If on the one hand speak of constructivism to indicate the action of a person go about building, moment by moment, day to day knowledge and skills, aided by a facilitator, based on what that person already knows, we must consider the other, the destructive action, led largely by the media and so-called new technologies of communication and information on what is built in the field of environmental education, especially for the school through the formal environmental education, in the same person.
Not that the technology, new or not so new in itself is harmful: it is the purpose that gives a socio-economic and cultural circumstances, in our case, Latin American, particularly in Mexico.
Internet and other new technologies, like television, offer tremendous opportunities for human development but the context within which they operate is not best suited to fulfill this role: television is about 60 years of existence and its contribution to cultural and educational development is questionable, the same could be said of the film and also written documentation (books, newspapers, magazines, etc.), to name some of the “old technology.”
So-called new technologies are introduced with difficulty in the educational world of our Latin America, as a result of globalization, not exactly, but a neoliberal globalization, it imposes its domination hallmarks of this action, so we must suffer ICTs as instruments of ideological domination and not enjoy it as intellectual development momentum, communication, entertainment or, in case we have to consider, advocate and developer of environmental education.
In what follows we first discuss issues related to environmental education, its political and its relationship with the media, this will allow us then deal with some destructives ICT and its contribution in the field of environmental education, particularly formal.
Education, socio-economic and informal environmental education
Education is always embedded in a socio-political environment, serves the interests of the ruling class: it is ideology
The function of education is to prolong the prevailing production relations and makes it through its contents and methods, therefore, is not neutral, but in our countries will want to give this envelope by different media: we need only recall the role of education in colonial times in America, in harmony with religion.
From those earliest times until now the condition persists: education is a political issue.
One of the characteristics of the capitalist socioeconomic system in which we operate in almost all Latin American countries is the excessive consumption or consumption of unnecessary items (wish there was also a consumerist culture, patriotic values, but it is not); if people have value is because they are consumers and that role should be selected if possible 24 hours a day, “people are doomed to insomnia, anxiety and panic buying to pay,” says Galliano (2007) ; it comes to shaping a consumer issue each time, ie a consumer, continues to Galliano, who “just got off the car to work and watch television”
Advertising is the weapon that is used for citizen becomes a consumer issue, taking advantage of by their own psychological system is that “the advertising does not report the product you sell, or rarely does: Its main function is to overcome frustrations and feed fantasies. “
The advertising uses mass media now integrated into other media and information and communication; According Szarazgat (2001) deployment of technological innovations should have two objectives in public policy: Meeting the basic needs of society, such as hunger, poverty and unemployment, and become an instrument of emancipation.
However, new technologies are very far from that and most basic reason is that they serve the same wasteful and mediating system we are talking about: the biggest success of capitalism has been to turn the Internet into a dump of information, commercial and other, full of documents of dubious origin, and porn sites to get a date, sell or buy things. Like already had with other media, but squared.
These new communication and information technologies respond to the development of capitalism in this phase of technological revolution, and not the reverse, as some would have us believe, while these innovations are in the hands of those holding power, which are few, not its potential to provide the majority: the use made of technologies, new or old, it is partisan.
Zsarazgat (2004), referring to capitalism at this stage, says this “techno-communication is devastating for subjectivity tend to create a taxable person and seal the conquest of critical consciousness” and in these conditions, “the possibility of inserting the idea to discuss established truths in the collective consciousness, is emerging as a utopia “
Environmental education is part of education and as such has a political character: a specific reason is that as one of its objectives (or should have, if he is consistent) analysis of the nature of environmental problems and not just as something that already exists, as if it were something natural, that we will find that most of the big problems (global problems) are caused by the unbridled ambition of a few countries have tried (and still pretending) to administer the earth’s resources as their own, regardless of whether other countries with their populations and duties on many of these resources.
Sangronis (2004) tells us about that: “The real environmental education must be directed primarily to question the logic of an inclusive system of social organization, undemocratic, unworkable and predator, not doing so incurs severe contradictions between values and pro-environmental habits that are to be inserted in the population, and those who generate the most common everyday practices of consumer society “, and later states:” Environmental Education is political in nature as advocated by the transformation of structures prevailing social model of civilization in which we live. “
Environmental education can be formal or informal (on these forms included the role of school) and informal.
In the latter case, although it can spontaneously (not mean unplanned) in areas of recreation or culture, the media play a key role in many countries and even identifies the informal environmental education that can be done with the media and communication.
Here we meet again with the media and new technologies should have at least a balance between consumer and environmental propaganda, however, this is not and will not be so, given the nature of the prevailing socio-economic system; Sabot Liatos and Ruvovzky (2001) provide us with a study from Hungary, where, in the conclusions, expressed: “… the local media … can play a role in the context of informal education … However, its use for educational purposes depends largely on the will and determination of both the local society and those who manage channels “on the other hand, the report of the State of Environmental Education (MARENA) in Nicaragua states that one of the and difficult problems that hinder the promotion of environmental education is: “The weak role played by media in the environmental disclosure and the absence of truly educational messages through them.”
Then the problem is that education in general and in particular the environmental, non-formal and formal, in the ideal case to be made with considerable efficiency (which is far from reality) through planned activities schools, not only can be an important development in the medium in which we operate, but suffers a destruction from the media, television or Internet call them such, as would be expected, the expectation was that on the contrary be seen strengthened by these technologies. Let’s look more closely at this issue with two examples.
Television (TV)
The TV is one of the mass media, recent (60 years of life), it should work as an important tool of education (in Mexico, according to the 1997 INEGI (INEGI, 2008), 93.3% of households with TV), but this technology, along with other newly created shows us that “efforts to educate through these technologies are offset by the appropriation of the same by minority groups, whose purpose is financial gain” (Gil R.), that because “there are communicators or educators who control these processes, but the merchants of forever.”
The image that has the potential to educate, showing what at first sight unseen, events occurring at the time, bringing information to other forms of life and development, distant in time and space, etc.., Is dismissed, relegated , giving it priority to publicity, the creation of needs in the public, unbridled consumption, a trend that has prevailed, to use as TV is concerned, is its use to set him apart, misinform, and sever miseducate (Gil .)
TV vs Education
Miseducate This effect can be interpreted as meaning that the TV, as part of informal education, which destroyed the school, family or church can make is that:
“The TV can be tuned at any time
“The schedule is full of ads promoting not only consumption but consumerism
“It promotes violence and sex without reason, even in advertisements aimed at children and adolescents in times of children and adolescents.
“Depersonalize the individual: the sole reason for existence is to consume
-Promotes the one to “be somebody” in life “enough to be bold, transgressive, merciless and achieve our goals no matter what and whoever falls” (With power radio)
Some adverse effects of formal education by the TV show that may cause the student:
“Boredom in the classroom of students if used in motion pictures
“Trouble reading text
-Search for the easy, entertainment, success, rather than reflection, to get things working and stable, rather than ephemeral
Apart from the question of how many hours per day spent by children watching TV (estimated between 2.5 and 4), various investigators agree that watching TV is the second activity, as far as time is concerned, these children after dream: “taking into account weekends and holidays, students spend more hours watching television than in class” (F. Fernandez)
TV and Environmental Education
While part of our Latin American education is, as a means of communication, transmitting the dominant ideology, are positive elements, such as environmental education, which if not done properly (identifying the bases Environmental labyrinth that we have got large companies with large investments and great waste of the planet), promotes a different vision of the world we live in, the environmental education in educational systems appear as “gaps, cracks and margins not enough to generate long-term changes, but generally appear as small disruptors finally engulfed by the speed, advertising or zapping “(Fernandez V, 2007), but watching our reality, we wonder:
How can germinate the seeds of caring for the environment if advertising makes the consumption of thousands of products, in most cases unnecessary, waste-generating?
What the child is to instill the idea of a balanced diet if the computer uses TV refreshments, cakes and hamburgers?
What the child is to instill the idea of the danger of carbon dioxide when the TV commands us to buy a new car every year (do not remember having seen on TV promoting the slogan of World Environment day this year: Leaves habit! Towards a low carbon economy)?
How far the child is aware of the proper use of information and communication technologies on a daily basis if the TV ads were ordered to be buying and using cell phones unlimited?
Given the nature of the capitalist system, which is sell, sell and sell, no matter what or whom, the contradiction between environmental education and media can not disappear: it is not expected that employers advertise their product is purchased only if necessary or that consume the least possible environmental benefit, at this, no wonder the influence of TV and other means “to offset or spray to education scheduled for the school” (Gil)
INTERNET
While the Internet has enormous educational potential (like television), which “has enabled access to a boundless wealth of information, encyclopedias, masterpieces of all the arts, theses, curricula, laws, techniques, procedures, etc. that were not previously available to us (Lara), its use for these purposes is similar to the TV (as a means of communication): poor
Roberto Etcheverry (Etcheverry, 2005), analyzing the relationship between Power, Democracy and the Internet, tells us that in a democratic environment education should suggest broad visions of the world and these, in turn, will promote productive integration of the Internet, society and education, this education, now enhanced by the Internet should have an impact on democracy, which will lead to an improvement of the state of power, but in the countries of Latin America, where democracies leave much to be desired, educational environments precarious occur only uncritical minds, that’s why the Internet “does not impact significantly on the improvement of democracy, and therefore not in a better state of Power.”
Again the issue is not what we mean half, but the use that is given in a particular social context: the same E. Lara says: “The Internet should not be the idiot content space in which some mercanchifles want to make it” in the preceding sentence, if you change Internet via TV is the meaning is the same (even if you change a cell phone or video game).
It’s as if going back in time, we relive what was already past generations lived with other technologies, it is said that who does not know history, you run the risk of repeating: in the case of these new technologies for Latin American countries, is the same story with the “old technology” and as Etcheverry tells us that the Internet alone does not impact significantly on the improvement of Democracy, also tells us that “the same way in the past, was absent any impact of significance per se, none of the new technologies of our time: the steam engine, electricity, railroads, telegraph, telephone, radio, television, typewriter or computer ” .
According to INEGI (INEGI, 2008) in 2007 in Mexico, the fifth of the population aged 6 years or older reported using the Internet; of these, 49.5% access for 1-3 days a week. Of the population aged 12 to 17 years, 44.2% use it.
Mexico is on par with Brazil, Chile and Argentina in terms of households with Internet access, with 12%, according to data from INEGI
Internet is used to promote many topics, not to mention trade, of course. In this black sea of irrelevant pages for the development of environmental education, and rather harmful to it, there are islands such as Greenpeace or Ecoportal page, which is good to hold before the ship sink information in their navigation surfer, by the dark seas of consumerism, pornography and misinformation.
Concluding remarks
“The technology itself is neither good nor bad, but is linked to commercial interests, personal and imperialism in our countries, and this determines that the use made of this chord to those interests, leaving out the majority of the population.
“The fact that these majorities is viewed only as passive consumers into believing that they choose what they buy (do not choose to buy or not, that is not in question, can only” choose “what and how much they buy and who) determines that virtually put aside not only the environment, the planet’s resources, but the integrity of the people, their intellectual development, health, age and gender, etc. The advertising campaigns are yet to achieve sales, no matter what or whom, to the detriment of the environment and the individual.
“The so-called new technologies are the same fate as the old technologies: to be accomplices of the dominant classes, the Internet, cell phones and video games intended primarily to sell, convey ideology, lifestyles, languages, customs and many other things that do not respect recipients or their cultures.
“Some authors talk about the power of education to ensure that the social introduction of these technologies to flourish, to produce its results to the majority but did not perceive the socio-political context in which education is given, under very narrow and already gives no more, so these new technologies will positively impact the society, a work entitled Felix Fernandez TV, publicity and education in the school intends to carry out activities to develop critical thinking of children toward what they see, especially, matters relating to advertising: it is fine, but the problem is not what makes the school itself, but what do not stop the media, or stop doing, on the other hand, the work concerns the TV, imagine how far we are still able to do something about the new technologies, whether in this century and 55 years of the incursion of the TV in our lives we are still offering educators (not heed us) forms of attack the brunt of this old technology.
“The work, little or a lot, making the school through formal environmental education in building knowledge and skills, especially of children and adolescents, is not only overshadowed but destroyed by the commercial device and domination in which our societies are developing, this is innate destructives the socio-economic mainstream and, these days goes global with the help of ICTs whose work is biased in favor of the dictates of those who possess them, as has happened with old technologies.
