Political Quotes

“Madam President, today, I am introducing important environmental literacy legislation, the No Child Left Inside Act, along with Senator Collins and Senator Merkley and Congressman Sarbanes. Our bipartisan, bicameral bill focuses on the fundamental goal of public education, which is to equip the next generation with the knowledge, skills, and experiences to understand the world around them and their ability to shape it. In the face of a global climate crisis, it is essential that all students graduate with environmental literacy skills to secure and sustain their future. Environmental education provides broad benefits. It has been shown to enhance student achievement in science and other core subjects and to increase student engagement and critical thinking skills. Moreover, it promotes healthy lifestyles by encouraging kids to get outside. Yet, environmental education often gets crowded out of the school day. In a Rhode Island Environmental Education Association survey, teachers identified challenges to integrating environmental education into an already crowded curriculum and ranked professional development as most helpful to remedying the situation. Some of the practices put in place in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have shown real promise. As the pandemic took hold, Rhode Island's environmental educators sprang into action, creating outdoor learning support opportunities and virtual programs for students as they did school from home.…”