2021 -- H 5625 | |
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LC001382 | |
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021 | |
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A N A C T | |
RELATING TO EDUCATION – THE CLIMATE LITERACY ACT | |
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Introduced By: Representatives Cortvriend, Carson, Ruggiero, Ajello, Kislak, Donovan, | |
Date Introduced: February 19, 2021 | |
Referred To: House Education | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled "EDUCATION" is hereby amended by |
2 | adding thereto the following chapter: |
3 | CHAPTER 110 |
4 | THE CLIMATE LITERACY ACT |
5 | 16-110-1. Short title. |
6 | This chapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Climate Literacy Act". |
7 | 16-110-2. Legislative findings. |
8 | The legislature finds and declares that: |
9 | (1) The evidence for human-induced climate change is overwhelming and undeniable, and |
10 | the heaviest burden of climate change impacts will fall on the next generation; |
11 | (2) Nearly ten thousand (10,000) students graduate from Rhode Island high schools each |
12 | year, armed with skills and knowledge about the climate that inform their actions, and the effects |
13 | on the climate, positive or negative, of each of those ten thousand (10,000) students lasts beyond a |
14 | lifetime; |
15 | (3) Those students need to be prepared to implement changes in professional and personal |
16 | practices, to support and help develop new technology and policy, and to address the coming social |
17 | and economic challenges and opportunities arising from a changing climate; |
18 | (4) It is thus essential that each of these graduates are climate literate and understand key |
19 | environmental and sustainability principles; |
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1 | (5) A study published in Nature demonstrated that children who take a climate education |
2 | curriculum foster climate change concern among their parents; |
3 | (6) According to the Yale Program on Climate Change Communications, over seventy-six |
4 | percent (76%) of the people of Rhode Island support teaching students about the causes, |
5 | consequences, and potential solutions to climate change; |
6 | (7) According to a recent national public radio poll, eighty-six percent (86%) of teachers |
7 | in the United States feel that climate change should be taught in schools; |
8 | (8) A survey conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that nearly half of |
9 | American teenagers say they have learned either little or nothing about the causes or ways to reduce |
10 | the effects of climate change, and that the number of teenagers who say they are being taught in |
11 | school about how to mitigate climate change appears to be on the decline. Sixty-one percent (61%) |
12 | say the issue of climate change is very or extremely important to them personally; |
13 | (9) The National Science Teaching Association, the National Association of Geoscience |
14 | Teachers, and the National Association of Biology Teachers, as well as other professional education |
15 | organizations, have all called for greater support for science educators in teaching climate science |
16 | and climate change. In a recent paper in the proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, |
17 | scientists picked climate education as one of six (6) key societal transformations needed to address |
18 | the climate crisis; |
19 | (10) The resilient Rhody report recommends that kindergarten through twelve (K-12) |
20 | education be expanded to include education on environmental literacy, including climate-related |
21 | emergency preparedness, by developing resources for school use and identifying how these |
22 | concepts can be incorporated into existing state standards. |
23 | 16-110-3. Purpose. |
24 | The purpose and intent of this chapter is to ensure that all students attending public schools, |
25 | or other schools managed and controlled by the state, become environmentally and climate literate |
26 | by the time they graduate from twelfth grade. |
27 | 16-110-4. Implementation. |
28 | The Rhode Island department of education shall: |
29 | (1) In consultation with a wide representation from the environmental and climate |
30 | education community as well as practicing teachers, principals, and superintendents, develop a set |
31 | of key environmental, climate, and sustainability principles and concepts to be infused into all |
32 | science and civics and social studies courses throughout kindergarten through twelve (K-12), no |
33 | later than August 31, 2023; |
34 | (2) In consultation with a wide representation from the environmental and climate |
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1 | education community as well as practicing teachers, principals, and superintendents, identify and |
2 | disseminate lessons, activities, and materials related to the environment, including potential career |
3 | paths, which are based on these key environmental, climate, and sustainability principles and |
4 | concepts while meeting the learning standards and grade span expectations to all Rhode Island |
5 | schools no later than August 31, 2024; |
6 | (3) Produce and disseminate models and examples of how to incorporate climate change |
7 | into math and English language arts to teachers and schools no later than August 31, 2024; |
8 | (4) Infuse these key environmental, climate, and sustainability principles and concepts into |
9 | the learning standards in science and the kindergarten through twelve (K-12) Rhode Island grade |
10 | span expectations for social studies where appropriate no later than August 31, 2025; |
11 | (5) Ensure that all RIDE teacher professional development in science and civics and social |
12 | studies includes these key principles and concepts no later than August 31, 2026; and |
13 | (6) Establish a "climate smart" award program to recognize high performing schools based |
14 | on the metrics of the US department of education green ribbon schools program and a "green apple" |
15 | award program to recognize kindergarten through twelve (K-12) teachers who develop and |
16 | implement high-quality instruction that addresses these key environmental, climate, and |
17 | sustainability principles and concepts no later than August 31, 2023. |
18 | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO EDUCATION – THE CLIMATE LITERACY ACT | |
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1 | This act would implement literacy of climate change for all students enrolled in public |
2 | schools or other schools managed and controlled by the state in kindergarten through twelve (K- |
3 | 12). |
4 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
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