The Higher Education sector has a critical role to play in shaping our global response to "wicked problems" and nowhere is this more evident than in university research, teaching, and public engagement on sustainability that seeks to tackle the increasingly perilous environmental situation. However, despite this critical civic mission,…

The primary purpose of education is preparation for life. But what kind of life, and life for whom? Within the social studies, emphasis has long been placed on preparation for civic life in diverse and democratic societies within an interconnected world. This remains essential. There is an ongoing need for people who are willing and able to…

Field studies are defined here as any study of the natural world that occurs beyond classrooms. There is rising concern for the future of field studies in Earth and Environmental Sciences in Higher Education, despite being core to environmental inquiry, as cost-cutting across the sector was intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper reviews…

Connecting environmental and digital media education with the guiding metaphor of water, this article explores ecomedia literacy, a methodology that prompts students to perform a holistic analysis and systems thinking of gadgets using four zones of inquiry: ecoculture, political ecology, ecomateriality, and lifeworld. Ecoculture involves studying…

The reliance on online learning systems has increased during the COVID-19 epidemic to maintain education. The effectiveness of online life and earth science instruction is assessed in this study which involves 150 first-year high school students. Methodologically, it juxtaposes elearning with traditional classroom teaching across various…

Informed by curriculum theory, this in-depth qualitative case study examined the experiences of one senior teacher, Stephen, as he enacted the first unit of Queensland's new "Earth and Environmental Science" (EES) syllabus. This study aimed to understand how Stephen navigated the 'space' between the intended and enacted curriculum, by…

This study aimed to describe the validity and effectiveness of the floating market-based BioPhy magazine to improve problem-solving skills and encourage students to conduct environmental awareness campaigns. This research was development research with Tessmer formative evaluation model. The field test subjects were 24 students who studied fluids…

Newly appointed lecturers joining teaching-focussed environments can encounter significant challenges to sustain a successful research career. Some of these challenges pertain to the existing work culture and the suitability of mentoring. At the same time, success in academia is typically associated with the "academic super-hero" model…

Haiti is among the most climate-vulnerable nations in the world, and Haitian youth face disproportionate risks to their health and well-being. Yet, to date, few studies have partnered with young people to position them as agents of change addressing climate change impacts in their communities, particularly in Global South contexts. As a step…

Capacity strengthening activities -- be that in the form of courses, workshops, seminars -- have become embedded in research projects as a requirement for funding and as a means for researchers to demonstrate positive societal impacts. We apply qualitative research techniques including interviews, questionnaires and observations to scrutinise and…

Hundreds of thousands of undergraduates enroll in general education science courses to fulfill university core requirements. However, many of these lecture-based courses fail to foster high-level data literacy skills. This work details the design, implementation, and analysis of a new climate change-based classroom activity for college students…

Water sciences education is paramount to sustainable groundwater resource management, especially of drinking water, but misunderstandings about groundwater among non-experts remain widespread. Groundwater residence is an especially challenging concept to learn because it is not directly visible in typical circumstances. The present study uses a…

This paper reports on a two-week Earth Science programme, designed and delivered by the New Zealand Crown Research Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited (GNS Science) referred to as the GeoCamp. This initiative has offered 10- to 13-year-old students learning experiences outside the classroom in several regions throughout New…

In response to growing concern about the increased disconnect between youth and their outdoor environment, this study examines how nature-based citizen science experiences with a local animal (American eels) influence urban adolescents' (high-school students) sense of place in a US city. The juvenile American eel is a unique animal due to its…

In this article, the author describes an activity using physical models -- each a clear plastic box enclosing a miniature coastal town, complete with real water in the "ocean." This activity shows students a natural cause-and-effect relationship that is scientifically simple, yet even many adults don't grasp the worldwide implications:…