Study 1: Supporting pre-service teachers’ self-efficacy to facilitate youth-led civic engagement programs for the environment

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Friday 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Community-Centered and Relational Approaches in Environmental Science and Engineering Education

Abstract

Objectives or purposes
Many environmental issues threaten our changing world, including habitat degradation and biodiversity loss, with climate change driving most of these issues. Many youth facing these seemingly unsolvable problems can develop ecophobia, a fear of environmental collapse, due to feelings that their individual efforts cannot make a difference. Amidst these issues of global scale, it is crucial that future generations of leadership learn how and why they can get involved in making lasting improvements to environmental policy. Civic experiences can give youth more confidence in the impact they can make. Programs have been developed to introduce youth to civic action during adolescence with the help of trained educators.

Perspective(s) or theoretical framework
Self-efficacy: This study explored the self-efficacy (SE) of pre-service educators’ (PSE) related to facilitating civic action projects with their students. An educators’ beliefs about their ability to engage students in learning is known as “teaching self-efficacy," and is defined as “the beliefs teachers hold about their capabilities to carry out their professional tasks” (Morris et al., 2016, p. 796). For the research at hand, the “professional tasks” of the PSEs refers to their guiding youth in civic engagement projects for the environment. Further, the way teachers perceive the aims of civic engagement education has been found to impact their style of teaching, meaning that beliefs teachers hold about the purpose and outcomes of civic education projects may inform how they interact with their students, and this differs between socio-geographic regions (Reichert et al., 2021).

Methods, techniques, or modes of inquiry
To assess the SE of pre-service educators (PSEs) in facilitating the Community Action Projects for the Environment (CAPE) curriculum, a program for youth civic engagement for the environment, we hosted a workshop introducing these PSEs to the process of a CAPE project. We used a mixed-methods pre- and post-survey to compare SE before and after the workshop.

Data sources, evidence, objects, or materials
This study used a pre/post survey that was validated for a previous study conducted by the authors.

Results and/or substantiated conclusions or warrants for arguments/point of view
The average self-efficacy scores for the PSEs increased from the pre-survey (x̄ = 2.133) to the post-survey (x̄ = 2.726) across all the questions. Using a Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test to account for skew in the post-survey SE distribution, a p-value of 0.008 (Z = -2.668) was calculated. This is a statistically significant increase in overall self-efficacy for facilitating civic action projects from the pre-survey to the post-survey. This suggests improvement in PSE SE for guiding youth through a civic engagement project.

Scientific or scholarly significance of the study or work
This paper underlines the importance of introducing youth civic action programs to pre-service educators who are in a position to implement civic engagement projects with the youth they work with. Having adults who feel confident in their ability to facilitate these types of programs can lead to increased numbers of students who feel empowered to make change in their communities.

Authors

• Megan Ennes, University of Florida

• Emily Cayton, Campbell University

• Elle Henson, University of Florida