Green knowledge in teaching and learning in higher education: Evidence from a South African university

Abstract

A new phenomenon called "green knowledge" is fast developing in the modern economy albeit without responsive actions from management studies programmes offered by universities. Green knowledge refers to the awareness of climate change issues in everyday life. As much as business ethics has been given much attention in all spheres of academia, I argue that the expansion and adoption of green knowledge systems should be treated with urgency in institutions of higher education. The role of universities in societal transformation will thus lead to the appreciation of the consequences of climate change at grassroot level in modern society. This study therefore uses a survey technique to ascertain the use of green knowledge in teaching and learning among students in the College of Law and Management Studies at UKZN. A cluster comprising 225 students was used and a response rate of 58 percent was attained. The results show that students are conversant with climate change issues but do not engage themselves in green practices during teaching and learning for reasons such as the convenience of using printed materials, the high cost of electronic gadgets and resistance to change to newer techniques. Also the majority of the respondents support the idea of incorporating climate change issues in the university curricula although only 30 percent expressed a willingness to study a standalone module related to climate change. Finally, a green teaching and learning philosophy is proposed for higher education, which if adopted could lead to a green knowledge society.