Anne Liefländer

Promoting connectedness with nature through environmental education

It has been suggested that a positive human–nature relationship is essential for countering today’s environmental problems. Prior environmental education research has focused largely on knowledge or attitudinal outcomes, and few studies have examined the ability of environmental education programmes to promote connectedness with nature. Therefore, our goal was to (1) examine differences in connectedness with nature among a sample of children with differing ages and academic tracks, and (2) investigate whether environmental education can help promote and sustain connectedness with nature. With a pre-, post- and retention test design, we assessed a comprehensive four-day environmental education programme on water at a school field centre, using the inclusion of nature in self (INS) scale to identify the change in connectedness of 9–10-year-old pupils and 11–13-year-old pupils. We found that younger children and university-track pupils had higher INS scores than older children and general-education-track pupils, respectively. Participating in environmental education resulted in a robust short-term increase in connectedness with nature in both age groups. However, only the younger pupils’ connectedness remained sustained four weeks following the treatment. Environmental educators should keep in mind that strengthening connectedness to nature is more sustainable before the age of 11.

The Effects of Children's Age and Sex on Acquiring Pro-Environmental Attitudes through Environmental Education.

Environmental education programs aiming to enhance childrens environmental attitudes in a pro-environmental direction require background information, such as age and sex differences, to ensure appropriate design. We used the 2-MEV model with its domains preservation and utilization of nature to assess a four-day program at an educational field center with students 9–10 and 11–13 years of age. A pre- and post-retention test design revealed younger students to be more responsive concerning positive attitude shifts than older students, whereas the sexes were equally influenced. Program developers should consider that education has a stronger effect on young childrens environmental attitudes.

Evaluating Environmental Knowledge Dimension Convergence to Assess Educational Programme Effectiveness

One aim of environmental education is fostering sustainable environmental action. Some environmental behaviour models suggest that this can be accomplished in part by improving peoples knowledge. Recent studies have identified a distinct, psychometrically supported environmental knowledge structure consisting of system, action-related and effectiveness knowledge. Besides system knowledge, which is most often the focus of such studies, incorporating the other knowledge dimensions into these dimensions was suggested to enhance effectiveness. Our study is among the first to implement these dimensions together in an educational campaign and to use these dimensions to evaluate the effectiveness of a programme on water issues. We designed a four-day environmental education programme on water issues for students at an educational field centre. We applied a newly developed multiple-choice instrument using a pre-, post-, retention test design. The knowledge scales were calibrated with the Rasch model. In addition to the commonly assessed individual change in knowledge level, we also measured the change in knowledge convergence, the extent to which the knowledge dimensions merge as a persons environmental knowledge increases, as an innovative indicator of educational success. Following programme participation, students significantly improved in terms of amount learned in each knowledge dimension and in terms of integration of the knowledge dimensions. The effectiveness knowledge shows the least gain, persistence and convergence, which we explain by considering the dependence of the knowledge dimensions on each other. Finally, we discuss emerging challenges for educational researchers and practical implications for environmental educators.

Effectiveness of environmental education on water: connectedness to nature, environmental attitudes and environmental knowledge

What shapes the state of connectedness to nature, pro-environmental attitudes and environmental knowledge amongst children aged 9–13? According to developmental psychology literature, at approximately the age of 11 and/or with the onset of puberty, we can expect children to transition from a developmental to more advanced stage. Equally, environmental psychologists maintain that there are three distinct cognitive knowledge dimensions, which are necessary for sustainable actions: system, action-related and effectiveness knowledge, and that these dimensions should be deliberately considered in the planning and experience of educational initiatives, including in relation to participants’ readiness to take action. This study examines the implications of such considerations about ‘ages and stages’ for environmental education and educators, through a quasi-experimental evaluation of a four-day environmental education programme, ‘Water in Life – Life in Water’, offered at a German (Bavarian) school field centre. Quantitative programme evaluation techniques, including pre-, postand retention questionnaires, were used to examine its effectiveness in relation to the aforementioned dimensions, with 200 children aged 9–10 years and 11–13 years. The participants’ connectedness to nature was measured using the INS scale (Inclusion of Nature in Self), while environmental attitudes were determined based on the 2-MEV model and its subscales preservation and utilisation (Two Major Environmental Values), along with three knowledge scales newly developed for the study. The key findings were as follows: (1) Younger pupils initially showed a stronger connectedness to nature and stronger pro-environmental attitudes than older pupils. (2) For both age groups, the environmental education programme was equally effective over the short-term; however, it was more effective for the younger students six weeks after participation with regard to connectedness and attitudes (Liefländer et al. 2013; Liefländer and Bogner 2014). (3) Environmental knowledge increased and persisted in both age groups (Liefländer et al. forthcoming). These findings underscore the importance of considering ‘ages and stages’ of programme participants in programme planning and implementation. General conclusions from this study include that for children under 11, it is advisable to concentrate on enhancing nature connectedness and pro-environmental attitudes by providing direct, positive nature encounters. In addition, focusing topics on more complex environmental knowledge or environment-conscious action and decisionmaking is better suited to 11–13 year olds.

Educational impact on the relationship of environmental knowledge and attitudes

Abstract This study examines the relationships between the environmental attitudes and environmental knowledge of schoolchildren within the framework of an environmental intervention. We employed questions from the 2-MEV model to monitor students’ environmental attitudes in terms of the model factors Preservation and Utilisation while concurrently monitoring three environmental knowledge dimensions (system, action-related and effectiveness knowledge) at three different test times during the course of a four-day field centre programme for fourth-graders (N = 133, Mage = 9.8 years). Probably due to measurement constraints (e.g. a ceiling effect, social desirability), we found no correlation between environmental knowledge and the attitude Preservation at all test times. The attitude Utilisation correlated negatively with all environmental knowledge dimensions, indicating that students who score higher on Utilisation are more likely, for example, to have and gain more system knowledge through programme participation than the other students or vice versa, as a causal relationship cannot be derived from our analyses: system knowledge may also influence Utilisation. In other words, children who refrain from (ab)using nature also seem to put more effort into improving their environmental knowledge and/or children who engage in learning about the environment will become less exploitative towards the environment.

Concept maps in the classroom: A new approach to reveal students' conceptual change

ABSTRACT When entering the classroom, adolescents already hold various conceptions on science topics. Concept maps may function as useful tools to reveal such conceptions although labor-intensive analysis often prevents application in typical classroom situations. The authors aimed to provide teachers with an appropriate approach to analyze students’ concept maps within daily school routine. They intended to conclude qualitative changes from analyzing quantitative parameters. To test the approach, high school students were asked to map their conceptions before and after attending an educational program on climate change. For the analyses, quantitative as well as qualitative methods were applied. A comparison of pre- and postmaps pointed to a conceptual change. From strong correlations between qualitative and quantitative parameters we assumed our approach to be applicable. Due to its simple and barely time-consuming handling, the authors’ approach is suitable for application in conventional classroom situations and may contribute to inform teachers about students’ conceptions.

Ecuadorian students’ conceptions and personal experience regarding water management issues / Concepciones y experiencias personales de los estudiantes ecuatorianos sobre la gestión del agua

Abstract Household water distribution and wastewater management represent major challenges in developing countries. In designing effective instructional interventions to address this issue, educators should consider people’s current knowledge of water management as a starting point. In our study, we examine Ecuadorian students’ current conceptions and personal experience in the context of water management issues. A sample of 73 adolescents from the Guayas coastal region of Ecuador responded to a paper-pencil questionnaire with open questions. The subsequent qualitative content analysis revealed some interesting results. In particular, the students’ life experiences appear to shape the students’ conceptions regarding the origin of piped-in household water and its ultimate destination, suggesting that experience-based learning has occurred. We found that a confusion of issues may arise. Mixing up the household water system with the wastewater system or household water with bottled water may lead to overgeneralization. Technical terms like groundwater, waterworks and wastewater treatment plant seem to be unfamiliar to most Ecuadorian students. Inferring from our results, we present practical recommendations for educators, both in developed and developing countries, to use in their instruction on water management issues.