‘If there’s no sustainability our future will get wrecked’: Exploring children’s perspectives of sustainability

Abstract

Education for Sustainability is an internationally recognised field of learning that is currently mandated as a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian curriculum. Empirical research into children’s views about sustainability, and how they develop sustainability knowledge, however, remains limited. This article focuses on research that investigated children’s perspectives of sustainability in Victoria, Australia. The children were recruited through the Sustainable School Expo where they delivered keynote presentations about their school’s respective Education for Sustainability initiatives. Data were generated from interviews with 16 children aged from 9 to 13 years and included a set of self-created and designed sustainability artefacts. The article contends that children have strongly conceptualised ideas about sustainability that are developed through interactions with material entities (human/more than human) in diverse environments. A key finding suggests that children become vital stakeholders in Education for Sustainability through experiential, investigative, sensorial and place-oriented ways of learning, which informs how they build sustainability knowledge.

Systematic Review of Education for Sustainable Development at an Early Stage: Cornerstones and Pedagogical Approaches for Teacher Professional Development

“…In other words, the values framework must foster and defend democratic citizenship values (respect for diversity, value democratic participation, respect the opinion of others, etc.) [8,32], while acknowledging and promoting collective values (respect for indigenous rights, value of the common goods, and respect for non-human-others) [20,26,33] and aesthetic values (to value cultural and environmental heritage at local and global levels).…”

“…Even if play is usually related to outdoor experiences in ECE, not all outdoor activities involve playing as a method. Green [33,54], for instance, argues for free exploration within natural settings in order to develop sensory engagements with place. To strengthen children's environmental exploration and agency, she proposed "Sensory Tours", a method to research children's experiences in nature and to allow them to freely explore the environment.…”

“…A range of studies [14,28,33,54], some of which directly question adult-centric education, advocate for outdoor experiences with minimal adult intervention. Defending children's autonomy and their need for adults to take them seriously as agents in their own environment [29], some research studies stand against "teacher-directed-methods" [14] as an appropriate approach to outdoor learning for ESD.…”

Young children’s views on play provision in two local parks: A research project by early childhood studies students and staff

“…In supporting our student researchers in the development of their ideas about which methods to use, we explored with them the challenges related to undertaking research with young children. Green (2017) and Horgan (2017) note a growth in child participatory research over the last two decades and how children are now recognised as ‘actors in their own right who have diverse and often divergent opinions and views about their everyday life worlds’ (Green, 2017: 154). Punch (2002) provided useful insights into these challenges by questioning which methods suit children given their marginalised position in adult society, noting the importance of critically reflecting upon the advantages and disadvantages of ‘child-centred’ (Punch, 2002: 323) methods to avoid assumptions about what methods are more appropriate for children’s perceived competencies or lack of them.…”

Children’s protest in relation to the climate emergency: A qualitative study on a new form of resistance promoting political and social change

“…When it comes to environmental concern and activism, research shows that climate issues have gained the attention of children (Ceplak, 2006; Green, 2017). Early studies found that activist groups might set up symbolic fences (Strandbu and Krange, 2003), reducing the inclusiveness of the movement.…”