Search results

The problem of plastic wastes is serious nowadays worldwide, although plastic wastes recycling is already in practice. To promote sustainability in plastic waste recycling, the quality of wastes collected should be maintained well, resulted from a good recycling practice. This paper aims to study a new plastic recycling bin (PRB) and poster interventions on the enhancement of university hall residential students’ proenvironmental knowledge, attitudes and intended behaviours (KAB) and actual recycling behaviours; informative and feedback posters were used as interventions.

This study adopted a quasi-experimental setting to examine the effects of the new PRB on students’ KAB and actual behaviours in recycling, whereas the quality of the recycled plastic was measured according to the extent of cleanliness (CLE), separation (SEP), compression (COM) and sortedness (SOR).

Results showed that significant positive enhancements in KAB only happened with the use of blended interventions, which included promotion through the PRB and posters, suggesting that the use of the PRB and posters was useful in achieving better recycling behaviour.

Blended intervention study by using new design plastic recycling bin and poster on the effect of students’ proenvironmental and recycling KAB.

This paper aims to compare the learning outcomes of gaming simulation and guided inquiry in sustainability education on plastic waste management. The current study targets the identification of success factors in these teaching approaches.

This study used a quasi-experimental design with undergraduate participants who were randomly assigned to an eight-hour sustainability education class using either gaming simulation or guided inquiry. Pre- and post-tests on students’ knowledge, attitudes and intended behavior were conducted, followed by individual interviews to provide more detailed reflections on the teaching approach to which they were assigned.

In terms of knowledge acquisition and behavioral changes, the quantitative results suggested that the pre-/post-test in-group differences were significant in both groups. More importantly, a significant positive attitudinal change was observed in the gaming simulation group only. In the interviews, participants attributed effective knowledge acquisition to active learning element in class, while the characterization of cognitive dissonance triggered in the gaming simulation induced subsequent affective changes.

Activities in this program can be applied or modified to accommodate differences in other similar programs. The findings can also provide indicators to designs of similar programs in the future.

This paper explores plausible factors (ideology and implementation) that contribute to successful sustainability education programs. Through comparison between gaming simulation and guided inquiry, elements for effective education for sustainable development learning in the pedagogical designs are discussed.

To develop a framework for conceptualizing and managing integration in STEM learning, that can help address key issues in its research and implementation worldwide.

Integration in learning is a complicated but not a well-defined concept and therefore it is difficult to illustrate in theory and practice how to conceptualize, manage and implement integrated STEM learning with aims to enhance students' learning effectiveness and multiple-thinking ability. Based on a typology in integrated learning, this article re-conceptualizes integrated STEM learning into a comprehensive framework of three categories, six subcategories and four basic models. With this framework, how to manage integrated STEM learning and related issues in schools for effectiveness are discussed.

As a typology, integration in STEM learning can be classified as content integration, pedagogical integration and learner integration. They can be further differentiated as six subcategories: subject integration, domain integration, method integration, cognitive integration, SEN integration and diverse ability integration in STEM learning. Depending on the extents of content integration and pedagogical integration, four basic models of integrated learning can be identified in theory and practice. The categories, subcategories and basic models have their own characteristics, strengths and limitations. Strategies are developed to address the characteristics and related key issues of each category of STEM learning.

The framework may help to analyze the key issues of integrated STEM learning in research and development, such as “Why and what integration in STEM learning is important and necessary in curriculum reforms for the future?”, “How the integrated STEM approach is different from the traditional subject approach?”, “How the STEM learning activities can be integrated and managed effectively for enhancing students' learning effectiveness and multiple thinking capacity?”, and “What key implications can be drawn for managing and implementing STEM learning?”

Based on the proposed typology and models of STEM learning, various strategies of managing STEM are discussed and developed, which will contribute to policy formulation and professional practice of integrated STEM learning locally and internationally.

The proposed typology and models of STEM learning and related new ideas and perspectives will contribute to future research and development in this area locally and internationally.

This paper aims to explore stakeholder perspectives of the role of a campus eco-garden in education for sustainability (EfS). It will combine the perspectives to highlight a powerful learning environment (PLE) for university students to realize the concept of EfS.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted to reveal stakeholder understandings of a campus eco-garden, as well as its associated expectations of learning activities and education outcomes. Three stakeholder groups were interviewed; designers, educators and environmental and non-environmental subject-related students.

All three stakeholder groups expected cognitive learning of EfS to be enhanced by the eco-garden. The use of affective learning was not strongly expected by the stakeholders. Psychomotor learning was believed to be the most difficult to realize. To fulfill the potential of the eco-garden in EfS, all stakeholders suggested learning activities and roles for both students and teachers. The combined perspectives of the stakeholders helped to visualize a PLE to aid EfS.

This study underlines the importance of effective communication of expectations between stakeholders. It underlines the importance of integrating educational activities with the eco-garden as a PLE, highlighting the roles of teachers and students. It also sheds light on the importance of introducing a cultural component to the EfS program.

This is the first study to apply the PLE theory to enhance EfS with the aid of infrastructure. Both users and designers reveal their views on the planning of the campus eco-garden, especially in its educational function. The study is possibly the first to reveal the differences in expectations between designers and other stakeholder groups (teachers and students) using Könings et al.’s (2005) combination-of-perspectives model.