The urgent and rapidly changing sustainability challenges, such as climate change, food security and loss of biodiversity, facing society today require people to develop the competences necessary to deal responsibly and actively with knowledge uncertainty and complexity. This inquiry, based on doctoral research, examined pedagogical strategies teachers can employ to enhance children’s development of ‘uncertainty competences’, which are defined as the knowledge, skills, strategies, dispositions, and values, as well as the ability to effectively mobilise these attributes to manage knowledge uncertainty (Tauritz, 2016; 2019). Organising uncertainty competences into three categories further emphasises that learning how to deal with uncertainty involves not only learning how to reduce uncertainty, but also accepting that it may not be possible or even desirable to eliminate all uncertainty. Indeed, I and other scholars (Barnett, 2012; Brown & Beames, 2017; Jordan, 2015; Lambrechts, 2020; Langer, 2014; Sahr, 2019; Wals, 2019) propose a paradigm in which uncertainty and complexity are valued and actively invited into the learning environment where they are seen as fundamental driving forces in education.

The study’s rationale stems from the dearth of research specifically addressing teaching uncertainty competences in primary education, and the existence of even fewer studies that provide teachers with clear guidelines regarding how such competences can be developed by their students (Tauritz, 2012). The principal aim of the study was to more deeply understand the current strategies and practices teachers employed when teaching children about complex and uncertain sustainability topics. As the study progressed it became evident that choosing a teaching strategy was a key element of the learning environment that the teacher is uniquely able to influence, and one that can be used to invite uncertainty into the learning process. One key element of the teaching strategy, namely language and questions, held particular interest. This focus was inspired in part by Langer’s (1992, 2000, 2014, 2016) concept of conditional language which refers to stating that things could be true, rather than saying they are true (Langer et al., 1989). Studies by Langer (2014) have shown that when students are taught in a conditional manner, which allows uncertainty regarding the presented information into the classroom, they develop a less rigid perspective (Langer & Piper, 1987), are more sensitive to context (Langer, 2000), are willing to question that information and to employ it more creatively (Langer et al., 1989). The creation of new categories involves re-examining ideas (Davenport & Pagnini, 2016) and potentially letting go of assumptions about the (un)certainty of information. I propose that it also involves lateral thinking, leaving behind preconceptions and encouraging new approaches to problem-solving. Uncertainty can thus become an invitation to let go of the obvious and create the new understandings (Fatemi, 2016) we so desperately need in working towards finding solutions for complex sustainability challenges.

This interpretive, multiple case study focused on Scottish children in the final two years of primary school (typically ages 9 to 11), since these children are increasingly confronted with complex environmental issues, both inside and outside the classroom. Teachers in the study reasoned that most children of this age are ready to engage with complex issues and able to venture beyond the security of right and wrong answers. Principal data collection involved one observation in each of four classrooms and three observations in one classroom during lessons about complex and interdisciplinary sustainability topics selected by the teachers. These topics included global warming, dams and species reintroduction. In total 133 children and five teachers participated. The classroom interactions between teachers and children were captured using audio recordings and field notes, and complemented by focus-group interviews with children and interviews with teachers. Secondary data were derived from children’s assignments and teaching resources. None of the data collection methods had explanatory precedence over the others, all datasets were employed to create a richer picture of what transpired in the classroom. The data collection and preliminary data analysis occurred alternately, the latter involved listening to the recordings, checking fieldnotes, teaching resources and assignments for anything that seemed relevant to the research questions. During the next phase interpretive content analysis was employed. During the first coding cycle correspondence patterns were searched for, in particular patterns that might reveal relationships between teaching strategies teachers employed and the opportunities that were potentially created for developing uncertainty competences. At the end of the first cycle the coding framework consisted of 12 categories and 72 codes. During the second coding cycle a process ensued that Stake (1995) refers to as thematic aggregation. The five themes that emerged from this process are the key elements of a teaching strategy focused on teaching uncertainty competences: learning objectives, topic, learning activities, teaching resources and language and questions. Seven data verification strategies were applied to enhance the credibility of this interpretive research project. In addition, detailed narratives of the different classrooms were created to enhance the transferability of the findings to other cases.

During the data analysis and explorations in the field of psycholinguistics four things became clear. First, with more knowledge of conditional language it is possible to communicate with more clarity and nuance about the uncertainty inherent to complex sustainability challenges and avoid binary thinking. Second, that Langer’s concept could be expanded and enriched to address how teachers might integrate conditional language, including specific vocabulary and relevant grammar into their classroom communication. Third, that it would be useful for children to actively learn how conditional language can be used to communicate about the certainty of knowledge related to sustainability challenges. Fourth, that questions can be phrased both unconditionally and conditionally, and that the latter facilitates the development of particular uncertainty competences. These realisations led to the emergence of a new concept: Language of Conditionality. Language of conditionality consists of vocabulary, grammar and questions of conditionality. The first two concepts refer to the words, grammatical rules and linguistic devices that allow clear and nuanced communication about the uncertainty and complexity inherent to sustainability challenges. The third refers to a variety of questions that invite uncertainty into the learning process. Teaching the language of conditionality lays a constructive groundwork for the exploration of complex and uncertain sustainability challenges. The study found that the classroom teacher who primarily used language of conditionality in lessons about sustainability topics created space for the children to explore multiple perspectives, come with creative answers, question the certainty of knowledge, and practice dealing with uncertainty. The teachers were often not aware of the ways in which their use of language of conditionality influenced learning and provided opportunities for uncertainty competences development. The research suggests there is value in incorporating reflection on the use of language and the discussion of uncertainty competences in teacher education.

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