Influence of Income on Environmental Education Practices in High Wealth and Low Wealth Areas: A Review of the Literature
Graduation Date
Spring 2004
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Document Form
Degree Name
Master of Science
Program Name
Education
Program Director
Madalienne F. Peters, EdD
Abstract
Environmental education is an important component in the science curriculum in schools. However, not all students have equal access to the benefits offered through these programs. Currently in low-income minority communities students are faced with a number of challenges in the public school system. The purpose of this review of the literature is to examine if students from low wealth areas are afforded the same opportunities for environmental education as students from high wealth areas.
This paper explores issues related to environmental education. These include concepts of environmental racism, differences in environmental concern among races, common practices used in implementing California's science content standards, representation of minorities in science related fields, and school funding for environmental education. The results of the literature review illustrate that minorities are underrepresented in science related fields. In addition, they are frequently left out of science courses from elementary school all the way to the professional level. Further research needs to be conducted to determine how these results directly relate to environmental education.