Applied education in environmental science: An example from Rough Rock Community School on the Navajo Reservation (Arizona)

This thesis describes environmental-cultural aspects of science education on the Navajo Reservation using various project-based environmental science activities for Navajo secondary students at Rough Rock, Arizona. These culturally relevant learning experiences employ plants and animals and other materials in educational activities that have an inherent cultural appeal and strong sensory attraction to Navajo students.; Attempts were made to align the science activities with environmental issues of regional scope and/or with relevance to various science competitions that were in progress nationwide. Science projects were prepared and later submitted as entries by students in science fairs and other programs. Integrated science-art projects were entered in the NASA Interplanetary Art Program. These types of activity-oriented methodologies promoted student motivation and provided helpful external evaluation of the projects.; In describing and documenting these educational experiences, photography was employed to refine, record, and enhance the project description. The successful activities addressed in this thesis are meant to serve as templates for other educators in the design process for environmental science units on the Reservation or elsewhere.