Climate Change Education in Primary and Lower Secondary Education: Systematic Review Results

Abstract

Global climate change is rightly receiving increasing attention, including in the field of education. Climate change education (CCE) is becoming one of the key areas of education in general and it is therefore not surprising that more attention is also being paid to climate education research. This review study presents an analysis of papers focusing on climate education for ISCED (International Standard Classification of Education) 1 and 2 students. The selection of the analyzed sources follows the PRISMA 2020 statement; out of 850 identified records, 43 made it into the analysis. Articles that met each of the following criteria were included in the analysis: (i) the impact of the article meets the inclusion in the Web of Science Core Collection service, (ii) the article was published in the period 2001–2020, (iii) the central theme of the article is CCE, (iv) the target audience is ISCED 1, ISCED 2 students or their teachers, (v) the article has a research character with the presentation of methodology and results, or it is a review study that includes an analysis of the records meeting the criteria described above. The quantitative description of the results shows the diversity in journals publishing studies, the exponential increase in their number in recent years, and the hegemony of the United States in this field of research. The qualitative content analysis shows that the most frequently addressed topics focus on knowledge, behavior, actions, experiences, and attitudes. The results show that as the urgency of climate change increases, so do the number and diversity of research studies on climate education for the target group. Most of these studies focus on the mitigation behaviors and willingness to act of students.

Climate Change Attitudes, Relationship to Nature and Pro-Environmental Behaviour of Students From Three European Countries

“…They also influenced, however, the polarisation of opinion groups, which they could dampen or intensify depending on the nature of their speech (Kousser & Tranter, 2018). The situation was gradually changing in the Czech Republic as well, however, influenced by the rapid growth of global public debate and research in climate change education (Nepras et al, 2022). Information about climate change and the factors that caused it was gradually becoming part of the educational curriculum at all levels of education.…”

“…There has been a substantial development of research related to climate change in recent years in education. A review study of articles dedicated to research on climate change education in primary schools (Nepras et al, 2022) shows the gradual development of the topic after 2009 and a steep increase in the number of published research papers since 2019.…”

Relationship to Climate and Nature of Primary School Pupils by Using Self-Assessment Questions

“…Klimatické vzdělávání je v současné době rychle rostoucím segmentem environmentálního vzdělávání a v návaznosti na to v posledních letech dynamicky roste také pedagogický výzkum oboru. Hlavními okruhy, které jsou v posledních letech ve výzkumu climate change education sledovány, jsou znalosti, postoje, ochota jednat a chování ke zmírnění climate change (Nepraš et al, 2022). Rozvoj znalostí o klimatu představuje nezbytný předpoklad rozvoje dalších dimenzí spojených se vztahem mladých lidí k tématu klimatické změny.…”

Climate Change Awareness Differences Among Primary School Students in Korea and Indonesia

“…One of the key tools in responding to climate change is climate change education, which equips students with the competencies necessary to respond to climate change. Recently, as interest in climate change has increased, in the educational field, research related to climate change education is rapidly increasing (Nepras et al, 2022). In the past, climate change education developed scientific knowledge about climate change (Shepardson et al, 2011).…”