Teacher Educators’ Perceptions of Environmental Education As a Crosscutting Issue and Their Participation in Its Teaching at Kitwe and Mansa Colleges of Education
Abstract
This study was undertaken to investigate the respondents’ perceptions of Environmental Education (EE) and participation in its teaching at Kitwe and Mansa Colleges of Education in Zambia. The study used both qualitative and quantitative research approaches which also included questionnaires, observations and focus group discussions as research instruments. Content analysis was used to ascertain teacher educators’ participation in EE. A sample comprised thirty-three purposively selected college teacher educators. The data collected was analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The findings revealed that respondents’ views of EE were associated with creation of awareness about the environment and narrowly viewed EE in terms of nature conservation. The majority (73%) of the respondents stated that EE was wrongly included in the curriculum. The study further revealed that EE was only taught as topics or subtopics in Science Education (SE), Social, Spiritual and Moral Education (SSME) and Technology Studies (TS) and not as a crosscutting discipline across the curriculum; and that teacher educators essentially adopted teacher-centred methods in teaching EE, concentrating on imparting book-based knowledge. Moreover, no mechanism existed to compel them to integrate EE in lessons taught making the crosscutting approach ineffective in implementing it. The majority of the respondents had neither received pre-service nor in-service training in EE and if they had received such training, it was irrelevant to the work they were doing. The study concluded that EE should not end at the creation of awareness about the environment but should be linked to knowledge, skills and attitudes required to demand for an action for the environment. The recommendations made were that the curriculum should be reviewed and EE topics or content also be incorporated in all study areas. In addition, the Ministry of Education (MoE) through Teacher Education and Specialised Services (TESS) should formulate a policy framework to guide EE teaching in Primary Colleges of Education. In fact, the EE should formulate or contribute questions toward final examinations and the Ministry of Education (MoE) should procure EE teaching resources. Additionally, teacher educators should use extra curricular activities as learning space for EE. Lastly, colleges should appoint EE Coordinators to spearhead the EE implementation. There is an urgent need to train or reorient teacher educators in the two colleges on how they could strengthen the grounding in EE. When such training is concluded well, it should now cover all the Zambian Colleges of Education.References
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2. Beckford, C. (2008), ‘Re-Orienting Environmental Education in Teacher Education Programmes in Ontario’, Journal of Teaching and Learning, vol. 5, No. 1.
3. Curriculum Development Centre (2000), Environmental Education Teacher’s Manual. Lusaka: CDC.
4. Environmental Council of Zambia (2000), State of the Environment. Lusaka: Horizon Printer.
5. European Commission (2009), Environmental Education in the Educational Systems of the European Union Synthesis Report. Frankfurt: European Commission, www.citeseerxist.psu.edu.org (accessed 7 July 2010).
6. Fien, J. (1993), For the Environment: Critical Curriculum Theorising and Environmental. Geelong: Deakin University.
7. Fien, J. (n.d.), Module 2 - A Whole School Approach, UNEP, ACEID, www.awholeschoolapproach.org (accessed 10 July 2010).
8. Gough, A. (2009), Not for Want of Trying: Strategies for Reorienting Teacher Education for ESD, www.esdteachereducation.org (accessed 20 August 2010).
9. Hart, P. (2003), Teachers Thinking in Environmental Education: Consciousness and Responsibility. New York: Peter Lang.
10. Jones, A.W. (1996), Teach Our Teachers Well: Strategies to Integrating Environmental Education into Teacher Education Programme, www.teachourteacherswell.org (accessed 7 July 2010).
11. Le Roux, K. (2001), Environmental Education Processes: Active learning in School. Pietermaritzburg: University of Natal Press.
12. Ministry of Education (1996), Educating our Future, National Policy on Education. Lusaka: Zambia Educational Publishing House.
13. Ministry of Tourism (2007), Environment and Natural Resources: National Environmental Policy. MTENR, Lusaka.
14. Mosothwane, M. (2000), ‘Pre-service Teachers’ Conception of Environmental Education’, Research in Education, No. 68.
15. Namafe, C.M. (2005), Integrated Development Environmental Issues: Proposed Improvement to the Zambian Basic School Geography (Grade 8-9). Lusaka: New Horizon Printing Press.
16. Pandya, M. (2000), Teacher Education for Environmental Education in India, http://www.fsifee.u-gakugei.ac.jp (accessed 05/08/2010).
17. Powers, A.L. (2004), ‘Teacher Preparation for Environmental Education: Faculty Perspectives on the Infusion of Environmental Education into Pre-Service Methods Courses’, Journal of Environmental Education, Vol. 35, No. 3, www.peerassociate.net (accessed 7 July 2010).
18. UNESCO (1980), Environmental Education in the Light of the Tbilisi Conference. UNESCO.
19. UNESCO (1985), Environmental Education Module for In-service Training of Science Teachers and Supervisors for Secondary School: Environmental Education Series 7. UNESCO.
20. Rao, V.K. and Reddy, R.S. (1996), Environmental Education. New Delhi: Commonwealth Publishers.
21. Sandell, K., Ohman, J. and Ostman, L. (2003), Education for Sustainable Development; Nature, School and Democracy. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
22. Sytnik, K.M., Cherednichenko, L.S., Sakhaev, V.G., Lebedinsky, Yu and Kolybin, V.A. (1985), Living in the Environment: A Resource Book for Environmental Education. Kiev: UNESCO-UNEP.
23. www.naaee.org, Asia-Pacific Environmental Innovation Strategies; Research on innovation and strategy policy options (accessed 23 October 2010).
24. Zamm, M. (2005), Teacher Preparation and Environmental Education: Meeting the Challenge in New York State, www.zammmike.nysed.gov (accessed 5 February 2010).
Published
2012-03-31
How to Cite
Chileshe, L. (2012) “Teacher Educators’ Perceptions of Environmental Education As a Crosscutting Issue and Their Participation in Its Teaching at Kitwe and Mansa Colleges of Education”, Journal of Law and Social Sciences, 1(1), pp. 53-65. doi: https://doi.org/10.53974/unza.jlss.1.1.368.
Section
Social Sciences