we need to identify the level and degree of sustainability in a course and then we're going to compare the level with changes to student views, attitudes and behaviours towards sustainability
Well you need first to define what is sustainability on your context (class room, students, etc). Based on that definition you can develop indicators (waste production, energy use, car use, etc) You should balance the indicators so they can be comparable among students and clasess. With those indicators you can develop a simple benchmark system in which you can compare the indicators on a multidimesional way. PS. few well thought indicators are better than many indicators
To determine sustainability you must first define the concept. What problem is solved by your course? What do stakeholders think of your course? What will the course offer to students? What degree of generic knowledge is applied? Which domain specific knowledge is applied? Is their practical use for the course? What is required of the students?
Good luck, interesting and challenging assignment.
As you know sustainability is a wide concept. First of all you should conceptualize the sustainability in your context. But a very short and clear of meaning of sustainability in a training course context could be institutionalizing the participation of all stockholders in the taring course. Who are the different stockholders in a training course? Students, teacher, administration team of the training center , ....could be consider as the stakeholders of training. more over making powerful linkage among the philosophy of training and different components of education and learning process should be considered. and whenever you could institutionalize the participation of all the stakeholders in the training course and see the result of the learning process: changing behavior of the learners you can say the course has been sustain.
Hi, it is advisible to define conceptually sustantability and Its indicators related. Estar that you have to construct an instrument that include them. Then you have to invite some experts in the fileld in orden to validate the indicators and maybe some answers about grading the answers. Then you have to pilot it with some teachers equal in characteridits to evaluate. Final you have to determine the reliability. After some weeks you will have your instrument to evaluate and you can publish it.
Sorry if I interpret you wrongly: are you looking for an instrument to measure the effort and level of a total curriculum or in one course? In a curriculum I would identify the number of courses that mention (identified) sustainability issues in their material and more importantly in their assessment.
The enclosed paper does not answer your questions, it was our effort to try to find out what students learned on a 30Ec (half year) project on People Planet Profit.
Hi Steven , many thanks for your response and paper - it certainly looks interesting and I will share it with my engineering academic colleagues. We are conducting a large multi-university research study looking the impact of sustainaiblity in the curriculum of particular courses (or units/subjects) on students views, knowledge and behaviour towards sustaianbility. So, your report interesting - thanks for sharing. You may find an earlier paper of mine of interest to your work.