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Teacher Identities as Key to Environmental Education for Sustainability Implementation: A Study From Australia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 October 2018

Sylvia C. Almeida ,
Deborah Moore  and
Melissa Barnes
Sylvia C. Almeida*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Deborah Moore
Affiliation:
Deakin School of Education, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Melissa Barnes
Affiliation:
Faculty of Education, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
*
Address for correspondence: Sylvia C. Almeida, Faculty of Education, Monash University, Wellington Rd, Clayton VIC 3800, Australia. Email: sylvia.almeida@monash.edu
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Abstract

This article presents findings from a study that evaluated the impact of an Australian sustainability initiative, with a view to unravelling the realities of teachers’ implementation approaches. The paper outlines a study that reviews a government initiative in early years, primary and secondary educational settings that uses the Data Collection, Storage and Visualisations System (DCSVS) aimed at enhancing sustainability awareness and embedding sustainability as part of everyday practice in schools and early childhood services. It was also intended to offer school leaders, teachers and students avenues to engage with their consumption of natural resources. This in turn was anticipated to increase awareness about conservation, with the long-term aim to engage with the broader themes of sustainability. This article focuses on the role of teachers’ identities in enacting these policy initiatives. It highlights teachers’ enactment of the policies, the crucial role of school leaders in the process, as well as the deeper connections between curriculum and pedagogy.

Keywords

environmental educationeducation for sustainabilityteacher educationteacherspolicy
Type
Feature Articles
Information
Australian Journal of Environmental Education , Volume 34 , Issue 3 , November 2018 , pp. 228 - 243
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2018 

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