According to the National Fundamental Reform Document of Education which represents official policymaking instruction within schools, students must learn 6 areas of education, which include religious and moral education, aesthetic and artistic education, economic and vocational education, and scientific-technological education.
In this regard, measures that are most compatible with the 6 fields of education have been implemented or followed up more seriously.
One such measure is planting trees and paying attention to the environment and green spaces in schools. The plan of a plant nursery for each school has been implemented to attract attention to the issue of tree planting in educational places.
The Ministry of Education, as the main responsible body for the education and promotion of healthy living skills among students, is trying to present its own goals, plans, policies, and activities by referring to the official instructional documents, including the Fundamental Reform Document, to show that the actions of this ministry are following a general model.
Does planting trees in schools become a culture?
At the opening ceremony of the project under the title of “Every School, a Plant Nursery,” the Minister of Education Reza Morad Sahraei said:" Tree planting is a transformative action. If something becomes a culture, it will be permanent. Building a culture and institutionalizing tree planting is the guarantee of having a magnificent and vibrant environment for the future of Iran. This good action, which was organized by the Ministry of Agriculture Jahad and the support of the Ministry of Education, is a symbol of the idea that if we are together nothing is impossible. We dedicate it to all the precious martyrs, especially the students and teachers who fought for this country.”
The health and wellness office of the deputy for Physical Education and Health Affairs of the Ministry of Education believes that this plan is being implemented successfully, and the following measures are on the agenda to achieve the goals of the Reform Document:
1. Conclusion of a memorandum of cooperation between the Iranian Department of Environment and Education department
2. launching of an environmental committee at the headquarters level of the Ministry of Education
3. Formulating environmental indicators by the national committee of the Ministry of Education
4. Compilation of the book "Human and Environment" for 11th grade high school students
5. Training the members of the Health Ambassadors student organization in the field of environmental protection through self-care manual instructions
6. implementation of student ceremonies on environmental occasions: Clean Air Day, Tree Planting Day (March 15)
7. Utilizing the capacity of student health ambassadors to promote a healthy environmental culture through the Voice of Student Health Ambassador radio program (more than 50,000 students participated in the environmental campaign of this program)
8. Face-to-face and virtual training using channels on the Shad network approved by the Ministry of Education
9. Allocation of 2 courses under the title of health, hygiene, and environmental protection in the general curriculum of all fields of Farhangian University (teacher training university)
10. Implementation of in-service training courses under the title of environmental management for all educators
11. Implementation of the virtual festival of Nature Day especially
12. Implementation of environmental projects in the country's schools (programs called “an hour with environmentalists, wildlife guards and environmental houses”)
13. In line with the public-friendly plan to plant one billion trees, with the cooperation of the Ministry of Agriculture Jahad, about 3,400 plant nurseries have been established in the country's schools under the title of "Every School, One Nursery".
The number of 3,400 garden centers in schools shows that the Ministry of Education has tried to develop green spaces in schools. However, there is still a long way to go before the first promises in this field are fulfilled.
Yousef Nouri, the former Minister of Education, at the beginning of the 13th government, promised the development of tree planting in schools, and on March 06, 2022, he said: "40 thousand trees will be planted in schools by mid-April, and we will present environmental ambassadors in schools."
At the same time, Nouri had promised that significant green spaces would be built in all schools. Considering the number of schools and spaces available in them, such a decision could increase the number of green spaces per capita in the country in addition to strengthening educational policies.
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