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Education Sciences
Special Issues
Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators
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Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators

A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2026 | Viewed by 2236

Editors

Dr. Jeana Kriewaldt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne, Melbourne 3010, Australia
Interests: education for sustainable development; geographical education, professional teacher development; mentoring in school and higher education; research on teaching methods, curriculum theory & teacher education
Dr. Sally Windsor

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pedagogical, Curricular and Professional Studies, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
Interests: education for sustainable development; sustainability education in schools; social sustainability; international teacher workforce and policy comparisons; the implications of globalization on school education

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Teaching plays a fundamental role in advancing sustainable futures. The educator workforce across all education sectors is asked to include sustainability among the competing demands of curricula imperatives. Preservice and continuing educators need to be knowledgeable and well prepared to contribute to the education of their pupils who are the future custodians of the planet. This is a challenging remit given the interconnected planetary issues including water scarcity, food insecurity, inequality and climate change. The pivotal role of educators in preparing people of all ages to respond to these issues, reimagine what their future is as a global citizen, and who will commit to contributing to a more just knowledge society and sustainable future.

This Special Issue will explore some of these opportunities and explore approaches for incorporating sustainable futures in education by focusing on the critical role of teacher professional development. We invite articles that explore this focus including retheorising conceptions of how teachers understand sustainability, how they intersect with curriculum directives, teaching methods, leadership actions enable teacher growth and the foundation to build a deeper understanding of sustainable futures among their students. We are particularly interested in contributions that consider wide ranging aspects of teaching for planetary wellbeing.

A broad range of manuscripts are invited, including those with an emphasis on the following themes:

  • Educators’ beliefs and knowledge that underpin their capacity to teach for a better future;
  • Teacher development from across the career span for sustainable futures;
  • Innovations in teacher preparation for sustainable futures;
  • Professional development approaches;
  • Collaborative approaches to the teacher education and continuing professional development;
  • Didaktik and pedagogy in/for ESD;
  • Key competencies for ESD;
  • The importance of place-centred experiences for educators for sustainable futures;
  • Psychological research on educators in their sustainable professional development;
  • University curricula and sustainable futures;
  • School and early childhood curricula and sustainable futures;
  • Inclusive education and sustainable futures;
  • The contributions of various disciplines, and interdisciplinary lenses including from environmental education to educator growth;
  • Education for citizenship and social justice.

We encourage contributors to explore theoretical frameworks, present empirical studies, and share practical insights on the professional development of educators at all levels to work towards sustainable futures. Submissions should demonstrate a clear research methodology, present novel findings, and offer implications for both research and practice.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Jeana Kriewaldt
Dr. Sally Windsor
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • curriculum and sustainable futures
  • education for sustainable development
  • didaktik and sustainability
  • key competencies
  • inclusive education and sustainability
  • environmental and geographical education
  • citizenship and social justice education

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 246 KB  
Article
Reconceptualising the Nature of Science for a Flourishing Planet
by Andy Markwick and Amy Strachan
Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(7), 1028; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16071028 - 29 Jun 2026
Viewed by 210
Abstract
Debates concerning the Nature of Science (NoS) have increasingly acknowledged its epistemic, cultural, ethical, and social dimensions. Recent scholarship has further foregrounded issues of equity, identity, and justice within science education. While these developments represent significant progress, this article argues that dominant conceptualisations [...] Read more.
Debates concerning the Nature of Science (NoS) have increasingly acknowledged its epistemic, cultural, ethical, and social dimensions. Recent scholarship has further foregrounded issues of equity, identity, and justice within science education. While these developments represent significant progress, this article argues that dominant conceptualisations of NoS remain fundamentally anthropocentric and insufficiently responsive to the ecological crises that define the Anthropocene. Drawing on Earth System Science, eco-centric theory, post-human theory and Indigenous and local knowledges, this paper proposes a planetary-conscious reconceptualisation of NoS. This framework retains the methodological rigour and evidential standards of Western science while expanding epistemic boundaries to include relational, place-based, and intergenerational ways of knowing. We argue that eco-centric and post-human theoretical frameworks offer essential pedagogical approaches for supporting young people to develop deeper connections with nature, fostering care-based relationships with the more-than-human world, and building resilience for sustainable futures. Such a reconceptualisation is necessary not only for scientific literacy but for the protection and enhancement of planetary health. Implications for curriculum, pedagogy, and teacher education are discussed, with particular attention to primary science education. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators)
16 pages, 1989 KB  
Article
Teachers’ Understandings of Using a Game in Sustainability Education—A Case Study from Sweden
by Therése Wahlström, Sally Windsor and Maria Svensson
Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 975; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16060975 - 19 Jun 2026
Viewed by 692
Abstract
There is a pressing need for education regarding sustainability and previous research has focused more on students and less on teachers. This article explores teachers’ understandings of using the game Climate Call, which covers carbon dioxide content, in the General Science classroom to [...] Read more.
There is a pressing need for education regarding sustainability and previous research has focused more on students and less on teachers. This article explores teachers’ understandings of using the game Climate Call, which covers carbon dioxide content, in the General Science classroom to teach sustainability. This case study involved four teachers and six upper secondary classes in Sweden, from whom data was collected through fieldnotes, video recordings and interviews. The data has been analysed through the framework of the didactical tetrahedron, modelling the interactions between teacher, student, sustainability and the game in teaching and learning. The results indicate that teachers recognise new opportunities for teaching sustainability and for using the game’s content to highlight other aspects of the subject. The game also creates new interaction opportunities between students and teachers, though not all interactions were without obstacles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators)
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17 pages, 1225 KB  
Article
Self-Efficacy of Pre-Service Educators in Facilitating Youth Civic Engagement for the Environment
by Elle Henson, Megan Ennes and Emily Cayton
Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 916; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16060916 - 9 Jun 2026
Viewed by 259
Abstract
With environmental issues growing globally, action for environmental protection is necessary to prevent further loss of biodiversity. One avenue for addressing these issues is through civic action. While programs have been developed to introduce youth to civic action during adolescence with the help [...] Read more.
With environmental issues growing globally, action for environmental protection is necessary to prevent further loss of biodiversity. One avenue for addressing these issues is through civic action. While programs have been developed to introduce youth to civic action during adolescence with the help of trained educators, little is known about educator self-efficacy (SE) in facilitating this type of program. To assess the SE of pre-service educators (PSEs) in facilitating a civic action curriculum, a workshop was hosted to introduce 30 PSEs to the process of a civic action project. This workshop was used to conduct an exploratory study with a convenience sample of PSEs. A mixed-methods pre- and post-survey with no control group was used to compare SE before and after the workshop. A statistically significant increase in SE was observed from the pre- to the post-survey (p < 0.01), suggesting an increase in PSE SE in guiding youth through a civic engagement project. Additionally, open-ended questions about PSE’s understanding of civic engagement suggested that the educators had a limited understanding of civic engagement for youth prior to the workshop but improved their understanding following the workshop. While limited by the exploratory nature and small sample size, these findings suggest that PSEs may benefit from participation in similar workshops to support their self-efficacy to facilitate youth-led civic action projects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators)
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17 pages, 296 KB  
Article
Professional Readiness for Education for Sustainable Development: Development and Validation of the Teachers’ Intention to Implement ESD Scale
by Nena Vukelić
Educ. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 900; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16060900 - 5 Jun 2026
Viewed by 243
Abstract
As educators play a pivotal role in advancing sustainable futures, understanding their readiness to translate sustainability-related knowledge and values into teaching practice has become an important concern in teacher education and professional development research. This study aims to develop and validate a measurement [...] Read more.
As educators play a pivotal role in advancing sustainable futures, understanding their readiness to translate sustainability-related knowledge and values into teaching practice has become an important concern in teacher education and professional development research. This study aims to develop and validate a measurement instrument assessing student teachers’ intention to implement education for sustainable development (ESD). By operationalizing intention as a proximal indicator of future-oriented professional readiness for ESD, the study addresses the need for empirically grounded tools that capture educators’ preparedness to engage in sustainability-oriented teaching. The Intention to Implement ESD Scale (IESDS) was developed through a theory-informed item construction process grounded in ESD literature, teacher agency, and competence-oriented approaches to sustainable education. The instrument was validated on a sample of 706 student teachers enrolled in the final years of teacher education programs. The findings indicate that a bifactor model provided the best fit to the data, with a dominant general factor supporting the interpretation of the IESDS as a primarily unidimensional measure of intention to implement ESD. In addition, intention to implement ESD was positively associated with teacher self-efficacy for ESD, providing evidence of convergent validity and reinforcing the role of perceived capability in sustainability-oriented professional action. The IESDS can support teacher education institutions and professional development providers in monitoring and strengthening educators’ readiness for sustainability-oriented teaching. It may be used to evaluate the effectiveness of courses, modules, and professional learning interventions aimed at promoting teaching for sustainable futures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Teaching for Sustainable Futures: Prospects for Professional Growth for Educators)
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