ÇOCUK VE ÇEVRE: OKUL ÖNCESİ ÇOCUKLAR ARASINDA ÇEVRE BİLİNCİ OLUŞTURMA

Dünyamız giderek insan etkileri yoluyla bozulmakta ve yaşanan ve yaşanacak problemlere çözümler bulacak genç nesillere ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır. Gelecek nesillerin daha sağlıklı ve güvenilir bir ortamda yaşamalarını sağlamak için çevreye duyarlı bireyler yetiştirmek, bir zorunluluk haline gelmiştir. Çevre eğitiminin önemi de buradan kaynaklanmaktadır. Çocuklar bizim geleceğimizdir. Toplum için en büyük görevlerden biri, herkes için sağlıklı, adil ve sürdürülebilir bir gelecek sağlamak için gerekli olan tutum, değer, bilgi ve becerileri çocuklara kazandırmaktır (Davis,1998). Okul öncesi eğitim, çocuklarda çevreyle ilgili tutum ve davranış geliştirmeleri açısından oldukça önemli bir yere sahiptir. Araştırmalar çevre bilgisi ve çevreye yönelik tutumun okul öncesi dönemde şekillenmeye başladığını, okul öncesi dönemde kazandırılan çevre bilincinin ileriki yıllarda da çevreye karşı olumlu tutum geliştirmede önemli yeri olduğunu ifade etmektedir (Smith, 2001). Son yıllarda Türkiye’de okul öncesi dönem çocuklarına yönelik çevre eğitimi çalışmaları artış göstermiştir, ancak bu araştırma alanında hala boşluklar vardır

CHILDREN and THE ENVIRONMENT: CREATING ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS AMONG PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Environmental conditions on earth are rapidly deteriorating due to human impact. Young generations need to be educated who will be capable of dealing with the problems of the future. Creating environmental awareness has become a necessity so that people will live in a healthier and safer environment. Environmental education in early years is important since children are our future. Providing children with the attitudes, values, information and skills that are required for the creation of a healthy and sustainable future is among the most important duties of society (Davis, 1998). Preschool education plays a very important role in the development of children’s attitudes and behaviors towards the environment. Studies show that information about and attitudes towards the environment begin to take shape in the preschool period, and that environmental awareness acquired in preschool years is an important determinant of positive attitudes towards the environment in the future (Smith, 2001). Even though studies to provide preschool children with environmental training have shown increased in Turkey, in recent years, but there are still some spaces in this research area.

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