Trechsel, Lilian Julia; Diebold, Clara Léonie; Zimmermann, Anne Barbara; Fischer, Manuel (2023). Students between science and society: why students’ learning experiences in transformative spaces are vital to higher education institutions International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 24(9), pp. 85-101. Emerald Publishing 10.1108/IJSHE-09-2021-0407
|
Text
Students between science and society_Why students learning experiences in transformative spaces are vital to higher education institutions.pdf - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons: Attribution (CC-BY). Download (262kB) | Preview |
Purpose – This study aims to explore how the boundary between science and society can be addressed to support the transformation of higher education towards sustainable development (HESD) in the sense of the whole institution approach. It analyses students’ learning experiences in self-led sustainability projects conducted outside formal curricula to highlight their potential contribution to HESD. The students’ projects are conceived as learning spaces in “sustainability-oriented ecologies of learning” (Wals, 2020) in which five learning dimensions can be examined. Design/methodology/approach – Using an iterative, grounded-theory-inspired qualitative approach and sensitising concepts, 13 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted exploring students’ learning experiences. Interviews were categorised in MAXQDA and analysed against a literature review. Findings – Results revealed that students’ experiences of non-formal learning in self-led projects triggered deep learning and change agency. Trust, social cohesion, empowerment and self-efficacy were both results and conditions of learning. Students’ learnings are classified according to higher education institutions’ (HEIs) sustainability agendas, providing systematised insights for HEIs regarding their accommodative, reformative or transformative (Sterling, 2021) path to sustainable development.
Item Type: |
Journal Article (Original Article) |
|---|---|
Division/Institute: |
Business School > Institute for Sustainable Business Business School BFH Centres and strategic thematic fields > Thematic field "Sustainable Development" |
Name: |
Trechsel, Lilian Julia; Diebold, Clara Léonie; Zimmermann, Anne Barbara and Fischer, Manuel |
ISSN: |
1467-6370 |
Publisher: |
Emerald Publishing |
Language: |
English |
Submitter: |
Manuel Fischer |
Date Deposited: |
28 Jun 2023 08:48 |
Last Modified: |
10 Nov 2023 12:10 |
Publisher DOI: |
10.1108/IJSHE-09-2021-0407 |
Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Student learning, Ecologies of learning, Education for sustainable development, Boundary agent, Non-formal learning, Whole institution approach |
ARBOR DOI: |
10.24451/arbor.19450 |
URI: |
https://arbor.bfh.ch/id/eprint/19450 |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |