Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Ph.D. Candidate in Department of Environmental Education, Faculty of Education, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran.
2 Associate Professor, Department of Environmental Education, Faculty of Education, Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran
3 Professor, Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Environment, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Environmental education has been regarded as one of the key levers in moving towards sustainable development, but its application in practical terms in universities has not yet resolved all its challenges. The present study attempts to design and provide a comprehensive model of environmental education in higher education in a qualitative approach by using inductive content analysis. The data were provided by analyzing documents of credible international sources in terms of scientific literature, scientific literature, compiled list of reports, and documents, and reliable academic resources in the field of environment. The data were finally analyzed with regard to thematic categorization under 3 main categories and 17 subcategories to prepare the final model. The validity of the proposed model was investigated using participation of 32 environmental experts and scholars through a structured questionnaire. The final model was developed focusing on three essential components of environmental education, namely knowledge, attitude, and practice within three main categories, including Direct Education, Indirect Education, and University Social Responsibility and 17 subcategories. In contrast to the existing GreenMetric assessment model, which focuses mainly on quantitative indicators like the number of courses and articles. The proposed model emphasizes the quantitative and qualitative dimensions, innovative teaching and learning methods, integration of sustainability concepts across disciplines, and the role of universities in society. Besides, it puts special emphasis on fundamental aspects such as efficacy of education, attitude and behavioral change of students, interdisciplinary education, the role of the university in society, and environmental justice. Findings of the present study can help deal with the weaknesses of the existing evaluation methods and improve assessment systems as more effective evaluation tools for assessing the real role of universities in sustainable development.
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