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Project WILD

Project WILD Overview and History

There are many conservation education programs available for educators and students ranging from kindergarten to high school; one of the most widely used is Project WILD. This program bridges the gap between students and wildlife through wildlife-based and environmental education. Through curriculum materials and professional training workshops, the program fosters responsible behavior and actions toward wildlife, the environment, and related natural resources. Project WILD is an international network of students, parents, and leaders in the community, teachers, conservation groups, resource agencies, and administrators that focus on the implementation of the program into schools. It was designed so it could be easily integrated into previously existing education programs . Project WILD has been described by many professional educators, biologists, parents, and most importantly students as a lively, interactive program that provides effective methods for developing problem-solving and decision making skills .

Project WILD first became available through the hard work of several groups, such as the Council of Environmental Education (CEE; formerly known as the Western Regional Environmental Education Council, Inc. - WREEC), the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA), and state education departments. Agreements between the two founding associations, as well as other interested organizations and agencies, allow for the program to be sponsored. Project WILD is also supported by contributions, grants, and cooperational agreements. Project WILD is also a proud member of the No Child Left Inside (movement) Coalition.

No Child Left Inside Coalition (NCLI)

The No Child Left Inside (movement) Coalition was started in 2007 to alert members of the United States Congress and the rest of the American public on the importance of implementing and devoting more time to environmental education in schools. There are over 2000 businesses, environmental, youth, recreational, and countless other groups representing over 50 million Americans that are passionate about this cause. Representative John Sarbanes of Maryland and Senator Jack Reed (politician) of Rhode Island sponsored the legislation, No Child Left Inside Act of 2011, which amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, also known as the No Child Left Behind Act. The legislation states that environmental education plans, approved by the United States Secretary of Education, must be implemented in the school as a prerequisite to receiving funds from the government. It directs the Secretary to award Environment Education Professional Development Grants to states that have implemented activities such as teacher developments, rigorous standards, and development of environmental education curricula into their respective schools. .

Project WILD Mission and Goals

The main goal of Project WILD is to provide wildlife-based conservation and environmental education that fosters responsible actions regarding wildlife and related natural resources. The program's goal is to assist students of all ages in developing awareness, knowledge, skills, and commitment that results in making informed decisions, responsible behavior, and constructive actions related to wildlife and the environment. The thorough testing and evaluation processes that the curriculum has gone through show the commitment to quality. The purpose is to develop effective instructional resources that meet the needs of educators and students. To maintain the commitment to quality, Project WILD employs different strategies, such as updates and revisions, a conceptual framework, materials and activities, participant evaluations (usually completed at the end of workshops), and comparative studies. The National Council for Social Studies has endorsed the materials Project WILD has created, and they are consistent with recommendations of the National Science Teachers Association . The receipt of various endorsements and awards shows that the program has been recognized by various conservation and educational organizations as a good program. In 1991, and the White House, Project WILD was on of the first honorees of the Gold Medal for Education and Communications in the President's Environment and Conservation Challenge Award. This award was given "for excellence in developing innovative solutions to the nation's environmental challenges." Project WILD is also the recipient of The Wildlife Society's Conservation Education Award.

Project WILD Curricula

With all good educational curricula, Project WILD is concerned with not only presenting the information but also helping students make choices and help them make responsible decisions. As previously stated, the program's goal is not to tell students what to think, but to help students learn how to think in regards to the environment and wildlife. All of the materials that Project WILD has to offer are backed by sound educational practices and theory. It also represents the work of many professionals within the field of education as well as professionals in natural resource management from across the country.

The conceptual framework found on Project WILD's website serves as the basis for the curricula in the program. The conceptual framework is made up of three main concepts: Ecological Knowledge, Social and Political Knowledge, and Sustaining Fish and Wildlife Resources. Each of these three concepts have several categories within them that are defined and discussed in detail. Wildlife Populations (WP), Habitats, Ecosystems, and Niches (HN), Interdependence (ID), Changes and Adaptations (CA), and lastly Biodiversity (BD) are the five categories discussed under the main concept of Ecological Knowledge. Defined and discussed in detail under Social and Political Knowledge are the categories of Cultural Perspectives (CP), Economic, Commercial, and Recreational Considerations (EC), Historical and Geographical Development (HG), and Political and Legislative Frameworks (PL). The last of the three main concepts discussed in the conceptual framework is that of Sustaining Fish and Wildlife Resources under which the categories Attitudes and Awareness (AA), Human Impacts (HI), Issues and Trends (IT), Wildlife Management (WM), and Responsible Action (RA) are defined and discussed. This conceptual framework is the fundamental foundation on which all of the curricula Project WILD has to offer are built. The concepts and definitions discussed in the Conceptual Framework are found throughout all of the educational materials Project WILD has available for educators, students, schools, parents, and administrators .

Several of the curricula are distributed with no cost to participants at Project WILD workshops. These include the Project WILD K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide, the Project WILD Aquatic K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide, and Science and Civics: Sustaining Wildlife. The other materials can be obtained through the State Project WILD program offices in participating states.

Project WILD K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide: This curriculum focuses on wildlife and habitat and is based on the conceptual framework, as are all of the curricula and activity guides Project WILD has to offer. One goal of the curriculum was to be able to easily add any of the activities into existing lessons that instructors had previously planned. The Project WILD k-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide has all of the information needed by the students and teachers to complete each activity.

Project WILD Aquatic K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide: This material from Project WILD teaches students about aquatic life and aquatic ecosystems.

Science and Civics: Sustaining Wildlife: This curriculum targets students from 9th to 12th grade, and teaches them about environmental action projects that affect the local wildlife. Unlike the previous two pieces of literature, it focuses on four main topics: awareness, participatory democracy, habitat exploration, and taking action.

Proyecto WILD K-12 Guía de la Actividad y Proyecta la Guía Acuática WILD de la Actividad de la Educación: This guide was created in order to reach new audiences. It is the Spanish translation of both the Project WILD K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide and the Project WILD Aquatic K-12 Curriculum and Activity Guide.

Growing Up WILD: Exploring Nature with Young Children: Growing Up WILD is an educational program for early childhood. This program invites children to wonder about and explore nature, wildlife, and the world around them at an early age. The activity book is for children ages 3-7, has 27 different hands-on and educational activities .

WILD about ELK: This piece of literature was created in partnership with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. This curriculum provides a summary of the biology and ecology of elk. The theme throughout the book is the importance that the elks’ habitats have on their survival.

Taking Action: The World Wildlife Fund helped to create this book. It provides models and inspires ideas for students to conduct effective environmental projects. There are more than 30 sample projects that other groups have done around the country included in this book, so that students trying to plan a project have a better grasp on what could be effective.

WILD School Sites: This video helps to close the gap between what students are learning in the classroom and how they can actually apply it to the world around them.