Education for Sustainability through Design and Technology education: some issues for a research agenda.

Abstract

Through international discourse on sustainability, governments and non-government organisations around the globe have expressed their concern about the future of humanity and the quality of life for further generations. In this context, education for sustainable development (ESD) is seen as an important framework for formulation new educational policies. Contributions from different learning areas to the school ESD curriculum are considered in the literature both in isolated and in terms of integrated approaches. This paper is focused on Design and Technology education/technology education as one means for achieving the aims of SD. Although a number of practical and political solutions have been initiated and implemented in this area in the European contexts, the ways sustainability can be systematically addressed through design and technology education as a part of formal education needs to be further researched. This paper is based on a number of research projects. Through their analysis some issues for a research agenda are identified.