Curricular experience and awareness of sustainability in university students
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Abstract
Environmental studies highlight the need to research educational experiences that incorporate elements
from the Sustainable Development Goals, but the effect of these activities on students is not yet fully understood. The objective of this study was to examine the influence of curricular experience (curricular emphasis and instructional practice) on the levels of awareness of sustainability among Chilean university students with a focus on pro-environmental behavior and their intention of contributing to sustainable development. The sample included 772 students from different areas (medicine and health, engineering, legal and social sciences, humanities and education and technology) enrolled at a public university using structural equation modelling analysis. The results show that curricular emphasis has a positive and significant effect on awareness of sustainability, while instructional
practice has not yet achieved the same results. Pro-environmental behavior has a positive effect on increasing a student’s intention of contributing to sustainable development, evidencing how the social sciences facilitate understanding of educational phenomena involving sustainability.
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