The Importance of Environmental Education to Secondary Education Level in Akure South Local Government Area, Ondo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Every nation desires to achieve a state of development because of the benefit therein to be enjoyed within and outside the state. Yet, many nations are undergoing the process of development because of all that it entails for nation building and national development. The rapid societal transmission with its positive and negative effects is enough of a scenario for the stimulation of global reorientation of education and reduction of apathy especially in the developing world. Hence, this paper focused on the Importance of Environmental Education to secondary education level. It also discussed Environmental Education (EE) as a key to creating environmental consciousness/awareness, empowerment and participation in decision-making regarding some of the world‟s vital environmental issues and challenges at secondary school level. Simple random sampling technique was adopted to select 400 respondents. Relevant data were collected using a self-made questionnaire titled “Environmental Education Questionnaire” (EEQ). Two research hypotheses were formulated. The findings showed that, there was no significant relationship among the respondents in their perception based on gender and class level (JSS and SSS). Based on these findings, some specific recommendations were made for implementation.

Key words: Environmental Education (EE), gender, nation building, empowerment, societal transitions global challenges.