'n Ondersoek na die rol van leerderaktiwiteite in opvoeding vir volhoubare lewe

Abstract

Environmental Education is widely considered to be indispensable for realizing behaviour which supports sustainable life. Several international declarations and South African policy documents plead for the inclusion of environmental education processes at all levels of formal education. The White Paper for Education and Training (1995) stipulates that environmental education should be presented in accordance with an interdisciplinary, integrated and active approach to learning. The aim of this study was to investigate the role a learner activity plays in the decisions learners make to live more in the interest of the sustainability of the environment. Three schools that are engaged in the project Build capacity for life were selected. The project aims at implementing an environment management system at the schools by means of which the environment forms an integral part of school management and of the curriculum. The study is performed as a qualitative case study in which data was collected by means of observation, focus group sessions and interviews. The learner involvement in the staging of an activity that dealt with energy consumption and the influence thereof on the environment was investigated. Firstly, the collected data was organised by means of matrixes and brain charts and then analysed with the help of plotting charts. The findings indicate that learners are capable of recognising the relationship between electric energy, littering and air pollution. Learners are aware of the impact they as energy consumers have on the environment and could list methods according to which they creatively save energy on the school grounds and at their homes. Their performance is testament to a responsible attitude towards the environment and to the fact that they are convinced of the value of making people aware of environmental issues. From this, it can be inferred that, should channels and structures exist at schools by means of which learners can gain access to the management of their schools, they would be able to make contributions to promoting the sustainability of the environment.