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Sustainability in Education
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Sustainability in Education
Education for sustainability is an educational method that tries to instill in students,
schools, and communities the ideals and drive to take action for sustainability now and in the
future, in their own lives, within their communities, and on a global scale. The Education for
Sustainability project attempts to encourage students and schools to think critically, invent, and
develop ideas for a more sustainable way of living. As the world's population has grown, so has
the number of individual demands. Our future generations will suffer the most due to an
imbalance in the ecosystem caused by an increase in mineral extraction. Is there a way to keep a
system in balance? Sustainability is the answer. Environmental catastrophes have plagued the
planet for years due to weak sustainability strategies. For this reason, sustainability has been
incorporated into the curriculums of both public and private schools and universities to ensure
that students who are the future and the backbone of our nation live environmentally responsible
lives.
Understanding Sustainability
As far back as the dawn of humanity, people have been seen as more of a consumer than
producers of environmental resources. They have a history of traveling from place to place,
consuming all of the resources there before moving on to the following location and doing the
same. Affluent people began removing shrubs and forests to cultivate farms as the population
increased. What had begun simply as settlers' encampments quickly morphed into settlements,
then cities and towns. When the surplus was gone, more pressure would have to be put on the
environment to exist.
Environmentally hazardous actions were adopted without anyone taking into account the
long-term consequences for both the environment and society. Sustainability is achieved when
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humans recognize and respect the ecosystem's constraints. Unsustainability is caused by
exceeding the ecological boundaries of a particular area. Taking too much of the planet's
resources like heavy metals, gas, and oil results in unsustainability, which often manifests itself
in climate change. As a result of the creations of man that nature has been unable to break down,
such as plastic bags, which have flooded our water supplies and the seas, sustainability has also
been a result of this. When people relocate to new locations and cut down trees, the problem is
that they don't regrow as quickly as they were taken down. This is another cause of
unsustainability.
Someone has to do something about the lunacy that was eating our civilizations, to halt
the madness of consuming without having a way to replenish the environment. In 1992,
environmental concerns were taken seriously. United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development held in Rio de Janeiro established the importance of education to promote
awareness and nurturing understanding (Handl, 2012). The international agreement was gained
in 2015 to embrace the 2030 plan for a sustainable environment, as nations worldwide saw a
pressing need to find solutions for a sustainable environment. As we get closer to the 2030
deadline for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, we should reflect on our strategy for
achieving those goals, which cannot be achieved without recognizing the importance of
education in creating a more sustainable environment. To complete the 2030 goals of a
sustainable environment, we need students to be the driving force behind educating ourselves
and our future generations about the need for environmental preservation.
Students find sustainability education to be motivating, engaging, and enjoyable. It gives
kids the opportunity to express their ideas for a sustainable future and to take responsibility for
their activities." As a result, they can develop the motivation, values, skills, and knowledge
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necessary to take action for themselves and the community. The primary goal of sustainability
education is to discuss and develop solutions to the planet's continuous ability to support life
(Dandell et al., 2005). This means that educating students, communities, and schools about the
importance of sustainability is a way to help them build the motivation and values to take action
toward that end.
Our way of life depends on the inclusion of sustainable schools. An environmental
education program can positively affect students' skills and attitudes toward the environment.
Educating pupils to be environmentally aware global citizens is critical to the success of
sustainable schools (Dandell et al., 2005). The goal of a sustainable school is to provide students
with a learning environment that fosters sustainable habits of mind, body, and behavior. As a
result of these schools' emphasis on encouraging students to think outside the box, students
develop a greater sense of civic responsibility and an appreciation for environmental issues.
Reflection
For Educating for Sustainability, blending what and how we presently practice teaching
with new content is the logic behind integrating new content into our current teaching practices
(Cloud, J., 2014). It is essential to understand the following basic elements of Environmental
Education: 1. Environmental education should have a nationally agreed-upon purpose and
content for all school years, including a vision statement and structure for its implementation
(Department of Environment and Heritage [DEH]. 2005). As part of the National Action Plan, it
guarantees that the educational context adopts a comprehensive approach to address social,
economic, and environmental aspects (Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the
Arts [DEWHA]. 2009). Sustainability Curriculum Framework - helps educators and
policymakers understand how to best include sustainability education into their curriculums
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(Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts [DEWHA]. 2010). Educators and
students will gain a new perspective on the importance of taking responsibility for the health of
all living systems for society to attain its full potential (Cloud, J., 2014).
Education for a sustainable future serves multiple purposes; developing the required
information, skills, values, and world perspectives to help us adapt to a more sustainable life
within our society. Everyone from all walks of life and ages can benefit from this program,
which provides lifetime learning skills and education that can be used in schools and workplaces
and at home and in communities. Engaging in critical thinking and reflection and building
relationships and networks with various sectors and communities to improve communication and
collectively shift to an environmentally sustainable society gives us the ability to understand the
connections between environmental, economic, social, and political systems.
Education for a sustainable future helps children understand their role in ensuring a
sustainable future by understanding how they may participate and accept responsibility for their
actions. To ensure a sustainable future for themselves and their communities and the earth, it
helps children develop their skills, values, knowledge, and drive to take action. Sustainability
education must be integrated into our educational curricula and across all learning domains.
Educators, families, and communities must work together to ensure that everyone in this world
has a future by placing a high value on sustainability.
Throughout our lives, we've been attending school. Some of us who have completed high
school have chosen to continue our education, while others have failed. Teachers and techniques
of teaching change with each school year. The administrations worked together to reduce the
variation that comes with a new school. To accomplish this, they had to devise a method of
evaluating everyone on the same scale. Standardized testing ushered in the end of an educational
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system that could stand on its own two feet. Sustainable education is distinct from sustainability
education. A sustainable education system that encourages creativity and originality in our
school and students is now more critical than ever.
Today's students are disadvantaged when they enter the workforce and college. In the
modern educational system, teachers teach students to score well on a state-mandated test. This
means that teachers can keep their employees, and schools may get some money based on how
well the students perform in their courses. Everyone has a difficult time as a result of our current
system. Teachers are continually at risk of losing their jobs or not receiving the raises they are
entitled to. Students now face an additional burden of stress that harms their academic
performance.
I'm looking forward to what the future has in store for me. Gwynedd's teachers educated
me for the real world, and I owe it all to them. Because they care so much about my success, I'm
motivated to do better. Because you're preparing for a career, educators may focus on teaching
you real-world applications rather than preparing you for a state exam. As a result of this course,
I've learned how to analyze and solve problems in the actual world. As a teenager, I would have
liked my teachers to have taught us things we would utilize in our careers to better assist us in
figuring out what we want to do with our lives. Extracurricular activities are the one thing I'd
change about high school. In addition to theatrical and art classes, I was able to take cinema
classes. Having a high school theatre program has allowed me to express myself in a world
where it's easy to become lost. I'm grateful and proud of my high school's theatrical department.
Teaching/Practice Position
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I'm excited about what I see when I look ahead to the future. The academics at my
institution have prepared me for the real world, and I owe it all to them. They take a personal
interest in my achievement, which motivates me to improve my grades. While in college,
educators can focus on real-world applications rather than preparing students for a state
examination. Critical thinking and problem-solving are skills that I can use in the real world. As
a teenager, I would have liked my teachers to have taught us things we would utilize in our
careers to better assist us in figuring out what we want to accomplish in life. The one thing I'd
change about high school is the number of extracurricular activities available to students. I was
able to take cinema, drama, and art classes simultaneously. As a student in my high school's
theatre department, I am happy for the opportunity to explore my creative side and find my place
in a world where it's easy to get lost.
I'm eagerly awaiting the day when we'll finally see the fruits of our labor. There will be a
tipping point for our existing system as more and more students go through it. Then, before they
know it, they'll be in a position to make the change they probably should have made while they
were in school. We need to refocus our education on critical thinking and innovation. Two of the
most vital skills you need to succeed outside the classroom are self-confidence and perseverance.
Our employers don't want us if we're only capable of doing one thing; we need to be adaptive.
Real-life is an endless dogfight, and I don't believe our current educational system is preparing us
for it. As a result of seeing others achieve in life without high school graduation, I think this to
be the case. What are we wasting our time and money on if we can succeed without a degree or
diploma? Indeed, going to school isn't for everyone, but I think it could be if our education
system were different. It would be better for everyone if people looked forward to school and
learning.
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References
Cloud, J., (2014). The essential elements of Education for Sustainability (EfS) Journal of
Sustainability Education 6. Retrieved from:
http://www.jsedimensions.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Cloud-Jaimie-
JSE-May-2014-PDF-Ready2.pdf
Dandell, K., Ohman, J and Ostman, L. (2005) Education for Sustainable Development: Nature,
School and Democracy, Studentlitteratu, Lund.
Department of Environment and Heritage [DEH]. (2005). Educating for a sustainable future: A
National environmental education statement for Australian schools. Retrieved from
http://naturalresources.intersearch.com.au/naturalresourcesjspui/bitstream/1/16314/1/
Gough_Sharpley%202005.pdf
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts [DEWHA]. (2009). Living
sustainably: The Australian government's national action plan for Education for
Sustainability. Retrieved from http://aries.mq.edu.au/pdf/national_action_plan.pdf
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts [DEWHA]. (2010). Sustainability
curriculum framework: A guide for curriculum developers and policy makers. Retrieved
from http://www.environment.gov.au/resource/sustainability-curriculum-framework-
guide-curriculum-developers-and-policy-makers
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Handl, G. (2012). Declaration of the United Nations conference on the human environment
(Stockholm Declaration), 1972 and the Rio Declaration on Environment and
Development, 1992. United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law, 11.
Mohawk College. (2019). Sustainability | Mohawk College. Retrieved
from
https://www.mohawkcollege.ca/about-mohawk/sustainability
