Environmental Education Curriculum Research Articles

Does Environmental Education Curriculum Affect Student’s Environmental Culture in Islamic Boarding School

Purpose: The primary aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of an environmental education curriculum on shaping the environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Recognizing the importance of environmental awareness and stewardship, particularly within educational settings, this research seeks to assess the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention in fostering a culture of environmental responsibility and sustainability among students.
  
 Methods: The research methodology employed is an experimental approach involving 107 participants from three Islamic boarding schools located in Surabaya, Indonesia. The environmental education intervention consists of two stages: the delivery of educational materials and practical implementation in everyday life, spanning across 14 sessions. Data analysis is conducted using the product moment correlation test, with a significance level set at 0.05, to examine the relationship between the environmental education curriculum and the development of environmental culture among students.
  
 Results and Discussion: The study findings reveal that the environmental education curriculum significantly influences the development of environmental culture among students in Islamic boarding schools. Additionally, the analysis indicates correlations between knowledge, attitude, and behavior related to environmental management, as well as between cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care. These findings underscore the interconnectedness of various components within the framework of environmental education and highlight the importance of fostering a holistic approach to environmental awareness and action among students.
  
 Implications of the Research: The results of this study have significant implications for educational policymakers, curriculum developers, and practitioners in Islamic boarding schools and beyond. By demonstrating the positive impact of environmental education on shaping environmental culture, the research advocates for the integration of comprehensive environmental education curricula into the academic framework of Islamic boarding schools. Furthermore, the findings underscore the importance of promoting active engagement and practical application of environmental principles to foster sustainable environmental practices among students.
  
 Originality/Value: This study contributes to the growing body of literature on environmental education by focusing specifically on its impact within the context of Islamic boarding schools. By empirically assessing the effectiveness of an environmental education intervention and identifying correlations between knowledge, attitude, behavior, cooperation, responsibility, and environmental care, the research offers valuable insights into the mechanisms through which environmental education can promote a culture of environmental stewardship among students. The findings provide a basis for informed decision-making and curriculum development aimed at enhancing environmental awareness and action within educational settings.

Africanising Distributed Leadership in Environmental Education Curriculum Management

Distributed leadership (DL) is a collaborative leadership approach that involves sharing decision-making and responsibilities among multiple individuals or groups within an organisation or institution. In the context of environmental education (EE) curriculum management, DL holds signifi cant relevance and can bring several benefits to stakeholders. This article critically examines the concept of DL in EE curriculum management and argues for an Africanised approach. It is focused on but not limited to institutions of learning. Managing EE curricula shows minimal consideration of Africanised DL. Drawing on an African philosophy of ubuntu, the article argues that an Africanised approach to DL can better serve the needs of African communities and promote sustainability in the region. As a conceptual article, we explore relevant literature to advance the idea of DL from an African perspective. In an era of environmental crisis and degradation in South Africa and other parts of the continent, an Africanised DL on EE curriculum management has the potential to off er relevant solutions. The article concludes by refl ecting on the Africanisation of DL and making recommendations for implementing an Africanised approach to DL in EE curriculum management. Keywords: Africanised distributed leadership, distributed leadership, environmental education, environmental education curriculum management, ubuntu

Bridging the Knowledge Gap: Enhancing Kogi Secondary School Students' Understanding of Climate Change through Effective Environmental Education

This study investigates the current understanding of climate change among secondary school students in Kogi State, Nigeria. Climate change poses a significant threat, and equipping future generations with the knowledge to address it is crucial. However, a knowledge gap exists regarding student understanding. This study aims to bridge this gap by employing a quantitative research design targeting a sample population of 100 (20 teachers, 80 students) from Kogi State's 280 secondary schools with an estimated 3,000 teachers and 20,000 students. Surveys designed for teachers and students will assess their current understanding of climate change concepts, causes, impacts, and potential solutions. The study anticipates revealing existing knowledge gaps and areas requiring improvement in environmental education curriculum and pedagogy. The findings will inform the development of targeted and effective environmental education programs, fostering a generation of informed and empowered Kogi State secondary school students who can contribute to climate action. Keywords: Climate Change Education, Secondary Education, Knowledge Gap, Environmental Education, Climate Change Understanding, Climate Action Journal Reference Format: Musa, A.A., Ogbaini, C.A., Enefu, S.M. & Omoyeni, O.E. (2024): Bridging the Knowledge Gap: Enhancing Kogi Secondary School Students' Understanding of Climate Change through Effective Environmental Education. Humanities, Management, Arts, Education & the Social Sciences Journal. Vol. 12. No. 2, Pp 45-56. www.isteams.net/humanitiesjournal. dx.doi.org/10.22624/AIMS/HUMANITIES/V12N2P6

Design and Validation of an Environmental Education Curriculum Model for Higher Education Based on the "Aker" Approach

Design and Validation of an Environmental Education Curriculum Model for Higher Education Based on the "Aker" Approach

South african integrated environmental education curriculum trajectory

An integrated environmental education curriculum has proven to be a highly effective approach in cultivating students' knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values that are essential to becoming responsible and engaged citizens who are cognizant of their impact on the environment. The inclusion of environmental education in the school curriculum is a strategic means of fostering a generation of environmentally conscious citizens who are committed to protecting and conserving the environment. By doing so, a wider awareness and appreciation of environmental issues can be instilled in students, paving the way for them to become agents of change for a sustainable future. This qualitative interpretivism study employed semi-structured interviews to purposefully seek the view of ten school principals on the pathways of incorporating environmental education into the school curriculum, hinged on phenomenological design to understand the lived experiences of respondents. The study's findings indicate the presence of Environmental Education themes across various aspects of the educational system, including textbooks, extracurricular activities, school code of conduct, and classroom teaching and learning. However, the curriculum does not command a uniform teaching technique to incorporate Environmental Education into classroom teaching and learning, leading to a hybrid teaching strategy adopted by most teachers. The selection of Environmental Education content to teach in class is based on the teachers' personal experience and the learners' interests. Regrettably, the integration of Environmental Education into teaching and learning is limited, and both teachers' and learners' perceptions and understanding of it are uninspiring. The study highlights the need for a more structured approach to incorporate EE into the curriculum to ensure its effective integration into the educational system. This approach would help to address the limited understanding and perceptions of both teachers and learners and ensure a more comprehensive and engaging learning experience.

Reflection of Water Literacy in the Environmental Education and Climate Change Course Teaching Program

In this research, in the Environmental Education and Climate Change Course (6th, 7th or 8th grades) Curriculum; What specific goals, skills, achievements, topics/concepts related to water literacy are included and their place in the program are investigated. Document review, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the research. The research was based on the Environmental Education and Climate Change Curriculum revised in 2022. The document examined in the context of the research was analyzed with descriptive analysis. As a result of the research, water literacy is indirectly included in the special purpose dimension of the Environmental Education and Climate Change Course Curriculum; directly in the skill dimension; It has been determined that it is included directly and indirectly in the dimension of achievement and subject/concepts. It is seen that the achievements and topics/concepts that may be important for the reflection of water literacy in the curriculum are included in the "Environmental Problems" and "Sustainable Development and Environmentally Friendly Technologies" units. Within the scope of the results obtained, it can be said that the 2022 Environmental Education and Climate Change Course Curriculum includes content aimed at raising awareness and awareness about water literacy. The inclusion of water literacy in different teaching programs can be determined.

Navigating the Environmental Education and Climate Change Curriculum in Türki̇ye through the Prism of Climate Change Literate Citizenship

In the present study a theoretical framework (i.e., Climate Change Literate Citizenship) that combines climate change literacy and climate citizenship was developed first. Then, criteria that correspond to each of the components of the proposed theoretical framework were developed and used to analyze the learning objectives in the “Environmental Education and Climate Change” curriculum. Data analyses utilized in the study presented a snapshot of the descriptive landscape of the curriculum in terms of the distribution of the objectives within the curriculum. Manifest and latent analyses realized through MAXQDA 2022 software were used to illustrate world cloud and word trends and alignment of the curriculum objectives with respect to the criteria developed for the Climate Change Literate Citizenship framework. Findings showed that there was an uneven distribution of the learning objectives within the Climate Change Literate Citizenship framework. Most of the learning objectives aimed to support climate change literacy, where objectives pertaining to the promotion of climate citizenship were relatively less in number. A similar uneven distribution was observed within the components of climate change literacy (i.e., functional, cultural, critical) and climate citizenship (i.e., personally responsible, participatory, justice oriented) as well. That is, there was not any objectives related to the cultural component of climate change literacy; most of the objectives aimed to develop functional component followed by the critical component. Among the components of climate citizenship, personal responsibility component and participatory component were addressed equally but there was only one learning objective that is in line with justice-oriented climate citizenship. Thus, our findings as a whole suggest that the curriculum adopts a fragmented rather than a holistic approach to climate change education. Nonetheless, further studies are required to make more robust conclusions about the curriculum and its practice.

Attitude Construction toward Invasive Species through an Eco-Humanist Approach: A Case Study of the Lesser Kestrel and the Myna

The green school in northern Israel has embraced an eco-humanist approach with the aim of mitigating the animosity displayed by fifth-grade students towards invasive species. This antipathy arose due to the negative impact of these invasive species on a local species that the students were monitoring as a component of their environmental education curriculum. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine to what extent, if at all, there is a difference in the ethical attitude of the 188 fifth-grade students (10–11 years old) towards the conflict between the Lesser Kestrel (local species) and the Myna (invader species) and the solution to this conflict following the change to an eco-humanist teaching approach. The study, based on content analysis methodology of written self-reflection, and thematic analysis indicated that the fifth-graders’ knowledge was not adversely affected, but the solutions they proposed for resolving the conflict between the Myna and the Lesser Kestrel were more holistic, ethical, and moral after adopting the eco-humanist approach. Eco-humanism encourages an ethical attitude and environmental responsibility toward nature’s fate, including invasive species.

Environmental Education as a Catalyst to Teach Students About Their Economy and Politics

This conceptual paper highlights the potential of environmental education to teach students about their economy and politics. It begins by emphasising the significance of environmental education in shaping students' attitudes and behaviours towards environmental issues. The paper explores the link between the environment, economy, and politics and argues that comprehending these connections is essential for students to become informed and engaged citizens. Environmental education can offer a platform for teaching students about the intricacies of the economy and politics, including sustainability, resource allocation, and social justice. The paper draws upon examples from existing environmental education programs and presents strategies for integrating economic and political topics into environmental education curricula. Overall, the paper contends that environmental education can empower students to become informed and active participants in their economy and political systems, contributing to a more sustainable and equitable future.

Türkiye’de Ortaokul “Çevre Eğitimi ve İklim Değişikliği Dersi”nin Tarihsel Gelişim Süreci

Environment problems and the effects of climate crisis give rise to different consequences and affect the lives of people. Therefore, educating students with awareness and sensitiveness about this subject at an early age has become obligatory. In other words, the environmental education instructed at schools is always supposed to be up to date in this context. In this research, the historical background of the content of the Environment Education and Climate Change Lesson's curriculum is investigated which is instructed to secondary school students as a selective course in Türkiye. The instruction durations at schools, content, learning fields, distribution of the subjects and the number of the outcomes of environmental education's curriculum are examined progressively. In this research, the weekly schedule of the lesson and document analysis of the curriculum are performed, and the results are presented. Consequently, it is understood that there was not any independent lesson named as environmental education in Türkiye until the 1990s; the instructional statute of the lesson from the beginning of primary schools differentiated as selective or compulsory in the meanwhile; the names of independent lessons about environmental education are changed in time; the instructional levels of the grades are increased in number with the latest updates; the climate crisis and disaster trainings are highlighted as independent subjects, and the content is developed mainly for practical applications rather than transfer of academic knowledge.

Promoting Environmental Education for Elementary School Students Around Limestone Mining Area, Gunungkidul Regency, Indonesia

<p class="abstrak">Indonesia has many environmental problems, especially those related to mining. It becomes essential to provide environmental education to the younger generation. However, the environmental education curriculum has not been explicitly found in the body of formal education in Indonesia. The study area is in Gunungkidul Regency, Indonesia where the limestone mining industry has expanded in almost all areas. The purpose of this study is to assess the environmental impacts of limestone mining activities and align the possible integration of environmental education in the study area. To gather data about the environmental impacts of limestone mining activities, a desktop study, field investigation, and interviews with local communities were conducted. Analysis of the Indonesian curriculum and interviews with elementary school teachers were conducted to align the possible integration of environmental education. The environmental impacts of limestone mining activities in the study area include air pollution, water contamination, drought, soil erosion, and road damage. We provide some suggestions for learning materials including an Introduction to environmentally friendly mining activities (Science subjects, grade 4, thematic 3), an Introduction to air pollution impacts in the mining area on human breathing (Science subjects, grade 5, thematic 2), and Introduction about mining activities impacts on the air, water, and soil (Science subjects, grade 5, thematic 8). It is recommended that teachers not only teach theory but also practice and environmental observation.</p>

Students’ Environmental Care Attitude: A Study at Adiwiyata Public High School Based on the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP)

Environmental care attitude is an important factor in protecting the environment. The Adiwiyata Award is presented as the highest recognition for implementing an environmental care attitude. The aims of this study are to (1) evaluate the execution of the environmental curriculum in Adiwiyata schools; (2) to analyze the students’ environmental care attitudes in Adiwiyata schools in the Pati Regency using the new ecological paradigm (NEP) scale; and (3) to examine the students’ environmental care attitudes in Adiwiyata schools in the Pati Regency related to gender differences. Based on the criteria of Adiwiyata schools, they were used as research subjects. The research subjects were chosen using a purposive sampling technique. A questionnaire was utilized as a data collection instrument. The new ecological paradigm (NEP) scale was used to assess environmental care attitudes. This study used a Likert scale to assess environmental care attitudes. The Mann-Whitney test was used to identify gender differences in environmental care attitudes. The results found that (1) Adiwiyata schools in the Pati Regency supported the implementation of environmental education in the curriculum, as well as participation in environmental activity programs and the use of greenhouses; (2) the environmental care attitudes of students from the SMA Negeri Pati Regency were in the moderate category; and (3) there was a gender difference based on environmental care attitudes, which found that female students have a higher environmental care attitude than the male students. Environmental education plays an important role in gender differences because the Adiwiyata school has integrated learning activities with the environmental education curriculum, and participatory-based environmental activities can improve students’ environmental care attitudes. The potential implication for policy and practice in the field is that humans will consciously prevent environmental problems from occurring.

Products Evaluation of Environmental Education Curriculum/Program Implementation in the University of Calabar, Nigeria

This study evaluates the implementation of the environmental education curriculum in the Department of Environmental Education, University of Calabar, Nigeria. Using the expost facto research design, nine objectives were pursued. These include: 6 strategic objectives, the curriculum content, career prospects of graduates, and lecturer’s pedagogic knowledge and problems militating against the effective implementation of Environmental Education (E.E). A sample of 969 graduates of Environmental Education from 1997-2021, were the respondents. The researchers used an open and closed ended questionnaire with a modified four-point Likert scale response options that they designed as an instrument to collect information. Simple percentages were used for data analysis. The results of the analyses show that the curriculum content of Environmental Education as in force today is not adequate. The knowledge and awareness acquired when they studied E.E. did not help them enough to solve their community environmental problems. However, Environmental Education built their skills and prepared them well to actively participate in solving current environmental problems. Some of the lecturers who taught these respondents at undergraduate levels have the requisite pedagogic knowledge of the subject matter but, the government who is a signatory to the implementation of Environmental Education is not serious about engaging these graduates. Overall, Thirteen problems were identified as factors hampering the effective implementation of Environmental Education curriculum, and 13 feasible solutions were proffered by the respondents. It was concluded that Environmental Education in the University of Calabar has achieved some level of success, despite the fact that there are some issues that needs to be addressed to get the complete success anticipated by the crafter of the program’s objectives. It was recommended among others that a regulatory body should be created to regulate the practice of Environmental Education in Nigeria.

Effective environmental education for sustainable development beyond the Plastic Age in South Korea

The skyrocketing single-plastic demand during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic proved the limitation of top-down environmental policies in accomplishing sustainable consumption and waste management. Nevertheless, ‘smart consumers’ can make smart choices for sustainable development. However, a review of the South Korean environmental education curriculum reveals that the current structure heavily leans towards the elementary level and does not enlighten the public on ‘what’ and ‘how’ to live sustainably. This study uses a quick survey to suggest that the effectiveness of environmental education may be enhanced if: (1) guidance on how to live with the natural environment in harmony for collective cooperation towards resilient and sustainable community building is incorporated with a clear purpose, (2) environment-friendly culture-building activities are enforced to institutionalise a new paradigm of sustainability to replace today’s consumerism, and (3) contents are updated regularly to include Earth and environmental science knowledge in the state of art.

PERCEPTIONS OF TEACHERS ON ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM: A CASE STUDY OF LIBYAN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Environmental education like all forms of education is a process of learning that requires an optimally designed teaching curriculum. However, unlike other conventional courses and forms of education, environmental education is not a linear form of learning as it requires complex and place-based designed teaching due to the individuality and diversity of people and their local environment and biodiversity. Libya like most countries of the world has joined the active fight against climate change through the incorporation of environmental education into the traditional system of education and designing a curriculum for the entire school system to ensure uniformity in learning standards. This study carries out an investigation of the efficiency of the Libyan primary school environmental education curriculum from the perspective of primary school teachers. Using open-ended questionnaires designed using an adequate theoretical framework, teachers in Libya were surveyed for their perceptions on satisfaction with the curriculum, their dislikes about the curriculum, what they enjoyed the most in the curriculum, and how they prepared using it and the complementary modifications they carry out on it. The results of this study indicate a finding where the majority of the teachers were happy with its efficiency but have recommended several changes to it to enable it to become optimal.

Sustainability in Business Administration programs in Brazil: what curricula changes have taken place in the past ten years?

PurposeThis study aims to analyze the extent to which sustainability and its related core aspects have been integrated in the curricula of Business Administration programs in Brazilian federal public universities over the past ten years.Design/methodology/approachA longitudinal exploratory study, with a descriptive scope, was carried out to evaluate the changes that have occurred in the curricula between the years 2011 and 2021. The analysis focused on the Pedagogical Project of the Business Administration programs offered by the Brazilian federal universities identified in the e-Ministry of Education’s (MEC) database of higher educational institutions and course registration. From the total number of federal universities identified in the e-MEC, about 90% were considered for the research.FindingsThe number of courses related to sustainability in Business Administration programs increased considerably in ten years. However, these courses still represent a low percentage of hours in the overall curriculum. Moreover, almost a third of Business Administration programs may produce graduates who have never addressed sustainability during their studies.Research limitations/implicationsThis research does not consider other aspects of the curriculum beyond courses, nor does it collect primary data that allows for inferences about the transversal nature of the theme.Practical implicationsThis study contributes to monitoring the performance of Brazilian federal universities teaching sustainability and its related core aspects in Business Administration programs. This updated panorama may aid in the search for strategies to expand actions related to education for sustainability (EfS) in educational institutions (EIs).Social implicationsThis study presents some of the impacts of implementing the national environmental education curriculum guidelines. This study encourages discussion about EfS in Business Administration programs and in public EIs, which are important actors for promoting sustainable development.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first longitudinal study that maps the courses related to sustainability in Business Administration programs at Brazilian federal public universities. This study offers the first responses to a broad and complex topic, of a region and disciplinary field, of which there are not many studies done, opening doors to subsequent investigations.

How a marine debris environmental education program plays to strengths of linguistically diverse learners

Although environmental education (EE) has increased focus on how to best serve diverse populations, one understudied area is how linguistically diverse learners may engage with EE programming. Linguistic diversity is on the rise across the United States; for instance, nearly one-third of all children between the ages of 0 and 8 have at least one parent who speaks a language other than English in the home. This study evaluated impacts of an EE curriculum designed to promote pro-environmental behavior change with a pre-post, treatment-control experimental design among students from linguistically diverse households. In partnership with teachers, we implemented the curriculum in elementary schools across the state of North Carolina, United States. Over two school years (2018–2020), 36 teachers from 31 schools across 18 counties participated in the study, providing 644 paired pre-post student responses (n = 204 control; n = 440 treatment). About 10% of the sample (n = 49 treatment, n = 18 control) reported speaking a language at home other than English. We tested hypotheses that the curriculum would increase pro-environmental behavior change among all students, but particularly among those from linguistically diverse households using multiple linear regression. Results indicate that the curriculum effectively encouraged pro-environmental behaviors for all students on average, but particularly among linguistically diverse students, adding to growing examples of the equigenic effects of environmental and nature-based education. These findings are consistent with research demonstrating that EE can contribute to behavior change among young learners and may be particularly well-suited to resonate with the unique contributions of linguistically diverse learners.

Designing the Structure of the Environmental Education Curriculum Through the Landscape and Contextualism Approach in Indramayu Regency, Indonesia

Disasters and environmental damage that are happening globally are currently important concerns. The current decline in environmental quality causes us to consider and relate this incident to the educational process. Meanwhile, education is the right tool to build a community that cares about the environment and applies sustainability principles and environmental ethics. The curriculum is a dynamic learning tool, and it must continue to develop and keep up with environmental changes. To support sustainable environmental education curriculum development, the form of the curriculum must synergize between theory and real-life (contextual) in the place of the curriculum so that students and teachers can work together in studying their environment (landscape). The purpose of this study is to see how the landscape and contextual conditions of Indramayu Regency are, how the curriculum used at the high school (SMA) level, especially subjects that are integrated with environmental material, and how the curriculum design follows the landscape and contextual conditions of Indramayu Regency and coast. The qualitative method is used with gap analysis (GAP Analysis) and GIS (Geographical Information System) analysis to support the research objectives. Researchers conducted seven stages, grouped into three groups: process, analysis, and output. Landscape Indramayu is divided into 2 (two) parts, namely land and sea (coastal). Results of curriculum analysis show that 5 (five) subjects have integrated environmental material, namely biology, physics, chemistry, geography, and entrepreneurship. Curriculum design is divided into 2 (two), 1. provides learning directions with topics according to the material in the curriculum and syllabus but adds material according to the landscape and context of Indramayu and coastal characteristics, while the 2nd design. Provides direction materials that do not yet exist and need to be added to learning, matters relating to Indramayu’s landscape and contextual conditions, and coastal states in general (national/global). So, that in the future, the material contained in the curriculum, syllabus, and other learning tools can be designed and developed according to the landscape and contextual conditions of the coastal area to create a sustainable environment.

To explore the impact of augmented reality digital picture books in environmental education courses on environmental attitudes and environmental behaviors of children from different cultures.

Environmental education has long been closely related to sustainable development. In this study, in response to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), an augmented reality (AR) digital picture book was created using the unique natural ecosystem of Taiwan's Orchid Island as a source of self-efficacy for science learning. Interactive environmental education learning through AR drawing was used to determine whether students' science learning self-efficacy and environmental attitudes significantly influenced the environmental behavioral skills of culturally diverse children. In this study, 26 elementary sixth-grade Taiwanese students and 26 elementary sixth-grade Japanese students were invited to participate in an extended reality drawing activity as an environmental education curriculum. Based on the sample size of 52, the survey results were accurate with a sampling error of 3.8% with a confidence level of 95%. A questionnaire survey was administered to the 52 students after the event. After the valid questionnaire samples were collected, a partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis was conducted with Smart PLS 3.0 on the small sample. The results of the study showed that students who had a better self-efficacy in science learning were more likely to engage in conservation actions related to the natural environment in their daily lives. In this study, the constructs of environmental behavior were further discussed and the hypothesis model was validated using the quantitative empirical method. The results of the study revealed good reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity of the constructs in the hypothesis model, and the hypothesis model itself was validated. In the validated model, students' science learning self-efficacy affects the sustainability of their environmental behaviors, but only through the role of environmental attitudes. However, the environmental attitudes construct plays a fully mediating role in the model.

The influence of environmental education on Omani students self-reported environmental attitudes and behaviours

The objective of this research is to consider the self-reported environmental attitudes and behaviours of Omani students and identify the factors that determine them. This research aims to explore the current environmental education curriculum in Oman. Specifically, this research is designed to identify school-related factors that might influence Omani students’ self-reported environmental attitudes and behaviours. An explanatory sequential mixed method research design is adopted to gather information from primary and secondary sources. A questionnaire of 53 items was designed and tested on 212 students from four secondary schools in Oman, and then 25 semi-structured interviews were conducted with students, teachers and heads from the same four secondary schools. The data generated from the questionnaires were analysed using two methods: descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. The data generated from the interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. The major findings of this research indicate that the environmental curriculum appears to be a moderate contributor to environmental attitudes and behaviours, whereas environmental knowledge appears to be a positive contributor to environmental attitudes and behaviours. Overall, this study suggests that including environmental education in schools improves students’ environmental attitudes and behaviours.