Obstacles to the integration of environmental education and sustainable development in life and earth sciences courses in the final cycle of basic education in the congolese education system (DR Congo)

Abstract

This qualitative interpretive case study aims to inventory the obstacles that stand in the way of successful integration of environmental and sustainable development education (EEDD) into life and earth sciences (SVT) courses to the final cycle of basic education in the Congolese education system and to propose strategies to circumvent them. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 65 teachers. The study showed that 87.3% of teachers do not organize extracurricular or extracurricular activities integrating EEDD. Five major obstacles prevent them from doing so: lack or insufficiency of teaching resources and materials (35.4%), absence or deficit of training in EEDD (27.7%), lack of time (23.1 %), cramped school space (10.8%), demotivation (1.5%).  These constraints are institutional or organizational, personal and didactic. The strategies proposed by teachers are training, motivation and awareness, outings outside of school and class (guided tours, class walks, excursions, etc.) and reforestation.