Service-learning (SL), a technique that combines learning objectives and community service, has become popular in the environmental education field as a tool to garner environmental awareness. Students who participate in SL experiences gain communication, team building, critical thinking, and decision-making skills, and have positive feelings about being engaged in these experiences. Research has shown that gaining environmental knowledge through SL activities can cultivate positive attitudes towards the environment, which motivates participants to develop solutions to environmental problems. This study examined the attitudes of student participants in SL activities in relation to the demographic variables of gender, age, marital status, income, and nationality.
The study was conducted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A group of schools and community sites were selected by researchers in an effort to reflect the UAE. These students were exposed to SL via instruction or through participation in the Environmental Society of the UAE University (ESUAEU). Data was collected through observation, surveys, and interviews. Students ages 14-28 years from these schools and sites participated in one of three interactive SL events: an exhibition of students' environmental projects at a middle school, an environmental awareness day program at a university, and an environmental competition and aquafest. Out of 1,000 surveys distributed following participation in one of these events, 260 were fully completed and used in data analysis. The survey assessed participants' understanding of environmental, ethical, political, and social issues such as water availability, pollution, and environmental awareness using a 5-point Likert scale from “strongly do not agree” to “strongly agree”. Participants and non-participants were surveyed;73 students participated in the SL activities (experimental group) and 187 students did not participate (control group). Researchers also conducted 18 interviews with volunteer participants during the activities. The survey results and interviews were analyzed to determine significant differences between the demographic variables of interest.
The researchers found that the majority of survey responses fell into the “not sure”, “agree”, or “strongly agree” categories, indicating that participants had positive attitudes towards environmental involvement. Participants generally agreed that the global environment was at risk, and that their individual actions can improve the environment and their quality of life. They also expressed that participation in school environmental protection projects increased their environmental awareness and considered it a positive indicator of societal development. The researchers note this result points to the important role developing environmental awareness plays in transforming environmental attitudes. The participants also expressed a belief that economic status affects attitudes towards environmental participation, and that people of different cultural backgrounds may differ in environmental awareness levels.
Researchers found no significant differences in attitudes between respondent type (instructed versus participant in ESUAEU), gender, marital status, and environmental activities involvement (control versus experimental). This contrasted previous research that highlighted the difference in environmental awareness between genders. However, they did find significant differences in responses by nationality (Emirates or other), education level (college or school), and age groups (below 18 years, 18-22 years, and more than 22 years). Emirates citizens had higher positive attitudes towards the environment than participants of other nationalities, which may indicate that citizens are more involved in the service and protection of the environment. College-level participants had higher positive attitudes towards the environment which could indicate that these attitudes are developed over time. Participants in the 18–22-year-old age group also had higher environmental attitudes than participants below 18 years old and above 22 years old, supporting the result of college-level participants having higher environmental attitudes. Finally, researchers found that though low financial status seemed to indicate low environmental attitudes, the difference was not statistically significant. Overall, the researchers were able to conclude that the SL activities were helpful in developing positive environmental attitudes.
This study had some limitations. The sample size of the study was relatively small and focused on the UAE only, limiting its generalizability to larger populations in other regions. Also, there were many more participants in the control group than the experimental group, which may have influenced the results. There may be additional characteristics that were not included in the study but could be relevant to influencing environmental attitudes.
These results suggest that practitioners could use service-learning activities to foster positive environmental attitudes, thereby developing pro-environmental behaviors and increasing environmental involvement. The researchers recommend investigating altering environmental behaviors through environmental attitudes as opposed to through environmental knowledge.
The Bottom Line
<p>Service-learning (SL) experiences, which combine learning objectives and community service, have been shown to increase positive environmental attitudes. This study, which took place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), examined the attitudes of student participants in SL activities in relation to the demographic variables of gender, age, marital status, income, and nationality. Several schools and community sites were recruited, and 1,000 students from these organizations participated in the study. Participants completed a survey assessing environmental attitudes and some interviewed with researchers following one of three SL experiences. Researchers collected 260 completed surveys and conducted 18 interviews. Results showed there were no significant differences between respondent type, gender, marital status, financial status, or environmental activities involvement, while significant differences were observed between age groups, nationalities, and education level. Generally, participants responded positively to survey questions, indicating that the SL activities were helpful in developing positive environmental attitudes.</p>
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