SYMPTOMS AND UNDERLYING CAUSES: Thoughts about the Next Generation of RI Environmental Leaders

A major concern for those of us who care about Rhode Island's environment is, who will continue the work we do? We're not going to be here forever. Which leads me to think about how we educate young people about the environment, and how Rhode Islanders are educated in general.

High School Diplomas

The December 31st Providence Journal reported on the steep drop in the number of people who passed the GED in 2014. (WPRI reported this on December 29th.)  I wondered what the test looked like, so I researched what could be found online about earning a GED ("General Educational Development"). I have written up notes about my search that will be in my NEW WEBSITE (it's coming soon!!!) but briefly, it was hard to find clear, simply stated information about how to study for the test.

According to WPRI, some research [unspecified] estimates there are 163,870 adults without a high school diploma, but "RIDE estimates the number of adults without a high school diploma is actually 74,699." Whatever the true number, these are huge numbers! It seems to me that if Rhode Island is going to flourish economically and environmentally, this underlying problem needs to be addressed vigorously.

What is the specific plan for reaching people who need GEDs, who may have smart phones, but maybe no computers or wifi access at home? The tests must be taken online. Is the GED testing coordinated with the Broadband initiative? "Digital literacy," a bit of jargon you probably need a master's degree to be comfortable using it in a sentence, is essential for success on the GED. I can find links to GED on the Broadband RI website (http://broadband.ri.gov/OurPrograms/DigitalLiteracy/tabid/184/Default.aspx). Especially note Integrating Digital Literacy: Adult Education, Technology Access, and the GED.  But more could be done to publicize classes.

On the RI Department of Education (RIDE) website, I searched on the word Broadband. The only substantial reference to digital literacy for adults that I could find is buried in notes by Commissioner Gist on March 7, 2014. Further poking around turned up some videos on YouTube that should be easier to locate.

If I -- used to searching the internet, and with high school, college, and two master's degree diplomas) can't easily find basic stuff such as

• What do I need to know to pass the GED?
• What can I learn on my own?
• How long will it take to earn the GED?
• How can I learn how to use a computer?
• When and where are computer training and GED prep courses held? In a calendar format with dates, places, times aggregated for all sites throughout the state? With links to bus timetables for routes  near the sites?
• Where is a list of pdfs that promote passing the GED that community groups can print and hand out to people?

...how are people who may only have smart phones and minimal experience with computers going to overcome obstacles to getting a GED? Maybe I missed where this information is.

Most of the material I found was written for educational professionals -- administrators and educators. It seems the professionals are mostly talking among themselves. But maybe I never found the great resources that ought to be widely available. Why isn't lots of info available that is formatted for smart phones?

The educators are all presumably paid living wages. The people who need GEDs, which we read are required to have a shot at good jobs, have to figure out where and when the classes are, how they can get there (perhaps they do not have a car), who can take care of their children while they study, etc., plus how to pay $120 (and more if they don't pass the first time) for the tests that comprise the GED when - if they're working - they're probably at minimum wage.

My impression is that GED seekers are set up by the current outreach system (if it can be called that) to be dependent on the professionals. I suspect that many GED seekers are pretty smart, though, and after all, they are adults. I think professionals should be less gatekeepers to the GED and open the gates for thousands of adults to take more initiative on their own.

If you know about the GED programs in Rhode Island, help me learn more about the resources for students.

Mentors for Kids

The Calendar has a Big Brothers Big Sisters rally on January 14 in celebration of National Mentoring Month and to find people to mentor 200+ children they have on their wait list. Hello, lovers of all things green! Here's a great opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of kids, open their eyes to otherwise unimaginable possibilities for their future, and engage them in the interesting stuff you are doing!

Spending time with kids, and doing whatever we can to help adults get the credentials they need to succeed, address some root problems the Rhode Island economy and environment face. Think about it!