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Does the rise of STEM education mean the demise of sustainability education?

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journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-20, 00:15 authored by Caroline SmithCaroline Smith, Jane WatsonJane Watson
In this article, we outline the key principles of education for sustainability (EfS) that enable us to question the enthusiastic and uncritical promotion of STEM (science, mathematics, engineering and technology) and its offshoot, STEM education, as key contributors to an environmentally sustainable future. We examine the framing of STEM and STEM education as situated in an unproblematised, neoliberal growthist paradigm, in contrast to the more critical ecological paradigm of EfS. We conclude that STEM, and hence STEM education, need to include critical reflection and futures perspectives if they are to align themselves with a flourishing economic, social and environmental future. We provide examples for the classroom that illustrate our contention.

History

Publication title

Australian Journal of Environmental Education

Volume

29

Pagination

1-11

ISSN

0814-0626

Department/School

Faculty of Education

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Place of publication

United Kingdom

Rights statement

Copyright 2019 The Author(s)

Repository Status

  • Open

Socio-economic Objectives

Other education and training not elsewhere classified

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