Suchergebnisse

There is a general consensus that education is crucial for achieving sustainable development. Education for sustainable development aims to foster citizens capable of participating independently and actively in creating a sustainable future. The overarching aim of this thesis is to contribute to knowledge on the relationship between education and sustainability. Specifically, the objective is to analyse how content on sustainable development is constructed in educational materials. Theoretically, the thesis is guided by sociological perspectives on environmental problems, knowledge, education and individualisation. The empirical data consists of textbooks in biology, civics, geography, home and consumer studies, and religion for Swedish lower secondary schools. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the empirical material. The thesis examines how textbook content on sustainable development is organised and constructed. A key focus of the analysis relates to how multidimensionality and relationships between the dimensions of sustainable development are constructed in textbooks. The social dimension of sustainability is analysed in particular detail. Further attention is directed to how conflicts and the politics of sustainable development are constructed in textbooks. Constructions of change and historical contextualisation of sustainable development are also highlighted. A key result is that textbooks put a disproportionate focus on the ecological dimension of sustainable development. Parts of the social dimension of sustainable development, such as sexuality and gender equality, are generally not presented as sustainability issues. Another relevant result is that textbooks tend to obscure the complexities of sustainable development. Political conflicts, which are crucial for understanding sustainability challenges, are often rendered invisible. Both androcentric and anthropocentric perspectives also characterise textbook content about sustainability. Furthermore, the analysis shows that teleological and utopian narratives are dominant in the textbooks' content about change and historical contextualisation of sustainable development. These conditions might challenge the potential role of education as part of sustainable development.

Where does my individual responsibility for the environment start and end? Should I be responsible for environmental stress in India only because my shoes were produced there, or for climate change that endangers species in Antarctica, or rising sea levels on Pacific islands which just might have been caused by my driving? What do I need to do if I think it is my responsibility? And how do I decide which is a better alternative from an environmental point of view? Who should I trust when deciding on what action to take, and what opportunities do I need for acting?This multidisciplinary thesis takes the politicization of everyday household activities due to environmental consequences, and individualization of responsibility, as its starting points. These points make it increasingly important to understand what responsibility individuals experience, and how they act in accordance with these perceptions. The present thesis is a qualitative study with 28 Swedish households that concern how the householders express responsibility for the environment through their everyday activities, partly by claiming to be "environmentally conscious", and how they attempt to exert political influence. The study contributes to the discussion on the wide field of sustainable development and environmental politics. It deals specifically with the ways four Swedish municipalities (Gothenburg, Huddinge, Piteå and Växjö) attempt to influence what the householders do in the private sphere when it comes to implementing sustainable development, and what opportunities and they supply, and what expectations they have on householders. The study thereby discusses the possibility to interfere in the perceived private sphere, and different ways to participate politically. ; Sustainable households: activities, research, policies

Global initiatives regarding environmental change have increasingly become part of political agendas and of our collective imagination. In order to form sustainable societies, education is considered crucial by organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union. But how is the notion of sustainability imagined and formed in educational practices? What does sustainability make possible, and whom does it involve? These critical questions are not often asked in educational research on sustainability. This study suggests that the absence of critical questions in sustainability education is part of a contemporary post-political framing of environmental issues. In order to re-politicize sustainability in education, this study critically explores how education—as an institution and a practice that is supposed to foster humans—responds to environmental change. The aim is to explore how sustainability is formed in education, and to discuss how these formations relate to ideas of what education is, and whom it is for. This interdisciplinary study uses theories and concepts from cultural studies, feminist theory, political theory, and philosophy of education to study imaginaries of the unknown, nonhuman world in the context of education. The focus of the empirical investigation is on teacher education in Sweden, and more precisely on those responsible for teaching the future generations of teachers – the teacher instructors. With help from empirical findings from focus groups, the study asks questions about the ontological, political, and ethical potential and risk of bringing the unknown Other into education. ; Utbildning har globalt fått en central roll i strävanden efter att skapa hållbar utveckling. Initiativ tagna av såväl Förenta Nationerna som Europeiska Unionen, där utbildning och hållbarhet kopplas samman, vittnar om att frågor som rör miljöförändringar har blivit allt viktigare både på de politiska agendorna och i våra kollektiva, kulturella föreställningsvärldar. Men hur formas begreppet hållbar utveckling när det ska göras undervisningsbart? Vilka framtider möjliggör hållbar utveckling i utbildningssammanhang och vem inkluderas i begreppet? Frågor av kritisk karaktär är ofta frånvarande i tidigare utbildningsforskning som rör hållbar utveckling. Denna avhandling tar sin utgångspunkt i att frånvaron av kritiska frågor kan ses som del i en samtida postpolitisk inramning av miljöfrågor i såväl utbildningssammanhang som i samhället i stort. Studien undersöker hur utbildningsväsendet, som är en central institution i fostrandet av framtidens medborgare, tar sig an frågor som rör miljöförändringar. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur hållbar utveckling formas genom utbildning samt att diskutera hur dessa formationer relateras till idéer om vad utbildning är och vem som ska utbildas. På så vis söker studien också efter sätt att re-politisera hållbar utveckling i utbildningssammanhang. Avhandlingen är tvärvetenskaplig och använder teorier och begrepp från kulturstudier, feministisk teori, politisk teori och utbildningsfilosofi för att studera vad utbildning som relaterar till natur- och miljöfrågor möjliggör. Empiriskt undersöks svenska lärarutbildare, som ansvarar för att utbilda framtidens lärare. Studien ställer frågor om ontologiska, politiska och etiska aspekter av att öppna upp utbildningen för det som ligger bortom mänsklig kontroll och kunskap. ; Sustainable development as an area of knowledge

Global initiatives regarding environmental change have increasingly become part of political agendas and of our collective imagination. In order to form sustainable societies, education is considered crucial by organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union. But how is the notion of sustainability imagined and formed in educational practices? What does sustainability make possible, and whom does it involve? These critical questions are not often asked in educational research on sustainability. This study suggests that the absence of critical questions in sustainability education is part of a contemporary post-political framing of environmental issues. In order to re-politicize sustainability in education, this study critically explores how education—as an institution and a practice that is supposed to foster humans—responds to environmental change. The aim is to explore how sustainability is formed in education, and to discuss how these formations relate to ideas of what education is, and whom it is for. This interdisciplinary study uses theories and concepts from cultural studies, feminist theory, political theory, and philosophy of education to study imaginaries of the unknown, nonhuman world in the context of education. The focus of the empirical investigation is on teacher education in Sweden, and more precisely on those responsible for teaching the future generations of teachers – the teacher instructors. With help from empirical findings from focus groups, the study asks questions about the ontological, political, and ethical potential and risk of bringing the unknown Other into education. ; Utbildning har globalt fått en central roll i strävanden efter att skapa hållbar utveckling. Initiativ tagna av såväl Förenta Nationerna som Europeiska Unionen, där utbildning och hållbarhet kopplas samman, vittnar om att frågor som rör miljöförändringar har blivit allt viktigare både på de politiska agendorna och i våra kollektiva, kulturella föreställningsvärldar. Men hur formas begreppet hållbar utveckling när det ska göras undervisningsbart? Vilka framtider möjliggör hållbar utveckling i utbildningssammanhang och vem inkluderas i begreppet? Frågor av kritisk karaktär är ofta frånvarande i tidigare utbildningsforskning som rör hållbar utveckling. Denna avhandling tar sin utgångspunkt i att frånvaron av kritiska frågor kan ses som del i en samtida postpolitisk inramning av miljöfrågor i såväl utbildningssammanhang som i samhället i stort. Studien undersöker hur utbildningsväsendet, som är en central institution i fostrandet av framtidens medborgare, tar sig an frågor som rör miljöförändringar. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur hållbar utveckling formas genom utbildning samt att diskutera hur dessa formationer relateras till idéer om vad utbildning är och vem som ska utbildas. På så vis söker studien också efter sätt att re-politisera hållbar utveckling i utbildningssammanhang. Avhandlingen är tvärvetenskaplig och använder teorier och begrepp från kulturstudier, feministisk teori, politisk teori och utbildningsfilosofi för att studera vad utbildning som relaterar till natur- och miljöfrågor möjliggör. Empiriskt undersöks svenska lärarutbildare, som ansvarar för att utbilda framtidens lärare. Studien ställer frågor om ontologiska, politiska och etiska aspekter av att öppna upp utbildningen för det som ligger bortom mänsklig kontroll och kunskap. ; Sustainable development as an area of knowledge

Engineering is an important force in the building of society. Engineers are identified as problem solvers, but also criticized for causing new problems due to a narrow focus on technology. Feminist theorists as well as researchers within sustainable development have called for a more democratic and accountable practice among engineers, in order to cater for widespread societal and environmental risks as well as moral questions of technological innovations. The introduction of sustainable development has been introduced by the Swedish government into the school system at all levels and specifically in higher education of engineers. Engineering education has a potential to prepare future engineers for engagement in societal aspects to a higher degree, but this requires a more integrated education program where values and discussions are integrated in courses. ; Ingenjörskonst och tekniska lösningar på samhällets olika problem har en viktig roll i samhällsutvecklingen. Ingenjörer betraktas som problemlösare, men anklagas samtidigt för att bidra till nya problem genom sitt snäva tekniska synsätt. Feministiska forskare liksom forskare inom fältet hållbar utveckling ställer krav på mer demokratiska och ansvarsfulla arbetssätt för att hantera de ökade sociala och miljömässiga risker som den moderna tekniken för med sig. Hållbar utveckling har introducerats i det svenska utbildningssystemet på alla nivåer, inklusive högre utbildning. Särskilt framgår att civilingenjörer bär ansvar för att sträva efter hållbar utveckling. Utbildningen av civilingenjörer är idag inte särskilt inriktad mot att hantera samhällets problem ur ett bredare perspektiv, även om det skulle vara både möjligt och önskvärt. Istället reproduceras ofta den snäva synen på tekniska lösningar inom utbildningarna.

Education is often argued as crucial to reverse development towards a more fair and sustainable world. This article uses a wide range of research and literature in the field of education for sustainable development, to discuss an educational, 'didactic', framework on areas in the intersection between science, technology and society. First, the introduction outlines an overview of the nature of the issue and its relevance. This is followed by a theoretical approach to education and learning that puts the democratic teaching processes at centre. Finally, based on this we present the framework, "Five didactic forms of participation", focusing on student participation in deliberation, agency, creativity, criticism and authenticity as well as recommendations for, research and further development of education in these areas.