Author(s): Kadir KARATEKİN, Gürdal ÇETİNKAYA
Schools should be the environment for gaining attitudes, values, skills, and behaviors related to life, not just a place where children learn the information they need. In order for our children to become individuals sensitive towards environment, school yards should be transformed into places where they gain some knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behaviors related to environment. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the elementary school yards located in the center of city of Manisa in relation to environment education. For this purpose, elementary schools in the center of city of Manisa were evaluated with the help of “Form for Evaluating School Yards on Environmental Efficiency” developed by the researchers. As a result of the evaluation, per-person usage area on elementary school yards located in the center of city of Manisa were found to be much lower than ones in standards adopted by developed countries. Usage areas on elementary school yards evaluated within the study had very limited green space per student since considerable area was covered with cement or asphalt. The available green space had very few trees and flower fields with no bush at all. It was observed that possible equipment for environment education either didn’t exist or was not adequately provided. In conclusion, 32 elementary schools included in the study in the center of city of Manisa can be called inefficient for environment education.
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