This study aimed to explore and understand the contextual factors that influence nature experiences amongst 11–12–year–old children in their local island environments of the Maldives. The study adopted a qualitative phenomenological approach using semi-structured focus group interviews, held online, with seven groups, one per island environment. A total of 34 children participated in the interviews, with 4–6 children per group, recruited purposively based on inclusion criteria. The interviews were transcribed, and a thematic analysis was carried out. The analysis demonstrated that children’s nature experiences were primarily influenced by preferences, opportunities, constraints, and freedom, of which opportunities have the greatest influence. Similarly, constraints deter the use of available opportunities, regardless of where children live. Females appear to have more constraints on their nature experiences than males. Children must be facilitated with meaningful opportunities for DNEs to overcome constraints and motivate nature engagement. Schools must play a proactive role in facilitating these experiences to foster nature connections to ensure the success of their sustainability targeted curricular objectives. While the subject of DNEs has a wide place in the literature, the lack of studies in the field of education for sustainable development (ESD) increases the importance of this study. The findings can guide the promotion of ESD as a pathway to a sustainable future in the country. Future research should examine barriers to children’s DNEs at the school level.

The extent to which school stakeholders perceive positive school attributes remains unclear in the literature. This study seeks to provide an understanding of positive school attributes from the school leaders and teachers’ perspectives in the Malaysian school context. This study employed a qualitative case study research design with 14 informants selected from seven Malaysian secondary schools. The thematic analysis informed six emerging themes: (1) stimulating positive emotion, (2) promoting positive engagement, (3) fostering positive relationships, (4) cultivating positive meaning, (5) nurturing positive accomplishment, and (6) cultivating spirituality in expressing positive school attributes. Fostering positive relationships were specified as (1) teacher-teacher relationship, (2) teacher-student relationship, and (3) student-student relationship. Cultivating spirituality is a newly emerged theme that is added to the unique positive school attributes. These newly added components of the existing PERMA model can trigger further research in positive education studies.

While the quality of school life is expected to be cultural and context-specific, fewer studies have been conducted to investigate the conceptualisation of quality of school life in a multi-ethnic and multicultural context. This study aims to compare Malay and Chinese primary school students’ perceptions on the quality of school life in Malaysia. This study employed a quantitative cross-sectional survey research design. Survey data were collected from 594 Grade 5 students. Findings revealed that both Malay and Chinese students ranked the highest score on the opportunity dimension and the lowest scores on the negative affect dimension. The Malay students scored higher means in all dimensions of quality of schools than the Chinese students, except the findings revealed cultural differences in the perceptions of quality of school life.

Childhood direct nature experiences (DNEs) are crucial to create lasting relationships with nature that will in turn influence long-term biodiversity conservation. However, as children increasingly become urbanites, they also get progressively separated from nature. A loss DNEs of is worrisome because it can influence conservation willingness (CW) in multiple ways that are not fully understood. This study aimed to examine the serial mediation of biodiversity knowledge (BK) and affective attitudes (AA) in the relationship between DNE frequentness and CW. Data was gathered using an online survey questionnaire administered to 429 11–12 years old schoolchildren in the Maldives. A two-serial mediation analysis confirmed an underreported, predictive sequential pathway from DNEs through BK to AA to CW. Also, DNE frequentness exerted positive direct effects on BK and AA. While BK exerted neither significant direct nor independent mediating effects on CW, AA exerted both effects on CW. The direct effects of BK on AA are vital to re-orient innate, misconstrued, or biased negative attitudes to promote CW. Overall, DNE frequentness has positive effects on CW due to indirect effects rather than direct ones. The findings have implications for educators and other stakeholders to facilitate appropriate, contextually meaningful DNEs that enhance understanding of BK and stimulate positive shifts in attitude as a means to promote CW. This is an indispensable step towards successful education for sustainable development and long-term biodiversity conservation.

This article was written to explain the ability of Geography Education students to do horizontal evacuation to a tsunami safe zone in Padang City and a silent simulation as an alternative of horizontal evacuation. In this research, respondents were asked to do horizontal evacuation in 3 ways, that is walking, power walking and running. The measurement result data were analyzed and compared with the estimated arrival time of tsunami wave in three scenarios based on gender. The results of the research are 1) 47.76 % of respondents did not know the nearest tsunami safe zone from their places; 2) if the earthquake and tsunami scenarios 1 and 2 occurred, the recommended horizontal evacuation technique was running. Silent simulation is a horizontal evacuation simulation carried out independently by residents without waiting for the simulation schedule by the government or related institutions. Silent simulation can be done alone, with family, or with the closest neighbours and combined with daily activities such as marathons or jogging. Through this silent simulation practice, residents can find out the most appropriate evacuation method and the fastest evacuation route to the nearest tsunami safe zone from their respective homes.Keywords: silent simulation, geography education, tsunami safe zone, PadangArtikel ini ditulis untuk menjelaskan kemampuan mahasiswa Pendidikan Geografi dalam melakukan evakuasi horizontal ke zona aman tsunami di Kota Padang dan silent simulation sebagai alternatif evakuasi horizontal. Dalam penelitian ini, responden diminta melakukan evakuasi horizontal dengan 3 cara, yaitu jalan kaki, jalan cepat dan lari. Data hasil pengukuran dianalisis dan dibandingkan dengan perkiraan waktu tiba gelombang tsunami pada tiga skenario berdasarkan jenis kelamin. Hasil penelitian adalah 1) 47,76% responden tidak mengetahui zona aman tsunami terdekat dari tempatnya; 2) jika terjadi gempa bumi dan tsunami skenario 1 dan 2, maka teknik evakuasi horizontal yang direkomendasikan adalah berjalan. silent simulation merupakan simulasi evakuasi horizontal yang dilakukan secara mandiri oleh warga tanpa menunggu jadwal simulasi oleh pemerintah atau instansi terkait. silent simulation bisa dilakukan sendiri, bersama keluarga, atau dengan tetangga terdekat dan dipadukan dengan aktivitas sehari-hari seperti maraton atau jogging. Melalui latihan silent simulation ini, warga dapat mengetahui metode evakuasi yang paling tepat dan jalur evakuasi tercepat menuju zona aman tsunami terdekat dari rumah masing-masing.Kata Kunci: Silent simulation, Pendidikan geografi, Zona aman tsunami, Padang