering one or more conservation courses, chiefly by geogra- phers and for teachers. Today conservation camps and workshops, laboratories, and seminars for the in-service training of teachers have been started in 43 of the 48 States. Schools.-Seven States have passed laws re- quiring instruction in conservation in schools, and the educational departments of many other States are devising methods for introducing con- servation education into their school curriculums. An increasing number of schools, especially rural schools, are developing organized programs that operate during school hours and are based entirely on outdoor experiences. These involve the opera- tion and use of school-owned facilities such as forests, sanctuaries, gardens, camps, farms, and orchards. There are, for example, 1,352 school- owned forests in the United States; 125 school- owned camps; and a few school-owned wildlife sanctuaries. Government Agencies.-The Federal and State agencies concerned with the problem of resources use recently have built methods and techniques for informing the public about conservation at a faster pace and with increasingly good results. The contribution of these agencies toward, bringing about an informed public is of great importance. National and Local Organizations of Citi- zens.-The number of these organizations has grown in recent years, and their influence as edu- cational agencies is increasingly valuable. The 273 |
