ABSTRACT

Early childhood education for sustainability (ECEfS) is becoming internationally recognised as an important means for young children to develop their attitudes and behaviour towards sustainability. Yet, there is little research in addressing how ECEfS is differently understood within different cultural contexts, which can compromise the universality of sustainability and ECEfS. This study is to analyse how the ECEfS concepts (the meaning of sustainability, children as agents of change for sustainability, and sustainability in young children’s everyday lives) are represented in Australian and Korean national curricular documents through critical document analysis. As a result, it is identified that the curricula have meaningful connections with predominant cultural characteristics of the countries. That is, individualistic and collectivistic factors greatly influence shaping the understanding of sustainability (e.g. analytic versus holistic understanding of sustainability, independent versus interdependent children identity, and selective versus nonselective approaches to children’s everyday lives). With these findings, this paper is to discuss and articulate ‘culturally inclusive education for sustainability’ by adding ‘culture’ as an essential dimension to the meaning of sustainability, defining children identity with three forms of being (independent, interdependent, and relational), and addressing children’s interactive and interconnected everyday lives.

摘要

幼儿可持续性教育（ECEfS）已被国际认可为幼儿发展其对可持续性的态度和行为的重要手段。然而，关于如何在不同文化背景下如何理解ECEfS的研究很少，这会损害可持续性和ECEfS的普遍性。这项研究旨在通过关键文件分析来分析ECEfS概念（可持续性的含义，儿童作为可持续性变革的推动力以及幼儿日常生活中的可持续性）在澳大利亚和韩国国家课程文件中的代表形式。结果，确定课程与这些国家的主要文化特征有着有意义的联系。那是，个人主义和集体主义因素极大地影响着对可持续性的理解（例如，对可持续性的分析性理解与整体性理解，独立性与相互依存的儿童身份以及儿童日常生活中的选择性与非选择性方法）。有了这些发现，本文将通过在可持续性的意义上增加“文化”作为基本要素，并通过三种存在形式（独立，相互依存和关系化）定义儿童身份，来讨论和阐明“可持续发展的文化融合教育”，解决儿童的互动性和相互联系的日常生活。以及针对儿童日常生活的选择性与非选择性方法）。有了这些发现，本文将通过在可持续性的意义上增加“文化”作为基本要素，并通过三种存在形式（独立，相互依存和关系化）定义儿童身份，来讨论和阐明“可持续发展的文化融合教育”，解决儿童的互动性和相互联系的日常生活。以及针对儿童日常生活的选择性与非选择性方法）。有了这些发现，本文将通过在可持续性的意义上增加“文化”作为基本要素，并通过三种存在形式（独立，相互依存和关系化）定义儿童身份，来讨论和阐明“可持续发展的文化融合教育”，解决儿童的互动性和相互联系的日常生活。