Enhancing pre-service chemistry teachers’ environmental literacy through inquiry-based hydrosphere pollution activities

Vinko, Luka (author), Bavcon Kralj, Mojca (author), Devetak, Iztok (author)

Teachers play a crucial role in developing students’ environmental literacy (EL), which is essential for reducing human impacts on the environment and fostering a more sustainable society. However, studies consistently show that the EL of pre-service teachers worldwide remains insufficient. To address this issue, a module on hydrosphere pollution was designed and implemented over one semester, consisting of six authentic inquiry-based learning (IBL) activities. The study involved 38 pre-service chemistry teachers. The results showed statistically significant improvements in participants’ overall EL, particularly in their environmental knowledge and their competencies in identifying and analysing environmental issues. Interestingly, a statistically significant decrease in environmentally responsible behaviour was also observed, which may be due to several factors. Additionally, students reported higher situational interest in hands-on laboratory activities compared to individual online ones, confirming the positive relationship between situational interest and learning outcomes. The findings highlight the potential of IBL as an effective pedagogical approach for enhancing pre-service chemistry teachers’ EL.

• Language: English
• Keywords: environmental literacy, EuroVariety 2025, inquiry-based learning, situational interest, teacher education
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: PEF - Faculty of Education
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 295-307
• Numbering: Vol. 8, iss. 2 (special iss.)
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-188333
• UDC: 378:54
• ISSN on article: 2569-3263
• DOI: 10.1515/cti-2025-0105
• COBISS.SI-ID: 272312067
• Publication date in RUL: 21.09.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Chemistry teacher international : best practices in chemistry education
• Publisher: De Gruyter
• ISSN: 2569-3263
• COBISS.SI-ID: 146663939

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: EuroVariety 2025, okoljska pismenost, okoljske aktivnosti, hidrosfera, raziskovalno učenje, situacijski interes, izobraževanje učiteljev, kemija, višje in visokošolsko izobraževanje

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P5-0451
• Name: Strategije vzgoje in izobraževanja za trajnostni razvoj ob uporabi inovativnih na učečega osredinjenih izobraževalnih pristopov

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P3-0388
• Name: Mehanizmi varovanja zdravja