Values and science in contemporary education: the study and impact of student orientation

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has implemented a triennial survey of 15-year-old students around the world, known as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Analysis of the PISA 2015 data suggested that 65% of students are pessimistic regarding the future of the environment. This seems to deserve further work, so I focused my subsequent research on the optimism versus pessimism polarity regarding the future of the environment, and secondly, on the relevance of values and ethics in the school curriculum. I have investigated current student environmental awareness and 20-year projections by survey and interview and have analysed scholarly literature. Subsequently, I have consolidated these available data within a hierarchy of needs framework to formulate an in-depth understanding of the optimism and pessimism that a group of 15-year-old students feel towards the future of the environment over the next twenty years. I report that in my study of 315 students in 2021, all student categories exhibited a high level of concern and protection for the environment, and approximately 78% of the students were pessimistic regarding the future of the environment. However, approximately 31% of the students who were pessimistic regarding the future of the environment over the forthcoming twenty years held the contrasting belief that they would experience more happiness than sadness in life. Further, the majority of the full student sample held the belief that ideas in science sometimes change. Such a provisional view of the contribution that scientists can make to important social issues depends on both contemporary curriculum documents and recognition of past successes in the environmental sphere. I contend that grounds do exist for productive futures for today’s students so that they may contribute to society, such as in the successful implementation of environmental sustainability and regeneration initiatives.