ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

ENVIRONMENT

The environment can be defined as a sum total of all the living and non-living elements and their effects which influence human life. While all living or biotic elements are animals, plants, forests, fisheries, and birds, etc. The non-living or abiotic elements include water, land, sunlight, rocks, and air, etc or it is the complex of physical, chemical, and biotic factors (such as climate, soil, and living things) that act upon an organism or an ecological community and ultimately determine its form and survival.

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Environmental education is a process that permits people to investigate environmental issues, take part in critical thinking, and make a move to work on the environment.

Accordingly, people foster a more profound understanding of environmental issues and have what it takes to settle on educated and dependable choices.

The point of environmental education is to develop a world population that knows about, and worried about, the environmental and its related issues, and which has the information, abilities, attitudes, inspirations and obligation to work separately and collectively towards arrangements of current issues and the avoidance of new ones.  

OBJECTIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Given below are the objectives of environmental education:

•Mindfulness: This is one of the fundamental objectives that any subject of study offers. Through concentrating on environmental education, mindfulness about the environment, the issues of the environment and the answers for the issues are created. There is a legitimate understanding with respect to why there are different capacities present in the environment.

•Information: Environmental education assists an individual with acquiring information and data about the current happenings in the environment. There in-depth and proper education that is given with regards to the environment and the elements of the environment.  

•Obligation: It is just when we comprehend the purposes for the interruptions in the environment; we can find appropriate ways to prevent it. People comprehend which activities hurt the environment, be it in a little or a major manner, and avoid potential risk to confront the misfortunes. It likewise helps in making any future moves and choices mindfully.

•Participation: When we study in detail about a specific subject, we will quite often get more engaged with it. The environment is something that concerns every one of us, so it is our obligation to take an interest in saving the environment and keep it from being harmed. Though environmental education, individuals are encouraged to partition in saving and taking care of the environment as they become aware of the harm that it can cause to their lives.

•Making New Patterns: With expanded consciousness of the harm that man’s activities are causing to the environment, environmental education plans to make new pattern of behaviour and attitude that humans have towards the environment. This outcomes in less damage as the new pattern is pointed toward being environmentally friendly.

•Understanding the Complexity of Environment: The environment that we people live in is complex and includes different activities that occur inside it. Environmental education satisfies the intend to cause individuals to comprehend the complexity of working in the environment and the interaction that happens in it. By getting this, individuals become more indulged in saving and securing the environment.

Thus, environmental education is necessary because it teaches us about ourselves. It advises us that nature and individuals are not independent, we are nature and nature are us. EE is essential since we should be in every way educated and mindful of the effects of our choices. Education shapes the premise of everything in today’s world including environment. Environmental Education imparts information about the current circumstance and future possibilities of nature. It encourages individuals to investigate all the issues connected with environment, and take part in ways of safeguarding it.

IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Every individual has to be aware about the functions in an environment. Only at that time we will become responsible for our environment. The information given below will help in understanding the significance of environmental education.

  • Environmental education is one of the subjects in the educational program in schools. At a point when children study about the environment and its capacities, they develop a feeling of understanding towards the environment in the beginning phase of their life.
  • It is essential to build the attention of people towards the environment. With the assistance of environmental education, individuals’ information about the environment is instilled into the citizens of a state or a country.
  • There are numerous environmental issues that the world is confronting. To stay away from them later on, individuals need to study the environment and take appropriate consideration of it. It can be done with the assistance of environmental education.
  • Environmental education polishes various other skills of an individual. The ability to make decisions is strengthened with the study of environmental education as people become more responsible and aware.
  • People can manage any sort of environmental issue through environmental education. This, thus, brings about an expansion in critical thinking abilities.
  • One creates sensitivity towards the environment as a result of the multitude of environmental issues that have been occurring for quite a while. Thusly, every individual makes any move by remembering the damage it can cause to the environment.
  • Simply nobody can address the issues that emerge in the environment. Environmental education makes individual rich in the information about the environment with the goal that the most ideal arrangements can be accommodated even the smallest of circumstances the environment faces.

MINDFUL EATING

Mindful eating refers to the act of being present while eating or drinking.

You are likely to eat while working, sitting in front of the TV, chatting on the telephone, or doing various task throughout your day. You may not see when you’ve eaten a couple of sweets, presented yourself with one more mug of espresso, or finished the crust from your child’s breakfast, because eating is second nature to you.

Thus, mindful eating permits you to stop, slow down, and truly focus while eating.

There are countless examinations recommending the effect of food on psychological wellness. Uma Naidoo, MD refers to the association among diet and mental and neurological wellbeing as the “gut-brain romance.” Similarly, early-stage cells which founded our brain and nervous system additionally founded the gastrointestinal framework, Dr. Naidoo clarifies, and these frameworks remain inextricably connected through the vagus nerve which controls our “rest and digest” system. The relationship between food and psychological well-being goes a lot further than many figure it out. Investigations have discovered that diet, along with exercise can really balance neurological and mental problems, like epilepsy and dementia. It is also closely tied to anxiety, depression, and sleep.

PRACTICING MINDFUL EATING

Life can move rapidly, and stopping to eat without interruption and interference can feel impossible now and again, however mindful eating doesn’t need to be time- consuming. You should simply slow down and focus. Here are a few methods for practicing mindful eating consistently:

Be aware of the activity: Follow a single bite from beginning to end, Dr. Naidoo suggests, and focus on the sounds of cutting the food, the smell as it floats up to your noses, the surface of the food as it arrives in your mouth, the flavors that change as you bite, and the feeling as you swallow your food.

Perceive your body’s signs: We’ve all experienced that profound, snarling feeling in our stomach when we’re hungry. This is a sign. Cravings are also a sign; however, they don’t really mean you want food. Once in a while we experience desires when we’re feeling worried or restless. As you start mindfully eating, journal what you’re eating and the way you feel before, during, and later.

Slow down your eating so your body and mind can communicate: At a point when you eat rapidly, you don’t typically experience fullness as fast, and this can prompt overeating. During the time slow down, to permit your body and brain to convey.

Socialize over food: “The demonstration of getting ready and offering dinners to others is a social movement that has withstood the turbulent test of time, and we realize that social commitment is a critical element in our well-being,” says Dr. Naidoo. Joining a companion for dinner or preparing with a friend or family member can assist you with rehearsing more mindful eating, all while supporting your mental health.

Focus on the sensory details: With each new food, Dr. Naidoo proposes focusing on one sensory aspect, for example, the smell of an orange as you unpeel it, your lunch pack unzipping, or seeing the bright carrots and beet hummus.

Practice mindfulness throughout your day: In order to work on mindful eating, it will assist with joining mindfulness into different parts of your life. Dr. Naidoo recommends adding affirmations to your morning schedule, rehearsing yoga, working out, or attempting guided meditation. Mindfulness, in any structure, can assist you with remaining grounded and present.

CONCLUSION

Thus, Mindful eating isn’t a diet. The motivation behind mindful eating isn’t to get thinner or cut back calories; the object is to work on your relationship with food and overall eating experience.

“Dieting or restricting, in any form, doesn’t work,” says RanDee Anshutz. “The pursuit of weight loss or controlling the size of our body causes more harm than good.”

Knowing the adverse consequence of specific food varieties on your body doesn’t mean you need to eliminate those food varieties from your eating routine. With mindful eating, you can learn to enjoy the taste and feel of a single chocolate chip cookie, for example, as opposed to eating half a dozen without realizing it.

FOREST BATHING

Forest bathing is based on the Japanese practice, shinrin-yoku, which can be interpreted as “taking in the medication or air of the forest.” While forest bathing started in Japan during the 1980s, it has developed well known around the world.

Brought into the world because of significant degrees of work pressure and a spike in paces of immune system illness, forest bathing was likewise adjusted to work on the economy of country regions that lost individuals moving to urban communities. Forest bathing has turned into an eco-friendly, health remedy to our tech-immersed world.

It turns out that walking and relaxing in this type of immersive experience amongst the trees may offer various health benefits. That’s the reason forest bathing is additionally called forest therapy.

ADVANTAGES

1. The advantages of going for a walk-in nature is moving away from screens. Simultaneously, when we spend time in nature, we are additionally switching off rumination, stress, and obsessive thinking. All things considered, we are enjoying some time off and permit ourselves an opportunity to re-energize and appreciate.

2. Breathing in forest air increase the degree of normal killer (NK) cells in our blood. Our body utilizes these NK cells to battle infection and cancer.

3. The constructive outcomes of forest bathing are turning out to be well known. In one study, members who constantly walk-through forests showed proof of lower blood pressure. Openness to the tree oil and walks around the forest may likewise add to decreased nervousness. Past scientific research observed that forest bathers showed proof of decreased pressure chemicals like adrenaline and noradrenaline in their bodies. Forest bathing has been demonstrated to help those encountering a brief upsetting circumstance as well as persistent pressure. Forest bathing is turning into an increasingly well-known stress decrease strategy. Analysts are prescribing forest treatment to diminish the danger of psychosocial stress-related sicknesses.

THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND

This is what you should focus on as you stroll through the forest:

What do you see?

Are there various types of trees here?

Do you hear birds close by singing?

Would you be able to hear the smash of the leaves and twigs on the ground as you walk?

Would you be able to hear the quiet?

Did a creature hurry some place close by?

Do you feel the stirring breeze?

Do you feel your body as you walk?

Would you be able to take in the aroma of the trees?

Would you be able to breathe in and breathe out profoundly?

Did you see the sky above you and its shade of blue?

Would you be able to feel your association with the forest?

Would you be able to connect and feel the delicate quality of the leaves or the sharpness of the pine needles?

Do you detect quietness?

Would you be able to relish the time you have here?

CONCLUSION

Forest bathing is a strong wellness tool. It’s a nature-based mediation so you don’t need to stress over side effects. It can likewise be a corresponding treatment to enhance standard treatment, particularly for emotional wellness hardships.

Simply make sure to forest bath consistently, regardless of whether you need to plan the time on your schedule.

This course of getting back to nature can carry you to an increased condition of tangible mindfulness and a feeling of serenity. Not long after entering a green space, your body unwinds, pulse balances out, stress chemicals decline, muscle strain diminishes, and medical advantages kick in.

POWER OF CREATIVE THINKING

WHAT IS CREATIVITY THINKING?

Creative thinking is the capacity to think about something in an another or new manner. It might be a new approach to a problem, a resolution to a conflict between employees, or a new result from a data set. Managers in all enterprises need representatives who can think creatively and carry new points of view to the work environment. Creative thinking implies thinking out of the box. Frequently, creativity includes lateral thinking, which is the capacity to see patterns that are not self-evident.

Creative thinking may mean devising better approaches to do task, take care of issues, and address difficulties. It implies bringing a new, and once in a while strange, point of view to your work. This perspective can assist department and associations with being more useful. Creative thinking isn’t restricted to artistic types. Creative thinking is an ability that anybody can sustain and create.

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR CREATIVE THINKING?

1. Step outside of your comfort zone- Research has demonstrated that perhaps the greatest obstruction for creativity is working or thinking about thoughts we’re now acquainted with. At a point when you’re confronting a creative challenge, attempt to oblige your work to a specific level (for example, when making a presentation, drive yourself to start each slide with a verb in dynamic voice). This way, you’ll urge your brain to come up with more creative answers for your work, around the restrictions you’ve set for yourself.

2. Brainstorm-Brainstorming is an ideal blend of creative thinking abilities and cooperation. It depends on thinking about an answer for an issue or a creative task, and writing down all thoughts any member recommends paying little attention to how unbelievable or awkward these might appear. Out of all the thoughts, some will be likely to be both conceivable and imaginative.

3.  Force yourself to work when you’re feeling uninspired-. In any event, when you feel like creative work is the last thing you’re equipped for, on a given day, focus on doing it in any case, yet work in restricted, brief timeframes (for instance, 20 minutes). During these periods, let nothing divert you, don’t attempt to do anything expect work that you’ve resolved to do. Assuming you compose just 5 words, define only two boundaries, or note down a solitary thought that doesn’t appear to be legit, it’s fine. When the 20 minutes are finished, enjoy some time off. At whatever point you feel prepared, start an additional 20 minutes. After a couple of iterations, you’ll notice that you get more and more done within the set chunk of time and you’ll no longer feel relieved when it’s time for a break. Soon, you’ll be back to your creative best.

4. Work, daydream, work– Many studies have recommended that detaching mentally, fantasizing, moving, or even basically snoozing helps upgrade creative thinking abilities. It is discovered that daydreaming features a vital part of fantasizing: it only works once you’ve already invested a considerable amount of time in a given project. The deeper you are in the creative process, the more unplugging for a while or daydreaming can help you further.

6 WAYS TO APPLY CREATIVE THINKING IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE

The following are 6 ways to apply creative thinking in your life:

1)Risk Taking: Being bold and prepared for life’s difficulties pushes you a step forward to creativity.

2)Playing: Trying to play and be funny at times allows you the opportunity to control the given issue appropriately according to what you want.

3)Regularly inquiring as to Why: Being interested and nosy, needing to pose inquiries all the time opens unlimited opportunities and possibilities.

4)Generating huge number of thoughts: By creating a major number of potential arrangements, a brilliant, special, surprising response may be found.

5)Day Dreaming:  Wondering about things related to your project frees your mind to expand its horizons and explore new ways out there.

6)Reading: Going to the library and reading for hours can support your creative mind and develop further creative mastermind.

Major boost to education sector

 Union Education Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ lauded the Union Budget 2021-22 and expressed his gratitude to Finance Minister Smt Nirmala Sitharaman for giving a major boost to education.

ShriPokhriyal highlighted that the Budget allocation for the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS), has been substantially increased from Rs. 175 Cr to Rs. 500 Cr in next FY 2021-22 for providing post-education apprenticeship, training of graduates and diploma holders in Engineering.He also said that an outlay of Rs. 50,000 Cr over next 5 years for National Research Foundation (NRF) will give a major boost to Innovation and R&D.

The Minister said in a big boost to education sector allocation of KVS has increased by Rs 362.32 crore and allocation of NVS increased to Rs. 320 crore w.r.t. RE 2020-21. The budget allocation of NCERT increased to Rs.110.08 crore from RE 2020-21.

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Highlights of Budget 2021-22 –Department of Higher Education

 

1.   In this FY 2020-21, the BE was Rs. 39466.52 Cr, which has been rationalised to  Rs. 32900 Cr, due to Covid-19. BE for the next year 2021-22 has been kept at  Rs.  38350.65 Cr, which is more than 5450.65 Cr more than the current year RE.

 

2.   Out of the Total BE of Rs. 38350.65 Cr, Provisions for Establishment, Autonomous Bodies(ABs), and Schemes are as below:

(i)Establishment: Rs. 247.44 Cr

(ii)Autonomous Bodies(ABs): 29023.78 Cr

(iii)       Schemes Total: Rs. 9069.43 Cr

(a)Centrally Sponsored Schemes: Rs. 3000 Cr [RUSA]

(b)Central Sector Schemes: Rs. 6069.43 Cr

 

3.   In our flagship scheme RashtriyaUchchatarShikshaAbhiyan (RUSA), a budget provision of Rs. 3000 Cr has been kept for the next FY 2021-22, in comparison to   Rs. 300 Cr in current year.

 

4.   Budget allocation for the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS), has been substantially increased from Rs. 175 Cr to Rs. 500 Cr in next FY 2021-22 for providing post-education apprenticeship, training of graduates and diploma holders in Engineering.

 

5.   Some New Initiatives like- Opening of BhartiyaBhasa University & Institute of Translation, Indian Knowledge System, Academic Bank of Credit, PM e-Vidya, Multidisciplinary Education and Research Improvement in Technical Education (MERITE) shall be implemented in line with the NEP recommendations, after approval of the competent authority. At present a Token Provision has been kept in the BE of FY 2021-22 for all the above initiatives.

 

Budget Announcements:

 

1.   Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) -an Umbrella Body, which will have 4 verticals- Accreditation, Standard Setting, Regulation, and Funding. Legislation for HECI will be introduced this year.

 

2.   In 9 cities where there are number of institutions supported by the GoI (like- Hyderabad etc.) we will create a formal umbrella structure– for better synergy, while retaining their internal autonomy.

 

3.   A new Central University(CU) will be set up in Leh.

 

4.   We will realign the existing scheme of National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) for providing post-education apprenticeship, training of graduates and diploma holders in Engineering. Over Rs. 3,000 crores will be provided for this in next 5 years.

 

5.   For promotion of Innovation and R&D, an outlay of Rs. 50,000 Cr over next 5 years has been kept for National Research Foundation (NRF). Its major beneficiaries will be Higher Education Institutions including CFTIs like- IITs/IISc/IISERs/NITs etc.

Highlights of Budget 2021-22 – Department of School Education & Literacy

 1.        Budget allocation for BE 2020-21 was Rs 59845 crore which was rationalized to Rs 52189.07 crore in RE 2020-21 post covid-19 situation. This has now increased to Rs 54873 crore in BE2021-22.

 2.        There has been an overall increase of Rs. 2684.59 crore (5.14%) in Budget allocation of Department of School Education & Literacy in BE 2021-22 from RE 2020-21.

 3.        The overall Budget allocation in BE 2021-22 is Rs. 54873.66 crore out of which scheme allocation is 43648.66 crore and non-scheme allocation is Rs. 11225.00 crore. The scheme allocation has been increased by Rs 1895.08 crore and non-scheme allocation by Rs. 789.51 crore as compared to RE 2020-21.

 4.        Budget allocation in the Flagship scheme of SamagraShikhsa has been increased to Rs. 31050.16 crore in BE 2021-22 from Rs. 27957.32 crore in RE 2020-21 by Rs. 3092.84 crore i.e. increased by 11.06% in comparison to RE 2020-21).

 5.        The budget allocation in PadhnaLikhnaAbhiyan (PLA) is also increased from Rs. 95.25 crore (RE 2020-21) to Rs. 250 crore in BE 2021-22 (an increase of Rs. 154.75 crore) i.e. by 162.47%.

 6.        Rs. 485 crore is also provisioned in the new created Centrally Sponsored Scheme of STARS.

 7.        Allocation of KVS is increased by Rs 362.32 crore and allocation of NVS increased to Rs. 320 crore w.r.t. RE 2020-21. Budget allocation of NCERT was also increase to Rs. 110.08 crore from RE 2020-21.

Initiatives on Education as part of NEP

·     Standards will be developed for all school teachers in the form of National Professional Standards for Teachers- NPST.  This will enhance the capabilities of teachers and will be followed by all 92 lakh teachers of public and private school system in the country.

·     Toys are both an expression of entertainment and learning.  A unique indigenous toy-based learning – pedagogy for all levels of school education will be developed.  This will transform classroom transactions from mundane and rote learning to an engaging and joyful experience.

·     A National Digital Educational Architecture (NDEAR) will be set up within the context of a Digital First Mindset where the Digital Architecture will not only support teaching and learning activities but also educational planning, governance and administrative activities of the Centre and the States/ Union Territories.  It will provide a diverse education eco-system architecture for development of digital infrastructure, a federated but inter operable system that will ensure autonomy of all stakeholders, specially States and UTs.

·     For children with hearing impairments, the Government will work on standardization of Indian Sign language across the country, and develop National and State Curriculum materials for use by them.

·     There are a number of senior and retired teachers.  They will be used for individual mentoring of school teachers and educators through constant online/offline support on subjects, themes and pedagogy.

·     Students have so far been evaluated on uni-dimensional parameters.  There will be a complete shift from using assessments to not only judge the cognitive levels of the learner but also using it as an opportunity to identify the unique strengths and the potential of the child. To this effect, a holistic progress card is envisaged to provide students with valuable information on their strengths, areas of interest, needed areas of focus and thereby helping them in making optimal career choices. 

·     To enable increased access of resources, online modules covering the entire gamut of adult education will be introduced.

·     During the year, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, we have trained more than 30 lakh elementary school teachers digitally, covering the whole gamut of education.   Taking this further, in 2021-22, we will enable the training of 56 lakh school teachers through the National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers for Holistic Advancement (NISTHA).

·     For the past few years our Prime Minister has been engaging with students every year before their Board Exams to help them overcome anxiety and stress.  In this direction, we will introduce CBSE Board Exam reforms in a phased manner to be effective from the 2022-23 academic session.  Exams will move away from rote-learning and students shall be tested on their conceptual clarity, analytical skills and application of knowledge to real life situations.

·     To promote enhanced academic collaboration with foreign higher educational institutions, it is proposed to put in place a regulatory mechanism to permit dual degrees, joint degrees, twinning arrangements and other such mechanisms.

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Procrastination

It often happens that whenever we are told by our mother to bring something from the store or wash the dishes or clean the bed, we delay it. Not only this, it happens in almost all the situations where we are asked to do something but we delay it. It does not mean that work is not done or left behind. The same person does it to whom the work is assigned but after some time. This is called Procrastination. The literal meaning of procrastination is the action of delaying or postponing something.


It is not a disease or a virus which happens to be in the person’s body but a thinking. Also, it can be termed as a mentality. The mentality where we think that we’ll do it later, after some time. Nothing is going away and we have some time. Not everything has to be done right away. And with this thought we keep on delaying and postponing work.


It seems very normal but from a practical aspect it is not good. With delaying and postponing, we tend to become like a person who does not concern himself or herself with the activity going on. According to us, there is no significance of the present moment because delaying things and doing it in the future is our habit. We are like this. We take it as a an assignment which can be performed or submitted wherever we want forgetting the fact that the result changes with the time of the submission. The medical drug is required when the person is ill. It is not like that it can be given at any time. The time holds importance and its own significance. It does not only depends on our own discretion.


According to the recent research report, it is observed that this habit of procrastination emerges from a very early age in the individual like when he or she is around 7-8 years. At that time, it is only an action but slowly it transforms into a habit when there is no one around to correct it. The act of correcting is the work of the parents and when they fail to perform their responsibility, their child develops a habit like this which cause him to compensate in the future.


With the procrastination, an individual misses out on a lot of opportunities. When we assign and engage ourselves with the tasks in the future, we’ll never be able to grab the opportunites that will come in the future then and there. Since we are already occupied with so many things, another assignment will cause stress and will further make us avoid the another one.


Not only missing on the opportunities given, sometimes it so happen that it becomes very hectic and stressful. We tend to delay and postpone and what finally happens is the last time comes. Some people are strong to come out from that situation but some people get really stuck there. Then it becomes very difficult from them to cope up with that. At that time, regret follows. We start thinking that Alas! We should have done it before hand only. If done before, this all wouldn’t have happened.


Lastly, I would like to conclude with my opinion that the individuals who have the habit of procrastinating things, should change that else they will miss out on a lot of things. Further, it can even cost them something very valuable. It’s not like that it can’t be changed. It’s just that efforts should be put into the place and the will to change and come out from that place.