Research has shown that widespread misperceptions prevail regarding the use and sustainability of America's forest resources. Elementary school students receive only a general foundation in the area of wood science and many elementary school resources have shown to be inadequate. Virginia Tech and a few other universities have adopted Wood Magic (originated at Mississippi State University) which presents active, hands-on, and engaging science-based education to third, fourth, and fifth graders, allowing them the opportunity to obtain both a theoretical and practical knowledge in these areas of study. A distance education version of the Wood Magic Program, utilizing interactive videoconferencing, is the focus of this thesis. An instructional design model has been developed to meet the needs of designers or instructors looking to expand into the distance education environment. This model describes all steps necessary to develop and implement a distance course or program. A survey was conducted of all randomly selected third, fourth, and fifth grade elementary school science teachers in Virginia. The intentions of the survey were to discover the barriers to implementing the Wood Magic Distance Education Program into their current curriculum. The three largest barriers to implementation were cost of materials, time, and travel resources. / Master of Science

nÃo hà / A presente pesquisa avalia os efeitos do Programa do MinistÃrio da EducaÃÃo e do Meio Ambiente: Vamos Cuidar do Brasil com as Escolas, que foi lanÃado em 2004, visando estimular a realizaÃÃo de experiÃncias que promovam um salto qualitativo na formaÃÃo de princÃpios direcionados à preservaÃÃo do meio ambiente. Referido programa se propÃs a construir um processo permanente de EducaÃÃo Ambiental na escola atravÃs de vÃrias aÃÃes com destaque para a realizaÃÃo das ConferÃncias Infanto Juvenis pelo Meio Ambiente. A III ConferÃncia à o principal alvo dessa pesquisa, focada na atuaÃÃo dos delegados que representaram o Cearà nas fases Estadual, Nacional e Internacional. O foco foi investigar como estes jovens percorreram os caminhos da EducaÃÃo Ambiental, buscando uma trajetÃria de representatividade junto a sua escola/comunidade. A observaÃÃo do engajamento desses jovens em projetos e aÃÃes de EducaÃÃo Ambiental mostrou o quanto o programa em anÃlise contribuiu para a sua caminhada. Quanto à metodologia, trabalhou-se com a abordagem qualitativa, tendo em vista que esta busca relacionar os acontecimentos aos processos humanos numa relaÃÃo de interaÃÃo entre as partes. Foram usadas diferentes estratÃgias, como o questionÃrio, a entrevista em profundidade, o grupo focal e a observaÃÃo livre, utilizando como instrumento o diÃrio de campo. As informaÃÃes foram analisadas a partir do mÃtodo do Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo, na tentativa de se perceber a representatividade desses jovens junto a sua escola/comunidade. Os resultados apontam mudanÃas de atitude por parte dos jovens no seu cotidiano, na convivÃncia com as outras pessoas e com o meio ambiente, mudanÃas estas, influenciadas pela sua participaÃÃo no programa. / In this study we evaluated the effects of a programme launched in 2004 by the Brazilian Ministry of Education and the Ministry of the Environment entitled âVamos Cuidar do Brasil com as Escolasâ. The purpose of this Programme is to encourage educational experiences that will help prepare for a qualitative leap in the creation of principles directed at preserving the environment. The programme proposes to construct a permanent environmental education process in public schools through a range of actions, with emphasis on the organization of Conferences on Environmental Education for Children and Youths. The third edition of this conference, held in Cearà in 2008, along with the delegates representing Cearà during the regional, national and international stages, is the main object of the study. We investigated how the students have assimilated skills and experiences in environmental education and increased their representativeness in their respective schools and communities. Their observed involvement in environmental education activities reflected the importance of the Programme to their learning process. Our approach was qualitative in order to relate events to human processes, highlighting potential interactions. With the help of questionnaires, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and free observations, information was collected and entered in a field diary. The results were analyzed using collective subject discourse in order to evaluate the representativeness of the children and adolescents in their respective schools and communities. Our study revealed changes in the studentsʼ attitudes towards their daily routine and their interaction with others and the environment as a result of their participation in the Programme.

CRUZ, Lindalva Costa da. Uma educação ambiental da juventude? Avaliação da política pública: Vamos Cuidar do Brasil com as Escolas - Conferências Infanto Juvenis pelo Meio Ambiente no Ceará. 2012. 127f. – Dissertação (Mestrado) – Universidade Federal do Ceará, Programa de Pós-graduação em Avaliação de Políticas Públicas, Fortaleza (CE), 2012. / Submitted by Márcia Araújo (marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2013-10-01T13:40:26Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-LCCRUZ.pdf: 1535637 bytes, checksum: 5bea5568984ab71625dae586df061734 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Márcia Araújo(marcia_m_bezerra@yahoo.com.br) on 2013-10-01T14:18:22Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-LCCRUZ.pdf: 1535637 bytes, checksum: 5bea5568984ab71625dae586df061734 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-10-01T14:18:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2012-DIS-LCCRUZ.pdf: 1535637 bytes, checksum: 5bea5568984ab71625dae586df061734 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / In this study we evaluated the effects of a programme launched in 2004 by the Brazilian Ministry of Education and the Ministry of the Environment entitled “Vamos Cuidar do Brasil com as Escolas”. The purpose of this Programme is to encourage educational experiences that will help prepare for a qualitative leap in the creation of principles directed at preserving the environment. The programme proposes to construct a permanent environmental education process in public schools through a range of actions, with emphasis on the organization of Conferences on Environmental Education for Children and Youths. The third edition of this conference, held in Ceará in 2008, along with the delegates representing Ceará during the regional, national and international stages, is the main object of the study. We investigated how the students have assimilated skills and experiences in environmental education and increased their representativeness in their respective schools and communities. Their observed involvement in environmental education activities reflected the importance of the Programme to their learning process. Our approach was qualitative in order to relate events to human processes, highlighting potential interactions. With the help of questionnaires, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and free observations, information was collected and entered in a field diary. The results were analyzed using collective subject discourse in order to evaluate the representativeness of the children and adolescents in their respective schools and communities. Our study revealed changes in the studentsʼ attitudes towards their daily routine and their interaction with others and the environment as a result of their participation in the Programme. / A presente pesquisa avalia os efeitos do Programa do Ministério da Educação e do Meio Ambiente: Vamos Cuidar do Brasil com as Escolas, que foi lançado em 2004, visando estimular a realização de experiências que promovam um salto qualitativo na formação de princípios direcionados à preservação do meio ambiente. Referido programa se propôs a construir um processo permanente de Educação Ambiental na escola através de várias ações com destaque para a realização das Conferências Infanto Juvenis pelo Meio Ambiente. A III Conferência é o principal alvo dessa pesquisa, focada na atuação dos delegados que representaram o Ceará nas fases Estadual, Nacional e Internacional. O foco foi investigar como estes jovens percorreram os caminhos da Educação Ambiental, buscando uma trajetória de representatividade junto a sua escola/comunidade. A observação do engajamento desses jovens em projetos e ações de Educação Ambiental mostrou o quanto o programa em análise contribuiu para a sua caminhada. Quanto à metodologia, trabalhou-se com a abordagem qualitativa, tendo em vista que esta busca relacionar os acontecimentos aos processos humanos numa relação de interação entre as partes. Foram usadas diferentes estratégias, como o questionário, a entrevista em profundidade, o grupo focal e a observação livre, utilizando como instrumento o diário de campo. As informações foram analisadas a partir do método do Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo, na tentativa de se perceber a representatividade desses jovens junto a sua escola/comunidade. Os resultados apontam mudanças de atitude por parte dos jovens no seu cotidiano, na convivência com as outras pessoas e com o meio ambiente, mudanças estas, influenciadas pela sua participação no programa.