ERIC Number: EJ1218605
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1350-4622
EISSN: N/A
Laying down a Path in Walking: Student Teachers' Emerging Ecological Identities
Environmental Education Research, v25 n3 p341-364 2019
There is growing global awareness of the importance of what are often labelled as 'natural environments' for human health, well-being and cognitive development. However, fostering learning in such 'natural environments', as they may be differently experienced and understood, requires a review of theoretical and practical approaches in teacher education, foregrounding the sensorial, experiential, embodied and relational dimensions of learning processes. This paper presents the results of an exploratory study on the experiences of a group of first year undergraduate student teachers enroled in a newly introduced course on outdoor learning. Adopting a pragmatic and enactivist mixed methods approach, the study provides evidence of impact of the course on the students. Specifically, the study contributes a qualitative description of student teachers' learning trajectories, featuring what students deemed to be significant moments of an emerging ecological awareness. Findings point to important implications for curriculum and pedagogy, promoting environmental consciousness in formal teacher education contexts.
Descriptors: Ecology, Physical Environment, Teacher Education Programs, Outdoor Education, Learning Processes, College Freshmen, Consciousness Raising, Environmental Education, Preservice Teachers, World Views, Individual Development, Learning Modules, Foreign Countries, Self Concept, Attitude Change, Outcome Measures, Experiential Learning, Educational Innovation, Physical Activities, Aesthetics, Student Attitudes, Ethics, Sustainable Development, Elective Courses, Emotional Response, Identification (Psychology)
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom (Scotland)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A