Students' ecological culture: From everyday practices to environmental responsibility

Abstract

In modern conditions of bio- and technosphere development, targeted environmental socialization of an individual is becoming more and more relevant, expanded and becomes continued. Students' environmental socialization has many advantages that must be used in the educational process. The purpose of the article was to find directions for the development of students' environment-friendly ecological culture, understood as a unity of ecocentric consciousness and behavior and contributing to the sustainable development of society. Research methodology: 1) qualitative substantive analysis of 200 student essays on the topic "Environmental Problems of My Region"; 2) a survey of 400 students of Vyatka State University. The structural-level model of the personality's ecological culture was presented, demonstrating the role of regular environmental practices in the formation of environmentally responsible behavior. This model was empirically confirmed by the method of factor analysis and described by five factors: “The concept of eco-responsibility”, “Readiness for eco-practices”, “Information-cognitive eco-needs”, “Real eco-behavior”, “Assessment of population eco-culture”. Students' average readiness for everyday environmental practices at home, the positive dynamics of environmental responsibility from the first to the fourth years of study (Pearson's chi-square, r=36, p=0.049) were shown. Three clusters of students were identified by the level of ecological culture development: 1) those who are ready for real eco-practices (40%), 2) those who want to get additional information about options for everyday ecological behavior (40%), 3) those who are not interested in eco-problems (20%). All three clusters of students are equally represented in each of the four courses of study and in each enlarged group of fields of study (Pearson's chi-square, p>0.05). Students of natural science and socio-humanitarian fields of study rather than technical ones are the most interested in obtaining environmental information (Pearson's chi-square r=18.3, p=0.019). The directions of further environmental socialization of these groups of students were indicated.