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OpinionLetter: Get back on track with standardsTo the editor: Although the comment period for the first draft of the standards ended a few weeks ago, I would like to offer a suggestion for the next rewrite of the standards: Include benchmarks for environmental education! ìIn the current draft of the Minnesota Standards for Science, there are few opportunities for students to become literate in environmental science. There are no standards/ benchmarks that deal with environmental systems, grades 9-12.î These are the words of the Minnesota Science Teachers Association on Oct. 14, 2003. They are very troubling words to me and they should be troubling to a large majority of Minnesotans. In a recent report, The Minnesota Report Card on Environmental Literacy (2002), 9 of 10 Minnesotans wanted environmental education included in the K-12 curriculum. How is it possible for a committee representing ALL Minnesotans to nearly exclude something that is desired by 90 percent of us? We are on a collision course with myriad environmental problems right now: ï Water issues ñ both surface and ground. How many of our precious area lakes are still swimmable? Why do we need fish consumption advisories from the Minnesota Department of Health? ï Global climate change ñ The ever increasing severity of storms and frequency of 1000 year flooding events. ï Chemical contamination of our food and drinking water. ï Improper waste disposal ñ Many TVs and computers (and their associated hazardous components) are disposed in landfills. Even collected electronics are often shipped to China and Thailand for cheap and dangerous processing, causing severe water and air pollution and endangering the lives of the recyclers. Now is not the time to retreat from environmental education. Education about these and other environmental issues is vital to our future. Gary Noren ©ECM Post Review |