Understanding What Shapes Environmental Awareness in Hong Kong Grade 8 Students: Evidence from TIMSS 2023

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 1:45 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Youth, Place, and Environmental Citizenship

Abstract

Environmental awareness is vital for Education for Sustainable Development. In Hong Kong, a persistent attitude–behavior gap, where environmental concern coexists with consumerism and faith in technological fixes, raises questions about factors shaping students’ awareness. Guided by the Environmental Literacy framework (McBride et al., 2013) and Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (2013), this study analyzes TIMSS 2023 data from 4,463 Grade 8 students. Predictors include gender, SES, science motivation (liking, valuing, confidence), environmental attitudes, and self-reported behaviors, as well as school SES, environmental climate, and teacher-led exposure. Hierarchical Linear Modeling shows student factors significantly predict awareness, with boys scoring higher. Students in disadvantaged schools scored lower, while other school-level effects were nonsignificant, suggesting current initiatives may be insufficiently implemented or ineffective.

Author

• Lifen Hu, University at Albany - SUNY