Education is vital for the urgently needed transition to more fair and sustainable futures. However, in order to fulfil this potential, education itself must be transformed. Teachers are central actors in educational quality, inclusion and reform and so transformative teacher education is key to Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). In this blog post, we discuss how the Erasmus + Teacher Academy Project-Teaching Sustainability (TAP-TS), is catalysing transformative ESD through international and transdisciplinary teacher education.

Sustainability is an inherently complex topic and the challenges of implementing ESD, in schools and in teacher education, should not be underestimated. In addition to ‘top-down’ frameworks for ESD such as the European Commission’s sustainability competence framework, educators need opportunities to engage with debates and critically interpret ESD in their distinct contexts of practice. Furthermore, as formal education is deeply implicated in socio-ecological injustices and crises, it is not just a question of changing or improving education but of educational transformation (UNESCO, 2021). At the personal level, transformative learning involves questioning problematic mindsets, assumptions and expectations, and becoming more inclusive, discriminating, open, reflective and able to change (Mezirow, 2000). Educational transformation also includes the transformation of education – that is, changes to educational formats, structures and processes (Kondratjuk, 2023).

‘Sustainability is an inherently complex topic and the challenges of implementing Education for Sustainable Development, in schools and in teacher education, should not be underestimated.’

Transdisciplinarity can drive educational transformation, and refers to processes which occur between, across and beyond traditional academic and social boundaries. Transdisciplinarity is central to our Erasmus+ research project, Teacher Academy Project-Teaching Sustainability (TAP-TS), in a number of ways. The TAP-TS consortium comprises 11 teacher education organisations, across seven European countries (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Germany, Ireland, Portugal and Sweden), including schools, universities, a government agency, an educational enterprise, and a civil society organisation. The project aims to develop the sustainability competences of student teachers, teachers, teacher educators and school leaders through the co-design and testing of learning and teaching materials, during online, hybrid and face-to-face events as part of an international community of practice. The seven open-access ‘learning and teaching packages’ (LTPs) present interdisciplinary themes, related to digitality, entrepreneurship, STEAM, multilingual education, decoloniality, critical media literacy and whole institution approaches to educational change.

To date, we have provided 276 places on our face-to-face courses, and roughly the same number online, with many educators attending several courses. Evaluation data suggest that activities have deepened participants’ understandings of sustainability as a complex issue, broadened perspectives and provided practical tools for sustainability education. One educator described as their experience as ‘eye-opening’ and a game-changer for how they would approach sustainability with their students (KRE, 2023). Transdisciplinarity is evident in the quality of LTP materials, and teacher professional learning events and this has supported transformative learning (KRE, 2024). As noted in a recent evaluation report:

‘a key component in TAP-TS is its transdisciplinary set-up. … It is not sustainability teaching champions that entered the course, but the courses seem to have prepared them well for becoming future champions.’ (KRE, 2024, p. 30)

We see transformation of education in new learning formats, which have engaged educators across national contexts, combining, for example, seminars in local institutions, with webinars and online learning tasks, and face-to-face workshops in wider, international communities. Longer term, LTP materials are being integrated into teacher education courses and platforms across contexts. Moreover, relationships established between partner institutions and participants through the project have generated ideas and led to new activities such as guest lectures and exchange programmes.

It is important to note the limitations of our work. Sustainability issues are global justice issues and this project would benefit from the involvement of educators from beyond Europe and more educators from marginalised groups. Arguably, projects like this are inherently unsustainable, with limited durations and defined outputs. However, although TAP-TS will officially finish in mid-2025, the professional relationships and pedagogical innovations galvanised by the project will continue.

This blog post relates to a paper presented at the BERA Conference 2024 and WERA Focal Meeting on Tuesday 10 September at 11:15am. Find out more by searching the conference programme here.

References

Kondratjuk, M. et al. (2023). Einleitung: Transdisziplinarität in der Bildungsforschung. Perspektiven und Herausforderungen theoretischer, method(olog)ischer und empirischer Grenzgänge. In Kondratjuk, M., et al. (Eds.), Transdisziplinarität in der Bildungsforschung. Studien zur Schul- und Bildungsforschung, vol 91. Springer VS. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-41139-8_1

K&R Education [KRE]. (2023 & 2024). Teacher Academy Project-Teaching Sustainability: Evaluation report. [Unpublished report]

Mezirow, J. (Ed.) (2000). Learning as transformation: Critical perspectives on a theory in progress. The Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series. Jossey-Bass.

UNESCO. (2021). Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education. https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/reimagining-our-futures-together-new-social-contract-education