Teachers’ profiles in education for sustainable development: interests, instructional beliefs, and instructional practices

Abstract

Teachers’ instructional beliefs and interests in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) are related to holistic, pluralistic, and action-oriented instructional practices in ESD teaching. To explore this hypothesis, we examine teachers’ ESD teaching profiles based on their instructional beliefs, interests, and instructional practices in ESD. We apply a mixed method design using a survey (quantitative data) and vignettes with open accompanying questions (qualitative data). Our sample consists of 535 Flemish elementary and secondary school teachers for the scales. A subsample of 187 teachers responded to the vignettes. Our analysis indicates two teachers’ ESD teaching profiles: the lower ESD practice-oriented teachers who hold several instructional beliefs about holistic and pluralistic instructional practices, are interested in action-orientation in ESD, but do not apply the practices in class; and the higher ESD practice-oriented teachers who also have varying instructional beliefs about holistic and pluralistic instructional practices but are not very interested in action-orientation in ESD. However, they use holistic, pluralistic, or action-oriented practices in ESD teaching.