Teacher Preparation for Environmental Education and Education for Sustainable Development in India

Abstract

At the beginning of the millennium, Environmental Education (EE) became compulsory in India, and globally Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) came to be seen as driver for change to achieve sustainability. The chapter takes the reader through the history of formal recognition of EE and broadening of its scope with the integration environmental, social and economic concerns (ESD in spirit, if not in letter). Authors review efforts and exemplar experiences from India to understand the way EE and ESD find place in teacher education/preparation. Also, authors present several challenges of the education system such as sheer size, mobilization of the human, financial and material resources, and the shortage of teachers. Most of the EE programmes (supported by) the government and (those designed and implemented by) the NGOs were mediated through teachers before and after the Supreme Court Directives. With eight case examples, the authors examine the role of non-state actors like NGOs in building models, designing materials and conducting trainings for imparting practice-based EE teaching. The authors conclude that there are several laudatory efforts in the country to mainstream EE. The long experience of the various stakeholders in implementing finely targeted EE programmes and projects should be harnessed in both designing and implementing systemic level interventions to strengthen EE.