2024 Volume 33 Issue 2 Pages 2_11-14
From the perspective of environmental education, the reviewer raised the issues, achievements and basic concepts of nature conservation education including experiential nature learning. Based on the results of the special features on nature conservation education and nature experience learning published in the journal “Environmental Education” from the Japanese Society for Environmental Education in 2009 and 2013, the reviewer reconsidered how to approach the goals of nature conservation education and the lack of an “education” perspective, which have been issues since the early days of nature conservation education. Nature conservation education is a unique field of environmental education as it specifically clarifies the relationship between humans and nature. In addition, nature conservation education has many similarities with learning about pollution (education) due to its close relationship with environmental issues, and both are aimed at environmental ethics, bioethics, recognition of others, ownership, social justice, and the formation of individual identity. At the same time, these characteristics have an “educational” perspective in the sense that they contribute to and support the development of the personality and potential of the person receiving the education. On the other hand, “○○ education” such as “environmental education” and “agricultural education” has a mission from the beginning to disseminate ○○. Nature conservation education has the same mission. In addition, from the perspective of “education,” it may be possible to position the recognition of “the educational power of nature and friends” and “the educational power of place” as the basis of the skeletal structure of nature conservation education.
