DEVELOPING ACTION COMPETENCE

Elements in action competence
Students must work on environmental problems critically
The action concept in environmental education
The action concept and the importance of including it
Student co-influence
Evaluation Themes

Elements in action competence

In the research connected with the MUVIN project (Breiting et al, 1998)the components in the action competence were investigated, among others, by the help of a questionnaire which more than 1700 students responded to.

The questionnaire concentrated especially on three components that are regarded as being important for the development of student action competence:

The results of the questionnaire showed that the fundamentals in MUVIN (p….) i.e. the concentration on the conflict of interests, student influence, activity orientated learning, the action aspect etc. had enhanced all these three components for large majority of the students. It has added impetus to the belief that precisely these aspects of the teaching are important to continue working on in the development of environmental education.

Another important result of the survey was that students who indicate, for example, a great wish to act on the basis of the teaching also give considerable expression to their having acquired knowledge of action possibilities and belief in their own influence from the environmental education they had participated in (see figure)

In other words the three components are closely bound together, so that a strengthening of one of the components seems to have a great influence on the others. Hence there is great potential in environmental education the aim of which is to develop student action competence by weighting one or more of these components.

But also other components are significant in connection with student action competence:

knowledge about environmental problems:
In the MUVIN project especially the conflict of interests concept turned out to be a good starting point for the students’ understanding of the problem they were working on.

seek normative arguments:
The value aspect attached to environmental problems draws close attention to the students learning to use normative or ethical arguments when they are to discuss alternatives and visions.

insight into united potential:
this aspect of action competence means that a democratic management of the action possibilities should be regarded as an individual as well as a collective point of view.

These results from the MUVIN project indicate that the following didactic considerations in connection with the planning of the teaching can contribute towards strengthening student action competence
 

Students must work on environmental problems critically

The development projects have shown that it is important for the students to learn to ask questions that enquire into the background of the immediate – that they have learned to be critical in their work on environmental problems. They must be able to gain insight into some of the basic aspects of a problem issue, analyse and assess it so they have a good basis for discussing possible action activities meaningfully. The idea of students learning to work critically is emphasised in order to develop their critical thinking (e.g. Mogensen, 1998, Schnack, 1994)

It can thus be claimed that critical thinking relates to several aspects of the work on an environmental problem:


’How’

The concept of ’criticism’ or ’being critical’ in environmental education may give the impression or associations of the teaching being shaded with negative attitudes, where everything to do with environmental problems is a question of tearing to pieces, of finding scape goats, or that there is a predisposition to be against everything and everybody.

But this has nothing at all to do with being critical. On the contrary, critical thinking is a particular way of looking at problem issues where the question is finding and working on the reasons for why ’things are as they are’. Working on the reasons provides the opportunity to find the causes of environmental problems:

”What are the reasons for the farmer spraying with pesticides?”
”What are the consumers reason for choosing some goods rather than others?”
”Who benefits from goods being produced as cheap as possible?
”What, in the long run, can eating pesticide treated food do to our health?”
” Is it really true that…?”

Being critical means in other words getting an understanding of why the conditions are as they are and reflecting on preconceived opinions and appearances. It does not mean being against beforehand, of being a notorious ”no sayer”.
 

”What”

This means the students getting the opportunity to understand the environmental problems from several points of view i.e. that they conceive and work on the problem as a conflict of interests from which they derive a nuanced impression which can help them in their clarification of the environmental question.
 

” Why”

Then it is important that the students get an opportunity to assess and decide whether something should be changed, and if this is the case: how? Student proposals or visions for the future have frequently provided interesting and lively discussions in class, thus making the students feel that environmental education is exciting and inspiring. The students ”are forced ” to provide arguments for their case and give reasons.

”At school we would like the students to learn to act..…it is no easy task; but if we can get the students to see a case from more than one side and to realise that it helps when the individual contributes, then we feel we are well on the way. That is why we believe it is important to introduce the conflict of interests concept at an early stage in school. By working with conflicts of interests the children practice finding arguments for and against different points of view. In discussions and role plays we were often exposed to children thinking it was irritating and difficult when there was no given solution or sole answer to a problem. Here it is important and speeds development of the students when they themselves reach a decision on what they think is the best solution”.
 

The action concept in environmental education

What the students do actively to try to counteract or influence the environmental problem they are working on has proved to be a very constructive element in a teaching form which seeks to develop student action competence.

A Green City course can illustrate this. A class of 10-year-olds was working on the problem ”Have we got a sensible choice/use of packaging?” As one side to the course the students investigated, among other things, the amount and type of packaging in various local shops, analysed the plastic and paper packaging from a ”cradle to grave” point of view, visited recycling firms in the plastic industry, made a role play to expose the conflict of interests in the use of packaging, and constructed a questionnaire to reveal attitudes towards packaging.

On the basis of the knowledge they hereby acquired and especially the questions that arose from the investigation, they wrote, among others, to the Packaging Board to enquire about the labelling of packaging, to town hall administration about waste sorting, and to various producers about the amount of packaging on selected goods.

The students discovered, among other things, that the plastic containers with liquid used for wind screen washing sold at service stations were not recycled. They discussed what to do and in Cupertino with the teacher agreed to write to the petrol company concerned and suggested recycling. They received an answer saying that the company thought it was a good idea and that they would seriously consider making moves towards establishing a system on the basis of their enquiry.
 

The action concept and the importance of including it

The example of the 10-year-olds indicates that two criteria are needed in order that a certain activity can be regarded as an action:

This limitation of the action concept means that the teacher does not decide beforehand what possible actions the students can undertake, but must involve them in the decision. This does not mean that any activity the students decide to carry out can be regarded as an action. If, for instance they agree to investigate the level of pollution in a lake, this may be a good activity, but it cannot be regarded as an action.

The reason for the action aspect in environmental education is first and foremost to be seen in relation to the cognitive and involvement value it can have for the students by providing them with the opportunity to get involved in the problem they are working on. The value of the action is therefore to be measured on the basis of educational criteria and not whether they succeed or not in ”solving” the specific environmental problem.

In the example with the 10 year olds the teacher evaluated the course so the first three comments are those of the students and the last two are her own:

- we know something many other children and grown ups don’t know
- other people also listen to us
- there is more than one side to a case

- a balance was kept so the children neither went into ”an environmental coma” nor remained at a
  ”black and white” level
- it was possible to make the action competence exemplary. The fact that they expressed their
   opinions/addressed themselves to others will be a tool for them in other situations.

The evaluation thus indicates that the students not only have got a sound and differentiated insight into the use of packaging, their working with action possibilities and the large number of enquiries they made and the answers they received have no doubt increased their belief in their participation and influence on solutions of environmental problems. They were pleased and proud that they had been listened to. According to the teacher they had a clear sensation of having had influence on the development in the packaging field.

Seen from an educational point of view the experience gained by the students when working on the problem and on the action possibilities is of great value. And when discussing learning and school this type of experience is far more valuable than the ”visible” result of the course i.e. the petrol company’s possible introduction of a recycling system – though obviously such a system does not make the experience less valuable.

Responses from students in the MUVIN project to a questionnaire clearly show that the action aspect should have its place in environmental education (Breiting et al, 1998). 75% of the students expressed a wish to try to do something about the environmental problem they were working on, as part of their studies, rather than just talk about what could be done. This experience from research and the development projects is a great challenge to future Environmental education no less so than it can contribute towards strengthening one of the components in action competence which, as mentioned, are closely interrelated and interdependent.
 

Student co-influence

Action competence must be seen in a longterm perspective in which the students themselves take a stand and decide themselves in connection with the environmental questions they will be responsible for. Hence student co-influence and co-responsibility in their studies become central elements in the development of action competence.

Taking responsibility and having co-influence are abilities that have to be learned and which have to be experienced as much as possible. Therefore it matters a great deal that the teacher creates the framework that, with due respect to age, maturity, experience etc, allows the students to take part in the selection and decision of choice, for instance, of the problem, the study plan, group set up, presentation or action possibilities.

Bruun Jensen, 1998 emphasises that if student co-influence is not present right from the very start then all talk of developing action competence is meaningless. He quotes a group of teachers’ assessment of an evaluation seminar dealing with action competence and health education thus:

”Student co-influence seems to be the most decisive prerequisite for inciting any involvement at all and its further development, and a prerequisite for the knowledge the students acquire being of any use at all. Action competence is thus an ability actively achieved through experience and not a skill passed on or passively received.”
 

Evaluation Themes

After completing a course in Environmental education some of the main evaluation themes related to student development of action competence can be as follows (revision of Breiting, 1997)
 

 
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This is chapter 5 of 5 chapters of:


Environmental Education - development and evaluation
by
Finn Mogensen, Ph.D
Research Centre for Environmental and Health Education
The Royal Danish School of Educational Studies
 fm@esbjerg.dlh.dk