EE/ESD Program

Title of EE/ESD project

Forest School for Nature based on communities

Created : Oct 18 2007 / Modified : Oct 18 2007

Organization Name: United Nations Environment Programme National Committee for the Republic of Korea ( UNEP )

Type of the Project

National / Community Level
Main contents and field: Ecology Biodiversity / Nature Awareness / Water / Other (Trees, plants and lands)

Target area and people: *4th_6th year elementary school students
*Linked programs with Samsung Homeplus Culture Center

Background/Problems of the project: UNEP Korea organized 'e-Paran children's environment educational program', as a nation wide scale environmental education program for children, twice a year from in October 2000. Each level has differential programs designed by diverse themes for every 4 weeks.
'e-Paran children's environment educational program' targets forty 4-6th elementary school students in nation-wide local branches (32 local branches in 2005).
'e-Paran children's environment educational program' pays attention to the current situation that environmental education has been carried out as secondary social programs with limited vision. For this reason, UNEP Korea has tried to open a new era which children can study environmental education and practiced it in their homes and societies.

Objectives/Significance of the project: e-Paran children's environment educational program' does
- make children experience diverse themes involved in environment and encourage them to practice what they have learned in their homes, schools and societies.
- make children able to experience environment directly within local environment apart from a current environmental education regime which only has very restricted program.
- through these kinds of activity, make children keep paying attention to environment and practice environment preservation program in their own place.

Description of the project: e-Paran children's environment educational program' is a four-week program consisted of main theme which every level sets differently. From the second half of 2005, it has promoted the theme of 'The World Environment Day' and applies that theme into diverse programs.
According to activity areas, it helps children to understand local environment by local specified experience, traditional lifestyle and cultural art experience education which have been based on environment of each local society.
It also helps children to experience environment familiar lifestyle based on traditional Korean way and to exchange directly and indirectly experiences about environment among children with having cultural art experience education with diverse environmental themes.
It carries out outdoor education programs at least once among 4 times of education, and tries to give indoor education or experience programs with using 5 senses in the rest of times.

Materials/equipments used in the project:: Reading materials, natural items, Writing materials

Result/Self evaluation (success or failure) including its reasons: *'e-Paran children's environment educational program' makes chances to make children realize the importance of environment through nation-wide environmental education, and has settled itself as substantial social environmental education.
*'e-Paran children's environment educational program' encourages children to have mind to love environment with environmental programs which let them learn experience-centered programs, such as natural ecology investigation, environment expression programs and environmental culture experience programs, and maximizes educational effect.
*Furthermore, 'e-Paran children's environment educational program' carries out educational, environmental and social functions by making children who will take main roles in 21st century pay attention to environmental problems of individuals, homes, and local societies.

Other learning from the project: *Make children experience their native local nature by field investigation in their own societies.
*Improve the quality of e-Paran education by cooperating with local universities which have environmental education programs.