1. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
“Environmental Conflicts and Sustainable Water Policies in the
Mediterranean Region”
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on
climate changes
Giovanni Donadelli
Geography Department “G. Morandini”

2. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Formal, not formal and informal
experiences
Personal expertise
+
Ideas about what teaching is
System of personal beliefs
?
Teacher’s The way the
beliefs on teacher teach
geography geography

3. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
 are subjective ideas about what we think is true, that help us:
• to understand world events
Beliefs
• to take decision
• to act (Arnold, 1986; Albanese, 2003)
 better defined as personal and always evolving system of cognitive,
affective and behavioral belief which is resistent to changes
(Pajares, 1992)
 have a triple nature :
• epistemological
• ontological
• methodological (Guba, 1990; Lincoln, 1995)
Methodological belief
Epistemological belief
Ontological belief

4. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Does the teacher’s beliefs
on geography
influence the way of teaching it
?

5. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Methodological belief geographic
functionalism and
geographic quantitative geography
possibilism
Epistemological
belief
human geography
(the geographies)
Ontological belief

6. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
The questionnaire
SERVQUAL
Deep investigation
on
School system
Essential and
bibliography National
research Curriculum Tool
calibration
Focus First
group submit
Tool Tool
Data collect
adaptation administration

7. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
from September 2006 to July 2007
517 teachers of
Scuola Veneto
dell’infanzia
+
391 teachers of
Scuola Primaria
Teachers from
908 teachers longer than 2
years
(100%)
Females Younger than 40
(99,1%) years old (79,5%)

8. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
June 2009 and June 2010
20 Erzieher
(child-care
workers) of
Kindergarten
+
13 teachers of
Grundschule Teachers from
longer than 10
33 teachers
years
(90%)
91% female
40-60 years old
Source: Ziliotto S., 2011)
(89%)

9. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
between July and November 2009
106 future
teachers
+
58 teachers of
Educaçao Infantil Students
+
49 teachers of (49,8%)
Rio Grande
Ensino
do Sul
fundamental Teachers
Females (50,2%)
213 teachers (94,8%)
30 years old or younger
(61,0%)

10. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
This research allowed to
highlight the link
between teachers
personal experiences,
beliefs and
practices/strategies Experience
used by them.
System of
Teaching
beliefs

11. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
What this research can tell us about
climate changes?
It put in evidence how experiences are
crucial. Positive or negative
experiences can influence the
perception of a particular issue
and condition the way it will
be tough.

12. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Epistemological beliefs
Which are in our opinion the aims of geography?
to know where a
river, a country or a
city is
to promote active 80.00% to travel and to
contacts with the know how to orient
natural, social and… 70.00% with the map
to promote 60.00% to know different
environmental
50.00% cultures
education
40.00%
to promote 30.00% to know the
susteinable environment around
development 20.00% you
10.00%
0.00% to improve
to develop spatial
responsability as a
orientment
citizien
to find out problems
to compare past and
and think about
present
solutions
to know and to develop the
understand our capacity of make
roots to promote questions and find…
to better understand
intercultural
actuality
education
Scuola dell'infanzia Scuola primaria

13. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Epistemological beliefs
Which are in our opinion the aims of geography?
To know how to orient with the
map and in the real world
25%
To know the near territory with To promote the orientation and the
field study 20% spatial intelligence
15%
To facilitate the sustainable 10% To facilitate the direct contact with
development nature, society and culture
5%
0%
To act in a sustainable way with To know, to use and to evaluate
nature and society sources of information
To understand and analyze man-
To promote intercultural education
environment relationships
To decribe and analyze different
landscapes
Kindergarten Grundschule Source: Ziliotto S., 2011)

14. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Epistemological beliefs
Which are in our opinion the aims of geography?
to know where rivers, countries
and cities are
to analyze the territory in order 70 to travel and to learn how to
to make it better orient with the map and in the…
60
to read the landscape through the
to know different cultures
observation of physical and… 50
40
to investigate the laws which
to know the local reality
govern the territory 30
20
to explore the territory through 10 to find out problems and find out
field activities solutions
0
to promove active contacts with to develop the capacity of make
the natural, social and cultural … questions and find answers
to read and interpret territorial
to better understand actuality
processes
to promote susteinable to promote intercultural
development education
to develop spatial orientment to know and understand our roots
Escola infantil Ensino fundamental

15. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
How will teachers whit these perceptions teach
climate changes?
From the data collected we can say
that probably the idea of sustainable
development hasn’t been experienced
yet as much as it should by the
teachers and so by the students.
In order to improve climate change
understanding, global warning
consciousness and sustainable actions
on everyday life we all have to play our
role on virtuous changing chain
(especially those who teach or will teach)

16. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)
Positive
and
involving
experience
civil and sustaina
social ble
educatio develop
n ment
intercultura
Conscious l education
Passion on
and active
teaching
learning

17. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Teachers’ beliefs influence on climate changes
(G. Donadelli)

18. 14TH EUROPEAN SEMINAR ON GEOGRAPHY OF WATER
“Environmental Conflicts and Sustainable Water Policies in the
Mediterranean Region”
Cagliari, June 26th – July 7th, 2011
Thank you very much for your attention.
Giovanni Donadelli
Email: giovanni.donadelli@gmail.com
“Be the change you want to see in the world”
(Mahatma Gandhi)