Project WET

The goal of Project WET is to facilitate and promote awareness, appreciation, knowledge, and stewardship of water resources through the development and dissemination of classroom-ready teaching aids and through the establishment of state and internationally sponsored Project WET programs. Project WET believes:

water moves through living and nonliving systems and binds them together in a complex web of life.
water of sufficient quality and quantity is important for all water users (energy producers, farmers and ranchers, fish and wildlife, manufacturers, rural and urban dwellers).
sustainable water management is crucial for providing tomorrows children with social and economic stability in a healthy environment.
awareness of and respect for water resources can encourage a personal, lifelong commitment of responsibility and positive community participation.

In support of the stated goal, Project WET is guided by the following objectives:

Research: To stay abreast of emerging state and national water education trends and standards, and to stay in touch with the educational needs of citizens.
Publications: To produce and publish creative and informative materials to meet the needs identified through research.
Instruction and Training: To provide leadership training and instruction to ensure that materials and services are fully utilized, and to foster grass-roots participants in their capacities to educate others.
Networking and Partnerships (WETnet): To form partnerships with organizations to enhance awareness, distribution, and use of materials and services.
Evaluation: To improve the program through an aggressive, ongoing, and multifaceted evaluation program.
Recognition: To seek ways to acknowledge and recognize people and organizations for their contributions to water education.

History of Project WET

Project WET is a nonprofit water education program for educators and young people, grades K-12, located on the Montana State University campus in Bozeman, Montana. The original Project WET program was established in1984 by the North Dakota State Water Commission. In 1989, the director of Project WET was invited by Montana State University -- with funding from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation -- to duplicate the original North Dakota program in Montana, Idaho, and later, Arizona.

The success of the pilot multi-state initiative led to a decision to develop a national Project WET program. In 1990, the Council for Environmental Education (CEE) (formerly the Western Regional Environmental Education Council (WREEC) became an official cosponsor, in partnership with The Watercourse, of Project WET. CEE is a national leader in the field of environmental education, and its cosponsored programs -- Project WILD and Project LearningTree -- are among the most long-lived and successful national efforts in environmental education.

Project WET and Curriculum Standards

As societies are further influenced by technological, social, political, and economic changes, the need grows for responsible and effective science and environmental education programs. Goals 2000, a national strategy to build a nation of learners, defines the challenges and calls on everyone to work toward providing sound education for all children. In response to this call, local, state and national efforts are underway to develop standards, guidelines, and frameworks for realizing important educational goals. These standards set levels of conceptual understanding and skill attainment that all students are expected to meet.

At the national level, standards for specific content areas have been developed or are being developed, such as Benchmarks for Science Literacy from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Project 2061,and Standards for School Mathematics from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

In most states, curriculum frameworks exist or are being designed to incorporate national standards. These frameworks set goals and describe learning expectations, thereby helping local districts develop high-quality curricula that meet the needs of their students. Educators are encouraged to select and use teaching materials that will help students meet these goals.

Project WET used appropriate standards, such as the Benchmarks for Science Literacy, in developing activities. For example, the activity Molecules in Motion specifically addresses physical science benchmarks related to the structure of matter. Irrigation Interpretation addresses the benchmarks for the technological system of agriculture, specifically the relationship between irrigation and crop production.

Subsequently, as teachers develop and / or implement curricula designed for their classrooms, schools, and districts, they will find Project WET activities appropriate and effective in helping to meet goals and objectives. Project WET encourages educators to select activities from the Project WET Curriculum and Activity Guide to meet national educational standards and local curricula expectations, in order to build a nation of learners.

For more information, please contact:

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources
1000 Assembly Street
Columbia, SC 29201