Given the world's continuous environmental concerns, there is a need for increased participation in nature protection. The ecological crisis of the last decade on Earth has become one of the causes of the rupture of society's relationship with nature. Such relationships can predict diverse attitudes, concerns, intentions, and pro-environmental…

Current models of best practice in science education advocate for students to learn science by engaging in applied contexts that integrate the various science disciplines. Permaculture offers one such integrated context for elementary science. Although permaculture is relatively new in PK-12 education, the broader practice of school gardening has…

Australia participated in the eighth cycle of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). TIMSS is an international sample study that assesses the mathematics and science achievement of Year 4 and Year 8 students every 4 years. Australia has participated in all cycles of TIMSS since it commenced in 1995 and over this 28-year…

Classroom teaching can be a "wild" experience, but in March three teachers stepped out of the classroom to take on the Tassie wilderness and deliver their students a different kind of lesson. Joining forces with a team of scientists, the teachers delved into the important task of surveying Australia's biodiversity at the Stony Head…

This book discusses a number of ways in which out-of-school science education can uniquely engage learners with 'wicked' global problems such as biodiversity loss and climate change. The idea for the volume originated in discussions among members of the ESERA special interest group on "Science Education in Out-of-School contexts". It…

The social interactions that take place in science museums, whether between family members or with mediators, are recognized as essential to visitors' experience. However, there is still little empirical research in the Brazilian context on how families interact and converse on visits to science museums -- and even less on the role of the mediator…

In this study, we use a mixed methods approach to analyze the conversational content and interactions constituting five family groups' visits to the Marine Aquarium of Rio de Janeiro (AquaRio), the largest marine aquarium in South America, to understand how families interact with science and construct meaning regarding science and conservation.…

In the US and elsewhere, creationist groups have challenged the mandatory science curriculum because it introduces the theory of evolution as the true story of biodiversity. This paper disaggregates this challenge in two distinctive levels. On the substantive level, creationists claim that Darwinian evolution is not value-neutral, as most…

Background: Technologies may successfully be used to mediate, aid, and diversify learning, but several studies indicate that technologies cannot substitute outdoor learning and its experiential nature. To halt human-induced biodiversity loss, teachers should acquire a deep understanding of the principles of ecology, including the challenging…

Preserving biodiversity is vital, and early education plays a key role in fostering environmental awareness. An Augmented Reality Outdoor Mission (AROM) has been created as an innovative educational tool for children between the ages 7 and 11. AROM combines entertainment and education and is designed to engage elementary schoolchildren and…

Following the severe impact of capitalist industrialization on the environment, the EU has funded several projects in the context of the European Green Deal to pursue climate neutrality by 2050. Some of these projects attempt to achieve zero emissions through political participation, while others by committing EU citizens to adopt sustainable…

The magnitude and scale of current threats to ecosystems requires interdisciplinary approaches to both science and training. For example, urbanization has resulted in increased runoff from communities into coastal habitats, necessitating work across the marine-terrestrial interface. This runoff holds myriad pollutants which can impact vulnerable…

The past decade has been marked by a series of global crises, presenting an opportunity to reevaluate the relationship between science and politics. The biological sciences are instrumental in understanding natural phenomena and informing policy decisions. However, scholars argue that current scientific expertise often fails to account for entire…

Plant blindness refers to the tendency of people to overlook and undervalue plants in their environment, which can have negative consequences for both the environment and human well-being. As pre-service teachers play a key role in shaping the environmental attitudes and knowledge of future generations, it is important to assess their level of…

Hands-on activities are considered to be particularly suitable for generating long-term knowledge that increases environmentally friendly behaviour. Appropriate flagship species in a respective curricular context can enable high-quality education. We have developed a teaching concept and material for hands-on activities with bumblebees. This…