A framework to professionalize environmental education

During the Fall of 2021, fourteen undergraduate students enrolled in a course called “Survey of Environmental Organizations.” This course was more than a survey of organizations. It was a course on environmental policy, the structure of government and non-profit organizations, organizational management, and engaging in conversation with professionals from diverse fields.

The survey course was designed and taught by Marcus B. Reamer, an ocean conservation professional and scholar whose interests include environmental communication, decision-making, and political ecology.

Students who enrolled in the course learned about skills they would need as environmental professionals, including the so-called "soft skills." Students participated in readings and led panel discussions. They explored career paths, reflected on their learning through journaling, and practiced the communication skills they were taught. You can learn more about the course content in "Professionalizing environmental education: outcomes from an undergraduate special topics course on environmental organizations and careers" (see link below).

While teaching this course, Reamer conducted pre- and post-surveys. Survey results indicate students benefited from the course and gained confidence in themselves. You'll find student comments in the paper.

It is Reamer's hope that other instructors will apply what he learned about preparing students for cross-sector work. To make this an easier lift, Reamer created a handout that anyone can download for free. It contains resources for each unit, classroom assignments, and prompts to guide conversation.

This brings me to the reason why I am sharing this paper with you. The framework that Reamer developed is not only for college classrooms. Reamer thinks this approach can also be applied to:

• Courses for high school students interested in applying to environmental science programs.
• College majors who might not otherwise experience coursework addressing science communication or business topics.
• School programs that are not equipped to address career readiness.
• Students preparing for non-academic jobs.

It's this last item that resonated with me the most.

It made me wonder about environmental education (EE) programs.

It made me wonder how cross-sector career readiness could be more integrated into EE programs.

It made me wonder how cross-sector career readiness can become more integrated into what we do at community events.

Have you ever thought about adding a career readiness component to your work?

If you want to investigate this option further, consider reading Reamer's paper and downloading the materials packet. You can do this below.