Library resources addressing appropriate environmental education concepts for students at selected Burlington County, New Jersey middle schools

The Environmental Education in New Jersey: A Plan of Action is a document that was developed to infuse environmental education into school curricula. One of its foci is to harness existing resources in order to accomplish the objectives of the proposal. The purpose of this descriptive study is to provide data on the availability of informational books, periodicals and other resources located in selected Burlington County, New Jersey middle schools that would enhance the teaching of appropriate environmental concepts.;A survey was developed to elicit responses from a panel of knowledgeable individuals in order to determine the most appropriate concepts for middle school students, and a two-part questionnaire was developed to obtain pertinent information from the library media specialists.;Each library media center selected was examined to determine if informational books and periodicals are available, if informational books and periodicals are available for a diversity of reading levels, if enrollment and library budget amounts are associated with the number of informational books and periodicals available, and if other resources are available to address environmental topics.;Subsequently, a model was developed and a bibliography of materials was compiled to provide suggestions for the establishment of a environmental resource centers for middle school students.;The findings of this study indicate that all of the library media centers house informational books and periodicals to address the appropriate environmental concepts, however not all have a sufficient number for each concept. Most have informational books and periodicals to accommodate a diversity of reading levels for middle school students. Generally, the socioeconomic status of a middle school has a direct relationship to the amount of informational books and periodicals. Enrollment and library budget amounts are not consistently associated with the amount of informational books and periodicals available. Additional types of resources and technology are available in library media centers, and networking affords the opportunity to improve the quality and quantity of accessible materials.