Environmental concepts should be set in a context that includes social and economic as well as ecological aspects. Historical, ethical, cultural, geographic, economic, and sociopolitical relationships are addressed, as appropriate. Learners are offered opportunities to examine multiple perspectives on the issue and to gain an understanding of the complexity of issues, as appropriate for their developmental level. Further investigations help learners probe more deeply into the ecological, social, and economic aspects of issues, and their interrelationships. Concepts are introduced through experiences relevant to learners' lives.
Materials help learners to make connections among the concepts.
Learning is based on students constructing knowledge through research, discussion, and application to gain conceptual understanding. Environmental issues should be explored using a variety of scales as appropriate, such as short to long time spans, localized to global effects, and local to international community levels. These scales include the local, regional, national, and global levels. Linkages are clear among communities of all levels. Local, regional, continental, and global geographic scales are used to help learners understand that issues can be important, widespread, and complex.