The values and attitudes we live by affect how we relate to other people and to all our activities in the environment, and so are a major influence on our prospects for achieving a sustainable future.
Although they cannot be separated from cognitive understanding, values and attitudes relate to the affective (or emotional) dimension of human behaviour. While values and attitudes are similar in this regard, they differ in several important ways.
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Values are generally long-term standards or principles that are used to judge the worth of an idea or action. They provide the criteria by which we decide whether something is good or bad, right or wrong. |
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Attitudes predispose us to respond in particular ways to people and events. They are not so deeply felt as values and quite often change as a result of experience. |
This module provides an opportunity to consider the importance of human values and attitudes in shaping the future. It also provides ideas and examples for two categories of strategies for exploring values in the classroom - values clarification and values analysis.
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To develop an understanding of values education strategies; |
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To consider the relation between values and personal behaviour affecting the achievement of sustainable futures; |
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To reflect on your futures awareness, commitment and actions; and |
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To develop skills for using values clarification and values analysis in teaching. |
| 1. The Elephant Dilemma |
| 2. Towards an ethic of sustainability |
| 3. Values education strategies |
| 4. Reflection |
| Gilbert, R. and Hoepper, B. (1996) The place of values, in R, Gilbert (ed) Studying Society and Environment: A Handbook for Teachers, Macmillan, Melbourne, pp. 59-79. |
| Halstead, J. M. and Taylor, M. J. (eds) (1996) Values in Education and Education in Values, Falmer Press, London. |
| IUCN, WWF and UNEP (1991) Caring for the Earth, WWF, IUCN, WWF and UNEP, Gland. |
| Kelly, T.E. (1986) Discussing controversial issues: Four perspectives on the teacher's role, Theory and Research in Social Education, XIV(2), pp. 113-138. |
| Noddings, N. (1984) Caring: A Feminine Approach to Ethics and Moral Education, University of California Press, Berkeley. |
| Noddings, N. (1992) The Challenge To Care In Schools: An Alternative Approach to Education, Teachers College Press, Columbia University, New York. |
| Pennock, M. and Bardwell, L. (1994) Approaching Environmental Issues in the Classroom, National Centre for Environmental Education and Training, University of Michigan. |
| Reich, B and Pivovarov, V. (eds) (1994) International Practical Guide on the Implementation of the Recommendation Concerning Education for International Understanding (*.pdf download), UNESCO, Paris. |
| Stephenson, J. et al (eds) (1998) Values in Education, Routledge, London. |
| Stradling, R., Noctor, M. and Baines, B. (1984) Teaching Controversial Issues, Edward Arnold, London. |
| UNESCO (1998) Learning to Live Together in Peace and Harmony, UNESCO - APNIEVE Sourcebook for Teacher Education and Tertiary Zone Educators, UNESCO Principal Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok. |
| UNESCO (2000) The Practice of Citizenship, Associated Schools Project, UNESCO, Paris. |
This module was written for UNESCO by Bernard Cox, Margaret Calder and John Fien using materials and activities developed by Angelina Galang, Jose Camagun, Edith de la Cruz, Saras Reddy and Debbie Heck in Learning for a Sustainable Environment (UNESCO - ACIED).
