TRANSFORMING TEACHER EDUCATORS FOR RE-ORIENTING TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Authors : Munawar Sultana Mirza

Pages : 28-53

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Publication Date : 2017-12-30

Article Type : Research

Abstract :All nations of the world have together realized that the existence of the present and future generations is bound with development that is essentially  sustainable. That is why they have ratified the Post 2015 Agenda labelled as Sustainable Development Goals. They have also ratified the Global Action Program on ESD and the Incheon Declaration 2015: Vision 2030 that has committed to SDG 4 on education. Both, the GAP and Incheon have prioritized on ‘building capacities of educators and trainers to enable them to more effectively deliver ESD’. The present study was conducted to explore the perceptions of teacher educators (TEs) about sustainable development, issues threatening sustainable development  (SD) at the global and national level, perceived role of teacher education in SD, the possible curricular spaces for SD and the perceived barriers for doing so. Questionnaire developed for the study was distributed to 108 teacher educators of nine TEIS. The TEs were found much below the satisfactory level on knowledge and understanding of the concepts and issues hindering the sustainable development. All except five TEs were teaching the traditional education and pedagogical subjects where they do not perceive much relevance of SD concepts. They also feel that they neither have time and authority to modify the curricula nor they have administrative and institutional support to do so. The study warrants special efforts at the level of Higher Education Commission to disseminate the relevant UN declarations and order of the Supreme Court of Pakistan for implementation analyze curricula of TE programs for including ESD and undertake capacity building activities for the teacher educators. 
Keywords : Sustainable development, sustainable development goals, education for sustainable development, teacher educators