Identifying differences in the level of environmental awareness among Male students: A case of lower elementary grades

Abstract

Some students in the first three grades interact with undesirable stimuli or models that may harm the environment, particularly in multi-cultural societies such as Makkah Al-Mukarramah. There are many obstacles that hinder the international and national initiatives related to the environmental issues and to the inclusion of an environmental dimension in the school curriculum, one of which is the ineffective employment of measurable means of creating and developing environmental awareness. Therefore, the present study aims to develop and validate an environmental awareness scale with acceptable psychometric properties. The study also investigates the level of environmental awareness of students in the first three grades and determines whether it differs significantly based on the grade level. The study sample entailed 45 male students from the first three grades at Makkah Al-Mukarramah schools, who showed a moderate level of environmental awareness. The results showed that Saudi students in the first three grades are aware that the environment is suffering from people’s behaviours. The students might have been affected by the general atmosphere in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and the principles of Islam that give high consideration to environmental issues and motivated people to manage their environmental behaviours. The study results have concluded that there is a significant difference in the students’ level of awareness based on their grade level and; therefore, more emphasis is needed on environmental issues to raise their awareness to a high level.