Education for sustainable development in Malaysia: a study of teacher and student awareness

Sustainable development is seen as a modern development idea that is most proactive and practical in addressing the issues of development demand and environmental conservation. This paper examined two variables influencing teachers’ and students’ awareness of education for sustainable development (ESD), namely, school location and school participation in the Sustainable School Environmental Award (SLAAS) Programme. Primary data were gathered from 447 students and 245 teachers of six secondary schools in urban areas and six secondary schools in rural areas which participated in the SLAAS Programme. Results of the statistical analysis revealed a difference in terms of content knowledge, attitude and behaviour between students in rural and urban areas and no difference for the teachers. This meant that the application of ESD as the outcome of SLAAS Programme between urban and rural students is different according to the ESD awareness variable, but not so for urban and rural teachers. Findings also revealed differences with respect to knowledge practice and behaviour for students and teachers according to school participation in the SLAAS where a significant relationship existed for schools that participated in the SLAAS at the national level. These findings might be useful in informing further effort to enhance ESD awareness of the school community particularly through sustainability activities

Mapping internet coverage in Malaysia’s university campuses: a case study of the Sultan Idris Education University, Perak

ICT revolution has brought changes in the lifestyle of all walks of life including that of the university students. More than ever, the use of information and communications technology is now not only closely linked to higher education but is also imperative to the shaping of that first-class mind fit to function in the present globalization era. The Malaysian government through the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has regularly maintained its policy to provide quality internet coverage throughout the nation. This study examined student Wi-Fi accessibility at the Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) through geographic information system (GIS) mapping in order to establish the Wi-Fi coverage areas for the students. The data employed were Wi-Fi accessibility observations at the identified locations using a tool known as Wi-Fi analyzer included in the mobile phone. That data were subsequently manipulated in the GIS through ArcGIS 9.3 software. Then, kriging interpolation technique was used to form a coverage area that was divided into four types: strong, medium, weak and very weak. The findings showed that more than 80 percent of the coverage was weak or very weak, pointing to the necessity of providing higher levels of campus-wide internet coverage for the benefit of the students

Model Development on Awareness of Education for Sustainable Schools Development in Malaysia

ἀis article aims to develope the Structural Equation Model (SEM) on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) student awareness around Sustainable Schools in Malaysia. ἀe cluster sampling technique was used in selecting the school samples and the respondents were then also selected through simple random sampling among upper second-ary pupils. A questionnaire survey was administered for 447 pupils, to evaluate the aḀer eᴀects of the SLAAS. ἀe results showed that the model has been developed to provide an overview of each construct (knowledge on SLAAS Program, ESD content knowledge, ESD practices knowledge, attitudes of ESD and behavioral constructs of ESD) formed a ᰀt model. ἀe implication of this article showed that SLAAS Program implemented in Malaysia can be an indicator for the achievement of sustainable school

Pengetahuan dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar dalam kalangan pelajar pra-sekolah

Kajian ini bertujuan mengkaji tahap pengetahuan alam sekitar, pengetahuan bahan kitar semula dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar dalam kalangan murid prasekolah di Miri, Sarawak. Kajian ini menggunakan kaedah gabungan iaitu kaedah kuantitatif dan kaedah kualitatif. Data kajian telah diperolehi secara kuantitatif melalui kaedah soal selidik bergambar. Borang soal selidik bergambar ini telah diedarkan kepada 470 responden dalam kalangan murid tadika dan prasekolah di Miri, Sarawak yang dipilih secara rawak mudah. Bagi meneliti tahap pengetahuan alam sekitar, pengetahuan bahan kitar semula dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar, analisis secara deskriptif telah digunakan. Kajian ini dilakukan untuk meneliti hubungan bagi pemboleh ubah yang menggunakan kaedah analisis korelasi pearson. Hasil dapatan daripada soal selidik mendapati pemboleh ubah yang digunakan dalam kajian iaitu pemboleh ubah pengetahuan alam sekitar, pengetahuan bahan kitar semula dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar menunjukkan responden mempunyai tahap yang sederhana. Seterusnya, dapatan kajian menunjukkan responden (guru) mempunyai tahap yang sederhana terhadap pengetahuan alam sekitar, pengetahuan bahan dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar. Dapatan menunjukkan wujud hubungan korelasi yang kuat tetapi signifikan antara pemboleh ubah pengetahuan alam sekitar dan pengetahuan bahan kitar semula. Keadaan ini jelas menunjukkan pendidikan alam sekitar dalam kalangan murid masih berada pada tahap yang rendah. Malah, bukan murid sahaja yang mempunyai keputusan analisis yang lemah bahkan hasil dapatan temu bual bersama sepuluh orang guru juga menunjukkan keputusan dapatan yang sama. Kajian telah menunjukkan hubungan yang tidak selari di antara pengetahuan alam sekitar, pengetahuan bahan dan amalan penjagaan alam sekitar menerusi pendidikan alam sekitar di sekolah. Kesimpulannya, pengetahuan alam sekitar dan pengetahuan bahan kitar semula mempengaruhi amalan penjagaan alam sekitar dalam kalangan murid melalui pendidikan alam sekitar di sekolah.Justeru, dalam usaha membentuk generasi yang lestari pada masa hadapan, penerapan nilai, sikap serta pengetahuan penjagaan alam sekitar perlu didedahkan pada peringkat awal lagi

The level of STEM knowledge, skills, and values among the students of bachelor’s degree of education in geography

The demand for individuals with educational background in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields has been rapidly growing. This paper presents the level of STEM education knowledge, skills and values among the students of Bachelor’s Degree of Education (B.Ed.) in Geography at Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris. Research on STEM education study in geography involves assessing the STEM knowledge, skills and values. This article reports the findings from the survey conducted on 400 students of ISMP in Geography in the first to the eighth semester in 2018. The research instrument involves variables such as knowledge, skills and value. The items for each variable were constructed and modified based on the STEM implementation guide set by the Ministry of Education Malaysia and the Academy of Sciences Malaysia, and validated by the experts. Descriptive analysis was selected to evaluate the level of STEM knowledge, skills and values among the students. The findings show that the students indeed possess high level of STEM knowledge, skills and values. Overall, this study is important to examine the variables that influence the development in Geography and STEM. In a nutshell, this study will help the departments and faculties to further improve the development in Geography field at both national and international levels

Pengetahuan dan amalan hijau dalam kalangan murid sekolah rendah

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengenal pasti tahap kesedaran amalan hijau dalam kalangan kanak-kanak. Kajian ini melibatkan 423 orang murid (berumur 10 hingga 12 tahun) di sepuluh buah sekolah rendah di daerah Batang Padang, Perak. Pemilihan sekolah berdasarkan pensampelan kluster dan pemilihan responden menggunakan kaedah pensampelan rawak mudah. Instrumen soal selidik berskala Likert 1 hingga 5 digunakan untuk mendapatkan maklum balas. Pemboleh ubah amalan hijau yang dikaji adalah pengetahuan amalan hijau dan amalan hijau. Pemboleh ubah pengetahuan terdiri daripada empat sub pemboleh ubah, iaitu pengetahuan penjimatan tenaga elektrik, pengetahuan penjimatan air, pengetahuan menjaga alam sekitar dan pengetahuan amalan Recycle, Reduce, Reuse (3R). Sub pemboleh ubah amalan hijau terdiri daripada amalan penjimatan tenaga elektrik, amalan penjimatan air, amalan menjaga alam sekitar dan amalan 3R. Hasil kajian mendapati tahap pengetahuan amalan hijau murid adalah tinggi. Sebaliknya, tahap pemboleh ubah amalan hijau, bagi keempat-empat sub pemboleh ubah (amalan penjimatan elektrik, amalan penjimatan air, amalan penjagaan alam sekitar dan amalan 3R) adalah berada pada tahap sederhana. Analisis hubungan antara pemboleh ubah kajian menunjukkan terdapat hubungan signifikan yang sederhana antara pengetahuan penjimatan tenaga elektrik, pengetahuan penjimatan air dan pengetahuan amalan 3R dengan amalan penjimatan tenaga elektrik dan amalan 3R. Hal ini membuktikan tidak semua pengetahuan memberi hubungan terhadap amalan penjimatan. Dapatan kajian ini membimbangkan jika tidak ada usaha penerusan yang konsisten untuk menerapkan kesedaran amalan hijau. Malah pihak sekolah, ibu bapa dan masyarakat juga turut terlibat memberi contoh teladan amalan hijau yang betul khususnya dalam konteks penjimatan tenaga, penjimatan air dan amalan 3R

Penerokaan Indeks Pengetahuan Kelestarian Alam Sekitar Fizikal dalam Kalangan Belia Malaysia

Artikel ini bertujuan untuk meneroka komponen fizikal indeks pengetahuan kelestarian alam sekitar dalam kalangan belia Malaysia dengan menggunakan analisis faktor penerokaan (EFA). Responden terdiri daripada 100 orang belia Malaysia yang dipilih menggunakan teknik persampelan bertujuan. Soal selidik skala Likert 1 hingga 5 digunakan untuk mendapatkan maklum balas. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa item dalam setiap konstruk kajian mencapai kebolehpercayaan yang dapat diterima dengan nilai Cronbach Alpha lebih besar daripada .70 dan memenuhi syarat ujian normaliti. Data kemudian diproses menggunakan EFA pengelompokan item mengikut konstruk yang sesuai. Hasil kajian telah mengenal pasti empat komponen utama pengetahuan kelestarian alam sekitar belia Malaysia daripada 69 item soal selidik, iaitu litosfera, hidrosfera, atmosfera, dan biosfera. Penemuan ini juga menepati syarat nilai indeks yang ditetapkan oleh (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin dan Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity). Ini membuktikan empat komponen yang dinyatakan ini harus dititikberatkan dalam pembinaan instrumen bagi menilai indeks pengetahuan kelestarian alam sekitar dalam kalangan belia Malaysia

Investigating Groundwater Quality in the Flood Prone Neighborhood Area in Malaysia

The purpose of this study is to compare the quality of groundwater during wet and dry seasons in Malaysia especially in Kuala Krai District which frequently involved in annual monsoon floods and the question whether the wells can be used during floods as well as an alternative source when there are no floods. Six sampling stations were selected using six main parameters which included DO, pH, BOD, COD, TSS and NH3N. The assessment was conducted based on the standards set by Malaysian INWQS and the classification of WQI. The results of the analysis showed that most of the water samples taken during the wet season had concentration values that did not meet the DOE standards such as the DO, BOD, and NH3N parameters. Based on the WQI classification, majority stations during the wet season were in moderately contaminated except for station T6 which was clean. On the contrary, during a dry season were found to be clean except for station T1 which was moderately contaminated

Water Quality Assessment of Former Tin Mining Lakes for Recreational Purposes in Ipoh City, Perak, Malaysia

A study of the water quality of the former tin mining lakes in Ipoh City was carried out to determine the Water Quality Index (WQI) and classification based on the Malaysia National Water Quality Standards, in order to determine its suitability to be developed as a water recreation area. Five former mining lakes were chosen: Gunung Lang, Taman Indah, Kg. Temiang, Lahat and Kg. Engku Husin. The parameters measured were pH, dissolved oxygen, suspended solids, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand and ammonical nitrogen (NH3N), while the heavy metals measured were lead (Pb), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and arsenic (As). The analytical study shows that four former mining lakes in this research are suitable to be developed for water recreation purposes as they are classified under class II with a WQI greater than 81, which holds a clean status. Only one lake, Kg. Engku Husin, is categorised as class III, which requires an intensive treatment before it can be used for recreational purposes. Meanwhile, heavy metals such as Zn, As and Cu were at the standard level except for Pb, which exceeded the set guidelines. The local authorities and project developers should take appropriate measures to ensure that this former mining lake is well maintained and managed so that it is preserved and suitable to be developed as a recreational area

Environmentally-literate citizenry among Malaysian youth to produce responsible environmental behaviour

This quantitative study explores the environmentally-literate citizenry for responsible environmental behavior among Malaysian youth involving 1,000 young Malaysians selected from five regional zones (north, central, south, east coast, and East Malaysia). A stratified random sampling technique based on age gender and the location was used to select respondents. The study instrument was a questionnaire that involved two constructs; environmental literacy (atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, biosphere) and environmentally responsible behaviour. A descriptive analysis was used to represent level, frequency, and percentage. While Pearson correlation was used to find the relationship between environmental literacy and responsible environmental behaviour among Malaysian youth. Finding shows that the levels of environmental literacy at high levels (M = 4.050, SP = .611) and all sub-constructs also at high levels, atmosphere (M = 3.884, SP = .638), hydrosphere (M = 4.083, SP = .725), lithosphere (M = 3.964, SP = .683) and biosphere (M = 4.269, SP = .739). While responsible environmental behaviour was at a high average level with values of M = 3.868 and SP = .544. The correlation between environmental literacy and responsible environmental behaviour among Malaysian youth indicates a weak relationship strength (r=2.75, p=.000). Therefore, there show that environmentally will affect the literate citizenry among Malaysian youth to produce responsible environmental behaviour. It is hoped that this study will provide the basis for further research into the level and potential of literacy and environmentally responsible behaviour towards environmental sustainability in Malaysian society and increase awareness of serious environmental issues