Environmental knowledge, attitude and practices of student teachers

Abstract

Within this decade of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), educational institutions need to increase their efforts to educate their students for a sustainable future. Teachers are most influential in educating children and teenagers to be leaders of tomorrow in protecting the environment. Thus, aspiring teachers should demonstrate pro-environmental behaviour and attitudes if they are to integrate ESD effectively in their teaching upon graduation. They should also have good knowledge about the environment to ensure effective delivery. However, previous studies show that many students and teachers lack sufficient environmental knowledge but demonstrate positive attitudes towards the environment. This lack of knowledge is believed to contribute to the lack of pro-environmental behaviours among them. This study is a survey of the environmental knowledge, attitude and practices of pre-service secondary teachers enrolled in an undergraduate Biology Teaching Methods course. The results suggest the readiness of these teachers to realise the goal of integrating ESD in the teaching of biology in schools. Results also indicate the need for more concerted effort in teacher education to prepare them for their role in educating for and about the environment.

Keywords:

• environmental knowledge
• environmental attitude
• environmental practices
• pre-service secondary teachers
• Education for Sustainable Development

Acknowledgement

The research is financed by the USM Incentive Grant Scheme.