Environmental literacy and ecosocial crisis: design and validation of a questionnaire for 4º ESO

Abstract

The current ecosocial and environmental challenges demand a behavioral change in citizens. To this end, Environmental Literacy (EL), as an instrument of environmental education in formal institutions, is one of the main resources. In order to work on it, it is necessary to know the starting point of EL of the students. Numerous researchers have tried to evaluate and relate knowledge, attitudes and behaviors, components of EL, with respect to the environment, although mostly focused on university education. The present questionnaire aims to evaluate these three components focusing on Secondary Education. The validation of the questionnaire was carried out in two phases: the first by means of expert judgment and the second with a pilot test and subsequent qualitative and quantitative analysis. This process resulted in the Environmental Literacy and Ecosocial Crisis Questionnaire (CAFTAN) with 35 questions and 3 open-ended sub-questions, which provides teachers with an updated tool to determine the degree of EL and ecosocial crisis among secondary school students.