Education and the Environment Book

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State Education and Environment Roundtable


The EIC Model™
Environment as an Integrating Context for improving student learning

     The EIC Model™ interconnects "best practices" in education into an instructional tapestry that improves student achievement by using local natural and community surroundings as a context for learning. The EIC Model™ is a system of educational practices, developed and copyrighted by SEER.

    "I can't tell you what a pleasure it was to be a part of such a meaningful professional growth opportunity. EIC truly provided the framework for the most effective teaching/learning of my career. You have my support and my appreciation.Ruth Pinson, 4th-grade teacher, Armuchee Elementary School, Georgia

    Learn about Dr. Lieberman's newest book, Education and the Environment: Creating Standards-Based Programs for Schools and Districts. Published by Harvard Education Press, more information here. Listen to a brief podcast about this book by clicking here.

    Hear more about environment-based education and the new book on Go Green Radio.

    Read more about this topic on ASCD's The Whole Child Blog, or see click here to see the article.

    Go here to learn about SEER's work with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and California's new Science Curriculum Framework.

    Founded in 1995, with grants from The Pew Charitable Trusts, SEER worked with 16 state departments of education to develop Environment-Based Education (EBE) as a standards-based instructional strategy. The EBE approach focuses on educational results: using the environment to engage students in their education through “real world” learning experiences, with the goals of helping them achieve higher levels of academic success, as well as an understanding of and appreciation for the environment and issues related to sustainability.
    Following the 1998 publication of Closing the Achievement Gap: Using the Environment as an Integrating Context for Learning, its national study of 40 environment-based schools, SEER has focused its efforts on disseminating and implementing its EIC Model™. Over the past 18 years, SEER has provided professional development and technical support to teachers from over 700 schools across the U.S. interested in implementing environment-based education.
     SEER works with traditional schools, charter schools, and green schools.

Environment-based Education
     All of SEER's work is focused on promoting and supporting EBE. SEER defines EBE as a framework for instruction that focuses on standards-based educational results by using the environment and related issues as a context for instruction. EBE has at its core three major goals: helping students achieve success with academic content standards; developing their understanding of interactions between natural and human social systems; and preparing students to be active members of a civil society with the skills they need to identify and resolve environmental issues.

     EBE is designed to help students become proficient with state and school district standards, including the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. It is designed to function as an integral part of a school's standards-based academic program and can be used to teach English-language arts, math, science, and history-social science, as well as incorporate other disciplines, such as technology, art, and music. EBE is not a separate topic with its own discrete academic content.
     SEER's staff:

     Since its inception, SEER has been recognized for its innovative state and national work on EBE.


Education Commission
of the States

Recognized SEER's EIC Model
in their catalog of "Programs &
Practices... show(ing) the diversity of
approaches schools are using
to accomplish comprehensive reform."


National Environmental
Education Foundation

Special Recognition Achievement
Award to SEER for
"bringing environmental learning into
the mainstream of American
K-12 education."


Education and the
Environment Initiative

Recognition for SEER's leadership
in the design and development
of California's Environmental
Principles and the EEI Curriculum.

Dr. Gerald Lieberman, Director
gerald at seer.org

rainbarState Education and Environment Roundtable
13648 Jackrabbit Road
Poway, California 92064
Telephone: (619) 218-1869
Fax: (508) 462-8331

Founding Sponsor The Pew Charitable Trusts 

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The "EIC Model™" and "using the Environment as an Integrating Context for
learning (EIC Model™)" Copyright © 1997-2023. All rights reserved.

Last update 1/1/2023