Curriculum analysis and education for sustainable development in Iceland

The article explores how the Icelandic public school curriculum for early childhood, compulsory and upper secondary school deals with education for sustainable development. As the curriculum does not often mention the term sustainability, a key with which to investigate signs of education for sustainable development in the three curricula was created. The key encourages a holistic view of sustainable development, where economic, environmental and social factors are not treated as separate entities. It was designed to reflect the goals of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014) with research on environmental education and education for sustainable development in mind. The key has seven characteristics: values, opinions and emotions about nature and environment; knowledge contributing to a sensible use of nature; welfare and public health; democracy, participation, and action competence; equality and multicultural issues; global awareness; and finally, economic development and future prospects. Using the key, a variety of signs and indicators that provide a space for teachers and schools to deal with issues of sustainable development were identified.     

Language and Meaning in Environmental Education: An overview

The devotion of this special issue of EER to the language of environmental and sustainable developmental education (SDE) serves as a timely reminder that SDE cannot simply be seen as a culturally neutral or value-free package that can be 'delivered'. In a variety of ways, contributors to this volume address the issues involved in re-engineering the discourse of environmental education, and education more broadly, towards an overriding concern with sustainable development. These various approaches assume certain epistemological positions, particularly in relation to language and referent meaning. This article sketches out a possible typology of such positions, and attempts to locate other contributions to this issue, using this framework.     

Understanding Learner-centredness: Does it consider the diverse needs of individuals?

In light of the significant changes happening in all sectors of our society, we in the education sector and in particular in the universities, have adopted a number of innovative ideas for delivering education. Many of these innovations deal with procedural aspects related to learning and consequently little concern has been shown to individuals' beliefs about knowledge and dispositions for learning. Beliefs and dispositions are powerful tools to effect a more meaningful and sustainable change to how individuals engage in learning. This paper discusses some recent findings from research into university students' beliefs about the nature of knowledge and their conceptions of learning, and identifies the implications for a learner-centred university education. Learners' beliefs both informal and formal may influence the way they approach learning. Do they learn to apply, or learn to understand? The effort they make to learn depends on their perception of how the learning will reward them. The paper also explores the cross-cultural beliefs about knowledge and conceptions of learning.     

Environmental Education in High Schools in Kosovo—A teachers' perspective

The integration of education for sustainable development (ESD) into all levels of education is a key priority in Kosovo's environmental action plan. However, at present it is not even known how environmental education (EE) is integrated in the country's educational system. With the help of a written questionnaire and in-depth interviews with 18 teachers, this study investigated the integration of EE in high schools (optional upper secondary education) in Kosovo. The representative sample of biology, geography, chemistry, and civic education teachers (244 persons) focused on various kinds of pollution and hazards of pollutants. Teachers' choice of topics was highly relevant, place-based, and linked to the experiences of students, but excluded sustainability issues such as the loss of biodiversity. EE was approached in three ways. The first approach critically reflected links between the natural, social, and cultural environment, while the second approach was characterized by knowledge submission of environmental facts. The third approach aimed at capacity-building and, in the sense of ESD, understood learning as process-oriented, participatory, and action-oriented. However, this approach was rather uncommon, most likely due to insufficient teacher preparation, large classes (up to 50 students), and little time (just one hour per week for EE). Class size and time also restricted outdoor activities, in particular field work. Nevertheless, in view of the interviewees, ideal EE would mean outdoor education, field work and other place-based, capacity-building practical experiences, and the development of critical thinking skills. This exemplifies that approaches to ESD may find support from dedicated teachers in Kosovo.     

Learning from sustainable development: education in the light of public issues

Education for sustainable development plays an increasing role in environmental education policy and practice. In this article, we show how sustainable development is mainly seen as a goal that can be achieved by applying the proper processes of learning and how this learning perspective translates sustainability issues into learning problems of individuals. We present a different perspective on education for sustainable development and emphasize the importance of presenting issues of sustainable development as ‘public issues’, i.e. as matters of public concern. This shifts the focus from the competences that citizens must acquire to the democratic nature of the spaces and practices in which participation and citizenship can develop.     

Lifelong learning and the pursuit of a vision for sustainable development in Botswana

This paper analyses Botswana's commitment to lifelong learning policy and discusses how it can help the state achieve its vision for sustainable development. First, it argues that while Botswana is renowned for its economic success, it still fails to address positively such traditional challenges as poverty, unemployment and income inequality, which are increasing disproportionately, especially among the youth and non-literate adults. These structural problems can be attributable partly to the low quality of education, which does not enable learners to reduce their risks and vulnerabilities. The paper outlines the concepts of lifelong learning and sustainable development and work from there to analyse the national education policy. It is acknowledged that the state made commendable progress in delivering basic, extension and continuing education since adopting lifelong learning in 1994. However, the delivery failed to use education to transform people's lives. The education itself failed to balance quantity with quality effectively to inculcate a culture of democracy. These issues need to be critically addressed because they invariably hamper Botswana's efforts to deliver quality education and attain its vision for sustainable development. Finally, the paper suggests that the education system should incorporate lifelong learning principles, effectively involve learners in decision making and teach for empowerment.     

Early Childhood Educators' Perceptions of Nature,Science, and Environmental Education

This study examined early childhood educators' perceptions about nature, science, and environmental education. Preservice early childhood teachers (n = 195) and early childhood professionals currently practicing in the field (n = 162) rated the importance of providing specific nature/science experiences for young children, the importance of specific nature/science learning outcomes, and their confidence implementing specific activities. Research Findings: Consistent with our hypotheses, both professionals and students rated the curricular domain of nature/science as the least important for young children in terms of experiences and learning outcomes in comparison to other curricular domains. Similarly, both professionals and students reported that they were least confident implementing nature/science activities compared to activities in other curricular domains. Qualitative analysis of open-ended questions yielded themes related to definitions of nature, specific activities in and about nature that can promote children's learning and development, and what educators need to know and be able to do in order to be effective “nature educators.” Practice or Policy: Preservice and in-service teacher professional development would benefit from (a) the inclusion of content on nature, science, and environmental education, including the interrelatedness of human and natural systems; (b) a focus on place-based education and/or emergent curriculum; and (c) the provision of experiences in nature that help teachers to develop confidence implementing activities in nature. [Supplementary material is available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Early Education & Development for the following free supplemental resource: Appendix A: Teacher Survey Questions.]     

Issues in action learning: a critical realist interpretation

The purpose of this paper is to argue that the perspective of ‘critical realism’ has considerable potential for moving forward the theory and practice of action learning. The paper addresses three questions: (1) Does action learning emphasise the individual or the collective? (2) Can action learning be thought of as critical, but should it also be the subject of criticism? (3) What gets carried forward from action learning by way of learning? Critical realism is argued to be illuminative of these issues; this involves dealing with ontological questions – what is there out there to learn about – as well as epistemological ones – how can this be learned about. It also involves seeing the world as an open system with emergent properties rather than the predictable machine of the positivist approach and the ‘nothing but a sea of meaning’ of the extreme social constructionist approach. The conclusions are that: (1) Yes, it can, and should, focus on both. Individual and organisational foci (one form of the individual-collective question) for action learning are compatible and reconcilable, though often with difficulty. (2) Yes to critical approach of and from action learning, which is its true intent. Suggestions are made on how to do this in an ultimately constructive way. (3) There are several answers to this, the ability to learn, ‘mechanisms’ that can but may not necessarily work in future situations, depending on circumstance and ‘state of play’ information.     

What has Happened in the Teaching of Politics in Schools in England in the Last Three Decades,and Why?

During the last three decades there have been very different approaches to political learning in schools in England. Very generally, prior to the 1960s, if anything was done explicitly, there was a concentration on learning facts about the British constitution. The late 1960s and into the 1970s saw a 'burgeoning of interest' (Heater) in political education characterised by attention to skills within a broader definition of politics than had been used in British Constitution courses. The 1980s saw the birth or, in some cases, redevelopment, of a whole raft of adjectival educations concerned with peace, development, the environment, 'race', in a way that was more holistic and affective than earlier initiatives. The current period has been described as 'the decade of the citizen' (Dahrendorf), which for most of the 1990s seems to have meant some attempt at learning about responsibilities within a framework of officially sanctioned values, and opportunities to undertake voluntary action in the local community. Very recent developments shift education for citizenship into more enlightened waters but there may be little cause for optimism that widespread implementation will occur. The reasons for such shifts are discussed and trends and consequences (actual and likely) are explored.     

A Comparison of Student Teachers' Beliefs from Four Different Science Teaching Domains Using a Mixed Methods Design

The study presented in this paper integrates data from four combined research studies, which are both qualitative and quantitative in nature. The studies describe freshman science student teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning. These freshmen intend to become teachers in Germany in one of four science teaching domains (secondary biology, chemistry, and physics, respectively, as well as primary school science). The qualitative data from the first study are based on student teachers' drawings of themselves in teaching situations. It was formulated using Grounded Theory to test three scales: Beliefs about Classroom Organisation, Beliefs about Teaching Objectives, and Epistemological Beliefs. Three further quantitative studies give insight into student teachers' curricular beliefs, their beliefs about the nature of science itself, and about the student- and/or teacher-centredness of science teaching. This paper describes a design to integrate all these data within a mixed methods framework. The aim of the current study is to describe a broad, triangulated picture of freshman science student teachers' beliefs about teaching and learning within their respective science teaching domain. The study reveals clear tendencies between the sub-groups. The results suggest that freshman chemistry and—even more pronouncedly—freshman physics student teachers profess quite traditional beliefs about science teaching and learning. Biology and primary school student teachers express beliefs about their subjects which are more in line with modern educational theory. The mixed methods approach towards the student teachers' beliefs is reflected upon and implications for science education and science teacher education are discussed.     

Intercultural teaching and learning strategies for global citizens: a Chinese EFL perspective

External quality monitoring of higher education is explored and analysed. The different types of external bodies and their modus operandi are reviewed. The reasons for undertaking the evaluation are also examined in detail. It is argued that external evaluation legitimates the status quo and fails to ask substantial questions about the nature of learning. External quality monitoring is preoccupied with method and has almost entirely ignored a quarter of a century of research into learning theory, the nature and styles of learning, and classroom innovations. It is suggested that higher education monitoring agencies need to adopt an explicit 'transformation' approach to quality and to address the implications of that for student learning. Only then will they shift from accountability- and compliance-orientated agencies to ones that raise substantial questions about improving student learning.     

Preparing British Design Undergraduates for the Challenge of Sustainable Development

The first part of this paper argues that higher education (HE) institutions have an obligation to nurture sustainable development awareness. This is viewed against the UK Government's recommendation and guidance on sustainable development education. In particular, this focuses on the Government's sustainable development education specification for design education and the challenge this poses to UK tertiary design education. The concluding part of this paper discusses the emergence of new design dialogues, which are grappling with the task of synthesising the precepts of sustainable development with the ‘act of designing’. This has led to discourse on the need for defining viable strategies that invent new forms of design education and practice and for the provision of new professional choices to students. This paper takes into account the evolution of language in this educational subject area, from ‘environmental education’, to ‘environment and development education’, to ‘education or learning for sustainability’. The desired outcome of learning for sustainability is often expressed as ‘responsible global citizenship’. At the moment some of these terms are interchangeable. For my purposes, the term ‘sustainable development education’ will be used though out, unless for historical accuracy or specific reasons.     

Learners and Learning in Environmental Education: A critical review of the evidence

Recent analyses of the field of environmental education research have highlighted its rapidly expanding size and increasingly diverse nature (e.g. Hart & Nolan, 1999). This article reports on a review of a particular part of this field - namely, recent empirical studies of learners and learning in primary or secondary school environmental education. The review focuses specifically on the nature and quality of the evidence generated by the work in this area. The concern with evidence is motivated by the tendency of previous reviews to focus on methodological trends more than research findings. Claims have also been made that environmental education theory and research have overlooked 'the children who are the subjects of environmental education' (Payne, 1998a, p. 20). This review contends that efforts to address such shortcomings need to be informed by a thorough and grounded understanding of what studies have, and have not, been undertaken on students and learning, and what is known, and not known, from the evidence that these studies have generated. In its methods, the review seeks to be systematic, comprehensive and analytical. Its findings are based on careful scrutiny of over 100 journal articles, books and reports, published between 1993 and 1999. It proposes that the current evidence base on learners and learning can be understood in terms of six concentrations or nodes of evidence. Three of these are well established (students' (i) environmental knowledge (ii) environmental attitudes and behaviours, and (iii) environmental learning outcomes), while three can be regarded as emerging (students' (i) perceptions of nature, (ii) experiences of learning, and (iii) influences on adults). The recent research evidence and key messages associated with each of these nodes are discussed in successive sections of the review. Overall, the review suggests that the evidence base on learners and learning, while considerable in size, is less diverse in terms of methodological and theoretical approaches than the wider environmental education research field within which it is situated. The evidence base also provides more information about students' environmental knowledge and attitudes than about their educational experiences and preferences, and more about learning outcomes than about learning processes . These characteristics, however, are not static. The research and evidence base on learners and learning is developing and changing as new foci emerge, bringing with them different methodological and conceptual approaches. The review identifies issues and challenges arising from the recent evidence on learners and learning for research users, researchers and future reviews of the field. As well as highlighting possible practical implications of the research, it makes a case for studies focused more explicitly on learning and the role learners play within this process. It also suggests a need for user reviews as well as academic reviews in the field of environmental education.     

Mobilising interpretive capital with teachers for transformation of school grounds in Kenya

This paper reports on findings from a recent collaborative participatory action research study that involved a group of teachers from two Kenyan schools in a review and development of interpretation resources and materials. It focuses on an engaging process between teachers and non-formal educators in which interpretive capital (the tools and skills of interpretation) were socially constructed, shared and made available for the transformation of school grounds to foster environmental learning. The concept of 'mobilising interpretive capital' has been applied to describe the process of generating theoretical and practical accounts of the symbolic capital within non-formal education organisations. Social construction and circulation of interpretive capital for transformation of school grounds as discussed in this paper highlights that interpretation is a learning process in which meaning is created jointly in a specific context. The teacher-centred approach adopted in this study provides an example of how research design decisions may contribute to environmental education praxis, social transformation and change.     

Environmental Education as a Lived‐Body Practice? A Contemplative Pedagogy Perspective

Environmental education usually appeals to the students’ knowledge and rational understanding. Even though this is needed, there is a neglected aspect of learning ecologically fruitful action; that of the lived‐body. This paper introduces the lived‐body as an important site for learning ecological action. An argument is made for the need of a biophilia revolution, in which refined experience of the body and enhanced capabilities for sensing are seen as important ways of complementing the more common, knowledge‐based environmental education. Alienation from the physical environment is seen as one key element in producing environmental devastation. Consequently, human alienation from nature is seen as closely related to alienation from one's body. It is claimed that through overcoming the (Cartesian) dualist alienation of human consciousness from its lived body, we can decrease the alienation of human beings from their environment. Methods of contemplative pedagogy are introduced for addressing alienation. By getting in touch with the tangible lived‐body in yoga or mindfulness meditation we reconnect to the material world of nature. Contemplative pedagogy cultivates the body and its senses for learning intrinsic valuation and caring for the environment. Lived‐body experience is challenging to conceptualise; we use Maurice Merleau‐Ponty's concept of the flesh in our attempt to do so. Finally, this paper suggests some contemplative practices of the lived‐body for environmental education. Experiencing the flesh of oneself and the world as one and the same is an environmentally conducive experience that gives value and meaning to the flourishing of all life, human and non‐human.     

Making sense of education ‘responsibly’: findings from a study of student teachers' understanding(s) of education,sustainable development and Education for Sustainable Development

This article discusses findings from a tri‐country study of student teachers' understandings of the purposes of education, their conceptions of sustainable development and the task of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). At its heart are case studies of 30 student teachers from Initial Teacher Education Programmes in England, Denmark and Germany (10 from each country). While they are diverse in their personal, professional and subject disciplinary backgrounds, and they work in a variety of school subject areas, all the students share the objective of becoming members of the teaching profession in the primary or lower secondary schools of their countries, and thus each one currently faces the additional challenge of understanding and responding to national, cross‐cutting policy initiatives on sustainable development and ESD. As interpretative research, the study catalogued and mapped similarities and differences in student teacher understandings, and identified those notions, thoughts and ideas that were meaningful to a beginning teacher's interpretations and sense‐making of key ESD concepts and tasks. The findings highlight the widespread importance of ‘taking responsibility’ and ‘having responsibility’ as key notions in interpreting their professional role and student learning in relation to ESD. An explorative framework developed during the data analysis suggests that in making sense of ESD, student teachers have recourse to one or more of at least four identifiable rationalities for ascribing responsibility to oneself or others, where each rationality articulates a different set of responses to questions about the prioritized locus of agency and the nature of the decision‐making process. The framework offers a critical and generative tool for stimulating debate in the field about policy and professional preparation and development and, in particular, the nature, processes and qualities of learning that are understood to ‘generate a sense of responsibility’, within the broader—and in the case of ESD—related quests of education and sustainable development.     

Book Reviews

Abstract

Educators have invested considerable effort in developing environmental education programs that address students' knowledge, attitudes, and action competence regarding environmental issues. The authors explore the effectiveness of such programs in terms of both student learning outcomes and the intergenerational influence that results when students discuss their learning experiences with their parents and other community members. Six environmental education programs involving 284 students in Queensland schools, from Grades 5-12, were investigated. Students and their parents were surveyed and interviewed regarding their perceptions about the program, the program's influence on their environmental learning, and the extent and nature of discussions that the program stimulated between students and their parents. The authors draw conclusions about key features that should be incorporated into environmental education programs to encourage and empower students to bring about environmental change in their homes and communities.     

The Role of External Professionals in Education about Sexual Orientation−towards good practice

Throughout England, young people in schools are entitled to a comprehensive programme of sex education as part of Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE). Current debate about the content of such a programme is informed by new government guidance on sex and relationship education as well as pre-existing concerns about homophobic bullying, sexual health and mental health. In an English local authority, an externally funded Young Gay and Bisexual Men's Development Worker provided educational activities to address sexual orientation and identity issues to four schools. An evaluation sought to identify whether successes had been achieved and why. A further aim was to identify useful learning about the role of external professionals in carrying out effective education about sexual orientation with young people in schools. The evaluation was developed within the context of a number of 'real-world' limitations. Nevertheless, a significant number of project successes (and areas for development) were documented. Successes included raising awareness of key issues among pupils and supporting teachers engaged in PSHE. Key factors contributing to success included: adequate preparation of teachers and pupils in schools; an appropriately skilled and experienced project worker; and a considered approach to building partnerships with schools and working with young people.     

Professional development for university scientists around issues of equity and diversity: Investigating dissent within community

We investigated the role of dissent in a community of university scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and social scientists engaged in a 2‐year professional development project around issues of equity and diversity. Members of this teacher learning community explored issues related to gender and ethnicity in science education, and attempted to develop course materials and instructional strategies inclusive of students from underrepresented groups. We focused our attention on those professional development sessions (6 of the 19) devoted to a contentious yet integral topic in science education: the gendered and multicultural nature of science. We examined conversations initiated by a member's concerns to learn how dissent led (or failed to lead) to new insights into feminist science studies scholarship or to greater understanding of ways to address equity issues in undergraduate science education. We also explored how teacher learners' resulting views of feminist science studies scholarship informed (or failed to inform) changes in their own educational practices. From our qualitative analyses, we highlight the challenges in balancing respect for members' individual voices with collective progress toward project goals, and in structuring conversations initiated by dissent to provide adequate space for deliberation and movement toward deeper understanding of equity and excellence. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 39: 738–771, 2002     

Culturally mixed groups on international campuses: an opportunity for inter-cultural learning

One of the major educational goals of the internationalisation of higher education is to prepare students to function in an international and inter-cultural context. Cultural diversity on university campuses creates ideal social forums for inter-cultural learning, yet, one of the most disturbing aspects of the internationalisation of higher education in Australia is the lack of interactions between local and international students from Asian backgrounds. This article examines the factors which students believe are affecting the formation of mixed groups for the completion of academic tasks. It also explores the nature of change in students' perceptions after a successful experience of mixed group work. The focus on both local and international students' appraisals of the situation highlights the two-way, interactive nature of group formation and shows how both parties share some responsibility in the lack of cultural mix.