**3. Aim of Green Pedagogy**

The aim of Green Pedagogy is to go beyond surface learning, beyond knowledge and skills and to target long term attitudes or mindset. Attitudes can be further subdivided into values and collaborative skills [13]. By targeting attitudes, the aim is to achieve deep learning about sustainability based on a more conscious understanding of how actions, such as the way in which one plans and prepares a meal in the home economics class, support or negate existing values. In this way, sustainable practices cross over into other areas of the learners' lives at home, at work and in their community in the form of deeply ingrained sustainability competencies such as those developed by UNECE [13].

## **4. What is Green Pedagogy?**

The Green Pedagogy approach to embedding sustainability in the classroom can be summarized in **Figure 2**. Already in translating the diagram from German

*Teacher Education in the 21st Century - Emerging Skills for a Changing World*

economic wellbeing in many day-to-day decisions. The final two stages of Green Pedagogy are the way in which the approach builds sustainability competence by automating a sustainability response in the learners; in other words, building a sustainable mindset by making visible the sustainability values upon which daily

This chapter is narrated from the perspective of a project that involved the practical transfer of the Green Pedagogy concept from its Austrian-German origins to English in a specially developed blended learning teacher-training course. The linguistic challenges reflect to an extent those faced more commonly in the other direction, from English to a local language and context. The European ProfESus project developed a training course for home economics teachers to help them promote a sustainable mindset in their learners by applying the Green Pedagogy approach and this experience will be used as a case study to illustrate the application of the approach and how it is received both by in-service teachers and student teachers. The coordinating institution of the project, University College for

Agrarian and Environmental Pedagogy (UCAEP) in Vienna, Austria, is home to the well-developed Green Pedagogy, which formed the pedagogical basis of the course developed by the project for deployment at European level and beyond. This chapter describes the challenges and successes of translating and transferring a specific

Globally, home economics has diminished as a school subject but there are indications that governments (such as Australia's sustainability curriculum) may recognize the value of strengthening home economics at the school level, given rising global levels of food waste and lack of knowledge about healthy eating and food preparation. There is therefore a direct link between home economics and the issue of sustainabil-

Green Pedagogy or *Grüne Pädagogik* [1] was developed at UCAEP in Vienna as a way of promoting a strong sustainability mindset [2–6] in learners. The main aim of the approach is to uncover and explore the values of the learners by provoking emotions and to extend their perspectives, especially regarding the wider range of potential stakeholders, to guide learners to an actionable vision that it is possible to

ity, but several other school subjects exist for which this pedagogy is suitable.

problem solving can be based.

*Nested strong sustainability model.*

**Figure 1.**

pedagogy across languages, cultures and contexts.

**2. Background to Green Pedagogy**

**216**

#### **Figure 2.** *Green pedagogy: A visual representation.*

to English several important decisions have been taken that will lead the English speaker in certain directions that may not be the intended one. In the remainder of this chapter, we will explain the diagram and end by considering some of the questions that teachers raised when meeting this framework for the first time.

The approach is primarily a pedagogy but can also be used to guide consultancy work. The advantage of Green Pedagogy is that it provides a template for learning activity planning, with the six dots at the base of the spiral representing a recommended lesson planning structure and sequence. The plan need not be restricted to a single timetabled lesson but can be stretched over a series of connected lessons that could represent a case study, a project, a research activity, a lab activity, work placement or a field activity. To account for the fact that a single cycle of Green Pedagogy may stretch over several timetabled lessons, we will use the term learning activity plan (LAP) to refer to a Green Pedagogy cycle. The six steps can be applied across disciplines including most of the subjects that are commonly found in a school timetable. The six steps can also be applied at different education levels from lower primary to higher education. The creators of Green Pedagogy assert that this is a pedagogy that could be used as an everyday pedagogy in most cases [14].

**Figure 2** conveys the holistic complexity of Green Pedagogy, which comprises the six steps that should be present in every planned learning activity. These six steps are shown against the background of a rising spiral, which indicates the continuous nature of the process to acquire experience-based competency based around the main pillar of sustainability that comprises economic wellbeing, social justice, and environmental health in the center. The first implication of Green Pedagogy is that this should not be a one-off activity in the way that, for example,

**219**

*Green Pedagogy: Using Confrontation and Provocation to Promote Sustainability Skills*

We will deconstruct the diagram from the bottom up.

inter-linked. These are at the base of **Figure 2** from left to right:

tions to real world problems that could be implemented.

**5.3 Restructuring linear paradigms**

some educational institutions include project-based activities on an occasional basis. A major reason for this is that sustainability in this model is seen as a competence that can only be developed with practice over time, rather than a body of knowledge that can be covered after which educators can move on to the remainder

Another significant aspect of the diagram is that it refers to 'practical competencies' at the top of the spiral. The implication of this is that the sustainable competencies should always be practiced in conjunction with school subject competencies or vocational competencies. In the case of the ProfESus project, sustainability competencies were promoted in conjunction with home economics competencies. In this way, sustainability is embedded in everyday practice rather than seen as a separate bolt-on activity. In the case of the ProfESus project the target group was home economics and hospitality teachers and trainers. Thus, in the pilot training course, the participants were expected to state explicitly which sustainable competencies and which vocational competencies they were targeting in every learning

Green Pedagogy is based on several pedagogical foundations, many of which are

Systemic thinking is a cornerstone of effective sustainable action [15]. The typical school timetable divided into different subjects is the antithesis of systemic thinking, therefore Green Pedagogy encourages teachers to cross disciplines. Transdiciplinarity refers to literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplines. In the ProfESus project an example of this was when one of the home economics teachers planned a project in collaboration with the English teacher in a Swedish school since a great deal of important sustainability material is

found in English. This was an authentic and natural way to cross disciplines.

This is a reference to contingency theory [16] which says that every situation is unique and that there is therefore no single optimal solution but only a solution that takes account of the internal and external aspects of whatever specific situation is being analyzed. This reminds teachers that whenever they take up a new topic in class, they need to encourage their learners to evaluate the internal and external situation of the problem being analyzed and come up with their own specific solutions and furthermore that several solutions may be equally appropriate. Going further, contingency also points to the potential for learners to propose viable solu-

The complex nature of sustainability questions means that it is useful to explore

problems and their solutions in a holistic and non-linear way in contrast to the reductionist approach increasingly seen in the scientific disciplines according to Foerster [17]. This aspect of the pedagogy is not only relevant to discussing existing

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96432*

of the curriculum.

activity.

**5. Pedagogical foundations**

**5.1 Transdiscplinarity**

**5.2 Contingency**

*Green Pedagogy: Using Confrontation and Provocation to Promote Sustainability Skills DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96432*

some educational institutions include project-based activities on an occasional basis. A major reason for this is that sustainability in this model is seen as a competence that can only be developed with practice over time, rather than a body of knowledge that can be covered after which educators can move on to the remainder of the curriculum.

Another significant aspect of the diagram is that it refers to 'practical competencies' at the top of the spiral. The implication of this is that the sustainable competencies should always be practiced in conjunction with school subject competencies or vocational competencies. In the case of the ProfESus project, sustainability competencies were promoted in conjunction with home economics competencies. In this way, sustainability is embedded in everyday practice rather than seen as a separate bolt-on activity. In the case of the ProfESus project the target group was home economics and hospitality teachers and trainers. Thus, in the pilot training course, the participants were expected to state explicitly which sustainable competencies and which vocational competencies they were targeting in every learning activity.

We will deconstruct the diagram from the bottom up.

## **5. Pedagogical foundations**

Green Pedagogy is based on several pedagogical foundations, many of which are inter-linked. These are at the base of **Figure 2** from left to right:

#### **5.1 Transdiscplinarity**

*Teacher Education in the 21st Century - Emerging Skills for a Changing World*

to English several important decisions have been taken that will lead the English speaker in certain directions that may not be the intended one. In the remainder of this chapter, we will explain the diagram and end by considering some of the ques-

The approach is primarily a pedagogy but can also be used to guide consultancy work. The advantage of Green Pedagogy is that it provides a template for learning activity planning, with the six dots at the base of the spiral representing a recommended lesson planning structure and sequence. The plan need not be restricted to a single timetabled lesson but can be stretched over a series of connected lessons that could represent a case study, a project, a research activity, a lab activity, work placement or a field activity. To account for the fact that a single cycle of Green Pedagogy may stretch over several timetabled lessons, we will use the term learning activity plan (LAP) to refer to a Green Pedagogy cycle. The six steps can be applied across disciplines including most of the subjects that are commonly found in a school timetable. The six steps can also be applied at different education levels from lower primary to higher education. The creators of Green Pedagogy assert that this is a pedagogy that could be used as an everyday pedagogy in most

**Figure 2** conveys the holistic complexity of Green Pedagogy, which comprises the six steps that should be present in every planned learning activity. These six steps are shown against the background of a rising spiral, which indicates the continuous nature of the process to acquire experience-based competency based around the main pillar of sustainability that comprises economic wellbeing, social justice, and environmental health in the center. The first implication of Green Pedagogy is that this should not be a one-off activity in the way that, for example,

tions that teachers raised when meeting this framework for the first time.

**218**

cases [14].

**Figure 2.**

*Green pedagogy: A visual representation.*

Systemic thinking is a cornerstone of effective sustainable action [15]. The typical school timetable divided into different subjects is the antithesis of systemic thinking, therefore Green Pedagogy encourages teachers to cross disciplines. Transdiciplinarity refers to literacy in and ability to understand concepts across multiple disciplines. In the ProfESus project an example of this was when one of the home economics teachers planned a project in collaboration with the English teacher in a Swedish school since a great deal of important sustainability material is found in English. This was an authentic and natural way to cross disciplines.

#### **5.2 Contingency**

This is a reference to contingency theory [16] which says that every situation is unique and that there is therefore no single optimal solution but only a solution that takes account of the internal and external aspects of whatever specific situation is being analyzed. This reminds teachers that whenever they take up a new topic in class, they need to encourage their learners to evaluate the internal and external situation of the problem being analyzed and come up with their own specific solutions and furthermore that several solutions may be equally appropriate. Going further, contingency also points to the potential for learners to propose viable solutions to real world problems that could be implemented.

#### **5.3 Restructuring linear paradigms**

The complex nature of sustainability questions means that it is useful to explore problems and their solutions in a holistic and non-linear way in contrast to the reductionist approach increasingly seen in the scientific disciplines according to Foerster [17]. This aspect of the pedagogy is not only relevant to discussing existing situations but also relevant to the ability to conceive of different future scenarios as variables change.

#### **5.4 Systemic thinking**

Systemic thinking is well known as a key factor in developing a sustainable solution to real world problems [15] since students must see all interwoven aspects of the system under consideration in their own community. Thus, systemic thinking is a precondition for any effective sustainable learning process. Systemic thinking encourages problem solving through defining the problem as part of the system from which it derives and then looking at different aspects of the system to see which of these need to be, and which can be adjusted to come closer to a solution of the problem.

#### **5.5 Meta-thinking**

Since the Green Pedagogy approach is more than mere knowledge transfer but also about developing a sustainable mindset around relevant collaboration and values, it is appropriate to add a layer of meta-thinking. This is supported by the extensive work of educators in promoting thinking about thinking as a way of raising learning levels in general. As an example, the work of Ritchhart, Church and Morrison on what they term Visible Thinking [18] is enabling educators globally to engage learners in thinking about their thinking to measurable effect in terms of achieved learning. Meta-thinking is important in the application of Green Pedagogy in that it supports the generation of novel solutions to intractable and complex sustainability problems. It has also been pointed out that the increased complexity of the modern world requires increased self-reflection, which is an integral part of meta-thinking [14].

It could be argued that these five cornerstones of Green Pedagogy seem to overlap, and that systemic thinking could be sufficient to cover them all. However, each cornerstone highlights a specific aspect of systemic thinking that is of benefit when being considered by teachers separately as they develop their learning activity plans.

#### **6. The six steps**

It is recommended that once a teacher or institution has made the decision to promote a sustainable mindset in their learners, that most learning activities should follow the Green Pedagogy format in the order in which they are described across the six steps. The learning activity plan template developed by the ProfESus project helps teachers planning one or several lessons or trainings. It is often more appropriate to go through the six steps over a series of lessons rather than in one short 45-minute or 90-minute timetabled class. The learning activity plan (LAP) [19] template is thus a tool to act as a prompt for teachers so that they do not forget to highlight the targeted professional and sustainability competencies and how they will be exercised over the six steps. The LAP template can be used as an aide-memoire rather than being explicitly filled out before each lesson or group of lessons.

As we describe the six steps below, it should be noted that where there is a choice of topic, the teacher should choose 'wicked problems' (*i.e.* unGoogleable problems) [20] that are part of complex systems and of direct relevance to the learners by preference. These could also be in the format of a case study. Case studies are particularly well suited to the Green Pedagogy approach because they often deal with

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wicked problems and 'bridge the gap between theory and practice and between the

We will now describe the six steps in more detail using the example of menu planning to illustrate how each step follows the previous one. 'The Menu today can change your World Tomorrow' is a sample lesson plan built around the application of Green Pedagogy. The main purpose of the lesson is to raise learners' awareness of the criteria to use in preparing menus for specific target groups such as kindergartners, hospital patients or residents in elderly care homes. The conventional way of tackling this topic is by focusing on nutritional values and individual preferences, tempered by budget constraints. The aim of the case study lesson is to build awareness of the complexity of planning healthy and sustainable nutrition and to use

In this stage, learners must come to the realization that a specific problem exists and needs to be solved, achieved by finding out what learners already know about the designated topic. In the case study lesson, this was done by exploring the concept of 'meal' by showing images of a wide variety of meals, some of which probably pushed the boundaries of some of the learners. They included traditional meals, hospital tray meals, insect dishes, vegan dishes and 3D printed food. A key aspect of Green Pedagogy is to evoke and use emotions in order to prompt action and reflection and this is particularly essential in this first step in order to motivate learners. For example, most people would react to the idea of an insect-based meal,

This is the step during which misconceptions are uncovered and confronted. So, the reconstruction refers to what is put in place of misconceptions. In the case study lesson, the learners were presented with a set of weekly menu plans from different types of institutions such as schools, hospitals, elderly care homes and kindergartens. The learners were then asked to analyze the menu plans according to nutritional, practical and dietary requirements. This step is the first stage of conceptual change [12] where the teacher finds out what the students believe they know about the topic.

In this stage learners are prompted to suggest solutions by being provoked with unexpected possibilities. Ideally the provocation should come as a response to the direction in which the learners have been going so far. Therefore, the provocation can neither be the start of the lesson nor be completely planned in advance. An important aspect of this stage is to widen the scope of stakeholders involved in the problem. In Green Pedagogy, this stage is also referred to as "irritation" and this can

In our case study lesson, this stage was achieved by showing the learners images of the food production, consumption and waste cycle involved in some of the menu plans that had been described. These included images of intensive farming, use of

This stage leads directly to the next step in which the perspective is widened.

be confusing for English speakers as we explore later in this chapter.

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96432*

extended criteria in concrete planning situations.

such as the one shown in **Figure 3**, with disgust.

**7.2 Step 2: Reconstruction**

**7.3 Step 3: Provocation**

**7.1 Step 1: Confrontation with the problem**

academy and the workplace' [21].

**7. Sample case lesson**

*Green Pedagogy: Using Confrontation and Provocation to Promote Sustainability Skills DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96432*

wicked problems and 'bridge the gap between theory and practice and between the academy and the workplace' [21].
