Lifelong Learning - Towards a Theory of Practice for Formal and Non-formal Environmental Education and Training

Oct 15, 2026

The paper argues that theories of teaching, learning, and action guide practitioners engaged in lifelong environmental education and training, but are constrained by unique contextual conditions. It proposes that learning in environmental contexts becomes possible only when all absolute criteria used to judge educational or environmental worth are treated as problematic. The discussion outlines an approach to theorising practice across formal and non-formal education.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Assumptions about the role of education

Constraints, criteria, and the possibility of environmental learning

Formal vs non-formal education approaches

Lifelong Learning: Towards a Theory of Practice for Formal and Non-formal Environmental Education and Training Stephen Gough, University of Bath, UK, Kim Walker, George Washington University, USA, & William Scott, University of Bath, UK Abstract The starting point of the paper is that practitioners of all kinds concerned with lifelong learning in environmental education have theories of teaching, learning, and action. These they employ under sets of constraints which are likely to be unique to their own individual contexts. An approach is proposed which recognises the significance of such theories and constraints, and uses them as a starting point for learning. Central to the argument is the proposition that environmental learning is possible only if all absolute criteria for judging educational or environmental worth are regarded as problematic. Résumé Le document part de la prémisse que les praticiens de tout genre préoccupés par l’apprentissage continu en éducation environnementale ont des théories sur l’enseignement, l’apprentissage et l’action et que ces théories sont assorties d’un ensemble de contraintes qui sont probablement propres à leurs contextes individuels. L’approche proposée reconnaîtl’importance de semblables théories et contraintes et les utilise comme point de départ de l’apprentissage. Au centre de cet argument est la proposition que l’apprentissage environnemental est possible seulement si tous les critères absolus pour jauger la valeur pédagogique ou environnementale sont considérés comme problématiques. 178 Canadian Journal of Environmental Education, 6, Spring 2001 This paper outlines a possible approach to theorising practice for lifelong learning in environmental and/or sustainability education. The approach focuses on both formal and non-formal education, and is based on understandings that: • education, training, and other activities which promote learning are key strategies in bringing about environmental improvement, and • strategies to date in both the formal and informal sectors have not been as successful as hoped, and have often proceeded in ignorance of eachother. This paper explores possible reasons for this lack of success and suggests a framework for alternative approaches.1 Exploring assumptions A variety of claims, variously exhibiting certainty, optimism, or resignation, have been made for the possible role of education in bringing about environmental improvement (see, for example, Fien & Trainer, 1993a, 1993b; Huckle, 1993, 1999; Wals, 1999; Hopkins, Damlamian, & López Ospina, 1996) . From alternative perspectives, however, the appropriateness of environmental improvement as a criterion for the evaluation of educational interventions has been questioned (Jensen & Schnack, 1997), as has the appropriateness using education as a tool to promote particular agendas for bringing about such improvements (Jickling, 1992; Jickling & Spork, 1998; Jickling, 2001). A potentially still more intractable problem has been identified by Bowers (1995), who, in presenting a case which in some respects echoes one made earlier by Robottom and Hart (1993), notes that as long as educational systems are rooted in the same metaphors as the economic, social, and cultural beliefs, processes, and practices which seem to cause large scale environmental degradation, they are unlikely to be an effective means of reversing that process of degradation. The view taken here is that: • Education cannot be expected to “save the planet” through, or mostly through, its own direct or indirect effects. This is at odds with the claims of writers on environmental education from quite different perspectives (for example Fien & Trainer, 1993a, 1993b; Tanner, 1998), but in keeping with a more general view that: There is a social and scientific zeal about the potential of education for addressing many of our most important social needs. What is lost in this zeal is a more careful analysis of the potentia

FAQs

What is the paper’s core starting point about lifelong learning in environmental education?

Practitioners develop theories of teaching, learning, and action, and apply them within constraints shaped by their individual contexts.

Why does the paper claim environmental learning requires reconsidering evaluation criteria?

It argues that environmental learning is possible only if absolute criteria for judging educational or environmental worth are regarded as problematic.

What does the paper propose regarding the success of education and training strategies?

It suggests that approaches in both formal and non-formal sectors have not achieved hoped-for success and often proceeded without sufficient awareness of underlying issues.

Oct 15, 2026

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