These days, you read a lot about green schools and how they help reduce your eco-footprint while teaching students about the planet and what it takes to preserve it. The growing movement has led more institutions to install solar panels, buy green furniture, start school gardens, and embark on school-wide recycling campaigns, all in the name of attaining LEED certification or simply going greener. But the more I read, the more I wonder whether schools are pulling kids in too many directions in teaching them about their ecological responsibilities.

We addressed this issue a couple weeks ago in a post openly suggesting that schools may be putting too much of an emphasis on green education at the expense of reading, writing and math. But maybe the question isn’t so much the level of emphasis we’re putting on green education, as opposed to where educators are putting it. My gut feeling tells me that part of the problem the critics have with green education is the fact that it may be too unfocused in certain cases. So you may have teachers in a number of disciplines simply telling students to recycle paper or shut off the water in the faucet without being able to adequately explain the reasons for doing it.

Here’s my suggestion - limit green education to science class. First off, as far as I can tell, eco-oriented lessons are essentially science lessons, since they deal with the planet and the interaction of beings and substances. This means you can incorporate them into biology, geology, or chemistry class without taking time away from other subjects that the critics may deem equally essential. Secondly, I believe students are more likely to remember real lessons as opposed to simple buzzwords or slogans based on circular reasoning. For example, a science teacher can tell students about what really goes on in the water cycle, or the real impact that contaminants and landfills have on wildlife.

So if kids learn that the long-term health consequences of polluting outweigh the initial convenience of carelessly throwing away their trash wherever they want, I’m guessing they’ll be less likely to do it. However you decide to prioritize the environment in your curriculum, it’s important to remember that words without meaning are like a house of cards. Don’t skimp on the details - give children the tools they need to believe in what you preach, so they can practice it for the rest of their lives.

(Photo via Morguefile)