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Methodology to Analyze the Effectiveness of ESD in a Higher Degree in Education. A Case Study

Author

Listed:
  • Rocío Valderrama-Hernández

    (Faculty of Education, University of Seville, 41013 Seville, Spain)

  • Fermín Sánchez-Carracedo

    (Research Institute for Sustainability Science and Technology, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08034 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Lucía Alcántara Rubio

    (Faculty of Education, University of Seville, 41013 Seville, Spain)

  • Dolores Limón-Domínguez

    (Faculty of Education, University of Seville, 41013 Seville, Spain)

Abstract

This paper presents a methodology to evaluate (1) to what extent students of a higher degree in the field of education acquire sustainability competencies, and (2) to determine whether the subjects that develop Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) achieve their learning objectives. The methodology is applied to a case study. The instruments used are the sustainability survey and the sustainability presence map developed by the EDINSOST project. The survey consists of 18 questions, and has been answered by 104 first-year students and 86 fourth-year students belonging to the Bachelor Degree in Primary Education Teaching at the University of Seville. The Mann-Whitney U test has been used to compare the results of the two students groups, and Cohen’s D has been used to measure the effect size. Students only obtain significant improvements, with 95% confidence, in three questions: Q4 (I know procedures and resources to integrate sustainability in the subjects), Q5 (I analyze the opportunities presented in the subjects to plan educational projects to integrate sustainability) and Q6 (I design educational projects from the perspective of sustainability), all concerning critical thinking and creativity. An improvement is also detected in question Q11 (I know how to develop myself satisfactorily in community educational projects, encouraging participation), with a confidence of 90%. Surprisingly, no subject in the curriculum develops the learning outcomes concerning questions Q4, Q5 and Q6, and only one subject develops the learning outcomes regarding question Q11. However, up to five subjects declare development of the learning outcomes regarding questions in which there is no improvement in student learning. These results suggest that the subjects are failing to reach their ESD learning objectives, and that the students are either trained in sustainability outside the university or the subject learning guides do not reflect the work done by the students throughout their studies.

Suggested Citation

  • Rocío Valderrama-Hernández & Fermín Sánchez-Carracedo & Lucía Alcántara Rubio & Dolores Limón-Domínguez, 2019. "Methodology to Analyze the Effectiveness of ESD in a Higher Degree in Education. A Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-27, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2019:i:1:p:222-:d:302240
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Pedro Vega-Marcote & Mercedes Varela-Losada & Pedro Álvarez-Suárez, 2015. "Evaluation of an Educational Model Based on the Development of Sustainable Competencies in Basic Teacher Training in Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-20, March.
    2. Gisela Cebrián & Mercè Junyent, 2015. "Competencies in Education for Sustainable Development: Exploring the Student Teachers’ Views," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-19, March.
    3. Anna Sundermann & Daniel Fischer, 2019. "How Does Sustainability Become Professionally Relevant? Exploring the Role of Sustainability Conceptions in First Year Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1, September.
    4. Katia Vladimirova & David Le Blanc, 2016. "Exploring Links Between Education and Sustainable Development Goals Through the Lens of UN Flagship Reports," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(4), pages 254-271, July.
    5. Rodrigo Lozano & Michelle Y. Merrill & Kaisu Sammalisto & Kim Ceulemans & Francisco J. Lozano, 2017. "Connecting Competences and Pedagogical Approaches for Sustainable Development in Higher Education: A Literature Review and Framework Proposal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-15, October.
    6. Rafael Miñano Rubio & Diego Uribe & Ana Moreno-Romero & Susana Yáñez, 2019. "Embedding Sustainability Competences into Engineering Education. The Case of Informatics Engineering and Industrial Engineering Degree Programs at Spanish Universities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-29, October.
    7. Corbin M. Campbell & Jessica Ostrow Michel & Shikha Patel & Maia Gelashvili, 2019. "College Teaching from Multiple Angles: A Multi-trait Multi-method Analysis of College Courses," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 60(5), pages 711-735, August.
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    1. Miguel Leiva-Brondo & Natalia Lajara-Camilleri & Anna Vidal-Meló & Alejandro Atarés & Cristina Lull, 2022. "Spanish University Students’ Awareness and Perception of Sustainable Development Goals and Sustainability Literacy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-26, April.

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