| As educators seek ways to improve student motivation, behavior, and achievement, many schools are attempting to integrate their standards-based curriculum with social concerns such as the environment. One such program involves a partnership between the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) and a middle school. Teachers had the task of creating and implementing strategies that aligned SCDNR ideas and mandated standards, creating a model curriculum. The study proposed to find strategies for the improvement of this curriculum, based on theories related to cognition, social learning, and self-efficacy, that would result in relative and meaningful content. This formative program evaluation, using a qualitative intrinsic case approach, sought to answer how teachers in the program could implement a more effective, integrative program emanating from a unique partnership. Data from interviews, archival records, and observations were compared and cross-interpreted using interpretative analysis to create an executive summary, which included the personal philosophies of teachers, principals, and SCDNR representatives and an improved and replicable curriculum. Findings showed that the new curriculum needs to emphasize democratic classrooms focused on collaborative learning based on real world problems and concerns. This program evaluation may motivate further research and give SCDNR a guide to implement similar programs across the state. Social change may occur through an increased knowledge base of effective strategies for an integrated curriculum, which may improve the awareness and conservation of South Carolina’s natural resources, as well as ultimately increased student motivation, behavior, and achievement. |
