https://www.mdu.se/

Principals have an important role to play when it comes to making decisions on organizational reforms and priorities in preschool; however, there has been little focus on their views on education for sustainable development (ESD) at the preschool level, which is a reform that needs to be prioritized. Furthermore, there is little insight into similarities and differences when it comes to how different types of preschools incorporate ESD, especially from the point of view of management. For this reason, this study aims to find out about the views on ESD that principals of eco-certified and non-eco-certified preschools have. A further aim is to examine whether there are any differences between the two types of preschools – eco-certified and non-eco-certified – as made evident in the principals’ descriptions of ESD. This qualitative study applies a cross-sectional design. Seven principals, who headed a total of 22 preschools located in six municipalities in Sweden were interviewed: these interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed, and a thematic analysis was conducted. The findings demonstrate that the principals consider ESD to be crucial in early childhood education and feel ESD needs to be integrated into preschool education. Going by the principals’ descriptions, it seems that the eco-certified preschools prioritize ESD in their daily educational practices more than non-eco-certified preschools do. Further studies are needed to explore the attitudes and actions of principals when it comes to heading ESD in preschool, since attitudes guide both actions and behavior.

This study explored Swedish preschool children's knowledge about the environmental impact of various transport modes, and investigated whether or not eco-certification has any role to play in relation to this knowledge. Additionally, this study examined children's perceived sources of knowledge. Using illustrations and semi-structured questions, 53 children, aged five to six years, from six eco-certified and six non-eco-certified preschools were interviewed. Qualitative and quantitative data were analysed using content analysis and Orthogonal Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA), respectively. Findings revealed that most of the children had acquired some knowledge about the environmental impact of various transport modes, although some children were not familiar with the word 'environment'. Although the complexity of children's justifications for the environmental impact of different modes of transport tended to be higher at eco-certified preschools compared to non-eco-certified preschools, no statistically significant differences were found. Parents were reported to be a major source of knowledge.

Although parents and preschool play important roles in developing children’s behavior and attitudes, little is known about their influences on children’ s learning of environmental, social and economic aspects of sustainability. This study investigated the influences of home- and preschool-related practices and factors on children’s declarative and functional knowledge of sustainability issues, and the extent to which eco-certified preschools promote beneficial practices. ‘Eco-certified preschools’ refers to schools that explicitly work with education for sustainability. Children (n=53), aged five to six years, and the directors (n=7) at six eco-certified and six non-eco-certified preschools were interviewed, while guardians (n=89) and teachers (n=74) filled out questionnaires. Children’s responses were categorized and classified using SOLO Taxonomy. Multivariate analyses were performed in SIMCA P + 14. The findings indicate a positive relationship between children’s declarative and functional knowledge of sustainability issues and the involvement of teachers and guardians in sustainability-related discussions and activities. Teachers’ verbal interaction with children about sustainability issues, and the perceived high value of these issues among teachers and directors seem to be more beneficial for children’s declarative knowledge than their functional knowledge. No statistically significant differences between eco- and non-eco-certified preschools in terms of children’s declarative and functional knowledge were found.

To promote sustainability, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development emphasizes a need for developing knowledge and skills in all learners through education for sustainability (EfS) (UN, 2015). Environmental and sustainability education is stressed in the Swedish preschool curriculum, which states that all preschools should strive to ensure that each child develops respect for all forms of life as well as care for the surrounding environment (Skolverket, Lpfö 98 Rev. 2010). In Sweden, preschools can be awarded two different eco-certifications; about 1500 preschools are certified with ‘Green flag’ and about 200 schools hold ‘Preschool for Sustainable Development’ certification (Ärlemalm-Hagsér, 2013). However, no national evaluation strategy has been developed. In fact, there is a general lack of research on and evaluations of EfS program effectiveness in whole-school sustainability programs globally (Henderson & Tilbury, 2004). The aim of this paper is to describe the development of an instrument which was used to explore and compare the outcomes of eco- and non-eco preschools in terms of children’s understandings and practices of environmental and sustainability issues. ‘Eco-preschool’ refers to a preschool that works explicitly with EfS. The terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’ are used synonymously in this paper. Using a three-interlocking-circles framework, which portrays the equal importance and interdependency of environmental, social and economic dimensions (Elliott, 2013), the concept of sustainability Brundtland (1987) was operationalized in three themes: (i) transport use and recycling, (ii) consumption and (iii) resource sharing. Based on Bruner (1966) Iconic (age 1-6 years) mode of representation, which states that information stored in the form of images and illustrations can be helpful for children’s understanding of an issue, a semi-structured, illustrated interview instrument was developed. Children’s practices were explored through a play-based approach where children performed recycling activities. The instrument was pre-tested with eight children in order to finalize the question design, question wording, appropriateness of illustrations, interview techniques and timing, as well as to collect information on open-ended questions with a view of changing some of them into multiple choice questions. Applying a cross-sectional design, 53 children, aged five and six, were interviewed during February-June 2015. The interviews were audio recorded. Besides describing the development of the instrument, preliminary results from the interview will be presented at the symposium.

References

Brundtland, G. H. (1987). World Commission on environment and development: our common future. Oxford University Press. Bruner, J. S. (1966). Toward a theory of instruction (Vol. 59). Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Elliott, J. A. (2013). An introduction to sustainable development. London: Routledge. Henderson, K., & Tilbury, D. (2004). Whole-school approaches to sustainability: An international review of sustainable school programs. Report Prepared by the Australian Research Institute in Education for Sustainability (ARIES) for The Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government. ISBN, 1(86408), 979. Skolverket. (Lpfö 98 Rev. 2010). Curriculum for the preschool. The Swedish National Agency for Education. Retrieved 08-03, 2013, from Skolverket website: http//www.skolverket.se UN. (2015). Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Retrieved 02-12, 2015, from http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E, accessed 03-12-2015 Ärlemalm-Hagsér, E. (2013). Engagerade i världens bästa? : lärande för hållbarhet i förskolan. Göteborg: Acta universitatis Gothoburgensis.

Lärande för hållbar utveckling har varit ett kunskapsområde i den svenska förskolan sedan Agenda 21 1992 (Program of action for sustainable development: Rio declaration on environment and development) och reflekteras i förskolans läroplan. Många förskolor är certifierade för arbete med frågor om hållbar utveckling enligt ”Grön Flagg” (Håll Sverige Rent) eller ”Skola för hållbar utveckling” (Skolverket). Även om förskolechefer har en betydelsefull funktion för att bedriva verksamheten i enlighet med målen i läroplanen och en fungerande arbetsmiljö är lite dokumenterat om chefernas perspektiv på detta arbete. Syftet med denna studie är därför att utveckla kunskap om synen på arbete med hållbar utveckling bland förskolans chefer i certifierade och inte certifierade förskolor. Frågor om hur man beskriver att förskolan arbetar för att utveckla barns intresse och förståelse för hur människor, natur och samhälle påverkar varandra och attityder till ett sådant arbeta har undersökts.

Semi-strukturerade intervjuer hölls med fem förskolechefer från sju kommunala förskolor varav fyra var certifierade. Ett systemteoretiskt perspektiv används för att beskriva och förklara de attityder som framkommer i undersökningen.

Datainsamling och analys är ännu inte avslutad. Preliminära resultat indikerar att förskolechefer anser att arbetet med hållbar utveckling i förskolan är mycket viktig och att frågor som rör natur och miljö, situationen för barn i andra länder, matens och leksakers ursprung etcetera, är områden som uppmärksammas. Bland förskolecheferna i certifierade förskolor framträder en tydlig ambition att integrera frågor om hållbar utveckling i verksamheten.