EfS Research and Results
Education for Sustainability has multiple, positive effects on student achievement, school culture, community vitality, and ecological integrity.
“When a school has employed this approach for several years, implemented in day-to-day actions of school community members, a well-planned curriculum and explicit instruction, Education for Sustainability not only improves learning outcomes but also, students’ sense of place within their community is an indispensible foundation for other learning…as is their understanding that their relationship with their community is both reciprocal and valuable….”
(Becker-Klein et al, 2008; Duffin, 2006; AED, 2007; Sobel, 2008; Department for Children, Schools and Families, 2010; Ofsted, 2009; Gayford, 2009; Barrat-Hacking et al, 2010; PEER Associates, 2010).
IMPACT ON STUDENTS
- improves student learning and standards achievement
- enhances attitudes toward learning
- significantly decreases students’ feeling that they cannot succeed
- produces better behavior and attendance
- is consistent with human’s natural style to learn holistically
- attends to the needs of the whole child
- provides a safe and secure space in which children can take risks and develop skills of active participation
- encourages students to make connections between themselves and the systems of which they are a part
- produces statistically significant increases in the strength of students’ attitudes about civic engagement
- develops in students a greater awareness of community, and a greater appreciation of the democratic process
IMPACT ON TEACHERS
- meaningful effects on teacher attitudes
- both new and veteran teachers are able to achieve strong academic outcomes from their students
IMPACT ON SCHOOL & COMMUNITY
- whole school cultures and improved relationships between the school, parents and the community
- models actions and attitudes that promote sustainable living
- improves air quality, reduced waste, decreased energy use
- contributes to children’s health by improving children’s food eating choices






