Bridging the Action Gap by Democratizing Climate Change Education—The Case of k.i.d.Z.21 in the Context of Fridays for Future

Abstract

Formal schooling frequently lacks both democratic learning culture and effective climate change education (CCE). This study analyzes the effects of the participatory CCE initiative k.i.d.Z.21 and the impacts of the current Fridays For Future (FFF) climate protests on teenagers’ climate change awareness. The mixed-methods approach comprises online pre-and post-tests, and personal interviews with selected students. k.i.d.Z.21 follows moderate constructivist, inquiry-based learning approaches and addresses 14-year old students from secondary schools in Austria and southern Germany. Considering the effectiveness of the CCE intervention of school year 2018/2019 (N = 169), quantitative findings reveal an increased mean of major components of climate change awareness, including climate-friendly behavior. When separating participants and non-participants in Fridays For Future, personal concern and refusing meat have both increased significantly only among protest participants. A closer examination of this group identifies an enhanced feeling of self-efficacy that might be triggered by perceived collective efficacy. Besides, more climate-friendly consumption behavior, as well as enhanced multiplicative action, are detected. The interviewed students also clearly assigned increased action-related components of climate change awareness to the attendance of FFF. From the findings, we conclude that democratic learning in and out of school can enhance action-related components of climate change awareness, and a combination of both can have an even stronger effect.

The views of teachers in England on an action-oriented climate change curriculum

“…Protest is considered an important tool for drawing attention to issues and achieving political change (UNICEF 2020) and the recent world-wide climate "school strikes" provided dramatic evidence of children's ability to mobilise at scale. These strikes raised global public awareness of the climate change emergency (Thackeray et al, 2020) 1 and an Australian study of 14-year olds suggests such protest can complement education in terms of increasing climate change awareness and climate-friendly behaviour (Deisenrieder et al 2020). A surprisingly small minority (6.4%) of teachers in our sample considered that campaigning that might include legal demonstration should never appear in the school curriculum.…”

FridaysForFuture as an Enactive Network: Collective Agency for the Transition Towards Sustainable Development

“…One study has shown that FFF is composed of very young people, mostly female (Wahlström et al, 2019), and another recently revealed that FFF is contributing to climate change awareness (Deisenrieder et al, 2020). FridaysForFuture has spread through both the embodied and the virtual dimensions.…”

“…Second, all layers of the systems appear to be interconnected both in reality and virtually. This increases knowledge transmission and improves the coordination of action but also boosts participation and engagement (Deisenrieder et al, 2020). In addition to its internal structure, FFF has developed an external network that extends into other fields such as science and economy but also draws in schools and parents.…”

“…This is evident on many FFF websites where educational resources are abundant but also through discourses and concrete behavioral examples (Wahlström et al, 2020). Initial data on this point indicate that peers are simulating the behavior and adaptive responses of the leader, Greta Thunberg, and more generally absorbing FFF messages (Deisenrieder et al, 2020). The paideutic role of FFF is exercised in constant interaction with the social environment, transferring scientific knowledge into the real world, building the capacity to learn, and providing ad hoc educational materials-which are easily accessible from their website and other platforms-to promote the incorporation of knowledge into new behaviors.…”

“…Behavioral change, here, refers to a wide spectrum of behavior. In particular, FFF is believed to induce change in the following areas: active knowledge seeking, engagement with climate change issues, energy and water consumption, waste separation, food consumption, consumption in general, and inclusive action to safeguard the future of the planet (Deisenrieder et al, 2020). It also means becoming acquainted with social discourses such as ecological reform, green capitalism, anti-capitalism, democratization, social justice, and much more (Marquardt, 2020).…”