CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Basic Science and Technology is one of the core subjects in the primary
education curriculmu as enshrined in the National Policy on Education (Federal
Republic of Nigeria, 2004). McGraw-Hills (2005) has it that science is the knowledge
about the structure and behaviour of natural and physical world, based on facts that
one can prove, for example by experiments. Science and technology can be said to be
a system of organising the knowledge about particular subject, especially one
concerned with aspects of human behaviour and society.
The term science can be used to refer to a product (body of knowledge), a
process (a way of acquiring new knowledge through observation, questioning and
experimentation), and an enterprise (an institutioanl pursuit of knowledge of the
natural world/environment (Egbuna, 2010). The current development of science and
technology has greatly affected the lives of every human being that no one can fane
ignorance of their significance.
Basic Science and Technology as defined by Asun, Bajah, Ndu, Oguntonade
and Youdeowei (2010) is the foundation knowledge given to primary school pupils to
help them learn and understand science and acquire basic scientific training to become
creative and capable of innovative thinking. It is an activity-oriented course which
follows strick thematic approach whose aim is to make learning science effective
through a series of activities and exercises, as well as a modern approach of discovery
methods. The overall objectives of Basic Science and Technology curriculum under
the Universal Basic Education Programme are to:
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i) develop interest in science and technology;
ii) acquire basic knowledge and skills in science and technology;
iii) apply their scientific and technological knowledge and skills to meet
societal need;
iv) take advantage of the numerous career opportunities offered by science and
technology; and
v) become further prepared for further studies in science and technology.
The interaction of about 150 million Nigerians with their environment creates
indelible marks on the landscape. The Vision 2010 Committee of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria (1997) and Omoogun (2004), catalogued Nigeria’s environmental problems
to include soil erosion (sheet, gully, coastal), flooding (coastal, river, urban), over
population in cities and urban centres, drought and desertification in the northern parts
and deforestation in the southern parts of Nigeria, municipal solid waste and loss of
biodiversity,climate change and global warming, urbanization, diseases, all types of
pollution and poor sanitation as problems confronting Nigeria and other developing
countries. Pollution is the introduction of substances that contaminate the environment
and are dangerous to the health of human beings and other living organisms (Onoh,
2007). Corvalan (2005) reported that the world’s biodiversity is declining at an
alarming rate requiring important efforts and new decisions on conservation.
According to the McGraw-Hills (2005: 828), the term environment is "the sum
of all external factors, both biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living) to which an
organism is exposed to." Here, the biotic factors include influences by members of the
same and other species on the development and survival of the individual. It is
important to note that for each environmental factor, an organism has a tolerance, in
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which it is able to survive. For this reason, different individuals or species have
different tolerance ranges for particular environmental factors. This variation
represents the adaptation of the individual to its environment. In general, the
environment provides all support systems, in the air, on water and on land, as well as
the materials for fulfilling all developmental aspirations.
These impacts on the environment occur as the people attempt to satisfy their
seemingly endless desires for food, shelter, recreation, infrastructural facilities and to
generally subdue the physical environment in order to achieve economic growth. The
quest is based on their mentality supported by two assumptions. Firstly, the earth has
an unlimited supply of resources for human use for full exploitation to advance human
civilization. People employ advanced and sophisticated technology for the
intensification of the exploitation of resources within the environment and to subdue
the earth. According to Emeh (1997), there is a gradual but painful realization of the
falsehood of this assumption evidenced from the myriads of environmental problems.
The second assumption is that humans see themselves as separate from the
environment, rather than being a part of it. This anthropocentric view of humans has
led to a seeming biological terrorism, an attempt to overcoming nature to fulfill their
needs with little regard for the consequences (Asoegwu, 2009).
Although, these wants and desires contribute to the development of the
country, which everybody clamours after, the unwise use of the land and its resources
produce negative impacts on the environment, thereby leaving the biophysical
environment degraded, sometimes permanently. All these negative impacts amount to
unsustainable development (Omofonwan and Osa-Ado, 2008), since development is
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sustainable if it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland Commission, 1987).
Concerted efforts are being made by national and international communities to
save the environment, yet the rate of degradation is moving at an alarming rate. For
instance, the United Nations (UN) Earth Summit in 1992, the 1994 UN Convention to
Combat Desertification, the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, and the 2003 UN Decade for
Sustainable Development are all efforts to save the environment. The UN Millenuium
Development Goal 7 seeks to ensure environmental sustainability in member
countries. Sustainability means improving the quality of human life, while living
within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems (Urbanito, 1994).
UNESCO Tblisi Declaration (1978: 3) defined environmental education as
“the learning process that increases people's knowledge and awareness about the
environment and associated challenges, develops the necessary skills and expertise to
address the challenges, and fosters attitudes, motivations, and commitments to make
informed decisions and take responsible actions”. Environmental education helps to
create awareness, and will be particularly useful in teaching pupils in the primary
school, who are future generations and tomorrow’s leaders, to correct the existing
anomaly in the environment and mobilize action by the general public. For this study,
EE is the learning process that teaches children the skills, attitudes, and expertise of
environmental cleanliness, wise use of natural resources and active participation in
environmental improvement and protection.

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