Search Results (2,124)

The ultimate goal of integrating artificial intelligence into education is to ensure the long-term stability, quality, and sustainability of the educational process, turning it into a tool that consistently improves teaching and learning. Yet its sustainable and responsible integration depends largely on a positive mindset and the pedagogical willingness of future teachers. This study examines the attitudes and readiness of pre-service teachers, specializing in preschool, primary, and subject-specific science education, toward AI integration, with a specific focus on sustainable science education and Green Lab concepts. A mixed-methods study was conducted on a sample of 251 students from the University of Split. Data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, standard and Welch ANOVA with Tukey’s HSD and Games–Howell post hoc tests, and multiple linear regression in IBM SPSS 20, and qualitative content analysis. The findings reveal perceived usefulness as a primary driver of AI acceptance across all groups. Science students demonstrated the highest levels of ethical and critical sensitivity but provided the lowest ratings for AI’s practical application in sustainable science education, expressing cautious attitudes and distinct concerns about system reliability. However, no significant difference was found between students with and without a science background in regard to AI’s potential to facilitate sustainable scientific concepts. Furthermore, behavioral analysis demonstrated that even initial, occasional exposure to AI tools significantly boosted students’ perceptions of its utility and sustainable application compared to non-users, whereas increasing the frequency of use resulted in no additional gains. The transition toward sustainable science education requires moving beyond technical literacy toward a comprehensive framework that integrates pedagogical usefulness with ethical responsibility and sustainable scientific application. Future studies should explore potential models that combine the methodological creativity of pre-service educators and teachers with the analytical rigor of science students. Ultimately, this research underscores that an educational policy must integrate digital advancements while strictly maintaining ethical standards and the essential role of human supervision. Full article

In China’s latest mathematics curriculum, project-based learning (PBL) foregrounds mathematical problem solving (MPS) as student-led inquiry in authentic contexts. This study examines teachers’ beliefs about MPS within PBL, and how such beliefs are enacted in planning and teaching. Using a constant comparative approach, we drew on interviews, lesson plans, and reflective accounts from 14 mathematics teachers. Most teachers emphasised application and creativity, positioning themselves as guides/supporters who facilitate students’ exploration. Consistent with these beliefs, lesson plans commonly drew on personally and socially grounded contexts and featured challenging, open-ended tasks attending to cognitive breadth and depth. While espoused beliefs largely aligned with described implementation, a minority endorsed procedure-focused instruction, revealing tensions between exploration- and content-oriented approaches. Examining teachers’ beliefs can inform understanding of progress in curriculum reform. Sustained, long-term professional learning—supported by institutional resources and professional autonomy—is needed to help teachers navigate these tensions. Full article

This qualitative content analysis investigates how preservice teachers (PSTs) curate primary sources in early childhood and elementary social studies contexts, revealing the ideological implications of their instructional choices. Drawing on 347 selections submitted by 103 PSTs in a scaffolded, inquiry-based assignment, the study analyzes whether selections perpetuate dominant cultural narratives or reflect counternarratives and culturally sustaining practices. Findings indicate that while nearly half of all sources aligned with White, male, Eurocentric perspectives, a significant subset engaged historically marginalized voices, suggesting emergent but uneven commitments to inclusive representation. Selections varied in depth of reflection, often shaped by archival access, curricular constraints, and unexamined pedagogical habits. Grounded in Critical Educational Theory, Reflective Teaching Practices, and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, the study highlights the ideological weight of source selection and the need for teacher preparation programs to scaffold reflective, justice-oriented engagement with historical materials. These findings contribute to ongoing conversations about equity, civic responsibility, and culturally responsive teaching in early social studies education. Full article

This study aims to explore perceptions of English as a Second Language (ESL) students on integrations of local culture into English language teaching using Artificial Intelligence approaches. Research samples included 511 ESL students of the English Faculty of four public universities in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region. The input factor dimensions comprise demographics, level of local culture integration, facilities, and curriculum-related factors. The output factor was necessities for local culture–English-teaching integration. Two supervised machine learning algorithms, Decision Tree (DT) and Support Vector Machine (SVM), were applied with oversampling to address data imbalance issues. Results indicated that the oversampling case achieved the highest performance. The research shows that the DT model was slightly better than the SVM with an accuracy of 97% and AUC of 98%. Feature importance analysis identified curriculum, facilities, and students’ hometown as key predictors. The findings provided empirical evidence to support data-informed curriculum reform in culturally responsive English language teaching. This study also develops a novel method to explore students’ perceptions and offers practical suggestions for improving academic quality. This study is expected to enhance institutional student recruitment while contributing to the region’s sustainable development and the broader goal of preserving intangible cultural heritage in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. Full article

What does it mean to bring climate adaptation and sustainability “on the ground” into a Thuringian small town that is both urban and rural? From 2021 to 2024, we conducted a cooperative research project with the municipality to investigate this. For three years, the research partners explored ways to integrate the “big” topics of climate adaptation, sustainability, public services, and demographic change into the everyday urban development processes of a small town in rural Thuringia, an area experiencing long-term population decline. The result of the project is three volumes in the ISDN series that provide initial answers, which are often derived from the combination of research and teaching. One volume focuses on energy, housing, and mobility, presenting stakeholders, projects, and research results that can be used to address these issues locally in rural-urban municipalities more broadly. Another collects findings on socio-infrastructural planning, offering a dedicated perspective on gender and youth “in the countryside”. Ultimately, all socio-infrastructural planning activities aim to support an “Urban Social Cultural Care”. This article aims to contextualize transfer-oriented research within theoretical debates on sustainability transitions, paying special attention to the opportunities available to municipalities with limited administrative resources to enhance their own scope of action. Full article

Improving the quality of science and mathematics teaching remains a persistent challenge in resource-constrained education systems, highlighting the need for effective, sustainable professional development approaches. This study employed a quantitative cross-sectional survey designed to investigate science and mathematics teachers’ retrospective perceptions of the sustainability and professional value of lesson study professional development. Data were collected from 117 teachers who had participated in a lesson study intervention facilitated through a university–school partnership. The lesson study intervention occurred between 2012 and 2014, and data were collected retrospectively in 2018 to examine teachers’ sustained perceptions of its professional value. Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses revealed that teachers generally experienced lesson study as a meaningful, collaborative, and school-embedded professional development approach. Participants reported perceived improvement in content knowledge, pedagogical practices, lesson planning, reflective teaching, and professional collaboration. Strong positive correlations were found among teachers’ understanding of lesson study, collaboration, preparation, implementation, and professional learning. However, time constraints and the need for sustained institutional support were identified as key challenges to implementation. The findings suggest that teachers perceived lesson study as having sustained professional value within their school contexts. While based on retrospective self-reports, the results suggest that lesson study may contribute to collective professional cultures when supported institutionally. By fostering collaborative learning cultures and embedding professional learning into everyday teaching practice, lesson study may strengthen education systems and align with broader sustainable development goals. It is recommended that lesson study be institutionalised as a sustainable, school-embedded professional development approach, with future research examining its long-term impact on authentic teaching practices and learning outcomes. Full article

Severe occupational burnout among inclusive teachers poses a significant threat to building resilient and sustainable inclusive education systems. In the context of educational digital transformation, digital literacy emerges as a vital resource with the potential to reduce excessive job demands. However, the underlying pathways of this protective role remain underexplored. Addressing whether technological empowerment can effectively sustain inclusive educators, this study examined the serial mediating roles of time poverty and inclusive teaching efficacy in the relationship between digital literacy and teacher burnout. Based on a cross-sectional sample of 492 Chinese inclusive teachers, observed-variable path analysis was used to test the theoretical model across three core dimensions of occupational burnout. The results confirmed a full serial mediation model: digital literacy yielded no significant direct association with burnout; instead, its negative relationship with burnout was fully accounted for by lower time poverty and higher inclusive teaching efficacy. Furthermore, heterogeneous indirect pathways emerged across the burnout core dimensions: the indirect link to emotional exhaustion operated exclusively through perceived time poverty, whereas depersonalization and personal accomplishment were associated with both time poverty and teaching efficacy via independent and serial indirect paths. Although this cross-sectional design precludes inferring strict temporal sequences among the variables, these findings indicate that mere technical proficiency is insufficient to sustain teachers’ professional well-being. To effectively alleviate burnout among inclusive educators, digital literacy development must translate into tangible time savings and rebuild their confidence in inclusive teaching practices, thereby sustaining a healthy and effective inclusive teaching workforce. Full article

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 aims to make human capital the key driver of economic development and innovation. However, there is a dearth of research on employee well-being in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and in Saudi Arabia as well. There is a need to re-examine how the Kingdom’s unique cultural disposition (tribalism, gender segregation, religious customs, expatriate dependence) interacts with the well-being of their employees. With this background, the present study, by using an in-depth qualitative approach and integrating the JD-R model and sociocultural theory, attempts to provide a comprehensive framework for analyzing and understanding employee well-being outcomes among a Saudi public university’s staff members facing the impact of internationalization, digitalization, and policy reforms. The university chosen was one of the largest public universities of Saudi Arabia based in Jeddah. The qualitative approach adopted allowed for a rich, nuanced, and contextualized understanding of the lived experiences of well-being among the university’s teaching and non-teaching employees in their distinct sociocultural setting. The results suggest that while the JD-R model provides a useful starting point, sociocultural theory more adequately explains how cultural tools (religious and tribal identities) and structures (gender segregation, seniority policies) serve as both resources and demands. The reforms introduced under Vision 2030 have created tensions between the government’s new global, meritocratic goals for the sector and traditional Saudi sociocultural norms, with a negative spillover effect disproportionately borne by the expatriate staff, women, and administrative staff members. The study suggests that staff well-being should not be viewed as an outcome but as a precondition for successfully achieving Vision 2030 reform goals. In order to reduce attrition and ensure a more sustainable reform process, policymakers must balance their emphasis on performance with tangible support for human capital development. Full article

While existing curricula often focus on theoretical aspects of sustainability, they frequently fail to equip students with practical design skills required by the green industry. To address this disconnect, this study seeks to answer: How can a structured pedagogical framework effectively enhance students’ ability to translate abstract sustainability principles into concrete technical solutions? This study introduces a comprehensive CDIO-based framework reform for Embedded Intelligent Systems education, weaving sustainability throughout every phase. We put forward a “Sustainable CDIO Capability Model” that charts a progressive pathway—starting from basic resource awareness and advancing through to sophisticated sustainable system innovation. Our four-dimensional teaching strategy brings this model to life: first, project-based learning driven by real sustainability challenges; second, a hybrid ecosystem blending online resources, hands-on practice, and immersion in green industry contexts; third, hierarchical team-based pedagogy backed by personalized support mechanisms; and fourth, a multi-dimensional assessment system that weights energy efficiency, resource stewardship, and social value creation alongside conventional metrics. We implemented this approach with Intelligent Science and Technology majors at Wuhan Institute of Technology. The results show the model effectively bridges the persistent gap between dry technical content and the practical demands of green industry. Students made substantial gains not merely in core engineering capabilities—system architecture, hardware-software co-development—but crucially in sustainable design awareness and their capacity to untangle complex sustainability challenges. This work offers a readily transferable framework for embedding Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) into engineering curricula worldwide. It provides practitioners with a concrete, tested model for cultivating the next generation of engineers who naturally think and act with sustainability in mind. Full article

We present a transdisciplinary Teaching–Learning Sequence (TLS) for lower secondary school students that integrates climate change education with the promotion of gender equality in science. The TLS connects theoretical understanding with practical engagement through laboratory demonstrations, simulations, and accessible experiments. The sequence addresses key topics in sustainability education, including incoming and outgoing radiation, the greenhouse effect, energy transformations, and energy sources, through activities involving the electromagnetic spectrum, infrared imaging, selective transparency, absorption, and albedo. It also includes inquiry-based explorations of electromagnetic induction, miniature hydroelectric and wind power systems, Stirling engines, photovoltaic and concentrated solar technologies, and combustion-related CO₂ acidification. A distinctive feature of the TLS is the explicit integration of the social dimension of sustainability through discussion of the Matilda Effect and the historical case of Eunice Newton Foote, with the aim of challenging persistent gender stereotypes in STEM. The intervention was implemented with 12–13-year-old students and evaluated through pre- and post-tests, written explanations, closed-ended questions, drawings, and the Draw-A-Scientist Test. The results indicate a significant improvement in students’ understanding of climate-related scientific concepts and in their critical awareness of misinformation and climate denial strategies. While the sequence did not significantly increase students’ engagement in climate action, the gender-focused activities promoted strong critical reflection on stereotypes and on the role of women in science. Full article

Engineering computer graphics education frequently exhibits a gap between procedural CAD software (e.g., CATIA 2022) training and the strategic engineering reasoning required by industrial practice. This paper documents a holistic redesign of two advanced CAD courses. The study is framed within the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) tradition as a practitioner-led reflective case study. The redesign integrates four pedagogical mechanisms within an enterprise-CAD context: authentic problem-based learning, dual-layered asynchronous video scaffolding, software-agnostic heuristics (including pre-modelling cognitive mapping), and cognitive apprenticeship. The analysis triangulates three institutional data sources: quantitative Course Experience Survey indicators, qualitative student response themes, and twelve consecutive years of cohort-level academic performance records (2013–2024). The 2022 intervention iteration coincided with a marked elevation in academic performance. Grades reached approximately two standard deviations above the historical baseline. Concurrently, qualitative themes highlighted perceived industrial relevance and platform-portable confidence. However, performance in the post-intervention iterations (2023 and 2024) partially regressed. While scores remained above the historical mean, they did not sustain the 2022 peak. This pattern indicates partial sustainment, rather than evidence of a stable or definitive sustained pedagogical effect. This case is reported as descriptive rather than inferential. While the observed patterns align strongly with theoretical predictions, they do not establish definitive causal effects. Ultimately, the primary contribution of this study lies in documenting the integrated operationalization of these four mechanisms. Furthermore, it highlights longitudinal pedagogical sustainability as a critical, under-examined dimension that single-iteration evidence systematically obscures. Full article

Crafting STEM teaching into meaningful experiences can transform facts into knowledge. Immersive virtual reality (IVR) represents a significant pedagogical disruption, offering novel modalities of engagement with science content, extending beyond passive reception towards enhanced critical inquiry, reflective evaluation, and the cultivation of higher-order thinking skills. This study investigated how 20 Maltese students (mean age 12) adjusted their perceptions and acceptance of IVR when encountering it for the first time in formal STEM education. A quasi-experimental design was employed over six weeks, with data collected through pre- and post-intervention questionnaires. The analytical framework combined the Technological Frames of Reference (TFR) and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to capture perceptual snapshots and attitudinal shifts. While IVR initially stimulated enthusiasm, sustained exposure prompted critical reflections on its potential and limitations, particularly in relation to subject relevance, peer communication, and ease of use. Such deliberations are themselves suggestive indicators of reflective engagement. Rather than being demonstrated evidence of cognitive skill development, they are consistent with the early exercise of analytical and evaluative reasoning. These insights underscore the recursive dialog between technology-in-use and user contextualization, revealing how perceptions mature through experience. By examining how young learners engage with emergent technologies, this research highlights education’s role in cultivating adaptability, reflective judgment, and critical thinking capacities—central to innovative pedagogy and support for uncertain futures. Full article

Engaging students in sustainability challenges is often easier in theory than in practice. This study examines first-year French undergraduates’ patterns of engagement with the TEDS module (Transition Ecologique pour un Développement Soutenable), a nationwide programme developed in France to promote ecological transition and sustainable development. Data were collected through an online questionnaire comprising 24 closed- and open-ended questions exploring students’ self-reported familiarity with, understanding of, concern about, and self-reported intentions to engage in sustainability-related actions, as well as perceived learning needs and background characteristics. Only 18 questions (143 items) were included in the present analysis, covering all dimensions except those related to the evaluation of the training programme. Results indicate that environmental concern is the factor most strongly associated with self-reported engagement intention, despite persistent gaps in conceptual understanding, particularly regarding the Anthropocene and alternative socio-economic models. Knowledge score and concern are structured hierarchically according to issue visibility, with climate change ranking highest. Engagement depends not only on concern but also on perceived opportunities for action, yet students struggle to identify concrete pathways. The absence of significant differences across gender and disciplines points to a strong generational convergence that reshapes the determinants of environmental engagement. Overall, the key challenge for sustainability education is linking systemic knowledge to concrete contexts of learning and everyday life. Full article

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

Students’ reading preferences and voices are increasingly relevant for informing teaching practices and strengthening students’ motivation and engagement with reading, thus making their reading experiences meaningful. However, in Chile, there is still little evidence regarding the reading preferences and perspectives of primary school students. Therefore, this study analyzes students’ preferences and perceptions of the texts assigned by their teachers, as well as the pedagogical practices for reading mediation applied across various subjects in the La Araucanía Region of southern Chile. To this end, using a qualitative, multiple-case study design, we conducted 9 discussion groups on reading mediation and discourse genres with 96 students in grades 3–6, each connected to one of 6 outstanding teachers. Thus, we applied an inductive content analysis, constructing categories through initial coding, focused coding, and interpretive analysis, all of which underwent triple review and calibration by team members. The findings show that, in general, students value the support and scaffolding their teachers provide to facilitate reading, comprehension, and participation. However, they express a desire for greater agency in selecting texts and for more opportunities to engage in dialogue around these texts, especially in subjects other than Language Arts. These results highlight the importance of reading mediation across subjects, including student text selection and dialogic interaction, to promote motivation and sustained reading practices in primary education. Full article