Understanding Climate Change Perception of Teachers and Students: An Overview

Abstract

Climate change and associated extreme climatic hazards are the most pressing issues in the world of climate emergency. It is now widely recognised that climate change research is important for education and reorienting education in the current climate emergency. In facing the adverse effects of climate change, educational institutions, particularly universities, play an essential role in creating and promoting knowledge and integrating climate change issues into their teaching and research programmes. Therefore, this chapter carried out a systematic review of the literature on how academic institutions shape perceptions of climate change and how climate change perceptions vary in terms of types of educational institutions, disciplinary backgrounds, and experiences with climate-related extreme events. The chapter also covered a discussion from relevant literature to understand climate change perception at the university, college or school level. The chapter also aimed to add a critical review of how and why climate change perceptions vary between teachers and students. The literature review findings demonstrated that teachers and students have a well understanding of climate change. Moreover, there is a consensus among them that climate change is happening globally, and the significant cause is human-induced. Several factors influence and even lead the variations of climate change understanding between teachers and students: socio-demographics, the experience of climatic disasters, climate change-related education, and involvement in environmental activities. The research’s broader implication includes promoting climate change education and awareness-raising programmes across the disciplines of academic institutions to minimise the risk of climate change and address appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies.