Jordan water conservation education project : final evaluation report

The curriculum incorporated interactive teaching techniques and covered such topics as the water cycle, water sources in Jordan, reduction of household water use, ground and surface water pollution, and home gardens and irrigation. RSCN staff conducted teacher training workshops in the curriculum for two teachers from each participating school; for many, it was their first exposure to an interactive teaching methodology. The curriculum was then implemented in eco-clubs at boys' and girls' high schools between February and May 1995. Its impact was evaluated by comparing participating and nonparticipating eco-clubs. Results show that some 60% of participating teachers implemented the majority of activities from the curriculum, including some optional activities. Teachers who did not implement most activities may have used the curriculum only as a guide. Time constraints such as those caused by the Ramadan holidays may have kept some teachers from completing all recommended activities. Nonetheless, participating teachers implemented more water-related activities than did nonparticipating teachers. The overwhelming majority of participating teachers would like to implement the curriculum again. The curriculum seemed to have little impact on teachers' beliefs about the advantages of interactive teaching methods or their ability to implement these methods. The curriculum had a positive effect on students' water conservation knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. Further, eco-club activities were shown to have the potential to strengthen school-community linkages and motivate both parents and students to actively participate in conserving Jordan's diminishing water resources. The curriculum evaluated here could effectively serve as a guide for curricula to address other crucial environmental issues. The project also played an important role in enhancing RSCN's institutional capacities in several areas, including: teacher training; use of participatory teaching methodologies; material development; and social science research and evaluation skills. Lastly, RSCN improved its capacity to effectively design and implement gender sensitive programs. The evaluation's survey instruments are appended.