[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: (Fwd) Environmental ed book review
Michele--
Somehow I got the same impression of Facts Not Fear from an overly puffy
story in James Dobson's Focus on the Family magazine (August 1997). It
goes to about 14 bazillion homes in the U.S. and Canada, many of them of
them evangelical Christian and/or politically conservative folks. The
book's title was the cover story title. The cover blurb says: Exploring
the truth about environmental issues. Photo shows a family petting a
galapagos (I'm guessing on type here) tortoise.
The germ of the story text is to get parents looking at what their kids
are studying, then to act if they find more indoctrination than
education. No so radical.
Conclusion is: "Children should be encouraged to view current debates
over environmental issues as part of the search for truth, not a
morality play." Now that IS radical because it trivializes the powers at
work to use up Creation's bounty as if it were ours to dispose of. Not
only a morality play, I'd say it's a spirituality play as well for those
who have ears to hear. -- Greg
Michele Gale-Sinex/CIAS, UW-Madison wrote:
>
> Howdy, all--
>
> This is a forward from Wisconsin's Secretary of State, Doug
> LaFollette, regarding a review of a book on environmental education.
> Thought it might interest you all, as I trust there are overlaps in
> reasoning around sustainable ag ed.
>
> peace
> michele
>
> ------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
> Date: Tue, 16 Sep 1997 14:25:08 -0500 (CDT)
> From: Doug LaFollette <dlafolle@ix.netcom.com>
> Subject: Book review
> To: recycle@msn.fullfeed.com
>
> A good review of this BAD book just in case you don't know about it. Doug
> -------------------------------
>
> >FACTS, NOT FEAR: A Parent's Guide to Teaching Children About the
> >Environment
> >by Michael Sanera and Jane S. Shaw
> >
> >Reviewed by David E. Blockstein, Ph.D. and Martha C. Monroe, Ph.D.
> >
> >The main thesis of this book is that children are being scared by
> >misinformation presented by their teachers and text books. In an "it's not
> >all that bad" tone, the authors counter "facts" about environmental
> >problems with their own interpretation. The authors point out some
> >reasonable arguments against ostensibly sloppy environmental education
> >-- certainly there are cases where educators can do a better job. It is
> >unlikely that educators would argue with the book's central theme that
> >environmental education ought to be based on the very best scientific
> >information available, should be appropriately identified when
> >uncertainties exist, and should be open to ethical discussions from a
> >variety of perspectives with such opinions prominently labeled as such.
> >
> >However, the thinking reader is likely to come away from this book
> >realizing that the authors are guilty of the same charges of misuse of
> >science to further political agendas that they lay against environmental
> >educators. Sanera and Shaw call for critical thinking about
> >environmental problems and the way that students are taught. However,
> >exposed to critical thinking, this book falls flat. It is full of anecdotes,
> >gross generalizations, rose-colored statements, and irrelevancies.
> >Despite extensive notes and references, almost none of the authors'
> >sources are from primary peer-reviewed scientific literature.
> >
> >Since this effort is at least as much an ideological and political attack on
> >environmental education as it is an attempt to critique the field, some
> >background on the authors and book may be helpful: Sanera is currently
> >associated with the Claremont Institute, a conservative think tank. Shaw
> >works at the Political Economy Research Center, a free market advocacy
> >institute. The copyright of the book is held by the Alabama Family
> >Alliance, an organization that opposes education reform and advocates a
> >return to Christian values. The foreword is written by Marilyn Quayle.
> >However, each chapter in the book was reviewed by professionals who
> >have some credentials -- although it is a bit of a mystery as to why only
> >economists would review the chapter on wildlife and why at least 40%
> >of the reviewers are economists.
> >
> >The authors base their complaints about environmental education and
> >educators on their review of more than 130 textbooks and 170
> >children's books and "numerous examples of curriculum materials from
> >environmental and business groups" (p. 5). They liberally cite examples
> >of inappropriately gloomy projections from these materials. Yet, there is
> >no quantitative assessment of how many of the materials they found to
> >be "unbalanced" or what percentage of the information in the books they
> >found to be biased or inaccurate. They also present no evidence of the
> >extent to which these varied sources are actually used in environmental
> >education, or what students believe to be true after their exposure to
> >these materials.
> >
> >Some of the opinions expressed in the book color "facts" beyond the
> >point of responsible critique. Also, many of the "solutions" presented are
> >based on free market principles carried to illogical extremes. For
> >instance, regarding the extinction of the passenger pigeon, they state,
> >"With no owners to protect the pigeons, hunters killed them in great
> >numbers" (p. 126). This completely disregards the simple fact that is
> >impossible to own a species whose movements across eastern North
> >America were such that they nested in different states from year to
> >year. After all, their scientific name means "migrating wanderer."
> >
> >Similarly, the authors at time show a very simplistic or rudimentary
> >knowledge of how the ecological world works -- as shown by their
> >discussion of the destruction of rainforests (in making a comparison to
> >cutting U.S. forests in the 19th century, "it was a temporary phase for
> >us, and it should be temporary for the rain forest, too," p. 110), and
> >stratospheric ozone depletion ("this decline is so small that it is hard to
> >distinguish from natural changes," p. 171). Presenting possible benefits
> >from global warming, the authors contend that: "More carbon dioxide in
> >the air benefits many plants. It causes more luxuriant growth, larger
> >flowers, and greater crop yield," (p. 157). This statement ignores
> >scientific evidence that it is often a lack of nitrogen, not carbon, that is
> >limiting plant growth. It also assumes that larger plants are intrinsically
> >desirable.
> >
> >Stories of school messages from teachers may be equally flawed. A
> >recent report from the Center for Commercial-Free Public Education
> >exposes a different history and context to the familiar claims of bad
> >school-based EE, some of which are presented in Facts, Not Fear. For
> >example, Melissa Poe's letter to the President, which is used in the book
> >to accuse schools of teaching political activism and that the world is in
> >danger (p. 4) was inspired by a well-documented and hopeful television
> >special. Similarly, the mother who reported her child lamenting, "Mom,
> >they killed trees to make my bed" (p. 3) is not worried about what
> >schools are teaching, as the book implies, but hopes to see EE improved
> >and continued.
> >
> >In summary, the book probably will tell readers more about the
> >techniques and arguments of those currently attacking environmental
> >education than it will help improve the field. Because "Facts, Not Fear" is
> >being extensively promoted, however, environmental education
> >professionals should become familiar with it.
> >
> >
> >References:
> >
> >Blockstein, D.E. and H.B. Tordoff, 1985. "Gone forever: a contemporary
> >look at the extinction of the Passenger Pigeon," American Birds,
> >39:845-851.
> >Bohart, B., M. Manilov, and T. Schwartz, 1997. Endangered Education,
> >from Center for Commercial-Free Public Education, Oakland, CA (e-mail:
> >unplug@igc.org).
> >
> >David Blockstein is Senior Scientist at the Committee for the National
> >Institute for the Environment. Martha Monroe is Resource Center Director
> >for GreenCOM at the Academy for Educational Development. Both are in
> >Washington, DC.
> >
> >FACTS, NOT FEAR: A Parent's Guide to Teaching Children About the
> >Environment (1996). $14.95 from Regnery Publishing, Inc. in Washington,
> >DC.
> >
> *********************************************************************
> *******
>
> Doug La Follette Wisconsin Secretary of State
> Box 7848, Madison, WI. 53707
> 608-266-8888 fax 608-266-3159
>
> Technology is of no use to us if it is used without respect for
> the earth and its processes.
> - Aldo Leopold
> *****************************************************************************
>
> <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
> Michele Gale-Sinex, communications manager
> Center for Integrated Ag Systems
> UW-Madison College of Ag and Life Sciences
> Voice: (608) 262-8018 FAX: (608) 265-3020
> http://www.wisc.edu/cias/
> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
> If you knew what life was worth, you
> would look for yours on earth. --Bob Marley
--
Greg Bowman
Agro-ecological journalist
504 Main St. , P.O. Box 490
Bally PA 19503
610.845.2436
<gbowman@fast.net>
Communicating for whole farms...for whole communities...for the whole
world.
Follow-Ups:
References: