Environmental education of students in the process of studying geography

Environmental education at school is aimed at developing an environmental culture in schoolchildren and a responsible attitude towards the world around them. Today, because the issue of ecology is one of the most pressing issues of our time, the priority direction of the modern school is the environmental education of schoolchildren. At the lessons of geography, increasing the ecological knowledge of students, the formation of an ecological culture of the individual and society.

Geography, as a school subject, has enormous resources and advantages over other subjects in the implementation of education and the formation of environmental culture in students of different ages. A modern lesson in geography should be organized taking into account the possibility of implementing the ecological principle, corresponding to the system-active approach. The federal state educational standard of basic general education reflects the directions of the formation of ecological thinking and social design and defines the transition from traditional education to an environmentally-oriented model. It presents the results of mastering the basic educational program, namely: the formation of ideas and fundamental theoretical knowledge about the integrity and heterogeneity of the Earth as a planet, environmental problems on different continents and in individual countries; mastering the skills to characterize the components of the geographic environment, including its ecological parameters; the formation of ideas about the peculiarities of human activities leading to the emergence and development or solution of environmental problems in various territories and water areas, skills and abilities of safe and environmentally sound behavior in the environment. Geography is studied at two levels: basic and advanced. At the basic level, ideas about environmental processes and phenomena are formed, the ability to observe geographic objects and phenomena as a result of natural and anthropogenic influences, ideas about the main problems of interaction between nature and society, about natural and socio-economic aspects of environmental problems. At an advanced level, students should be able to assess and determine the dynamics of the most important natural and ecological processes, conduct research using modeling and design of geoecological phenomena and processes, cartographically interpret the ecological characteristics of various territories, and conduct a geographical examination of environmental processes. T.A. Yankina in her article says that a properly organized geography lesson should be aimed at the implementation of the ecological principle. As a result, the students will have the required ECDs, and they will be able to pay more attention to environmental processes.

Study programs in geography by various authors have been developed taking into account the implementation of the environmental component. A.I. Alekseeva, O. A. Klimanova contains such teaching tasks as: the formation of a geographic vision of global and local problems, the solution of problems of geographic security, the development of geoecologically justified behavior in everyday life in students, the formation of geoecological thinking, forecasting and assessment of environmental situations, the formation of knowledge and skills in environmental management, taking into account environmental requirements. The curriculum of E.M. Domogatskikh implements the ecological component through tasks such as: the formation of environmental awareness, respect for the environment, the formation of ideas about environmental problems on different continents and in individual countries, mastering basic practical skills in the use of devices and tools to determine environmental parameters, the formation of ideas about the features environmental problems in various territories and water areas, skills and abilities of safe and environmentally sound behavior in the environment. A.A. Letyagin in his program defines such tasks as: the formation of the foundations of ecological culture corresponding to the modern level of ecological thinking, the development of the experience of environmentally oriented reflective-evaluative and practical activities in life situations, the formation and development of ecological thinking, the ability to apply it, the formation of ideas about the features of activity people leading to the emergence and development or solution of environmental problems in various territories and waters. On the basis of these curricula, the authors develop various questions, tasks and practical works presented in the textbooks. Taking into account the content of the curriculum, teachers draw up their technological maps of the lesson (within the framework of the lesson related to ecology), thereby realizing the formation of the ecological culture of schoolchildren.

Developing a lesson with an ecological principle in mind creates an optimal level of motivation for students to participate in research activities. Stepanenko A.V. in his article says that in the initial course of studying geography, the creation of posters, drawings, wall newspapers, thematic projects, essays on an environmental topic can serve as research work. This contributes to the development of thinking and analytical skills. I.F. Musharapova in her work says that an important direction of research activity is the project activity of schoolchildren. The creation of projects allows students to form knowledge about the relationships in the "human-environment" system. Students create projects on various topics, for example: nature conservation in their native land, projects on continents and countries, natural zones, minerals, endangered species of plants and animals, etc. L. Urekeshova in her article claims that in a geography lesson, students learn to predict the consequences of human actions affecting nature, formulate possible options for the rational use of natural resources, suggest possible actions for nature protection, and also make assumptions about the consequences of these environmental measures. Pupils should understand and be aware of the importance of environmental protection and labor in daily human activities. Thus, taking into account the ecological principle, students in the geography lesson are involved in the creation of various research works, which contributes to the formation of ecological education.

Summing up, we can say that the development of environmental education is a priority and is enshrined in the federal educational standard. In this regard, curricula and technological maps of geography lessons are being developed, thereby forming the ecological culture of schoolchildren. It also contributes to its formation by involving students in the creation of various research works, within the framework of the subject "Geography". Thus, we have proved that in geography lessons there is an increase in the ecological knowledge of students, the formation of an ecological culture of the individual and society. The further development of environmental education within the school can be facilitated by attracting students to extracurricular activities, creating and developing environmental projects in which they can take part, creating conditions for students to realize their creative abilities, as well as organizing various excursions and ecological paths.