Agency Professionals Needs Assessment - 2012

This survey was conducted February 2012. Agency professionals work for NGOs, governments or businesses delivering environmental education to people of all ages.

 

Key Findings

  • 66% of respondents are experiencing an increase in the demand for their programs
  • 47% of respondents cannot meet the demand for their programs
  • 100% of respondents would participate in a community fo practice (network)
  • A combination of face to face and on-line is the best method of delivery for communities of practice
  • The top three ACEE programs of value to agencies professionals are working with Alberta Education to get EE into the new curriculum, full day workshops and the newsletter

 

More results are summarized below. If you have any questions, please contact Christina. We also conducted a survey of Alberta teachers, access the results here. Click on the topics below to see specific sections

 

About the respondents and their programs

  • 70 people from agencies responded to the survey (down from 88 last year)
  • Formal K-12 system, students and teachers are still an important audience for environmental education agencies
  • ACEE is doing a good job of connecting with groups in Calgary and area, we need to do a better job of reaching out to agencies in other regions - we know you are out there!

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Demand and reach of programs

  • There is a clear demand for environmental education programs
  • Many organizations are struggling to meet the demand for their programs
  • WOW - 18 organizations report reaching 10,000+ people!

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Barriers environmental educators encounter in their work

  • No surprise that lack of time and funding are the two barriers!

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Communities of Practice

We know that networking and connecting with other practioners is very important for environmental educators. To meet this need, ACEE has been considering initiating communities of practice - these groups would gather based on a common region or topic and explore ways they can collaborate, share best practices, apply for funding together and advance environmental education in their particular area. The survey supports the interest from you in this program - stay tuned for more details!

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  • The highest interest topic was water with 16 respondent indicating this topic.

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 Professional Development

For the past several years, ACEE has offered a series of professional development sessions for agency professionals. In 2011, the turn out was not as strong as in past years - we wanted to try and find out why so we can design some opportunities that will fit your needs. Here are some of the main findings:

  • Conferences are the #1 way many of you receive professional development
  • Networking and connecting with others is an essential component to professional development sessions for you
  • Time is the main reason you cannot attend full day sessions
  • You didn't know that ACEE was offering webinars
  • There is interest for a multi-day conference for environmental educators

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We asked you to describe your most meaningful professional development experience. Some of the recurring components were:

  • Networking and connecting with other organizations
  • Applicable and practical
  • Long term experiences
  • Face to face

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 ACEE Programs

ACEE has many different programs and initiatives to support you and advance environmental education in Alberta. Along with this ranking, you also provided valuable comments and suggestions that we will take a good look at, thanks for taking the time!

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