Assessing the Infusion of Sustainability Principles into University Curricula

Biasutti, Michele; Baz, Theodora De; Al-Shawa, Hala

doi:10.1515/jtes-2016-0012

Cited by 39 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Of course these changes also require academic staff development in universities, which could for example be initiated by curricular changes towards ESD, as a qualitative study showed [141]. Such a curricular change might explicitly include ethics and the reflection of own values [142].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Pre-service Teachers Dance with Wolves? Subject-Specific Teacher Professional Development in A Recent Biodiversity Conservation Issue

2018

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Biodiversity conservation issues are adequate topics of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), as they involve ecological, economic and social aspects. But teaching about these topics often challenges teachers due to high factual complexity but also because of additional affective dimensions. As a consequence, teacher professional development in ESD should address these affective components, to better qualify and motivate teachers to integrate conservation issues into their teaching. To investigate behaviourally relevant factors, we selected the context of natural remigration and conservation of the grey wolf (Canis lupus) in Germany and surveyed 120 pre-service biology teachers (M = 23.2 years, SD = 3.3 years) about contextual factors and their motivation to teach about the issue. Participants reported more positive attitudes, higher enjoyment and an increased perceived behavioural control towards teaching the issue in future teachers when they perceived a smaller psychological distance to the issue and an overall higher motivation to protect the species. As this motivation was grounded in more fundamental personality characteristics like wildlife values and attitudes towards wolves, we discuss the central role of these traits as a basis for transformative learning processes and the necessity of a holistic and subject-specific teacher professional development in ESD.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Pre-service Teachers Dance with Wolves? Subject-Specific Teacher Professional Development in A Recent Biodiversity Conservation Issue

2018

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“…In the case of Secondary Education, some studies [35] worked with a group of 15-16-year olds to incorporate and apply STSE knowledge to an uncontrolled dumping of waste in order to explain to the students the social and environmental repercussions it entailed. Conversely, some studies at a university level [36] analysed the perspective with which sustainability is approached in higher education degrees [37,38]. Specifically, these authors structured teaching-learning problems with a methodology approached through a SWOT analysis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge Analysis of the Prospective Secondary School Teacher on a Key Concept in Sustainability: Waste

et al. 2019

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The framework of sustainable development encompasses a series of behaviours which include the proper management of the waste we produce. This concept should be addressed in classrooms to ensure proper waste management. The amount of knowledge of the teachers and the inclusion of these concepts in the education curricula are essential factors when providing proper teaching about waste and waste management. The general objective was to analyse the amount of knowledge about waste of teachers in training within the framework of sustainable development. The sample consisted of 72 secondary school teachers in training belonging to three scientific-technological areas (Physics & Chemistry, Biology & Geology, and Technology). The methodology used was exploratory and quantitative. As a measuring instrument, a questionnaire was elaborated based on the educational curricula and based on previous research, made up of five categories (Waste and Society, Regulations, Awareness, Technological Development, and Typology). The results of the study show that teachers in training lack knowledge regarding waste. Within teacher education programs, it is, therefore, necessary to address issues of sustainability including waste in order to prepare teachers that are competent and willing to teach such important topics.

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“…One of the core aspects of professional development in the field of intercultural education is to reflect critically on individual beliefs about the meanings of the word "culture", its impact on human existence, and the way in which it affects children's educational experience at school [12]. It is crucial to encourage teachers to reflect on their attitudes [19] and to discuss and negotiate them within the professional community which shares the same challenges.…”

Section: Teacher Professional Development In Sustainability and Intermentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Sustainability and Professional Development: Assessing a Training Course on Intercultural Education for In-Service Teachers

Biasutti¹,

Concina²,

Frate³

2019

Sustainability

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Background: World-wide migration is one of the most important issues of the 21st century. One crucial problem that has arisen as a result of mass migration is how school teachers are taught to use methods and tools that both support intercultural education and the promotion of inclusion as a core pedagogical construct. For these reasons, it is unsurprising that there is an increased need for studies within the field of social sustainability that consider the effects of professional development for teachers. Methods: The current paper presents the assessment of a professional development training course on intercultural education addressed to Italian primary and middle school teachers. The course was framed within a sociocultural approach and had a learner-centered focus. The research methodology used within our research involved a qualitative method to assess the effects of the training course activities. The perceived professional development was analyzed through the administration of an open question survey addressed to the teachers that attended the training course. Results: The qualitative analysis revealed the following themes: Teachers' attitudes, teaching methods and instruments, community of practice, positive features of the course, course weaknesses, and suggestions for improvement. The results of this analysis showed that the training course was an occasion for teachers to discuss different pedagogical approaches, teaching strategies, and practices in intercultural education. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the activities created an environment for teachers to reflect upon their teaching approaches and practices. Our research shows that professional development interventions of this kind may help to improve intercultural pedagogical abilities among primary and middle school teachers.

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Assessing the Infusion of Sustainability Principles into University Curricula

Cited by 39 publications

References 15 publications

Do Pre-service Teachers Dance with Wolves? Subject-Specific Teacher Professional Development in A Recent Biodiversity Conservation Issue

Do Pre-service Teachers Dance with Wolves? Subject-Specific Teacher Professional Development in A Recent Biodiversity Conservation Issue

Knowledge Analysis of the Prospective Secondary School Teacher on a Key Concept in Sustainability: Waste

Social Sustainability and Professional Development: Assessing a Training Course on Intercultural Education for In-Service Teachers

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