Le Programme d'information de la Convention

Le programme scolaire est un moyen extrêmement efficace de communiquer des informations et de sensibiliser aux valeurs et fonctions des zones humides mais plusieurs facteurs empêchent les enseignants de transmettre, à l’école, un message efficace concernant les zones humides. Dans de nombreux pays, l’éducation à l’environnement ne fait pas officiellement partie du programme; dans d’autres, elle fait peut-être partie du programme national mais les questions relatives aux zones humides, en général et aux principes Ramsar de conservation et d’utilisation rationnelle des zones humides, en particulier, ne sont peut-être pas expressément identifiées comme des domaines à aborder en classe. Dans d’autres pays encore, où les questions relatives aux zones humides font partie du programme national, les enseignants n’ont peut-être pas la connaissance ou l’expérience requise pour transmettre le message dans le cadre des activités scolaires.

Enfin, même lorsque toutes ces conditions sont réunies, les enseignants et les autorités chargées d'établir les programmes sont, dans de nombreux pays, encouragés à assurer une Éducation pour le développement durable (EDD). Ce paradigme éducatif encourage à adopter une approche plus holistique et interdisciplinaire du perfectionnement des connaissances et des compétences pour préparer les étudiants à vivre dans un monde durable, et pose toute une série de nouveaux défis aux responsables de l'élaboration des programmes d'études. Bien entendu, pour la famille Ramsar en général et pour les praticiens du CESP-Zones humides en particulier, le défi consiste, quel que soit le paradigme éducatif appliqué dans un pays, à veiller à ce que des mécanismes soient en place pour garantir la prise en compte des questions relatives aux zones humides dans l'enseignement scolaire à tous les niveaux, et à ce que les enseignants soient dûment préparés pour faire passer le message.

Veuillez nous faire savoir si votre pays a déjà inscrit les questions relatives aux zones humides dans son programme national - qui sait, votre pays deviendra peut-être un modèle de " bonnes pratiques "…

En général, le meilleur matériel pédagogique est celui qui est adapté à un groupe d’âge particulier et qui propose un message spécifique – on pourrait, par exemple, concevoir du matériel pédagogique destiné aux 8-12 ans qui vivent dans la région du delta de l’Okavango; ce matériel étudierait l’utilisation de l’eau par l’homme dans la région et comment cette utilisation affecte la santé des zones humides. Il s’agit d’un message spécifique qui nécessite un matériel spécifique. Dans la plupart des situations, il n’est pas possible de transférer du matériel «prêt à l’emploi» d’un pays à un autre car l’information doit, en général, coller à la réalité locale. Cette section du mini-site Web a pour but de fournir des exemples du matériel disponible pour informer et inspirer ceux qui préparent du matériel pédagogique afin de transmettre le message de CESP et pour leur fournir des contacts utiles. Une fois encore, la réussite dépend de la volonté des usagers de partager l’information – veuillez contacter Sandra Hails par courriel (hails@ramsar.org) si vous souhaitez proposer du matériel.

Pour commencer, voici des exemples intéressants de matériel pédagogique, présentés en trois sections. La Section 1 propose des concepts nouveaux d'Éducation pour le Développement Durable (EDD), avec des modules de formation pour les enseignants, du matériel pédagogique et de la documentation sur l'EDD. La Section 2 décrit des cours structurés fondés sur les zones humides à l'intention des enseignants de différents degrés. La Section 3 présente du matériel susceptible de compléter les activités prévues au programme, tel que livres et brochures sur les zones humides à utiliser avec les enfants, jeux et affiches, et autre matériel pour aider les enseignants à faire entrer les zones humides dans la salle de classe et amener les enfants vers les zones humides - kits pour analyser la qualité de l'eau, jeux relatifs à l'eau/aux zones humides, activités pour la cour de récréation, affiches, etc. Sachez que ces sections ne sont pas 'étanches' et que le matériel peut en chevaucher plusieurs.

SECTION 1

The Handbook on methods used in Environmental Education & Education for Sustainable Development is a 110-page book introducing educators to the basic ideas relevant to the various EE and ESD methods. Using practical examples to illustrate the methods, this is a useful reference guide. A synopsis of the book is available here and the full document can be downloaded in PDF format if you first join the MedIES network. Look for join instructions here.

Education for Sustainable Development Toolkit was published in 2002 to provide community leaders and educators with an easy-to-use manual to help them start the process of combining education and sustainability. Can also be viewed in HTML .

Australia's Environmental Education for a Sustainable Future: National Action Plan was published in 2000 and can be downloaded from Environment Australia's Web site as an Adobe PDF file (about 500KB). The plan is intended to provide leadership to the many different sectors involved in environmental education activities and promote better coordination of these activities.

As part of their programme on Educating for a Sustainable Future, UNESCO has produced a Web-based programme Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future: A Multimedia Professional Development Programme. This on-line modular programme is intended for pre-service teacher training but is relevant also for experienced teachers and serves as a thorough introduction to teaching for sustainability.

The on-line Development Education Programme of the World Bank has designed tools and resources for secondary level teachers so that they can bring sustainable development issues at the national, regional and global level into the classroom.

The UK Government set up a Sustainable Development Education Panel whose remit covered schools, further and higher education bodies, and education in work, recreation and the home. Look here for a Sustainable Development Action Plan for the education sector, launched in September 2003. The Action Plan aims to encourage wider participation in sustainable development in ALL education and skills sectors. This plan built upon the Panel's draft Strategy for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in England completed in February 2003.

Promoting social and environmental responsibility is now a key focus of the Environmental Studies 5-14 curriculum in Scotland. But what does this mean for teachers? The booklet Developing Informed Citizens (PDF, 446KB) offers advice, ideas and stimuli to help develop pupils' ability to participate in making positive changes for the future.

SECTION 2

Bogs in the Classroom is an educational web site focused on bog field studies developed by the Irish Peatland Conservation Council. The materials available are intended to help teachers prepare primary, post primary and third level students for a field trip to a bog and includes suggestions for field investigations that could be undertaken, as well as follow up activities to complete the study.

The Electronic Naturalist is a new on-line education program providing a weekly environmental education unit. Each unit has artwork, text, activities, additional web sites, plus online access to a professional naturalist. Two reading levels are available for grades K-3 (Quick Read) and 4-8 (Full Read).

From FAO, an education kit to celebrate the International year of the mountains (2002). The 5 detailed lessons come with clear objectives, procedures and extension activities to give children a better understanding of the importance of mountains to everyone and what they can do to help protect mountain ecosystems and their human communities. Download the lesson plans as a ZIP file here (90KB).

WWF-Hong Kong has developed an interactive environmental education CD (in English and Chinese) "Footprints in Wetlands" which aims to provide additional supporting materials to aid teachers in carrying out on-site environmental education in secondary schools in Hong Kong. Copies (free) are available from Ms. Yvonne Wan, WWF Hong Kong Administration Officer at ywan@wwf.org.hk

Taking action for Rivers is a National Geographic Society web-based project to involve schoolchildren in river conservation in their local area. There are student activities and educator guides for three themes, Using our Rivers, Changing our Rivers and Saving our Rivers. Great stuff!

Turning the Tide on Trash is a learning guide for teachers to increase the awareness of students of the impacts of marine debris as well as the prevention techniques. Although focused on marine debris (which ends up very often in coastal wetlands) the concepts are just as relevant for any aquatic debris.

Bog Ho! is an innovative Web-based learning project based in Canada that brings together primary schools from several countries to explore the importance and fragility of wetlands. The 2001 project brought together schools in three countries to conduct a comparative analysis of wetlands. Visit the project on-line to see the students' work and to find how other schools worldwide can become involved.

Water for Life: Keep the Wild Alive, produced by the National Wildlife Federation in the USA, consists of 10 lesson plans. Each includes background information about a habitat and its species, a stewardship story, additional resources, as well as a hands-on classroom activity. Available on-line.

Produced by WWF Hong Kong, the Mai Po Marshes educational pack is written in Mandarin and English and distributed free to all secondary schools in Hong Kong. It includes a teacher’s guide as well as 5 booklets with information and worksheets on ecology of mangroves, land use around the marshes, water pollution at Mai Po etc, that can be used both at the Mai Po Wetland Centre and in the classroom. For further information contact Joanne Au (IHCSC@wwf.org.hk).

A collection of teaching materials on wetlands for kindergarten through 12th grade. The activities focus on what wetlands are, what makes them valuable, and how human actions have affected them. Of particular interest to the schools that have access to a nearby wetland to use as a study site. Available on-line Discover wetlands.

A number of curriculum packages for age groups K-12 that focus on Cranes and their wetland habitats. Available on-line at the International Crane Foundation

Two units of work for K-6 and 7-12 that cover groundwater, the water cycle and water conservation. Available on-line Groundwater & the water cycle.

From the USA's EPA, material that can be downloaded as PDF files covering wetland science, wetland types, wetland functions. Includes classroom activities. World in our Backyard

A Saltwatch Resource Book to assist teachers (primary and secondary) and communities in teaching about salinity and associated problems in the local environment. Includes information, discussion topics and activities. Available on-line Saltwatch Resource Book.

SECTION 3

Catchment to reef - a number of products on this web site are aimed at children. Two well illustrated booklets for download are Are you connected: a guide to the processes linking land, sea and reef and Nutrients, Catchments & Reefs: A guide to nutrients in your landscape. Poster also available.

Lolo’s Flying Journey, a game for 6-12 year olds, produced by WWF Hong Kongand freely distributed to all primary schools in Hong Kong, looks at the challenges facing Lolo, a Black-faced spoonbill, during its migration in east Asia. Available for download in PDF format here

Le jeu Ramsar un jeu de société où le joueur devient une gouttelette d'eau et part pour un voyage extraordinaire. Plus d’informations ici.

Explore Our Wetlands is an interactive web animation produced by the Australian government that aims to enhance the understanding and awareness of the community of the role of wetlands in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.

Yatou est un trimestriel édité en français-arabe et diffusé à 30 000 exemplaires en France, en Espagne, en Algérie, en Tunisie et au Maroc. Une découverte à la fois ludique et pédagogique permet d'aider les enfants à comprendre l'environnement pour mieux le respecter. L'objectif de Yatou et de son site internet est d'être un outil d'éducation et un vecteur d'échanges.

Canon Envirothon provides students with a chance to get "up-close and personal" with North America's natural resources. Offering both in-class curriculum and hands-on field experiences focused around ecology, natural resource management, and current environmental issues, this unique combination of learning experiences and breadth of study is part of what has made the Envirothon a huge success with students and educators across the United States and Canada.

WatershedPartners, a coalition of over 40 public, private and non-profit organizations in Minnesota in the US, teaches residents how to care for their watershed through collaborative educational outreach. They offer one-stop help in planning and organizing service-learning projects to prevent water pollution in a watershed aimed at teachers and community workers. Their Pollution Prevention Guide, can be downloaded in PDF format. This 37-page step-by-step guide has been built on the experience of teachers and youth workers that have organized water quality protection projects involving thousands of students over many years.

This report on "Service-learning", a teaching and learning approach that integrates community service with academic study to enrich learning , teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities, gives best practice examples to help teachers develop their own projects in the local community.

WaterAid, a charity dedicated to helping people living without safe water and sanitation, provides some interactive games on water issues for 11-14 and 14-16 year-olds as well as a variety of resources aimed at teachers for use in the classroom with different age groups on a range of development issues.

This interactive website is all about shorebirds, their amazing lifecycles, the flyways and many organisations and people who are dedicated to sharing information about these extraordinary birds. Includes a useful document for teachers Feathers, Flyways and Fast Food that can be downloaded and used in the classroom.

On-line information on all aspects of water in our environment. Although US-based, the facts and figures on surface waters, groundwaters, the water cycle - and much more - are useful for teachers and students wherever they are. Water Science for Schools

CD-ROM (in Spanish) on sustainable management of water resources designed for schoolchildren (10-13 years) in Latin America. Includes materials for children and their teachers. Read more here.

A card game, produced by La Fundación Humedales, de Bogotá, Colombia, targeted at schoolchildren living near the Laguna de Fúquene, helps them to understand more about the plant and animal life in their local lagoon. More information here in Spanish and English.

A 37-page children's cartoon magazine (in Spanish), produced by an NGO in Argentina, Fundación Vida Silvestre, tells the story of Segismundo, a bird which flies from the Northern hemisphere to Samborombon Bay, a Ramsar site in Argentina. Segismundo

In line with the Ministry of Education’s call to implement environmental education across the curriculum, Wetlands International recently co-produced (with a local Teachers College) a Tasek Bera Wetland Education Kit, specially designed for primary schools in the area of Tasek Bera, Malaysia’s first Ramsar site. The kit consists of learning modules, story book, videotape, cassette tape and a board game, all designed for use in the classroom. Tasek Bera Wetland Education Kit. This kit has been been used as a model to produce similar kits in Thailand and Cambodia.

A full-colour booklet for 6-8 year-olds produced by the Wetlands Research Centre, Canada, that makes the connection between water, wetlands and wildlife. Blackflies to Blueberries

The Amazonian Institute of Scientific Research in Colombia has recently published a 32-page children's book on Amazonian wetlands. Filled with colourful illustrations, it contains information on wetland classification, species, conservation etc. Los humedales de la Amazonia Colombiana

A remarkable Web site developed by schoolchildren in Hawaii that traces the history of their local wetland from 1300 to the present, highlighting its use and abuse by people over the centuries. This dynamic group of children learned about their local history, their wetlands - and designed a Web site to share their knowledge! Please sign the guest book when you visit. Kaelepulu Pond, Hawaii

"POW! The Planning Of Wetlands: An Educator’s Guide" takes teachers and students through the process of creating, restoring, and enhancing wetlands in or near schoolyards using natural or artificial water sources. The first section of the guide presents background information on the technical aspects of designing and constructing a wetland. The second section includes hands-on activities that allow students in grades 5-12 to fully participate in designing, planning and then monitoring their wetland. Modified activities are provided for grades K-4. The guide can be purchased on-line from Environmental Concern Inc.

Murder Under The Microscope: An interactive environmental mystery game played on the Internet by hundreds of primary schools across Australia every year. The challenge is to find the victim and the villain and then design a catchment management plan to prevent it happening again! Murder Under The Microscope

GREEN: Global Rivers Environmental Education Network produces a catalogue of materials for use in schools, presenting a range of water monitoring kits, field manuals, sampling nets, etc. You can view the catalogue on-line or in hard copy by mail from Earth Force, 1908 Mount Vernon Avenue, 2nd Floor, Alexandria, VA 22301, USA. GREEN Catalogue

Irish Peatland Conservation Council, a registered charity, provides information on all aspects of peatland conservation. Their catalogue offers a wealth of materials - wall charts, books, slide packs - to help bring peatland bogs into the classroom. The catalogue is available on-line or contact them by e-mail: ipcc@indigo.ie at 119, Capel Street, Dublin 1, Ireland. IPCC Catalogue

A company with the unlikely name of the Digital Frog has produced an interactive CD-Rom. Includes animations, narration, games, text, full color photographs and a comprehensive workbook. Can be purchased on-line. Digital Field Trip to Wetlands

Pour tout renseignement, contactez: Bureau de la Convention de Ramsar, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Suisse (Tél. +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail ramsar@ramsar.org ). Publié le 7 mai 2001, mis à jour le 15 février, 2008, Sandra Hails, Ramsar.