Summary
Performance-based funding rewards public universities that promote student success over enrollment. Enrollment-based funding encourages colleges to enroll students but does not necessarily help them earn degrees or certifications. Outcomes-based funding approaches reward colleges for graduating diverse pupils. Outcomes-based funding formulas use student progress and completion, while states use input, process, and other measures differently (Performance-Based-Funding and Student-Centered Higher Education- the Evolution, 2104). Well-designed outcomes-based models should motivate colleges and universities to care more about students’ graduation rates and support non-traditional, first-generation, and underserved students. Best outcomes-based funding systems consider these variables. A good outcomes-based funding approach accounts for institutional and student diversity.
On the other hand, another study will assist environmental educators in teaching, analyzing, and defining critical thinking. A pilot project taught undergraduate students forest concerns thinking skills. Discussed and assigned skills were related. A Likert-scale assessment of critical thinking disposition, qualitative interviews, and an essay-based exam assessed crucial thinking skills. Students’ critical thinking dispositions and necessary thinking skills increased. Interviews with students showed that they battled with emotion in critical thinking and utilized critical thinking in diverse circumstances, some of which had citizenship implications. The study suggests teaching and assessing approaches. Environmental jobs are growing fast. According to ECO Canada, ecological employment rose from 2007 to 2010 (Trina et al., 2007). Their latest survey examines the talents and traits environmental organizations value when hiring, retaining, and promoting people. Technical proficiency is less significant than thought. Employers value good communication, critical thinking, customer service, business acumen, research skills, technological ability, and goal-oriented, independent, and team-player attitudes. Employers require more employees with business and communication abilities despite soft talents and personality attributes. According to the study, environmental practitioners should have a “can-do” attitude, solve problems well, use common sense, be motivated and tenacious, and love their work.
The integrated medical/dental curriculum added a Community Service-Learning (CSL) option and examined its educational impact. Focus groups, open-ended interviews, and a survey assessed dentistry students, faculty tutors, and community partners’ CSL experiences. CSL helped students comprehend social determinants of health, marginalized people’s vulnerability, and community involvement. Students, tutors, and community partners all stressed that health professions education should include a community-based (Dharamsi et al., 2010). For course, sustainability, community partners, and faculty tutors stressed equal participation, teamwork, and a participatory approach. The study found that CSL can instill social responsibility in dental students and provide a longitudinal course. This exciting essay addresses environmental citizenship and how environmental education might promote it. Ecological citizenship has been debated, but how to implement it is still unknown. Green political theory supports civic republicanism and civic environmentalism, which promote environmental citizenship. Place-based education may promote this kind of citizenship.
Critical Analysis
The importance of education, especially environmental education, in cultivating critical thinking abilities, social responsibility, and ecological citizenship is a recurring subject throughout the four summaries. The first and second summaries emphasize that higher education institutions must promote student outcomes, such as graduation rates and critical thinking abilities, to better prepare students for the workforce and to be engaged, informed citizens. The use of community service learning (CSL) to foster social responsibility and health promotion in aspiring practitioners is examined in the third summary. The concept of environmental citizenship and how education might promote it are covered in the fourth summary.
Critical thinking abilities must be prioritized in education, one concept that leaps out in these descriptions. The original report said that a pilot study explicitly taught critical thinking skills to undergraduate students, leading to notable gains in these capabilities. According to the second summary, employers in the environmental sector value skills like critical thinking and research prowess in candidates. The focus on essential thinking abilities reflects the increased understanding of the value of these abilities in the workplace and civic involvement. The need for continual education and training in critical thinking throughout one’s life is suggested by the fact that these talents are not necessarily natural and may be taught.
These summaries also highlight the value of civic engagement and social responsibility in environmental education. The use of Community Service-Learning (CSL) to foster social responsibility among aspiring practitioners is highlighted in the third summary. CSL gives students a chance to develop their project management and execution skills while simultaneously promoting health in underserved communities. The fourth summary contends that place-based education encourages cooperation for the common good and can promote environmental citizenship. These instances highlight the importance of civic engagement and social responsibility in ecological education and imply that the educational system can be a potent force for fostering constructive social change. The necessity for education to be adaptable and sensitive to shifting social and economic circumstances is a final theme that emerges from these analyses. The second summary points out that environmental organizations place more value on personality attributes and soft skills than on technical competence, which reflects the changing nature of the workforce and the growing significance of communication and business savvy.
Similarly, the first summary emphasizes the necessity for higher education institutions to put students’ academic success ahead of enrollment to better prepare students for the workforce and civic engagement. To better meet the requirements of students and society, these instances point to the necessity of continuous reflection and modification in education. Overall, these analyses highlight the value of education in fostering social responsibility, civic engagement, and critical thinking. To best meet the requirements of students and society, they also make a case for the necessity of constant reflection and change in education.
Reflection
In learning about the positive impact of conserving the environment, I have learned about the advantages of conserving the environment through various educational resources, including textbooks, essays, and movies. These resources can aid in their comprehension of the significance of environmentally sound development, human activity’s effects on the environment, and the need for environmental preservation. Additionally, exciting and dynamic classroom exercises like discussions, case studies, and field visits have given me hands-on learning opportunities and a firsthand understanding of environmental challenges. To comprehend the current state of the environment and the efforts being taken to conserve it, I have also learned to investigate environmental research and scientific studies. Ultimately, I can develop a profound awareness of the advantages of safeguarding the environment and become an environmentally responsible citizen through academic and practical learning.
What I have learned here entirely means that developing an environmentally sustainable future for our planet requires knowledge about environmental protection. By just understanding how human activities can affect the environment, it majorly allows us to act to reduce our carbon footprint and save natural resources. In addition, it enables us to choose a livelihood that is more or less reliant on single-use plastics, at times favors environmentally friendly goods, and conserves water. By just the act of learning about protecting the environment, we can also inspire the creation of novel technology and approaches to solving problems related to the environment. By prioritizing environmental conservation, we can ensure a healthier planet for the present and future generations.
By implementing simple, sustainable behaviors like reducing, reusing, and recycling, using energy-efficient appliances, saving water, and purchasing eco-friendly goods, one may practice their understanding of environmental protection’s benefits in their daily lives. In addition, it is crucial to reduce waste, commute by public transit or carpool, and eat less meat. Volunteering in nearby environmental organizations can also convey knowledge about environmental issues to their friends, family, and neighborhood. Individuals may significantly impact the environment and contribute to creating a sustainable future for future generations by doing these things.
References
Trina D. Hofreiter, Martha C. Monroe & Taylor V. Stein (2007). Teaching and Evaluating Critical Thinking in an Environmental Context, Applied Environmental Education & Communication, 6:2, 149–157, DOI: 10.1080/15330150701598197
The Evolution. (2014, May 5). The Evolution. https://evollution.com/opinions/perfomance-based-funding-student-centered-higher-education/
Dharamsi, S., Espinoza, N., Cramer, C., Amin, M., Bainbridge, L., & Poole, G. (2010). Nurturing social responsibility through community service-learning: Lessons learned from a pilot project. Medical Teacher, 32(11), 905–911.
write