The understanding of sustainability and education for sustainable development among experienced Flemish chemistry teachers

This study explores the knowledge base of 48 experienced secondary school chemistry teachers with respect to their subject matter knowledge (SMK), pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and attitudes concerning sustainable development and ESD. The research was carried out in the Flanders region of Belgium with a view towards helping educational reform in the field of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The results indicate that experienced Flemish chemistry teachers possess limited knowledge when it comes to the areas of sustainable development and ESD. Their sources of knowledge stem mainly from the media or other personal information channels, not from school initiatives or teacher education programs. However, educators' attitudes towards implementing ESD are positive. Our finding suggests that more corresponding teaching and learning materials need to be developed for this topic and that an investment in teacher pre- and in-service education programs is inescapable, if progress is to be made in this area.status: accepte