Educating ecological literacy and a conscious attitude to the world around us is a long and purposeful process, which is based on the didactic principles of pedagogy and the laws of nature. The problem of the formation of an ecologically cultured and competent personality is now becoming one of the central and significant ones. Environmental literacy consists of such components as environmental knowledge, assessment of the surrounding reality, foreseeing the consequences of human activity in nature, studying all methods of competent nature management and striving for environmental protection. Thus, environmental literacy is a product of environmental education and upbringing. The direct formation of environmental literacy occurs in the process of the purposeful influence of the teacher. An ecologically developing environment in an educational organization should contribute to the development of the student’s cognitive activity, broadening his horizons, ecological and aesthetic development, and the formation of a holistic picture of the world.

The need to overcome the environmental problems of our time has set a task for pedagogical theory and practice: on the basis of the biosphere approach, to prepare an environmentally literate person who understands the importance of life as the highest value, who is able to determine his place in the world, participate in environmental protection, rationally use natural resources, make conscious decisions in the spheres of life where the interests of man as a living being, society and the environment overlap. In the system of training an environmentally literate person, an important role belongs to educational organizations of all levels, which can be considered as the initial link in enriching a person with knowledge about the natural and social environment, familiarizing him with a holistic picture of the world and forming a scientifically grounded, humane attitude towards society. Environmental education is designed to provide the young generation with scientific knowledge about the relationship between nature and society, to help understand the multifaceted significance of nature for society in general and for each person in particular, to form an understanding that nature is the primary basis of human existence, and man is a part of nature, to educate a conscious attitude towards it, a sense of responsibility for the environment as a universal value, develop creative activities to protect and transform the environment, cultivate love for nature. Environmental education and upbringing is a systematic pedagogical activity that is aimed at developing the environmental culture of a person. Environmental education of a person is a continuous process of learning and development throughout his life, which is expressed in the formation of an ecological culture, which manifests itself in an emotional and positive attitude towards nature, in compliance with certain moral norms, in a system of value orientations.

No abstract