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ERIC Number: EJ1048076
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1306 3065
EISSN: N/A
Student Teachers' Attainment of Environmental Literacy in Relation to Their Disciplinary Major during Undergraduate Studies
Goldman, Daphne; Yavetz, Bela; Pe'er, Sara
International Journal of Environmental and Science Education, v9 n4 p369-383 2014
In light of the crucial role of teacher education in transforming education and society so that a sustainable future is possible, there is increasing interest in the relationship between academic major and development of student teachers' environmental literacy (EL). Since science disciplines are the common framework for incorporating environmental education, this longitudinal study investigated, in a paired pretest-posttest design, if student teachers majoring in the environment-related disciplines differ in the development of their EL from other majors. The differences in EL-variables between the two groups were enhanced during studies only in particular behavioral aspects (recycling efforts and citizenship action) and in basic environmental knowledge. Contrary to the expected, environment-affiliated students moved toward a more anthropocentric orientation during their studies, as reflected by decreased support for the "value-of-nature." Post-test environment-affiliated majors' opinions regarding the influence of studies to their EL emphasize the role of the disciplinary component, and its contribution mainly to their biophysical-ecological knowledge. Findings support the need to reorient the science disciplines to include a comprehensive environmental perspective and infuse environmental values education, in addition to content knowledge, within science disciplines. These should be explicitly stated within curricular goals of teacher-training programs, infiltrating down to courses and academic staff.
International Consortium for the Advancement of Academic Publication. Abant Izzet Baysal University, Faculty of Education, 14280 Golkoy-Bolu, Turkey. e-mail: editorijese@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.ijese.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Israel
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A