Environmental conceptios knowledge and attitudes of secondary students in Lebanon
Kanbar, Nancy Nabil
Environmental conceptios knowledge and attitudes of secondary students in Lebanon - Beirut Université Libanaise - Faculté de Pédagogie - Deanship 2001 - 122 pages
النوع : Mémoire
The purpose of this study was to assess environmental conceptions, knowledge and attitudes of the first-secondary class students in Lebanon after the implementation of the new curriculum. The study also explored the relationship between environmental knowledge and attitudes and other variables, namely school location (Greater Beirut vs. out of Beirut), type (public vs. private), membership in an environmental club (enrolled in an environmental club vs. not enrolled), gender, and student’s living place (big city or small town vs. village). A representative sample of 409 students was selected in ten Lebanese schools in a stratified sampling fashion. The three main strata of the study were: school location, school type, and membership in an environmental club. To fulfill the study objectives, students were administered a questionnaire designed in four major parts; namely, respondent environmental conceptions (REC), personal information, knowledge questions, and attitude questions. The participants’ environmental conceptions were analyzed and their knowledge of general environmental topics was described and measured. Additionally, environmental attitudes, in terms of beliefs and commitment to environmentally friendly behaviors were presented and assessed. The main findings related to the students’ environmental conceptions indicated that 88.75% of the respondents associated the term “environment” with “pollution”. In addition, remits revealed that students did not realize the importance of the environment in its multidimensional nature. In fact, the majority of the sample related the “environment” to its ecological dimension only. The other environmental dimensions (cultural/ aesthetic, economic, technological, etc.) were barely mentioned. Furthermore, results showed that students possessed inadequate environmental knowledge and favorable attitudes towards the environment. In fact, 65% of the respondents got a “failing” knowledge score indicating poor environmental knowledge, whereas 81.7% of the sample succeeded to get an attitude score above the passing grade indicating an overall favorable environmental attitude. In order to assess whether participants’ environmental knowledge and attitudes were related to each other and to other study variables, statistical tests (T-test, Chi-square, and correlation) were then conducted. Results indicated that students attending private schools had significantly higher environmental knowledge scores than those attending public schools. Furthermore, male participants scored significantly higher than females on environmental knowledge. Also, knowledge scores of participants living in a big city or small town were significantly higher than those living in a village. As far as environmental altitudes are concerned, females scored significantly higher than males. Students enrolled in environmental clubs had significantly higher mean attitude scores than those not enrolled in such clubs, and mean attitude scores for students residing in a village were statistically higher than those living in a big city or a small town. In addition, results indicated that a significant but low correlation existed (r = 0.377) between participants’ environmental knowledge and attitudes.
Cycle Secondaire
Education pour l’environnement
Environmental education
Les Attitudes et conceptions des étudiants
Secondary Education
Students Attitudes and Conceptions
التربية البيئية
المرحلة الثانوية
مواقف الطلبة وتصوراتهم
Environmental conceptios knowledge and attitudes of secondary students in Lebanon - Beirut Université Libanaise - Faculté de Pédagogie - Deanship 2001 - 122 pages
النوع : Mémoire
The purpose of this study was to assess environmental conceptions, knowledge and attitudes of the first-secondary class students in Lebanon after the implementation of the new curriculum. The study also explored the relationship between environmental knowledge and attitudes and other variables, namely school location (Greater Beirut vs. out of Beirut), type (public vs. private), membership in an environmental club (enrolled in an environmental club vs. not enrolled), gender, and student’s living place (big city or small town vs. village). A representative sample of 409 students was selected in ten Lebanese schools in a stratified sampling fashion. The three main strata of the study were: school location, school type, and membership in an environmental club. To fulfill the study objectives, students were administered a questionnaire designed in four major parts; namely, respondent environmental conceptions (REC), personal information, knowledge questions, and attitude questions. The participants’ environmental conceptions were analyzed and their knowledge of general environmental topics was described and measured. Additionally, environmental attitudes, in terms of beliefs and commitment to environmentally friendly behaviors were presented and assessed. The main findings related to the students’ environmental conceptions indicated that 88.75% of the respondents associated the term “environment” with “pollution”. In addition, remits revealed that students did not realize the importance of the environment in its multidimensional nature. In fact, the majority of the sample related the “environment” to its ecological dimension only. The other environmental dimensions (cultural/ aesthetic, economic, technological, etc.) were barely mentioned. Furthermore, results showed that students possessed inadequate environmental knowledge and favorable attitudes towards the environment. In fact, 65% of the respondents got a “failing” knowledge score indicating poor environmental knowledge, whereas 81.7% of the sample succeeded to get an attitude score above the passing grade indicating an overall favorable environmental attitude. In order to assess whether participants’ environmental knowledge and attitudes were related to each other and to other study variables, statistical tests (T-test, Chi-square, and correlation) were then conducted. Results indicated that students attending private schools had significantly higher environmental knowledge scores than those attending public schools. Furthermore, male participants scored significantly higher than females on environmental knowledge. Also, knowledge scores of participants living in a big city or small town were significantly higher than those living in a village. As far as environmental altitudes are concerned, females scored significantly higher than males. Students enrolled in environmental clubs had significantly higher mean attitude scores than those not enrolled in such clubs, and mean attitude scores for students residing in a village were statistically higher than those living in a big city or a small town. In addition, results indicated that a significant but low correlation existed (r = 0.377) between participants’ environmental knowledge and attitudes.
Cycle Secondaire
Education pour l’environnement
Environmental education
Les Attitudes et conceptions des étudiants
Secondary Education
Students Attitudes and Conceptions
التربية البيئية
المرحلة الثانوية
مواقف الطلبة وتصوراتهم