Balanced Minds - Comparative Risk Education

Educators say that most Americans will learn only as much science as is required to obtain a high school diploma or college degree. Yet, science has a profound influence on our lives. We make decisions about health and the environment as we vote for political representatives with particular viewpoints; participate in community affairs and make personal lifestyle choices.

In the information age, we have ready access to a bewildering array of media reports and electronic communications on issues of all types. Sorting through and critically analyzing the ever-growing stores of information on any given issue is a great challenge. One goal of RFHEE is to promote sound science and risk education to help children and adults learn how to evaluate both local and global health and environmental issues.

RFHEE has partnered with Project Learning Tree® (PLT), the award-winning, multi-disciplinary environmental education program of the American Forest Foundation, to develop and distribute educational modules on science and risk.

As a result of this partnership, PLT developed Focus on Risk, a module for students in grades 9-12. Focus on Risk encourages students to learn how to assess environmental and human health issues. Currently, PLT is working to update and expand this module for Kindergarten through 12th grades and is focusing on comparative risk.

In six years, today's 6th graders will be voting. Providing students with this critical thinking tool will allow them to become better informed Americans.