ABSTRACT
Curriculum planning, at least in my own school, seems to be in a state of constant change. My present concerns as the co-ordinator for Environmental Education are: • teacher priorities centre on core and foundation subjects (of the
National Curriculum) • cross-curricular themes are of secondary importance • attainment targets are too prescriptive and are being translated too
literally • trends towards subject teaching are being reinforced and, therefore in
future, themes may not be properly integrated • the increasing number of attainment targets ‘to get through’ put staff
under pressure • pressures of time limit opportunities for first hand investigation and
increase reliance on secondary sources • not enough emphasis…on developing attitudes and values of
responsibility (to the environment) • implementation of environmental policy too dependent on the
enthusiasm of one or two members of staff • ‘chasing up’ already overworked subject specialists. Such was part of the content of a letter from a member of the NAEE seeking help with implementing a policy of environmental education in her school, in this case a large primary school in an area of the country with good local support for environmental education. The fact that she starts from a position of being in charge of environmental education in the school is an indication of the responsible way this curriculum area is being tackled by the school management. As a result her colleagues will recognize they have an obligation to cooperate with her attempts to implement environmental education within the whole curriculum of her school.
