Evaluation of Sustainability in the Teaching of University Professors: Construction and Validation of a Self-diagnostic Questionnaire

Author(s):

Pilar Aznar-Minguet(presenting / submitting)M Angeles Ull Albert Piñero M Pilar Martínez-Agut

Conference:

ECER 2014

Network:

30. Environmental and Sustainability Education Research (ESER)

Format:

Poster

Session Information

30 SES 05.5 PS, General Poster Session

General Poster Session

Time:

2014-09-03

12:30-14:00

Room:

Poster Area E (in front of B001-B003)

Chair:

Jonas Lysgaard

Contribution

This communication focuses on the assessment of sustainability in university teaching, in order to promote training actions aimed to introduce the principles and values related to sustainability in the various plans of study/qualifications of higher education. All students, once graduated from the system, should be trained and competent for, from their different locations and areas of work, make decisions and perform actions, both in professional and personal life, from consistent with environmental and socially sustainable human development criteria. The teaching staff represents the strategic reason in this process.

For this reason, the objective of this study is to facilitate professional self-evaluation of the University teaching staff from Sustainability criteria. To achieve this has been built and validated a self-diagnostic instrument on the inclusion of Sustainability in the teaching-learning processes. The instrument make constant references to three concepts free of unambiguous significance; by what previously proceed to a conceptual clarification of the sense has been used: sustainability, competence, competences for sustainability, and values related to sustainability.

Method

The methodology applied in the construction and validation of the instrument has followed the following steps: A) The background information on the topic and methods document review; B) Initial draft of the items of the questionnaire including all relevant aspects related to the problem to study; C) Valuation of the items by 12 experts in the field judges, subject to the criteria of validity, location, uniqueness and intelligibility; D) Treatment of the items in the questionnaire from the assessment made by the judges; E) Drafting of the self-diagnostic questionnaire; F) Design of the computer application for the auto-complete by the teaching staff and to obtain the results of the self-assessment; G) Pilot application of the self-assessment questionnaire to 30 teachers of different subjects and with different characteristics; H) Detection of inconsistencies; I) Final drafting of the questionnaire

Expected Outcomes

Results: The self-assessment questionnaire has been published on the website of the University of Valencia and it is located in the Virtual Classroom for their completion by the teaching staff and the subsequent treatment of results. Built instrument has made it possible to assess the actual teaching activity of teachers in four areas: a) sustainability in the contents and activities of the subject that is taught; (b) the sustainability in the attitudes and behaviors of the teacher; (c) the training of the teacher in relation to sustainability; and (d) sustainability in teacher use of the resources and waste generated.

References

AZNAR MINGUET, P. (2006) El reto educativo de la sostenibilidad en el marco europeo de la educación superior. En Escolano Benito, A.: Educación superior y desarrollo sostenible. Editorial Biblioteca Nueva. Madrid. AZNAR MINGUET, P. y Ull. M.A. (2012) La responsabilidad por un mundo sostenible. Respuestas educativas a padres y profesores. Bilbao. Editorial Desclee de Brouwer. AZNAR MINGUET,P.; ULL,M.A.;. PIÑERO, A.; MARTINEZ-AGUT, M.P. (2014) La sostenibilidad en la formación universitaria: desafíos y oportunidades. Revista Educación XX1. Nº 1:133-158. GOMEZ DE BALUGERA, Z; RAMOS,J.A.; SANCHO,J.; ARRUGAETA,J.; CASTAÑEDA,S.; Y BERRIO-OTXOA,L.Mª (2008) Manual de Autodiagnóstico para la ambientalización curricular en las enseñanzas universitarias y no universitarias. CD. ISBN: 978-84-612-00IB-4. Edit. Universidad del País Vasco. Escuela Universitaria de Ingeniería. Vitoria-Gasteiz. TAYLOR, P. (Ed.) (2008) La educación superior en el mundo: nuevos retos y roles emergentes para el desarrollo humano y social. Global University Network for Innovation (GUNI)/Ediciones Mundi Prensa. Madrid. UNESCO (2005) Directrices y recomendaciones encaminadas a reorientar la formación de docentes para abordar el tema de la sostenibilidad. Documento Técnico nº 2: La educación para el desarrollo sostenible en la práctica. ED-2005/WS/66) cld-250BI. París.

Author Information

Pilar Aznar-Minguet (presenting / submitting)

Universidad de Valencia

Teoria de la Educacion

Valencia

M Angeles Ull

Universidad de Valencia

ERI de Estudios de Sostenibilidad

Valencia

Albert Piñero

Universidad de Valencia, Spain

M Pilar Martínez-Agut