Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 116 ( 2014 ) 1068 – 1072
1877-0428 © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license. Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Education and Research Center. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.347
ScienceDirect
5
thWorld Conference on Educational Sciences - WCES 2013
Consumer Education in Primary School in the Context of
Sustainable Development
Liga Danilane
a*, Gilberto Marzano
baRezekne Higher Education institution PSRI researcher, Atbrivoshanas aleja 115,Rezekne ,LV4601, Latvia bEcoinstitute Friuli Venezia Giulia,Venezia, Italy
Abstract
Nowadays consumer education has entered a new stage, characterized by new attitudes and expectancies of consumers, either caused by the global economic crisis or by new consumer education approaches, especially those inspired to the principles of sustainable development. In this context, it is crucial to elaborate and acquaint new consumer education contents, corresponding to the principles of sustainable development, since the primary education.
This article is from a doctoral thesis „Consumer Education in Primary School” and is based on the interrelationships between the social learning theory of A. Bandura (1977) and the education principles for sustainable development
(McGregor,2007). It synthesizes the results of a research which allowed for developing a new conceptual framework
useful to consumer education, experimented on pupils of primary school.
Keywords: consumer education, social learning theories, education for sustainable development.
1. Introduction
The consumer current education has changed, and its contents are affected by the new critical economic conditions. We can see, at global level, an increasing interest on conscientious consuming, also deriving by a new people capability for tackling the present depressive situation. However, the new changes do not only influence the consumers’ behaviour, but also the consumer education. A dialectic transition process is in act, which combines knowledge with needs, opening new perspectives on the scope of consumer education, either in public or in private sphere.
The social learning theory (SLT) of Bandura (Bandura, 1977) and the model developed by McGregor (McGregor, 2007) are at the basis of the research which aroused this article. Indeed, SLT is a good theoretical basis for representing the consumers’ actions, since it demonstrated that people not only learn from their personal experiences, but also by the results of the actions of other people. We experimented that the Bandura’s assumption
*Corresponding name: Liga Danilane tel.: +371-29-47-48-86
E-mail address: [email protected]
© 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license.
can be directly transferred to consumers’ behaviour, but it makes necessary an improvement of the education contents.
Contents related to consumer education have been analyzed in many scientific articles (Danilāne, 2011b,
Danilāne, Ļubkina, 2010), and popularized in conferences (Danilāne, 2011a, Danilāne, Ļubkina, 2007),
nevertheless we consider very decisive to tackle this issue considering the pupils' education scope, and the context of social learning theories and sustainable development.
This article aims to offer for a discussion some selected evaluation criteria on pupils’ learning outcomes in consumer education. Combining social learning theories and sustainable development, it shows how to achieving a new level of quality for pupils as consumers.
2. Interrelationships of the Social learning theory and education for sustainable development in consumer education
The aim of SLT is to understand, predict and influence human individual behaviour, following a theoretical and, at same time, practical approach. It assumes that human beings mutually influence their actions (Bandura,
1977). Lee, Conroy and Hii (2003) confirm that social learning theory is a theoretical model, which explains how
people learn in their social context and which can be used also for achieving people behavioural changes, especially for children. It has been hypothesized that the model could be used also to moving people towards sustainable behaviours. As a result, consumers could be stimulated to a more responsible behaviour through the experiences of other people and by means of a critical analysis of the consequences of negative actions.
The Canadian researcher S.McGregor (McGregor, 2007) substantiates interrelationships between basic social learning theory and education for sustainable development. She claims the need for a reconceptualization of consumer education from a consumer citizenship perspective. She considers three main elements: society, economy and environment. Society refers to the role social institutions play in change and development, with a focus on full, informed participation. Economics touches on people sensitivity of people’s to the limits and potential of economic growths and consumption, and its impact on the environment and society. Environment involves people’s awareness of its fragility and finiteness, leading to commitment to environmental concerns in social institutions and economic policy (McLaren et al., 2010).
R.Clugston (Clugston, 2004) adds culture as a fourth aspect for educating to a sustainable development, in order to include values like diversity, knowledge and other elements related to education for sustainable development. It allows educators of consumers to act by objective considerations in order to help pupils to acquire the basic principles of sustainable development. (McGregor, 2010)
The aim determined by the UN for education sustainable development is to integrate in all the learning programs such values as sustainable development and to stimulate changes in the behaviour of citizens by this. Some of sustainable development researchers (Davis,2009; Miller&Kato,2006), try to reach this aim by focusing on integration of sustainable development aspects in the current education content; the others find the ways to form educational programs, in order sustainable development to be the key element of an educational program (McGregor, 2009).
Interrelationships of social learning theory and education for sustainable development are aimed at the fact that sustainable development can be an acquisition product of standards, values and behaviour related to the responsible consumers’ action (McGregor, 2009), creating a necessity to improve the content, to determine the pupils’ learning outcomes and their evaluation criteria.
3. Content of consumer education in the context of interrelationships of social learning theories and sustainable development education
Considering the assumption, that consumer education benefits the society in general, by creating more active and better-informed consumers, learning outcomes based on values, behaviour, rights and
responsibility, as well as interrelationships of social learning theories and education for sustainable development determines that people, who have used this conceptual framework in the consumer education:
1) act responsibly regarding their family and wider society; 2) understand the local and global impact of their behaviour;
3) analyze consequences of their choice in the environmental and social context. (McGregor, 2010) Within the framework of the doctoral thesis „Consumer Education in Elementary School” analysis of the consumer education content is carried out, providing an opportunity to draw a conclusion that consumer education improves knowledge, skills and attitudes of a pupil in the following spheres:
- values and behaviour of consumers corresponding to the social aspect of education for sustainable development;
- consumers in the market which is included in the economic and environmental aspect;
- management of personal resources is involved in the economic aspect of education for sustainable development;
- consumer rights and liability reveal in the cultural aspect, which is closely related to all the other aspects of education for sustainable development.
Basing on the established interrelations and the basic statements of the question defined by the UNESCO for the education for sustainable development (UNESCO, 2005), the content of consumer education is offered and criteria are defined, through which it is possible to evaluate the level of consumer education in the basic education, and they express themselves as learning outcomes, comprising a body of knowledge, skills and attitudes (see Table 1)
Table 1 Learning outcomes of a pupil in consumer education in the context of interrelationships of social learning theories and education for sustainable development (Danilāne L.)
Topic of consumer
education content
Learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding Skills Attitudes
Values and behaviour of consumers
- understands who is a consumer - knows how and why a consumer
needs to make a choice
- comprehends the necessity of effective and responsible using of goods and services
- comprehends the influence of consumers’ behaviour on environment and personal welfare
- knows how to limit inexpedient using of resources
- comprehends the needs typical of special groups of society in relation to the choice of consumers
- explains the factors influencing choice and availability of resources - is able to evaluate opportunities of
choice
- is able to take into account the needs of others
- is able to identify the results of a certain behaviour of a consumer and assess the expenses by comparing the need for the behaviour - is able to determine the kinds of
consumer impact on the processes of production and supply of the goods and services
- respects values of others
- is ready to participate in a discussion on consumer issues concerning individuals and groups - evaluates active participation in
consumer choice making
- analyzes consequences of his/her choices in the environmental and social context
- understands the influence of a consumer on a local, national and global level
consumers in a
market - knows that there is a wide supply of goods available - knows that producers advertise their
goods and services
- knows about the quality of goods, obtainable through introducing him/herself to the goods’ inspections - knows about the safety, reliability,
convenience while using, durability and sustainability of goods
- knows the differences in the rage of goods and services
- comprehends the significance of fair and ethical inspection of goods
- is able to tell about his/her sympathies and antipathies regarding the choice of goods
- is able to analyze various kinds of goods’ quality determination - is able to evaluate the merit of goods
and services
- is able to distinguish sustainable goods’ labelling
- is able to use various consumer information to make up-to-date choice of goods and services
- liability choosing goods and services
- is aware of the fact that consumers can influence the way goods are offered in the market
- respects of the value of goods - takes care of environment
- evaluates, plans and organizes his/her action corresponding to the basic principles of sustainable development
- admits that there are people and organizations existing to help consumers
resources
management - knows where and how to receive drawing up and management assistance to enhance his/her financial position
- knows new technologies existing to provide consumers opportunities and information
- knows his/her consumer rights - has a good knowledge of shopping
opportunities and uses them
price and quality
- is able to draw up budget and make records in a book of expenses - can plan future and take the
responsibility for the application of personal financial resources
value
- respects personal financial resources
- is aware of priorities and plan efficient application of financial resources
- evaluates available resources - facilitates economical and
environment-friendly disposition of the funds in the family
- takes responsibility for his/her finances and takes part in family budget planning
consumer
rights and ability
- knows that consumers must receive good service
- understands impact of consumption on environment
- knows what is an environment-friendly production
- knows ecological labels
- is aware of the information regarding safety, reliability, convenience when using, durability and sustainability of goods
- knows how to handle hazardous substances
- knows the organizations of consumer right protection and services offered by them
- understands that consumers in the market have not only rights but also obligations
- can lessen the amount of household waste
- is able to perceive advertisement and see the difference between advertisement and information - can deal with the simplest technical
devices
- can evaluate evidence
- is able to protect his/her own rights and rights of other consumers
- is convincing when commenting on good or bad service or production - is ready to submit a complaint, if
necessary
- admits expedience of submitting a comment or complaint
- is aware of menace to the environment constituted by industry, agriculture and housekeeping
- facilitates consumption of environment-friendly products - takes care of safety - daily uses consumer rights
On the basis of the mentioned above, we offer the put to the issue the evaluation criteria of pupils’ learning outcomes in consumer education in the context of interrelationships of social learning theories and sustainable education development, aimed at life quality of pupils as consumers on a new level.
Conclusions
1. Interrelations of social learning theory (Bandura, 1997) and sustainable education development (McGregor, 2007) - social, economical, environmental and cultural aspects - are analyzed in the article.
2. Consumer education content within elementary education, on the basis of interrelationships of these theories creates an innovation in consumer education, providing an opportunity to determine evaluation criteria of pupils’ learning outcomes, aimed at life quality of pupils as consumers on a new level.
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