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<p>This study explores secondary school teachers’ engagement with environmental education (EE) and the circular economy (CE) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia—a city chosen for its size and acute environmental challenges, with implications for accelerating the SDGs. We applied a mixed-methods design and collected data from 385 Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching (PGDT) participants during the 2023/24 academic year. Using a 30-item Likert-scale survey (Cronbach’s α = 0.93) and qualitative interviews, we measured teachers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP). Results show that teachers reported moderate knowledge (M = 3.79), positive attitudes (M = 3.60), and fair practices (M = 3.66). They demonstrated strong conceptual understanding of EE and CE (M = 4.29) but showed weaker knowledge of the SDGs (M = 3.59) and limited appreciation of the “use–reuse–resell” strategy (M = 3.32). Teachers acknowledged personal responsibility for conservation (M = 3.66) but expressed skepticism about the impact of individual action, with high agreement on the futility of recycling without wider participation (M = 4.18). They practiced recycling proficiently (M = 4.60) but struggled to critically assess institutional greening and waste management efforts (M = 2.40). Factor analysis confirmed construct validity (KMO = 0.868; Bartlett’s χ² = 25,255.83, <i>p</i> &lt; 0.001) and extracted three components each for knowledge, attitudes, and practices, explaining 71–79% of the variance. Gender-disaggregated analysis revealed similar patterns, though women more strongly linked CE practices to the SDGs. These findings expose a clear knowledge–action gap and call for targeted training, curriculum integration, and institutional support to strengthen teachers’ capacity to champion EE and CE in advancing SDGs 4, 12, and 13.</p>

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Understanding How Secondary School Teachers in Ethiopia Integrate Environmental Education and Circular Economy: Implications for Accelerating SDGs

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月11日

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  • Mekonnen Amberber Degefu,
  • Yitayal Addis Alemayehu,
  • Bewketu Mamaru Mengiste

摘要

This study explores secondary school teachers’ engagement with environmental education (EE) and the circular economy (CE) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia—a city chosen for its size and acute environmental challenges, with implications for accelerating the SDGs. We applied a mixed-methods design and collected data from 385 Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching (PGDT) participants during the 2023/24 academic year. Using a 30-item Likert-scale survey (Cronbach’s α = 0.93) and qualitative interviews, we measured teachers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP). Results show that teachers reported moderate knowledge (M = 3.79), positive attitudes (M = 3.60), and fair practices (M = 3.66). They demonstrated strong conceptual understanding of EE and CE (M = 4.29) but showed weaker knowledge of the SDGs (M = 3.59) and limited appreciation of the “use–reuse–resell” strategy (M = 3.32). Teachers acknowledged personal responsibility for conservation (M = 3.66) but expressed skepticism about the impact of individual action, with high agreement on the futility of recycling without wider participation (M = 4.18). They practiced recycling proficiently (M = 4.60) but struggled to critically assess institutional greening and waste management efforts (M = 2.40). Factor analysis confirmed construct validity (KMO = 0.868; Bartlett’s χ² = 25,255.83, p < 0.001) and extracted three components each for knowledge, attitudes, and practices, explaining 71–79% of the variance. Gender-disaggregated analysis revealed similar patterns, though women more strongly linked CE practices to the SDGs. These findings expose a clear knowledge–action gap and call for targeted training, curriculum integration, and institutional support to strengthen teachers’ capacity to champion EE and CE in advancing SDGs 4, 12, and 13.