Soil and Water Conservation District Envirothon Planning Guide Virginia Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts Envirothon Contact: Beth Sokolik, Education & Training Coordinator Phone: 1-800-727-6354 E-Mail: [email protected] What is the Envirothon Getting Started ................................................................... 5 Forming an Envirothon Committee ..................................... 6 Planning Local and Area Competitions Planning ............................................................................. 8 Testing ................................................................................ 16 Training .............................................................................. 20 Marketing the Envirothon Program Fact Sheet .......................................................................... 23 Appendices Sample Registration Form .................................................. 25 Test Writing Workshop ....................................................... 29 Sample Test Questions ...................................................... 32 Sample Evaluation Form ..................................................... 46 Sample Rotation Schedule ................................................. 55 2 The Envirothon is a very difficult program to define because it is more an experience than a thing. As a result, people who are new to the program and have not had a chance to experience Envirothon training and competition, struggle with exactly what the program is all about. The following definition will provide people who are just learning about the Envirothon with a starting place and people experienced with the program a handy definition to use when asked “What is the Envirothon?” . The Envirothon is a multidisciplinary, environmental problem-solving program culminating in an annual series of competitions. Teams of five high- school students train and compete in the areas of soils, aquatics, forestry, wildlife, and current environmental issues. Teams are provided with reference material and participate in hands-on training to acquire the knowledge and skills needed in each of the testing areas. The Virginia Envirothon, as well as many other states, includes an oral presentation component to the competition. Students learn, in real-life context, the complexities of solving environmental problems while working as a team and having fun. 3 History of the Envirothon The Envirothon Program started in 1979 in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts sponsored the program as an outdoor hands-on competition and local competitions were held in three districts. In 1980, the name of the competition was shorted to Enviro-Olympics. In the next several years the program continued to slowly grow and in 1984, the first Pennsylvania State Enviro- Olympics was held. By 1985, the competition had grown to 15 districts and 40 by 1987. In 1988, the name was changed to the current name: Envirothon. Pennsylvania was joined by Ohio and Massachusetts at the First National Envirothon. The program has grown quickly since then; a total of 41 states and 7 Canadian provinces participated in the 2001 National Envirothon held in Raymond, Mississippi. Each year the Envirothon touches and positively influences the lives of over 500,000 young people across the country. That number will continue to grow as additional states become involved. More and more inquiries are made of the host state each year. Inquiries have come from around the world including States, Provinces, Mexican States, Turkey, Japan, and Australia. The Envirothon is truly becoming International in scope. Thanks to dedicated volunteers, staff of cooperating agencies, teachers and advisors, enthusiastic students, and valuable support and sponsorship from organizations like Canon U.S.A., Monsanto Chemical Company, the American Clean Water Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, the National Association of Conservation Districts, the Soil and Water Society, and many others, the Envirothon has proven to be an exciting and useful tool for incorporating environmental education into high school classrooms. The Envirothon has two basic components; the competitions and the training that takes place prior to competition. The competition is the most visible portion of the program. It consists of national, state, and sometimes regional or county events. Regional and state competitions are held in the spring of the year. The winning team from each state advances to the National Envirothon which is usually held the first week in August. The National Envirothon is hosted by a different state each year. A large part of what makes the Envirothon an educational program takes place well in advance of competition. Early in the school year teams of high school students, lead by an advisor, begin the process of training. Teams usually meet once a week from late autumn until competitions in the spring. Preparation for an Envirothon typically includes: studying resource materials; field trips to natural area; museums or other areas of interest; and presentations given by professionals working in natural resource related fields. It is through these learning activities that teams increase their knowledge of and ability to handle complex environmental and natural resource issues. The Envirothon program has been growing rapidly throughout the United States in the last few years. More schools are becoming interested in the program, and the number of teams participating in Virginia is also increasing. It is the goal of this guide book to provide you with all the information needed to establish a firm foundation from which you can build a strong Envirothon Program. 4 Visit an Envirothon The best way to learn about the Envirothon is to attend a competition. Being present at an Envirothon will allow you the change to speak with people involved in every aspect of the program: volunteers, judges, testing station personnel, team advisors, and participants. Build partnerships Partnerships are essential in helping Envirothon participants, as well as coaches, understand complex environmental and natural resource issues. Developing a program that reflects real life requires the input of people from different backgrounds working together. Providing teams with field experiences and quality information is accomplished when people with the expertise are invited to take part in planning an Envirothon and training teams. Teams cannot acquire the knowledge or skills needed to become active decision makers without this kind of input. Research indicates that students’ motivation to take part in environmental decision making benefits from the interaction with adult role models. Partnerships within the Envirothon are not limited to those conducting training sessions and planning competitions. Envirothon teams are found within a variety of organizations other than schools such as 4-H, FFA, Scouts, Boys and Girls Clubs and other community youth groups. Be creative, search out the youth organizations in your area that might have an interested in the Envirothon. Generate initial interest Starting an Envirothon program involves bringing together interested persons from as many different agencies and backgrounds as is practical. How can you go about generating that kind of involvement? . Distribute the Envirothon Coaches Handbook to interested parties . Meet with your local School Board and show the Envirothon Powerpoint Presentation . Send Envirothon brochures and fact sheets to Science Supervisors for distribution . Schedule a curriculum workshop with County Science Supervisors . Provide copies of letters of endorsement for the Envirothon Program from the Virginia Department of Education 5 Members It is recommended that each SWCD Area form an Envirothon Committe. The members should consist of district personnel, resource agency personnel and other interested parties in the Envirothon. Sub-Committees There are a number of ways to delegate the responsibilities for your Envirothon Competition. The following list of subcommittees and associated duties provides a basic structure. Public Relations – . Develop a publicity budget . Develop a logo . Design and order t-shirts if desired (T-shirts are not mandatory and excluding them is a way to cut down on cost during low budget years. Contact VASWCD for low-cost t-shirt contacts). Coordinate the development, printing and mailing of Envirothon flyers . Write and distribute news releases . Seek media coverage . Submit articles to be used in district and agency newsletters . Invite resource professionals, colleges and organizations to set up displays Resource Information – . Compile resource guides for advisors . Update resource guides as needed . Compile resource materials for each year’s current issue . Submit an estimate of purchase, printing and mailing costs to coordinator . Oversee distribution of the resource guides Volunteer Coordinator – . Compile a list of volunteers needs from other committees . Develop a master list of volunteer needs and duties . Secure volunteers to meet each need . Communicate with volunteers as to location and times of competition . Coordinate volunteers on the day of the competition . Decide on some form of volunteer recognition 6 Site - . Develop site criteria . Research and evaluate possible sites . Develop a map to the site . Arrange for parking . Determine services of the location (electricity, covered areas in case of poor weather, bathrooms, lodging/camping facilities if necessary)