Tarah Wright

Sustainability in higher education in Atlantic Canada

Purpose – The purpose is to ascertain the state of sustainability in higher education (SHE) in Atlantic Canada (sustainability education/curriculum; research and scholarship; operations; faculty/staff development and rewards; community outreach and service; student opportunities; and institutional mission, structure and planning).Design/methodology/approach – All Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) member institutions in Atlantic Canada were sampled in 2005/2006 to examine sustainability performance. Data were collected using the sustainability assessment questionnaire (SAQ) and were triangulated with document, webpage, and additional survey research.Findings – The majority of higher education institutions in Atlantic Canada are engaged in sustainable development work, most notably in the area of curriculum. Sustainability research and scholarship is spread amongst faculty and students; many institutions have inter‐ or multi‐disciplinary research structures to address sustainability ...

Self-regulated learning about university teaching: an exploratory study

While research on self-regulated learning has been proliferating over the past decade, also within higher education settings, only very few studies apply the notion of self-regulated learning to teaching. We offer this exploratory study as a contribution to our understanding of the role of self-regulated learning in university instructors’ growth as teachers. Thirty-one academic science staff participated in semi-structured interviews designed to explore whether they engage in self-regulatory processes when learning about teaching. Interview questions were based on two theories: Zimmermans self-regulated learning cycle and Kreber and Crantons scholarship of teaching model. Cluster analyses revealed different patterns of responses for various subgroups of staff. For the two main groups, Chi-square analyses identified the specific variables on which differences between groups were observed. Participation in certain educational development activities as well as discipline affiliation was shown to be associated with self-regulated learning processes. We make concrete suggestions for how future research on self-regulated learning about teaching can build on these findings and conclude the article with some recommendations for the practice of educational development.

Examining the Literature: A Bibliometric Study of ESD Journal Articles in the Education Resources Information Center Database.

Using the tool of bibliometry, this study examines journal articles related to Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in academic journals from 1990 to 2005. It offers a statistical description of the literature, and analyses the development of ESD publications within the journal literature to date. The results show that the number of ESD journal articles has been increasing in the literature but in a nonlinear fashion. The number of academic journals publishing ESD articles also increased from 1990 to 2005 but not at the same rate. The number of authors publishing articles related to ESD has increased significantly. Further, this study demonstrates that ESD research is being published in both traditional disciplinary and interdisciplinary journals. Finally, the study illustrates the global nature of ESD publications activities.

Higher Education for Sustainability Developing a Comprehensive Research Agenda

From 27 to 29 October 2005, 35 experts in higher education for sustainability (HES) representing 17 countries, gathered in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This consultation represents the first gathering of HES researchers in Canada, and brought Canadian and international researchers together to further intellectual understanding of HES research and to explore the development of research priorities for the future. The Delphi Technique was used at this workshop in order to aid in the development of a preliminary research strategy for HES research. The Delphi exercise was the primary focus of the workshop. This report summarises both the workshop information and results.

Campus Sustainability Governance in Canada: A Content Analysis of Post-Secondary Institutions' Sustainability Policies.

Purpose – This paper aims to provide an overview of a content analysis of sustainability policies from Canadian post-secondary education institutions. The paper reports findings on the orientations to sustainability evident in the policies; references to other policies within the documents; and other key themes on how sustainability is engaged in the policies in relation to overall governance, education, operations, research and community outreach. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 50 Canadian colleges and universities was selected based on representativeness across a range of criteria. A qualitative thematic content analysis of these policies was conducted using a collaborative coding approach. Findings – Results suggest that most sustainability policies described a Brundtland (i.e. intergenerational) and/or three-pillar (e.g. economic, environmental and social) orientation to sustainability. Many sustainability policies also connected to other external municipal or provincial policies. In terms ...

Sustainability in Canadian post-secondary institutions: The interrelationships among sustainability initiatives and geographic and institutional characteristics

Purpose – This paper aims to report on a census of high-level sustainability initiatives at all accredited post-secondary institutions in Canada by documenting the institutions that have undertaken sustainability assessments, have signed one or more sustainability declarations, have sustainability offices or officers or have sustainability policies. The aim was to better understand the broad-scale patterns of commitments by post-secondary institutions to these sustainability initiatives by exploring the interrelationships among them, and with geographic and institutional characteristics. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected on existing high-level sustainability initiatives at Canada’s 220 accredited post-secondary institutions. Patterns in the data were analyzed using exploratory statistical techniques. This paper proposes a sustainability initiative score to help understand the diversity and patterns of sustainability initiative uptake. Findings – Institutions located in larger communities, ...

An analysis of Canadian STARS-rated higher education sustainability policies

Uptake of sustainability into campus administration has been identified as important for establishing and maintaining campus sustainability initiatives because of its ability to institutionalize sustainability on campuses. This paper explores how higher education institutions (HEIs) are defining and enacting sustainability in campus administration, using policy documents as a tool to achieve this. This paper analyzes the sustainability policies of 21 Canadian HEIs that have used the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. The policies were coded thematically with a focus on the conceptualizations of sustainability, conceptualizations of campus sustainability, and how the documents address the dominant themes found in the sustainability in higher education scholarly literature. This paper finds that most policies conceptualized sustainable development using the Brundtland definition, with aspects of environment, society, and economy. Policies conceptualized campus sustainability as including teaching, research, operations, and community outreach, with policy goals that emphasize facilities initiatives. This paper contributes to our understanding of the challenges and priorities associated with integrating sustainability into the administration of Canadian HEI institutions at the end of the DESD.

Exploring Faculty Conceptualizations of Sustainability in Higher Education: Cultural Barriers to Organizational Change and Potential Resolutions

It is often suggested that for institutional change efforts towards sustainability to bear fruit a common vision for sustainability in higher education (SHE) is necessary. Given the contested nature of the concept and the complexity of academic institutional culture, seeking broad consensus around sustainability presents a significant challenge to those seeking organizational change for sustainability. This article describes a research project that explored professors’ conceptualizations of SHE in the case study of Dalhousie University. We identified a number of divergent and conflicting conceptualizations around not only the concept of sustainability but also the role of the university in education for it, and promoting sustainability outside of its walls. Given the nature of the tensions in this study in particular and how they relate to important debates in the field of SHE generally, we propose embracing a vision of sustainability rooted in plurality and dialogue.

Guest editorial: Special students' edition

Introduces the special issue on environmental sustainability initiatives in higher education. Highlights the work accomplished by students on college and university campuses around the world. Notes that the papers illustrate the challenges and success students have encountered while working toward sustainability.

Present, Absent, or Tardy? A Study of the Barriers, Bridges, and Beliefs Concerning Environmental Education Among a Cohort of Sixth Grade Teachers in Nova Scotia

The increasing importance of formal environmental education underscores a teachers role in the development of knowledge, attitudes, and actions toward nature. This qualitative study explores how a cohort of sixth grade teachers (18) in Nova Scotia conceptualize environmental education and perceive teaching challenges. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and subjected to thematic analysis. Findings suggest that integrating environmental education into a classroom depends on teacher values and that a lack of financial and curricular resources, education, and support cause marginalization in these teachers’ classrooms. Five different challenges (a lack of access to nature, few hands on experience opportunities, too much information, lack of interconnected thinking in schools, and lack of willingness to change by those in charge) point to areas of environmental education research needing further investigation.