Schools that implement education for sustainability should invest in developing sense of community among teachers

The primary goal of education for sustainability (EfS) is to create a more sustainable future by encouraging environmentally-conscious actions in students and developing more-informed citizens who are actively engaged in critical thinking. Though EfS is designed for students, EfS can be a whole-school approach in which all members of the community (e.g., teachers, parents, community members, and students) can engage with sustainability principles. Understanding a school's organizational culture can illuminate EfS best practices. In this case study, the researchers surveyed teachers at a school in Israel to link sense of community and school organizational culture with EfS. Specifically, they focused on identifying the ways EfS is promoted each day, the values of the staff related to EfS and sense of community, and the assumptions made by staff regarding EfS and sense of community.

Sense of community is the emotional effect of both the physical and social contexts on individuals. It includes shared values with other members of the group, acceptance within the group, feeling influential within the group, and sharing an emotional connection. School culture refers to the way in which the norms, values, routines, beliefs, and rules influence the way people think, act, and communicate while at school. Further, the organizational model of the school culture includes three levels: 1) artifacts, the physical structures such as appearance and processes of a school like curricula and procedures; 2) espoused values, the perceptions and attitudes of what is and is not acceptable at the school; and 3) underlining assumptions, the ways in which those within the organization problem-solve and how that influences their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It is within the frameworks of both sense of community and organizational model that the researchers pursued this case study.

This case study is based on River School, a public elementary school in central Israel that focuses on EfS. The study took place between 2016 and 2019 and included 454 students and 30 teachers. The researchers gathered data through a questionnaire, focus groups, interviews, observations, and documents. In total, 25 staff members (a principal and 24 teachers) who had been at River School for an average of 24 years participated in the study. The questionnaire was completed by 24 teachers, and it included closed and open-ended questions. The closed question responses were ranked on a five-point scale ("completely disagree” to "completely agree”) and focused on the sense of community between the staff and the sense of individual influence to promote EfS at the school. The open-ended questions also asked about the sense of community among the staff and at the school, allowing the participants to express their perspectives in their own words. There were 2 focus groups which included 12 teachers total, and 5 individual interviews that provided the researchers an opportunity to observe the teachers' interactions and gather more insight into their sense of community. Finally, the researchers collected documentation such as the EfS curriculum, lesson plans, school policies and procedures, school guiding documents, as well as other written material. Both the quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed, and results were considered based on the three-level organizational model.

The data showed River School had a substantial number of artifacts that reiterated EfS principles each day. For example, the school had physical indicators such as a community garden and greenhouse as well as the educational structures that reinforce EfS such as their teaching-learning process, focus on environmental citizenship, and developing the decision-making process. The data also revealed a deep sense of community and espoused values among the teachers. One teacher shared the sense of community stretched beyond the practicing sustainability; it was the friendship among staff and their commitment to supporting each other in their sustainable endeavors. Finally, the researchers found underlying assumptions existed at the individual, group, and organizational levels in which: personal, professional development is valued and is a norm supported by the school; interpersonal relationships are valued among teachers; and the school's vision supports the individual's growth and development. Overall, the researchers concluded EfS, sense of community, and the link between them are evident in all three levels of the school organizational model at River School.

There were limitations to this case study. The study focused only on River School in Israel, which is unique because it was founded in 1992 with EfS principles, which the researchers recognized have influenced the sense of community and tradition over time. There was no direct comparison to other schools for context; the article acknowledged River School is an outlier compared to existing research. The researchers also noted the organizational culture and sense of community variables they measured are difficult to evaluate due to of the lack of proven measurement tools and bias among researcher interpretation.

The researchers recommended schools that seek to integrate EfS with their organizational culture must consider all three levels instead of focusing on just artifacts, the low-hanging fruit. Schools that promote and support professional development for their teaching staff may find their sense of community is stronger because there is increased team learning, collaboration, and emotional support among staff. This can lead to deeper trust, respect, and belonging within individual staff and among the group because of the relationships school-sponsored professional development foster. When schools take the initiative to strengthen the growth and development of their teachers within the EfS framework, it simultaneously leads to an increased sense of community and commitment within the community to EfS. The researchers also recommended school administrators focus on providing on-boarding programming for new teachers. This programming should involve seasoned teachers in an effort to establish a tradition of collaboration, reflective of EfS, and to make new teachers more comfortable with EfS. Overall, the researchers suggested the school must balance its commitment between whole-school practice and staff sense of community to be effective in developing EfS.