Published: 2012-06-18
ISBN: 978-91-7519-849-1
ISSN: 1650-3686 (print), 1650-3740 (online)
Sustainable development (SD) in technology education is considered to be among the important areas for research by the technology education (TE) community. International experts who took part in Martin and Ritz’s Delphi study illustrated this point. TE teachers’ perceptions of SD and their readiness to address these issues through their teaching are essential for effective learning. Research conducted by Elshof (2005); Pitt and Luben (2009) and Pavlova (2009a) highlight the differences in teachers’ perceptions within the context of three countries. Although different methodologies were used in these studies; conclusions were similar: teachers’ perceptions of what were important and readiness to address these issues were reflected in classroom practices.
This paper extends these earlier studies by examining the results of a study of African technology education academics’ perception of SD and education for sustainable development (ESD). The paper is based on a survey conducted in January 2012. The paper highlights issues that are viewed as important by the African technology education academic community and that are relevant to a specific context. It uses a two-challenge framework (developed – developing countries SD challenges; UNDP; 2011) to interpret the results.
Education for sustainable development; academics’ perceptions; African context; nature of sustainable development; value change
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