We're Helping to Ensure
There's No Child Left Inside
Roger Williams Park Zoo is proud to be one of the first zoos in the country to join the No Child Left Inside Coalition.
Comprised of over two dozen national and regional education and environmental organizations, the Coalition is committed to increasing environmental education in America’s classrooms.
Help us guarantee that no student is left inside when it comes to learning about their environment.
Fax or email a letter to your legislators. It's easy - just go to www.eeNCLB.org.
Then, follow up with a phone call to your legislators' offices.
Or, write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper telling them how important environmental education and outdoor learning are to you, your family, and your community. Use the guidelines provided on www.eeNCLB.org.
“It is important to give students a hands-on understanding of their environment. It teaches them to be good conservationists and good citizens and can have added health benefits for children too,” said Senator Reed.
Passage of the bill could mean that more local schools would be able to take advantage of the Zoo’s unique and valuable environmental education resources. A living classroom, the Zoo offers a great variety of standards-based programs that allow teachers and students to explore, discover, observe and apply real-world context to the lessons learned in school.
Environmental Education and the No Child Left Behind Act
October 12 - Senator Reed holds a press conference at the zoo to unveil the act.
Congressman John Sarbanes of Maryland and Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island recently introduced legislation that strengthens and expands environmental education in America's classrooms and reconnects children with nature. These bills, each entitled the No Child Left Inside Act of 2007, were introduced in the House (H.R.3036) and the Senate (S.1981).
Please encourage your senators and representative to support the No Child Left Inside Act of 2007 and help get its provisions included in the House and Senate bills that reauthorize the No Child Left Behind law.
With the nation facing complicated environmental issues that will challenge us for years to come, it is critical that schools provide students with a solid grounding in environmental education. But because of the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB), many schools are scaling back or eliminating environmental education programs. Congress has the opportunity to change this as it reauthorizes NCLB. Learn more about environmental environment and NCLB at www.eeNCLB.org.
The No Child Left Inside Act of 2007 amends the NCLB law in the following ways:
Provides federal funding to states to train teachers in environmental education and to operate model environmental education programs, which include outdoor learning.
Provides funding to states that create environmental literacy plans to ensure that high school graduates are environmentally literate.
Provides funding through an environmental education grant program to build state and national capacity.
Re-establishes the Office of Environmental Education within the U.S. Department of Education.
By making a few changes to NCLB, we can dramatically improve our schools’ ability to prepare children for real-world challenges and careers – and ensure an environmentally sustainable future.
Watch a video to learn more:
Note: “No Child Left Inside” is used with permission from the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection.
Watch another video that celebrates environmental education and its impact on children's learning, health and leadership.
