Environmental education in transition: A critical review of recent research on climate change and energy education

Abstract

The transition from centralized energy systems based on fossil fuels to renewable-based systems is a macro-level societal shift necessitated by climate change. This review of recent environmental education (EE) research identifies gaps and opportunities for promoting environmental action in this new context. We found that environmental educators and researchers are currently focused on researching and promoting energy conservation behavior with an emphasis on children and youth. We also found an emerging research focus on energy transitions at the regional and national levels. We recommend that environmental educators and researchers adopt a vision and strategy for climate change and energy education that more explicitly addresses the role of collective action, multiactor networks, and sociotechnical innovation in shaping energy transition processes.     

Environmental education,national curriculum and primary school teachers. Findings of a research study in England and possible implications upon education for sustainable development

This article reports the results of a research study on the impact of environmental education (EE) upon English primary school teachers, and it then discusses the findings of the study in relation to education for sustainable development, as EE is considered one of the two precursors of education for sustainable development. The article begins by considering the development of EE in the English national curriculum of primary schools and then briefly outlines and reports two major findings of the study, comparing them against the new context of education for sustainable development. Overall, the article demonstrates how EE, the national curriculum and teachers have interacted with each other, while arguing that there seems to be a parallel course among education for sustainable development and EE in the national curriculum, with no apparent crossroad to link the two and explain how education for sustainable development is partly based on EE as well.     

Emotional journeys: young people and transitions to university

This paper offers an interpretation of the role of emotions in understanding the transitions that young people make to university. I draw on qualitative research with a group of non‐traditional students, entering elite universities, to argue that youth transitions are emotional as well instrumental affairs. I argue that choice‐making processes incorporate both trust in, and fear of, the transitions infrastructure, and that these emotions infuse more instrumental judgements about the economic benefits of higher education. I also demonstrate that emotional aspects of class – including feelings of entitlement to education and the rejection of normative student identities – constitute the experience of ‘being’ or ‘doing’ a student. A broader understanding of how young people become university students then depends not just on developing a new identity but on the complex interaction between emotion and infrastructure.     

四氯合锌(Ⅱ)酸二烷基铵及其二元体系固-固相变贮热的动力学研究

用DSC技术研究CnZnCl(n=12,14,16,18)及其C14ZnCl/C16ZnCl二元体系固-固相变的动力学,借助动力学方程Kissinger法和Ozawa法计算固-固相变过程的动力学参数—活化能(Ea)和反应级数(n),两种方法的结果相符.结果表明它们的固-固相变级数均为1和纯物质的活化能随链长的增加而减小;比较纯物质与二元体系的活化能,发现二元体系的活化能相对较低,因此,从动力学角度讲,二元体系的相变较容易发生.所以在相同的条件下,可以优先考虑应用二元体系.     

可持续发展大学：从理念到实践

在厘清可持续发展大学有关概念、考察国内外建设可持续发展大学现状的基础上,提出推进可持续发展大学建设的探索路径:制定特色目标;签署国际宣言;争取外界支持和伙伴关系;校园共同体成员广泛参与;持续改进的环境管理系统;可行的实施策略、行动方案、量化评估系统。     

Watching transitions unfold: a mixed-method study of transitions within early childhood care and education settings

Unlike the transitions children make between settings, those they undertake between age groups within early childhood care and education (ECCE) settings are seldom studied. Accordingly, this exploratory study followed seven preschool children (three boys and four girls) as they moved to new rooms in five ECCE settings. Structured observations of children’s behaviour were collected along with semi-structured parent interviews and participatory child interviews. All boys and one girl demonstrated increased anxiety behaviours following transitions. This gender difference was mirrored in parental reports of negative affect and aggression in sons, but independence and assertiveness amongst daughters. Families also reported shifts in children’s identity from expert to novice and a sense of becoming ‘big’. Interviews highlighted the challenges and opportunities underlying transitions, and parents provided a rich overview of the factors they believed support and hinder transitions, emphasising the importance of strong home-centre connections. These exploratory findings suggest that internal ECCE transitions may be unique junctures in children’s ECCE experiences.     

Factors Contributing to Teachers’ Sustained Use of Kindergarten Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies

Abstract

Factors were explored that predicted whether teachers sustained the use of a validated reading intervention. Seventy-three teachers from 37 schools in 3 states were asked in interviews whether they continued to use Kindergarten Peer Assisted Learning Strategies (KPALS) 1 year after their involvement in the program. A logistic regression model was created with teachers’ yes/no responses as the dependent variable and with predictors identified as important to sustainability. Findings were consonant with current theoretical models of sustainability. The logistic regression model captured many key elements of teachers’ decisions to sustain. Strongest predictors were teacher perceptions of the effectiveness of KPALS and degree of external technical support given them.     

Teaching about sustainability through inquiry-based science in Irish primary classrooms: the impact of a professional development programme on teacher self-efficacy,competence and pedagogy

Abstract

Research suggests that innovative and engaging professional development is instrumental in supporting teachers in developing their competence and confidence in teaching sustainability. An international initiative was developed to explore whether a competencies-oriented Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) professional development model was transferable across three different international contexts (Ireland, Germany and Mexico). This paper reports on the adaptation of this model within the Irish context, through the development of an innovative professional development programme for primary teachers. Through a mixed-methods approach which gathered data via pre- and post-programme surveys, teachers’ reflective journals and post-programme group interviews, the paper explores Irish primary school teachers’ experiences of, and attitudes towards, teaching sustainability through science education after participation in a professional development programme. The findings suggest that this programme, structured around the existing evidence for effective professional development in science education and ESD, positively influences teachers’ self-efficacy, supports teachers’ critical engagement with sustainability competencies and promotes the development of transformative pedagogies for sustainability through Inquiry-Based Science Education.     

Building Literacy Links for Young Children

Well-chosen and wisely shared literature facilitates transitions and builds bridges in the lives of young children. Literature links are discussed and books are reviewed for infant, toddler, preschool, and primary age children and transitional readers.