Article Title: Prospective Teachers’ Attitudes towards Social and Environmental Aspects of Education for Sustainable Development
Author(s): Sadia Shaukat
Institute(s): Department of Education, University of Education, Lahore
Journal: Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 2016, Vol. 14, No.1, 36-41
Correspondence Address: Sadia Shaukat, Department of Education, University of Education Lahore, e-mail: sadaishch@msn.com
Abstract
This study was carried out to assess the impact of demographic variables on prospective teachers’ attitudes towards the social and environmental aspects of sustainable development. The sample consisted of 182 prospective teachers enrolled in the teacher education program from three public universities in Lahore. The self-developed scale ‘Attitudes towards Sustainable Development’ was employed to demonstrate the valid and reliable measures of social/cultural attitudes (Alpha = .86) and environmental attitudes (Alpha = .85). Results indicate that male prospective teachers held significantly more positive attitudes towards both the environmental and social aspects of sustainable development than did female teachers. Younger respondents and having a science background are associated with significantly more positive attitudes on both sub-scales. Respondents have significantly more positive attitudes if they have attended a specific course on education for sustainable development in the teacher education program than those who did not have awareness of such seminars and workshops.
Key words: social, environmental, sustainable development, prospective teachers, teacher education program.
