The Influence of Instructional Delivery Modality on Sustainability Literacy

Simon Ling, Adam Landon, Michael Tarrant and Donald Rubin
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Simon Ling: Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
Adam Landon: Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA
Michael Tarrant: Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
Donald Rubin: Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 18, 1-15

Abstract: As human environmental impacts have increased, so has the desirability of sustainable practices in multiple dimensions and at multiple scales. In this context, sustainability literacy has become a desirable outcome of higher education, driving the advance of sustainability as a core component of higher education institutions’ missions at local, regional, and global scales. However, little is known about the efficacy of different instructional delivery modalities of higher education courses in delivering desired outcomes of sustainability education. This study employed a quasi-experimental design to explore the relative influence of a limited range of instructional delivery modalities and sustainability content (study abroad/home campus and sustainability/non-sustainability) on growth of sustainability literacy among university students. Within each modality (study abroad or home campus), studying sustainability was associated with higher sustainability literacy scores than studying non-sustainability. However, studying non-sustainability courses abroad showed comparable growth in students’ sustainability literacy scores compared to studying sustainability on home campuses. These results support not only the idea that sustainability can be taught but also that study abroad, regardless of course content, may be at least as effective at increasing sustainability literacy as home campus sustainability-related courses.

Keywords: sustainability literacy; study abroad; quasi-experimental; sustainability education; higher education (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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