Abstract
Why is it taking so long to implement curriculum change for Education for Sustainability (EfS)? Despite a wealth of literature and government reporting about the need for EfS, we have seen few moves to include EfS across the curriculum in universities. Importantly, the sort of curriculum change we are seeking represents a complex process in complex organizations. No single factor affects this type of change. Rather there are several interconnecting aspects of organizations, disciplines, individuals, and beliefs. Hence, in discussing curriculum change we identify the roles of: organizational change; institutional strategies; academic development; curriculum development; learning and teaching practice; pedagogy; the campus; graduate attributes; and professional associations. Overall we do not offer a quick solution, rather we identify the need for a systemic approach to recognizing the range of elements that make up the EfS picture, and how they relate to one another. In parallel we recognize the role that the values of disciplines, and the academics themselves, play in influencing all the elements we have discussed. Our proposition is that if we all recognize the issues discussed, and tailor our responses to the situations of the university (and disciplines) we have targeted, then we can facilitate implementation of EfS.
Highlights
Why is it taking so long to implement education for sustainability (EFS) in university Curricular? there has been debate about the direction and substance of Education for Sustainability (EfS), the need for EfS to be the underlying element of university education has been widely recognized (e.g. Holdsworth et al, 2006a, 2006b & 2009; Sterling & Thomas, 2006)
Rather we see that there is a number of elements that need to fit together, as a jig-saw puzzle does, to help us complete the EfS picture at a given university
We discuss the key elements of the jig-saw puzzle that need to be considered when we are looking to implement EfS, which include; organizational change, academic development; the sustainability educational praxis
Summary
Why is it taking so long to implement education for sustainability (EFS) in university Curricular? there has been debate about the direction and substance of EfS, the need for EfS to be the underlying element of university education has been widely recognized (e.g. Holdsworth et al, 2006a, 2006b & 2009; Sterling & Thomas, 2006). Sherren, 2007) and resources developed to assist curriculum development (e.g. University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, 2006; Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, 2010) Given all this interest we could expect a much greater adoption of EfS and should have seen its incorporation into university curricula. We discuss the key elements of the jig-saw puzzle that need to be considered when we are looking to implement EfS, which include; organizational change, academic development; the sustainability educational praxis (encompassing the internal drivers of graduate attributes, and the related role of industry and professional associations). 118) as “imaginative processes with outcomes that are original and of value” In this context, utilizing the elements discussed here to implement EfS achieves an outcome that will be unique to a particular institution, and of value to the goals of sustainability and to the academics involved, though the learning they too will achieve
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