Magdalena Svanström, Ulrika Palme, Maria Knutson Wedel, Ola Carlson, Thomas Nyström and Michael Edén
The purpose of this paper is to report on methods developed, within a three‐year Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) project at Chalmers University of Technology in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report on methods developed, within a three‐year Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) project at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden, to achieve a higher degree of embedding of ESD in engineering programmes. The major emphasis is on methods used, results achieved and lessons learned from the work.
Design/methodology/approach
The basic idea that methods and activities were built on was that the only way to achieve long‐term changes is to increase the motivation and capacity of lecturers and program directors to perform the required changes.
Findings
Activities that were developed and tested focused on coaching discussions and on workshops for teachers, gathering teachers from one programme at a time. These activities aimed at starting learning processes in individuals. Special care was taken into keeping the feeling of responsibility and initiative in the faculty members within the programmes. A special “resource group” of experienced ESD teachers was available as support for programme directors and lecturers.
Originality/value
The methods reported on are further developments of a method that has been used in Delft University of Technology (the Individual Interaction Method) in the Netherlands. The experiences from Chalmers are discussed in such a way that they provide useful insights for others aiming at similar changes at university.
Details
Keywords
Maria Gabriella Ceravolo, Vincenzo Farina, Lucrezia Fattobene, Lucia Leonelli and GianMario Raggetti
The purpose of this paper is to examine whether financial consumers are sensitive to presentational format of financial disclosure documents and whether this influences the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine whether financial consumers are sensitive to presentational format of financial disclosure documents and whether this influences the financial attractiveness of products.
Design/methodology/approach
In order to observe and measure consumers’ attention, the authors exploit the unobtrusive methodology of eye tracking on a sample of nonprofessional investors, applying an ecological protocol, through a cross-sectional design.
Findings
The analysis reveals that financial information processing and attention distribution are influenced by the way the information is conveyed. Moreover, some layouts induce individuals to rate the products as less financially attractive, independent of the information content. This suggests the importance of studying the neural mechanisms of investors’ behaviour in the scrutiny of financial product documents.
Practical implications
The results lead to recommend regulators and managers to study how investors respond to financial disclosure documents by exploiting neuroscientific techniques. Moreover, there is a role for the search of any benefit coming from emphasising specific sources of information inside documents.
Originality/value
This research investigates the influence of presentational format on consumers’ information processing measuring the underlying neurophysiological processes; the consequent perception of financial attractiveness is also explored.
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Keywords
Pedro Mauricio Acosta Castellanos and Araceli Queiruga-Dios
In education concerning environmental issues, there are two predominant currents in the world, environmental education (EE) and education for sustainable development (ESD). ESD is…
Abstract
Purpose
In education concerning environmental issues, there are two predominant currents in the world, environmental education (EE) and education for sustainable development (ESD). ESD is the formal commitment and therefore promoted by the United Nations, to ensure that countries achieve sustainable development. In contrast, EE was the first educational trend with an environmental protection approach. The purpose of this systematic review that seeks to show whether the migration from EE to ESD is being effective and welcomed by researchers and especially by universities is presented. With the above, a global panorama can be provided, where the regions that choose each model can be identified. In the same sense, it was sought to determine which of the two currents is more accepted within engineering education.
Design/methodology/approach
The review followed the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyzes parameters for systematic reviews. In total, 198 papers indexed in Scopus, Science Direct, ERIC and Scielo were analyzed. With the results, the advancement of ESD and the state of the EE by regions in the world were identified.
Findings
It was possible to categorize the geographical regions that host either of the two EE or ESD currents. It is important to note that ESD has gained more strength from the decade of ESD proposed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. For its part, EE has greater historical roots in some regions of the planet. In turn, there is evidence of a limited number of publications on the design and revision of study plans in engineering.
Originality/value
Through this systematic literature review, the regions of the world that are clinging to EE and those that have taken the path of ESD could be distinguished. Moreover, specific cases in engineering where ESD has been involved were noted.