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Dunlop, L., Atkinson, L., Malmberg, C., Turkenburg-van Diepen, M. & Urbas, A. (2024). Treading carefully: the environment and political participation in science education. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 19(2-3), 317-339
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Treading carefully: the environment and political participation in science education
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2024 (English)In: Cultural Studies of Science Education, ISSN 1871-1502, E-ISSN 1871-1510, Vol. 19, no 2-3, p. 317-339Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Politics and science are inextricably connected, particularly in relation to the climate emergency and other environmental crises, yet science education is an often overlooked site for engaging with the political dimensions of environmental issues. This study examines how science teachers in England experience politics—specifically political participation—in relation to the environment in school science, against a background of increased obstruction in civic space. The study draws on an analysis of theoretically informed in-depth interviews with eleven science teachers about their experiences of political participation in relation to environmental issues. We find that politics enters the science classroom primarily through informal conversations initiated by students rather than planned by teachers. When planned for, the emphasis is on individual, latent–political (civic) engagement rather than manifest political participation. We argue that this is a symptom of the post-political condition and call for a more enabling environment for discussing the strengths and limitations of different forms of political participation in school science. © The Author(s) 2024

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Dordrecht: Springer, 2024
Keywords
Environment, Politics, Responsibility, Science education, Teachers
National Category
Educational Sciences
Research subject
Smart Cities and Communities, TRAINS
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-54698 (URN)10.1007/s11422-024-10215-5 (DOI)001208828000001 ()2-s2.0-851917161442-s2.0-85191716144 (Scopus ID)
Funder
Halmstad University
Available from: 2024-10-02 Created: 2024-10-02 Last updated: 2024-11-14Bibliographically approved
Urbas, A., Nehez, J. & Svensson, P. (2023). First Teacher Assignments in the light of Responsibility and Accountability. In: : . Paper presented at European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>First Teacher Assignments in the light of Responsibility and Accountability
2023 (English)Conference paper, Oral presentation with published abstract (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

There is increasing attention to the role of education in teaching environmental issues such as climate change (Teach the Future, n.d.). Whilst environmental issues are science-dependent, science is not sufficient to respond to today’s environmental challenges. Yet internationally, science and geography are those subjects most likely to include environmental content (UNESCO, 2021). In England, students can expect to learn about environmental challenges including climate change, biodiversity and pollution during their compulsory science education (DfE, 2013). These topics are often controversial, rife with moral tensions (Zeidler, Herman, & Sadler, 2019), and characterised by both descriptive facts and normative values. The values often deal with solutions to the problems, what kind of actions can be taken on an individual or societal level and even what kind of society is preferred. This makes the issues both scientific and political. Yet little is known about how politics enters the science classroom. In this study, we aim to understand how environmental politics enters the classroom, and how science teachers address different approaches to political participation with their students.

In order to develop democratic environmental governance, there is a need for representation of different groups of people, opportunities for participation and for spaces for deliberation (Lidskog & Elander, 2007), i.e. for politics. Schools are potential sites for participation and deliberation and for learning democracy (Biesta & Lawy, 2006). Politics can be defined in different ways, from a narrow focus on electoral processes to broader conceptualisations which include different ways of making decisions and shaping power relations. In this study, we are concerned with power and social change (Dahl & Stinebrickner, 2003) i.e. “the capacity for agency and deliberation in situations of genuine collective or social choice” (Hay, 2007, p. 77) through science education. This definition of politics goes beyond electoral and party politics and includes activities outside formal political institutions. This is in accordance with Heywood (1999)’s characterisation of politics as an a social activity that arises out of interaction between or among people, which develops out of diversity (the existence of different interests, wants, needs and goals), and which relates to collective decisions which are regarded as binding upon a group of people. Carter (2018) identifies the environment as a policy problem for several reasons, including that the environment can be considered a public good, with complex and interdependent relationships between people and ecosystems acting across national borders with consequences felt into the future.

This characterisation of politics is relevant to the study context as education is a social activity which brings together people with different views, interests and goals in relation to the environment, and it is a context in which collective decisions can be made, for example, about how the school function, what is taught (and how), and what actions or outcomes are desirable as a result of education. Not all of these actions and outcomes can be considered political and we see politics as related to societal engagement and political participation more broadly. Ekman and Amnå (2012) have developed a typology of different forms of participation in society. They distinguish between (a) non-participation (disengagement); (b) civic participation (latent political), whether social involvement or civic engagement; and (c) political participation (manifest political), which can be formal political participation or activism. Each of these three types of participation are further classified in terms of individual and collective forms. In this study, we use Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology to understand the ways in which teachers address the political dimensions of the environment in school science. The research question we set out to explore in the study is: how do science teachers address political participation in science education?

Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedAn exploratory qualitative approach was used to understand science teachers’ perceptions and approaches to environmental politics. We focused on science teachers with responsibility for teaching students aged 11-16 in England because we were interested in what students experience during their compulsory secondary science education, where the curriculum demands that they learn about ecosystems and the environment. 

A deductive approach to instrument design was used, drawing on Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology of latent and manifest political participation and non-participation (see Table 1 above) in the design of the interview guide and in the analysis of data to understand the ways in which politics enters the science classroom. Given the potentially sensitive nature of some of the questions, we used one-to-one interviews, conducted online to increase the geographical reach, and minimise the need for travel.  The interview guide contained open-ended questions on science teachers’ perspectives on and experiences of teaching environmental politics in science education.  We deliberately did not ask about educational policy; only about teachers’ own experiences, practices, personal perspectives and barriers they encountered.  

Participants were provided with an infographic using examples from Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology and asked to mark ways of participating in society which they had:planned and taught (green); mentioned in passing or in response to a question from a student (orange); and, never addressed (red).  The interview focused on reasons for these decisions.  Interviews were conducted by three members of the research team and took place in January - June 2022. Each lasted approximately 1 hour. 

Interviews with 11 teachers were recorded and transcribed and interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) (Smith, 2004) used to analyse the data.  This approach aims not at generalisation but rather to understand how individuals make sense of their own experiences (Guihen, 2019), namely, how politics enters the science classroom.  IPA is typically used to generate meaningful insights from a small dataset, often in psychology and health sciences.  It is appropriate here because it provides a way to understand how participants make sense of their social world, it allows for diversity of perceptions rather than looking for a single objective truth and it allows researchers to interpret these experiences and understand the perspective of an insider and then interpret what it means for them to have this perspective (Reid, Flowers, & Larkin, 2005). An iterative approach to data analysis was used, with reflexive discussions between each stage of analysis.   Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsTeachers participating in this study saw a place for politics in science education.  However, it  was described as almost absent in lessons. Teachers were more likely to discuss individual, legal, forms of participation, focusing on civil (latent political) actions rather than collective, manifest forms of participating. Even when politics enters the classroom, it tends to be students rather than teachers who introduce the topic, unless there are links to the curriculum or other legal and political frameworks. Policy (national and school) and colleague and student perceptions prevented teachers from planning to discuss manifest forms of political participation with students.  

Politics (especially collective aspects) are experienced as off-limits to teachers in the study. This post-political logic distances people (here, young people but also teachers) from involvement in decision-making and reduces their capacity to be involved in environmental decision-making now and in the future.  These absences, we argue, contribute to a broader societal trend which closes off spaces to discuss and celebrate disagreement (Blühdorn & Deflorian, 2021), and which diminish the potential for young people to learn democracy. In order to develop democratic governance of environmental issues, there is a need for representation, opportunities for participation and for spaces for deliberation (Liskog & Elander, 2007).  Schools are in many ways ideal sites to encourage political participation as they are shared spaces of learning - both about forms of participation but also how to participate and to deliberate across disagreement, or as one of the teachers in this study put it ‘we need to teach them how to use their voice properly and how to be heard’. This requires those who are in positions where they can act to listen to these voices and engage in deliberation and bring politics - as the capacity to deliberate and make collective decisions - into the science classroom.

Keywords
Environment, politics, teachers, science education, responsibility
National Category
Political Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-51613 (URN)
Conference
European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023
Funder
Halmstad University
Available from: 2023-09-11 Created: 2023-09-11 Last updated: 2023-11-17Bibliographically approved
Atkinson, L., Dunlop, L., Malmberg, C., Turkenburg-van Diepen, M. & Urbas, A. (2023). The Environment and Political Participation in Science Education. In: : . Paper presented at European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>The Environment and Political Participation in Science Education
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2023 (English)Conference paper, Oral presentation with published abstract (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

There is increasing attention to the role of education in teaching environmental issues such as climate change (Teach the Future, n.d.). Whilst environmental issues are science-dependent, science is not sufficient to respond to today’s environmental challenges. Yet internationally, science and geography are those subjects most likely to include environmental content (UNESCO, 2021). In England, students can expect to learn about environmental challenges including climate change, biodiversity and pollution during their compulsory science education (DfE, 2013). These topics are often controversial, rife with moral tensions (Zeidler, Herman, & Sadler, 2019), and characterised by both descriptive facts and normative values. The values often deal with solutions to the problems, what kind of actions can be taken on an individual or societal level and even what kind of society is preferred. This makes the issues both scientific and political. Yet little is known about how politics enters the science classroom. In this study, we aim to understand how environmental politics enters the classroom, and how science teachers address different approaches to political participation with their students.

In order to develop democratic environmental governance, there is a need for representation of different groups of people, opportunities for participation and for spaces for deliberation (Lidskog & Elander, 2007), i.e. for politics. Schools are potential sites for participation and deliberation and for learning democracy (Biesta & Lawy, 2006). Politics can be defined in different ways, from a narrow focus on electoral processes to broader conceptualisations which include different ways of making decisions and shaping power relations. In this study, we are concerned with power and social change (Dahl & Stinebrickner, 2003) i.e. “the capacity for agency and deliberation in situations of genuine collective or social choice” (Hay, 2007, p. 77) through science education. This definition of politics goes beyond electoral and party politics and includes activities outside formal political institutions. This is in accordance with Heywood (1999)’s characterisation of politics as an a social activity that arises out of interaction between or among people, which develops out of diversity (the existence of different interests, wants, needs and goals), and which relates to collective decisions which are regarded as binding upon a group of people. Carter (2018) identifies the environment as a policy problem for several reasons, including that the environment can be considered a public good, with complex and interdependent relationships between people and ecosystems acting across national borders with consequences felt into the future.

This characterisation of politics is relevant to the study context as education is a social activity which brings together people with different views, interests and goals in relation to the environment, and it is a context in which collective decisions can be made, for example, about how the school function, what is taught (and how), and what actions or outcomes are desirable as a result of education. Not all of these actions and outcomes can be considered political and we see politics as related to societal engagement and political participation more broadly. Ekman and Amnå (2012) have developed a typology of different forms of participation in society. They distinguish between (a) non-participation (disengagement); (b) civic participation (latent political), whether social involvement or civic engagement; and (c) political participation (manifest political), which can be formal political participation or activism. Each of these three types of participation are further classified in terms of individual and collective forms. In this study, we use Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology to understand the ways in which teachers address the political dimensions of the environment in school science. The research question we set out to explore in the study is: how do science teachers address political participation in science education?

Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedAn exploratory qualitative approach was used to understand science teachers’ perceptions and approaches to environmental politics. We focused on science teachers with responsibility for teaching students aged 11-16 in England because we were interested in what students experience during their compulsory secondary science education, where the curriculum demands that they learn about ecosystems and the environment.

A deductive approach to instrument design was used, drawing on Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology of latent and manifest political participation and non-participation (see Table 1 above) in the design of the interview guide and in the analysis of data to understand the ways in which politics enters the science classroom. Given the potentially sensitive nature of some of the questions, we used one-to-one interviews, conducted online to increase the geographical reach, and minimise the need for travel.  The interview guide contained open-ended questions on science teachers’ perspectives on and experiences of teaching environmental politics in science education.  We deliberately did not ask about educational policy; only about teachers’ own experiences, practices, personal perspectives and barriers they encountered.  

Participants were provided with an infographic using examples from Ekman and Amnå’s (2012) typology and asked to mark ways of participating in society which they had:planned and taught (green); mentioned in passing or in response to a question from a student (orange); and, never addressed (red).  The interview focused on reasons for these decisions.  Interviews were conducted by three members of the research team and took place in January - June 2022. Each lasted approximately 1 hour.

Interviews with 11 teachers were recorded and transcribed and interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) (Smith, 2004) used to analyse the data.  This approach aims not at generalisation but rather to understand how individuals make sense of their own experiences (Guihen, 2019), namely, how politics enters the science classroom.  IPA is typically used to generate meaningful insights from a small dataset, often in psychology and health sciences.  It is appropriate here because it provides a way to understand how participants make sense of their social world, it allows for diversity of perceptions rather than looking for a single objective truth and it allows researchers to interpret these experiences and understand the perspective of an insider and then interpret what it means for them to have this perspective (Reid, Flowers, & Larkin, 2005). An iterative approach to data analysis was used, with reflexive discussions between each stage of analysis.  

Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsTeachers participating in this study saw a place for politics in science education.  However, it  was described as almost absent in lessons. Teachers were more likely to discuss individual, legal, forms of participation, focusing on civil (latent political) actions rather than collective, manifest forms of participating. Even when politics enters the classroom, it tends to be students rather than teachers who introduce the topic, unless there are links to the curriculum or other legal and political frameworks. Policy (national and school) and colleague and student perceptions prevented teachers from planning to discuss manifest forms of political participation with students.  

Politics (especially collective aspects) are experienced as off-limits to teachers in the study. This post-political logic distances people (here, young people but also teachers) from involvement in decision-making and reduces their capacity to be involved in environmental decision-making now and in the future.  These absences, we argue, contribute to a broader societal trend which closes off spaces to discuss and celebrate disagreement (Blühdorn & Deflorian, 2021), and which diminish the potential for young people to learn democracy. In order to develop democratic governance of environmental issues, there is a need for representation, opportunities for participation and for spaces for deliberation (Liskog & Elander, 2007).  Schools are in many ways ideal sites to encourage political participation as they are shared spaces of learning - both about forms of participation but also how to participate and to deliberate across disagreement, or as one of the teachers in this study put it ‘we need to teach them how to use their voice properly and how to be heard’. This requires those who are in positions where they can act to listen to these voices and engage in deliberation and bring politics - as the capacity to deliberate and make collective decisions - into the science classroom.

National Category
Educational Sciences
Research subject
Smart Cities and Communities
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-51607 (URN)
Conference
European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023
Funder
Halmstad University
Available from: 2023-09-11 Created: 2023-09-11 Last updated: 2023-11-17Bibliographically approved
Zeyer, A., Àlvaro, N., Claussen, C., Enzingmüller, C., Gavidia, V., Malmberg, C., . . . Kremer, K. (2023). Two-Eyed Seeing and Scientific Holism in A New Science|Environment|Health Pedagogy. In: Graça S. Carvalho; Ana Sofia Afonso; Zélia Anastácio (Ed.), Fostering Scientific Citizenship in an Uncertain World: Selected Papers from the ESERA 2021 Conference (pp. 293-309). Cham, Switzerland: Springer
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Two-Eyed Seeing and Scientific Holism in A New Science|Environment|Health Pedagogy
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2023 (English)In: Fostering Scientific Citizenship in an Uncertain World: Selected Papers from the ESERA 2021 Conference / [ed] Graça S. Carvalho; Ana Sofia Afonso; Zélia Anastácio, Cham, Switzerland: Springer, 2023, p. 293-309Chapter in book (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

Science|Environment|Health (S|E|H) is a new science pedagogy that aims at promoting the mutual benefit between the three educational fields of science education, environmental education, and health education. Holism and its conceptualisation have become an important topic in recent S|E|H work. In this paper, featuring the invited symposium of the ESERA special interest group 4 at the ESERA conference 2021, we suggest the concept of Two-Eyed Seeing as a basis for the definition of scientific holism in S|E|H. Two-Eyed Seeing as a metaphor was introduced by science education researchers working with Canadian Indigenous citizens. Based on Sellars’s concept of stereoscopic view, we conceptualise Two-Eyed Seeing in S|E|H through an ontological framework. We define scientific holism as the “eye switch” from the scientific image to students’ life-world image, a transition that we consider as equally important as the – more common – reductionist “eye switch” from students’ life-worlds back to the scientific image. Two-Eyed Seeing may then be understood as a continuous circulation of repeated “eye switches” between life-world image and scientific image. We illustrate this approach through three symposium contributions – communicating the meta-organism in school, scientific holism against eco- and health depression, and a holistic visual tool to approach S|E|H competencies – and we discuss consequences for teaching and research in science education. Finally, we point out that, in a new S|E|H pedagogy and beyond, Two-Eyed Seeing may be a helpful extension to the well-established socio-scientific issues approach. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Cham, Switzerland: Springer, 2023
Series
Contributions from Science Education Research, ISSN 2213-3623, E-ISSN 2213-3631 ; vol 13
Keywords
Two-eyed seeing, Health education, Environmental education
National Category
Educational Sciences
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-51609 (URN)10.1007/978-3-031-32225-9 (DOI)2-s2.0-85166666004 (Scopus ID)978-3-031-32224-2 (ISBN)978-3-031-32227-3 (ISBN)978-3-031-32225-9 (ISBN)
Funder
Halmstad University
Available from: 2023-09-11 Created: 2023-09-11 Last updated: 2023-10-31Bibliographically approved
Urbas, A., Malmberg, C., Thelin, M. & Rafolt, S. (2023). Valuepremises in Sustainability Education Research. In: : . Paper presented at European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Valuepremises in Sustainability Education Research
2023 (English)Conference paper, Oral presentation with published abstract (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

The aim of the study is to analyse how researchers handle value-premises in environmental and sustainability education research. The theoretical perspective that is used consists of three ways of dealing with value-premises:

1. Value-premises are explicitly stated and argued for,

2. Values-premises are explicitly stated but not argued for, and

3. Values-premises implicitly incorporated without discussion and seen as given and unproblematic.

We will, furthermore, argue that it is crucial that researchers critically reflect on and argue for the choice of values-premises – as opposed to other value-premises (and values) – and discuss the possible consequences of not doing so.

Scientific research is traditionally based upon observation and empirical knowledge; it describes and explains and has the observable world in its focus. Scientific research thus differs from religion, ideology, and politics as these are built on opinions in which people’s values and norms are blended with descriptions and explanations (Myrdal 1970).

An implication of the focus on the observable world in science is that values – normally thought of as goals – in themselves are beyond the reach of scientists in their scientific – empirical – endeavour. Scientific research is characterized by scientific value relativism meaning that a value in itself cannot be empirically proved to be better or more correct than another value.

Our point is that scientific research, in the sense of observation of observable reality, cannot prove that specific values are inherently superior and more important than other values (Brecht 1959). For example, if one considers the Covid-19 pandemic and the issue of the lock-down and its effects or consequences, there is no way for scientists to prove, through observations, that saving human life in itself is superior to, for example economic growth, human freedom, physical health, young people's education or the absence of domestic violence. Scientific research can, of course, by observation identify what values individuals, groups of citizens, politicians or policy makers prefer. But this is something different than choosing and deciding between conflicting values.

It is important to acknowledge that scientific research and scientific value relativism are bound together due to science focus on observation of reality. However, the claim is not unproblematic. Scientific research is performed by humans and is therefore, to a high extent, impregnated by values. Scientific research is characterized by value-based choices in all its parts, from the selection of a problem and theory, the operationalization, the collection of data to the analysis and the conclusions. But science is also in many cases driven by a chosen value-premise or, differently expressed, a chosen goal that the scientist desire and wants to be achieved. If we turn it around; there are few scientists who believe that scientific research is totally free from values. The key point, however, is that value-premises and values can be handled in a least three different ways: (1) Value-premises are explicitly stated and argued for, (2) Values-premises are explicitly stated but not argued for, and (3) Values-premises are implicitly incorporated without discussion and seen as given and unproblematic (Myrdal 1970).

This study analyses environmental and sustainability education research from the three ways in which value-premises can be handled. It furthermore discusses why it is important that researchers critically reflect on and argue for the choice of values-premises.

Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedThe study is based on a qualitative text analysis (Lindberg 2017). In order to analyze how researchers, handle value-premises in environmental and sustainability education research a systematic reading of scientific articles from three journals published during 2022 will be done. The analysis consists both of systematizing and critical scrutiny of the content in the articles. The theoretical perspective used in the analysis is whether value-premises are (1) explicitly stated and argued for, (2) explicitly stated but not argued for, or (3) implicitly incorporated without discussion and seen as given and unproblematic.Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsBased on an ongoing study (Rafolt et.al, forthcoming) and previous studies and knowledge within the field (Urbas 2009) the expected findings are that value-premises to a large extent are present in the research on education for sustainable development. Furthermore, the expected findings are that value-premises and values are predominantly within categories 2 and 3, i.e. they are either stated but not critically discussed or implicitly incorporated without discussion and seen as given and unproblematic.

The implications of the expected findings are several. Firstly, a lack of clarity regarding the difference between a) value-statements, (e.g., desired end states or goals), b) descriptive statements (e.g., descriptions and explanations) and c) prescriptive statements (e.g., norms and recommendations) (Lindberg 2017) contributes to a problematic confusion. The problem is a confusion of, on one hand, what scientific research is characterized by and what scientists as scientists can achieve knowledge about and, on the other hand, political activism. For example; there is a difference between a) empirically establishing that having one less child significantly reduce the individuals carbon footprint (Wynes & Nicholas 2017) and b) arguing that the government should prohibit citizens from having more than one child. Secondly, a lack of clarity regarding the fact that value-premises are chosen by the scientist (based on, for example, political ideology), might lead to the effect that citizens believe that the chosen values are scientifically proven.

These implications can undermine both scientific research and democratic politics.

National Category
Educational Sciences
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-51608 (URN)
Conference
European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2023), Glasgow, UK, 22-25 August 2023
Funder
Halmstad University
Available from: 2023-09-11 Created: 2023-09-11 Last updated: 2023-11-20Bibliographically approved
Malmberg, C., Rafolt, S. & Urbas, A. (2022). Critical Thinking, politics and political participation in S|E|H – to describe and/or prescribe as a teacher?. In: : . Paper presented at 3rd ESERA SIG4 Science|Environment|Health, Obergurgl, Austria, 21-23 August, 2022.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Critical Thinking, politics and political participation in S|E|H – to describe and/or prescribe as a teacher?
2022 (English)Conference paper, Oral presentation only (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

Two ongoing research projects carried out by Halmstad University in cooperation with University of York and by University of Innsbruck aim to understand how science teachers approach politics in the classroom and how pre-service science teachers understand critical thinking. We argue that political participation and critical thinking needs to be at the heart of Science|Environment|Health (S|E|H) pedagogy to make effective change and find solutions to urgent social issues in a democracy. Critical thinking is crucial for negotiating socially urgent issues, such as climate change and pandemics, and debunking misinformation (e.g., Jiménez-Aleixandre & Puig 2022) and, thus, for civic education (e.g., ten Dam & Volman 2004; Glaser 1985; Oulton et al. 2004). Teachers need to create possibilities for young people to engage in actions to handle urgent societal challenges, that is political participation (Ekman & Amnå 2012). Science teachers might be reluctant to address politics and critical thinking both when it comes to prescribing and describing teaching content. However, especially in the context of S|E|H, neither science and school science nor critical thinking is independent of politics. Both S|E|H contents and critical thinking include descriptive and normative aspects and relate to conflict of interests and values. Therefore, teachers need to handle critical thinking, politics and political participation in a thoughtful way. The aim of the round table is to discuss future research about teaching critical thinking and politics in the science classroom and furthermore to consider theoretical and normative aspects - points of departure, conclusions and recommendations - in such research. First, the chairs will provide a short input. Then, participants discuss in small groups: 1) What kind of empirical research is needed? 2) How do we as researchers handle theoretical and normative aspects in research? Finally, all participants of the round table share their ideas.

National Category
Didactics
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-48920 (URN)
Conference
3rd ESERA SIG4 Science|Environment|Health, Obergurgl, Austria, 21-23 August, 2022
Available from: 2022-12-14 Created: 2022-12-14 Last updated: 2022-12-14Bibliographically approved
Lundegård, I., Urbas, A., Malmberg, C. & Hasslöf, H. (2021). Didaktiska utmaningar och perspektiv på hållbar utveckling: Grundskola åk 1-6. Stockholm: Skolverket
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Didaktiska utmaningar och perspektiv på hållbar utveckling: Grundskola åk 1-6
2021 (Swedish)Other (Refereed)
Abstract [sv]

Introduktionen tar upp det vi kallar ett didaktiskt raster. Syftet med det är att ge en inblick i hur hållbarhetsfrågorna diskuteras i pedagogisk och didaktisk forskning och låta det bli redskap för reflektion över didaktiska vad-, hur- och varför-frågor kopplat till undervisning. I inledningen till modulen ligger frågornas allvar som en resonansbotten. Här tar vi upp några didaktiska spår som sedan följs upp i de olika delarna. Som vuxna behöver vi ta ansvar för våra barn och kommande generationer. I det sammanhanget är ditt arbete som lärare är ett av det mest viktiga som finns. Men hur problematiken ska tacklas i mötet med de yngre åldrarna är omdiskuterat. Här är det viktigt att inte förlora hoppet om att det också går att vända vissa av de negativa trenderna. Därför vill vi också bjuda på ingångar till hur man kan närma sig ett problematiskt och mörkt budskap genom att inspirera eleverna till nya tankar som ger dem kraft att kunna ta till sig och bearbeta de negativa bilder de omges av. 

Place, publisher, year, pages
Stockholm: Skolverket, 2021
Series
Lärportalen
National Category
Didactics
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-44213 (URN)
Note

Modul: Hållbar utveckling - Hållbar utveckling, åk 1–6 Del 1: Didaktiska utmaningar och perspektiv på hållbar utveckling

Available from: 2021-04-27 Created: 2021-04-27 Last updated: 2021-06-01Bibliographically approved
Högdin, S. & Urbas, A. (2021). Förhandlingar om befrielse från obligatoriska inslag i grundskolans utbildning (1ed.). In: Pernilla Ouis (Ed.), Sexualitet och migration i välfärdsarbete: (pp. 505-524). Lund: Studentlitteratur AB
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Förhandlingar om befrielse från obligatoriska inslag i grundskolans utbildning
2021 (Swedish)In: Sexualitet och migration i välfärdsarbete / [ed] Pernilla Ouis, Lund: Studentlitteratur AB, 2021, 1, p. 505-524Chapter in book (Refereed)
Abstract [sv]

Såväl forskning som massmedia har uppmärksammat ungdomar och unga vuxna, främst unga kvinnor, som växer upp med en situation där familjens och samhällets värderingar skiljer sig avseende synen på äktenskap, sedlighet och sexualitet. Det kan leda till att det uppstår motsättningar, som ställs på sin spets i den obligatoriska grundskolan när föräldrar inte vill att deras barn deltar i undervisning som strider mot familjens normer och värderingar. Det kan handla om barn som inte tillåts delta i sim- och idrottsundervisning, sexualkunskap eller åka på klassresor, med hänvisning till familjens religiösa eller filosofiska övertygelse. I detta kapitel riktas fokus mot motsättningar som kan uppstå mellan vårdnadshavare och staten när det gäller innehållet i den obligatoriska grundskolan. Syftet är att diskutera grundskolans förhållningssätt vid förhandlingar om befrielse från obligatorisk utbildning med utgångspunkt i aktuell lagstiftning.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Lund: Studentlitteratur AB, 2021 Edition: 1
Keywords
Skola, obligatorisk utbildning, skolplikt, skollag
National Category
Social Work
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-43784 (URN)978-91-44-13372-0 (ISBN)
Available from: 2021-01-22 Created: 2021-01-22 Last updated: 2021-01-27Bibliographically approved
Malmberg, C. & Urbas, A. (2021). Hopp och handling – att bidra till elevers politiska deltagande. Stockholm: Skolverket
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Hopp och handling – att bidra till elevers politiska deltagande
2021 (Swedish)Other (Refereed)
Abstract [sv]

Är det möjligt att ge elever hopp om framtiden i en tid med klimatförändringar och miljöhot? Hur kan elevers handlingskompetens utvecklas? Syftet med denna moduldel är att du som lärare ska få didaktiska tankeredskap som hjälper dig att utveckla elevers strategier för att hantera oro och förstå betydelsen av att handla.

Place, publisher, year, pages
Stockholm: Skolverket, 2021
Series
Lärportalen
National Category
Didactics
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-44214 (URN)
Note

Modul: Hållbar utveckling - Hållbar utveckling, åk 1–6 Del 4: Hopp och handling – att bidra till elevers politiska deltagande

Available from: 2021-04-27 Created: 2021-04-27 Last updated: 2021-06-01Bibliographically approved
Malmberg, C. & Urbas, A. (2021). Science|Environment|Health, young citizens and eco-and health depression – a need for scientific holism. In: : . Paper presented at European Science Education Research Association Conference (ESERA2021), Fostering scientific citizenship in an uncertain world, Braga, Portugal, Aug 30 - Sept 3, 2021.
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Science|Environment|Health, young citizens and eco-and health depression – a need for scientific holism
2021 (English)Conference paper, Oral presentation with published abstract (Refereed)
Abstract [en]

We live in an individualized era. Responsibility for handling problems within complex S|E|H-fields such as health and sustainability are placed on the individual rather than on the society.

Furthermore, young citizens often have a pessimistic view on the future with no clear solutions on problems. We also know that students are exposed to social media and “alternative facts”. Phenomena as eco-depression, health-depression and cognitive dissonance are put forward by S|E|H- researchers as something that often can be found among young citizens.

School can combat eco- and health depression by using a holistic scientific perspective. This means that a pure scientific perspective on health and sustainable development must be complemented by an action competence perspective. In this respect is the concept of framing is central. School should give good examples of how challenges and problems historically have been and, in the future, can be tackled by individuals as well as by societies and political institutions. By this, school promotes action competence and hope.

The presentation will use societal historical and contemporary S|E|H- cases and illustrate how these can be transformed into classroom practices. The presentation will discuss how the concepts of framing, responsibility and democratic politics contributes to Scientific Holism in a new Science|Environment|Health pedagogy.

National Category
Educational Sciences
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:hh:diva-46198 (URN)
Conference
European Science Education Research Association Conference (ESERA2021), Fostering scientific citizenship in an uncertain world, Braga, Portugal, Aug 30 - Sept 3, 2021
Available from: 2022-01-13 Created: 2022-01-13 Last updated: 2023-10-31Bibliographically approved
Organisations
Identifiers
ORCID iD: ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0002-7810-7911

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