The Value of Process and Pedagogy through the Sustainability Prism

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The framing of education and learning in sustainable development has evolved out of global environment and development discussions to shape how knowledge, learning and action are applied in efforts to address complex socio-ecological and sustainability challenges of the times. Such framings have over time contributed not only to the establishment of the importance of education and learning in issues of environment and development – sustainable development – but also to the definition of what forms education and learning should take. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has since emerged from such framings in international discussions to pave the way for the formal recognition of the role of education and learning in the global quest for sustainable development. While the ESD discourse has since evolved to become a pragmatic educational ideology and tradition; while many countries and institutions have embraced its ideals in practice, not a lot of attention has been given to the seemingly <italic>instrumentalization</italic> of education in the ESD discourse. This work foregrounds ESD as an emergent discourse to critically explore how education has been framed in the discourse. Through Discourse Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis, the paper examines the <italic>coarseness</italic> of words used in creating the ESD discourse across time by paying close attention to texts – specific language use – in key <italic>discourse moments</italic> to understand how linguistic choices, power, and institutional structures have helped to create a role for education in sustainable development and how that has facilitated the formation of the ESD discourse.</abstract>

Education and Learning in Sustainable Development: Foregrounding an Emergent Discourse

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Green Architecture for Sustainable Communities (GASC) was a joint event organised by Dutch and Vietnamese universities with the aim of boosting sustainable development in the built environment of Vietnam. As a key activity of the event, the international student design workshop focused on renovation of typical Vietnamese row houses – aiming towards sustainable and energy efficient homes. This study reports an evaluation of the student workshop based on a post-workshop questionnaire and the outcomes of the student groups. Results showed that most activities were successful in transferring sustainable knowledge to the students. The students were capable of learning sustainable theory, analysing suitable design strategies in the specific cases and applying that knowledge into the design proposals. Students learned more about bioclimatic designs and related topics such as daylight, natural ventilation, indoor comfort and greenery. Sustainable aspects of energy efficiency and water usage were also of great interest. The student selection process was the main issue for this workshop. For future events, more involvement of architects with practice is recommended.</abstract>

Sustainable Design Education – An Evaluation of an International Student Design Workshop in Hanoi, Vietnam

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">How can we succeed in meeting the challenges of the future world in the best possible way? In order to support children in their development into optimistic, self-effective adults, it is necessary to find out how children perceive their world and how they combine these perceptions with their cognitive knowledge. This article examines the question of what children’s ideas about the world look like in children at the end of primary school, or what information is included in them. In a pilot study, mental maps were used to visualize the child’s world view. Accompanying questions were used to ascertain the children’s knowledge of current global problems. The focus was on the students’ thematic interests, which accompanied the discussions with the pupils. Already the first evaluations of the Mental Maps, which were made by the students, allow conclusions to be drawn. There is no uniform level in the children’s cognitive maps with regards to the concrete positional relationship of spatial units, e.g. continents and oceans. The statements about the content details of these maps are shaped by the children’s perception. The Mental Maps show a combination of indirect, direct and emotional spatial perception. The awareness of the pupils regarding global challenges, oriented towards the Sustainable Development Goals, proves to be clearly pronounced in the impulse-based interviews in the 4th grade. Thus, the pilot study allows the conclusion that already at the end of primary school pupils develop an awareness of global challenges and the ability to act. The SDGs of the UN Agenda 2030 offer a suitable basis for this. In addition to the development of a worldwide rough topographical orientation grid, the aim is to give children an understanding of global connections and to educate them to become global citizens of the future world.</abstract>

The World in Children’s Minds – or Sustainable Entrepreneurship Education as Empowerment to Shape a Desirable Future

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The education of children in the Age of Knowledge is a challenge for educators all over the world since it is questionable how we can educate learners to become responsible citizens in different areas. Finding a suitable methodology is a highlighted goal of present-day educational researches. The intention of our work is to contribute to this dispute with a research investigating the challenge-based-learning-adapting European UKids programme designed for eight-to-eleven-year-old learners. This intention aims to support their education for sustainability and to develop social entrepreneurship and life-long learning. The program is a professional collaboration among university teachers, primary school teacher candidates and learners, thus the research manages this triplet as a complex entity.The scientific paradigm and structure of present paper is rather nonconventional since, instead of presenting an empiric research, it interprets some peculiarities of many research units with the help of mixed methodology. Four research phases had been distinguished, the first three of these applied quantitative research methods.Results suggest that the learners are somewhat satisfied with their schooling and learning circumstances. Although they prefer constructive learning strategies, teacher-directed methods are still more popular among the responses which means that the non-traditional work forms are rather unfamiliar to them. The programme affected their skills and competences in a positive way. An age-specific (socio) psychological dichotomy was detected; however, the framework of the UKids programme was able to handle it. Both challenge-based learning and the UKids programme turned out to be suitable for educating and developing children in a complex way, and they are able to trigger innovation in teacher-training.</abstract>

Supporting a Sustainable Way of Life-Long Learning in the Frame of Challenge-Based Learning

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">This paper examines the dominant approach to entrepreneurship education in the South African education system regarding the crisis of youth unemployment. It draws on the case of the public-school sector, in conjunction with the technical vocational education and training (TVET) subsector of the post-school education sector. The comparison of the entrepreneurship education sector plan for public schools with the discourse on TVET reform shows that entrepreneurship education similarly follows the čskills perspective’ with a dominant focus on the formal economy, which is informed by a human-capital based and productivist approach to education. The authors argue that this understanding of entrepreneurship education employs a too narrow perspective on youth unemployment as it overlooks individual capabilities and agency and can contribute to an experience of youth unemployment as individual failure. The authors expand this argument by suggesting a critical entrepreneurship education approach, which is outlined based on two programmes at primary-school and post-school education (TVET) level in a poor urban area. The authors argue that a critical entrepreneurship education approach contributes to learning for capabilities, social justice and democratic citizenship.</abstract>

Critical Entrepreneurship Education in General Education and TVET: Two Concepts of Practice in a South African Township

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">The purpose of the current study is to investigate the learning process, which is enriched by using various teaching methods in the context of mathematical reasoning from the perspectives of seventh grade students and their mathematics teacher. In order to have an in-depth study, a qualitative research approach was preferred. This research was conducted with 23 seventh grade students and their mathematics teacher at a randomly selected public secondary school. Qualitative data was collected by using a semi-structured interview form developed for both the teacher and the students. As a result of this research, it was determined that this learning environment increased students’ participation in the lessons, provided effective and permanent learning and encouraged the use of mathematical reasoning skills. In addition, it was found that this learning environment, which uses various learning ways, develops a positive attitude towards the lessons. Besides, according to the findings of this study, it was found that the learning environment in which various learning ways were utilized provided sufficient knowledge of concept and method to the students, and improved their mathematical reasoning skills.</abstract>

Evaluation of Enriched Learning Environment in the Context of Mathematical Reasoning from the Perspective of the Students and their Teacher

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Quality primary education is one of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Undoubtedly, mathematics plays a key role in overcoming future challenges, and mathematical competence and problem-solving skills could help provide appropriate solutions to current and future social, environmental and economic challenges. The following paper deals with <italic>Sustainability in Basic Mathematics Education</italic> as a great number of students experience anxiety in learning mathematics. The literature-based research text explores the following question: <italic>How should a sustainable primary education in mathematics be implemented and which concrete pedagogical initiatives need to be taken?</italic> The present article addresses why some students encounter challenges in learning mathematics at the beginning of their education in school. Moreover, it demonstrates how competent teaching could decrease students’ difficulties and in learning mathematics.</abstract>

A Sustainable Way of Teaching Basic Mathematics

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Switzerland has one of the best ecosystems for entrepreneurship. However, there is a blind spot with regard to vocational colleges: A systematic integration of the topic is currently missing. The initiative “Entrepreneurial Thinking and Acting in Swiss Vocational Colleges – Economic, Social and Ethical Dimensions” aims to address this blind spot. The vision of the initiative is to ensure that all 75,000 young people entering vocational colleges each year in Switzerland are given the opportunity to acquire entrepreneurial skills to enable them to play an active role in positively shaping the economy and society of the future. In the article, we focus on three key aspects of the initiative: (1) the pedagogical approach of the entrepreneurship program that allows students to develop personal initiative, entrepreneurial competences, and an awareness of sustainability; (2) the continuous evaluation of the program and the teacher training; and (3) the parallel bottom-up and top-down approach chosen to integrate entrepreneurial thinking and acting in the vocational education and training system.</abstract>

Establishing Entrepreneurial Thinking and Acting in Swiss Vocational Colleges

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">We designed this study with the aim to examine teachers’ culturally relevant and sustaining education self-efficacy perceptions in Turkey. For this purpose, we developed a Culturally Relevant/Sustaining Education Self-Efficacy Scale. We obtained the data from 1302 teachers. Data analysis proceeded in three steps: First, we analyzed factor analysis. Second, we conducted a descriptive analysis of the items on the CRESE Scale. Finally, we compared teachers’ perceptions. The scale consists of a single factor and teachers’ scores on the CRESE Scale were highly reliable. The findings revealed that teachers were less efficacious in their ability to revise the teaching-learning materials in terms of cultural diversity, to give culturally relevant examples, to reflect the students’ cultural values in the classroom, and to increase in school parents’ and families’ participation in Turkey. Also, teachers’ self-efficacy perceptions differ significantly according to some variables. We discussed the implications for these findings for both further research and future teacher preparation.</abstract>

Examining Teachers’ Culturally Relevant Education Self-Efficacy Perceptions in Turkey

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">This study aims to determine the professional development needs of teachers working in different subject domains. In this context, the sample of this study was 35 teachers working in state schools in Cappadocia provinces of Turkey. Q method analysis which includes qualitative and quantitative processes is used in this study. The professional development needs of the teachers is discussed under four main themes; instructional development, scientific field development, personal development, and organizational development and 14 sub-dimensions related to these themes. The data collection instrument of the study consisted of a total of 36 Q items regarding the professional development needs of teachers. The findings of the study show that the most needed professional development areas of the teachers were special education, scientific research methods, and participation in the projects and related professional activities. It was determined that some of the participants needed professional development in the areas of instructional technologies, material development, student participation, assessment and evaluation, and teamwork skills.</abstract>

Teachers’ Professional Development Needs: A Q Method Analysis

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Volume 14 (2023): Issue 2 (December 2023)

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Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education

 Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education is an international, double blind peer-reviewed journal that provides a forum for the examination of policies, theories and practices related to discourse and communication for sustainable education. Since contemporary discourse study has extended its field to the study of multifaceted contexts of discourse, it is able to be integrated in the broader study of the phenomena of communication in relation to sustainable education. The journal Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education publishes research articles and reviews. Its diversity is apparent in the variety of its theories, methods and approaches, thus avoiding the frequent limitation to one school, approach, academic branch. The only criteria will be the quality and the originality of its articles. The journal Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education welcomes articles which explore inspirational ideas in sustainable education, are written in innovative ways or are presented in experimental ways. It does not have article processing charges (APCs) nor article submission charges.  Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education is a double-blind peer-reviewed journal.  Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 