Assessing The Level Of Climate Change Awareness Among Primary School Teachers In Kisumu Municipality, Kenya: IMPLICATION FOR POLICY PLANNING
教育学paper代写 Even as resources are put together to mitigate climate change, there is a need to educate people on what climate change really is.
Department of Environmental Education
There has been a plethora of material written in recent times on climate change adaptation and mitigation, but a dearth of material that looks at how awareness and perception of climate change can contribute to same. Mitigation of climate change requires not only government action, but also public cooperation. Public cooperation is greatly influenced by the public’s level of awareness and perception of global climate change. In this regard, education is critical in raising the public’s level of awareness on climate change. 教育学paper代写
This research intends to evaluate the level of awareness and perception of climate change among primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality with a bid to addressing policy planning options for inclusion of climate change education into Kenya’s primary school curricula. A descriptive survey design using structured questionnaire as the main data collection instrument will be used. Intended data for this study includes teachers’ knowledge of global climate change including its causes and effects, and their perception of past and expected future climate changes. A total of 100 respondents will be drawn from 20 primary schools (both public and private) within Kisumu Municipality using stratified random sampling. Frequency counts, percentages and correlation analysis will be used to analyze the data.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………………………………………ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………………………………………………….iii
LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS…………………………………………….v
1.0: INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………………..1
1.1: Background of the Problem…………………………………………………………………..1
1.2: Problem Statement and Justification……………………………………………………2
1.3: Research Questions…………………………………………………………………………….3
1.4: Hypotheses…………………………………………………………………………………………4
1.5: Objectives…………………………………………………………………………………………..4
1.6: Significance of the Study and Anticipated Output…………………………………..4
1.7: Conceptual Framework…………………………………………………………………………5
1.8: Operational Definition of Terms…………………………………………………………….7
1.9: Scope of the Study………………………………………………………………………………..7
2.0: LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………………………………………9
2.1: Defining Climate Change………………………………………………………………………..9
2.1: Public Climate Change Awareness and Perception…………………………………….10
2.1.1: Public Awareness Level on Climate Change……………………………………………..10
2.2.2: Public Perception of Climate Change………………………………………………………11
2.3: The Role of Education in Creating Awareness on Climate Change…………………12
2.4: Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………………….13
3.0: METHODOLOGY……………………………………………………………………………………..14
3.1: Study Area………………………………………………………………………………………………..14
3.2: Research Method and Design……………………………………………………………………..14
3.3: Population, Sampling and Data Collection Procedures………………………………….14
3.2.1: Population……………………………………………………………………………………………..14
3.2.2: Sampling……………………………………………………………………………………………….14
3.2.3: Data Collection Procedures……………………………………………………………………..15
3.3: Data Analysis……………………………………………………………………………………………16
4: LIST OF REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………….17
5.0: APPENDICES…………………………………………………………………………………………..20
5.1: STUDY AREA MAP…………………………………………………………………………………..20
5.2: WORK PLAN…………………………………………………………………………………………….21
5.3: RESEARCH BUDGET……………………………………………………………………………….22
5.4: CLIMATE CHANGE AWARENESS QUESTIONNAIRE………………………………..23
LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
CC Climate Change
CCAP Climate Change Action Plan
CCE Climate Change Education
CCRS Climate Change Response Strategy
GoK Government of Kenya
IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
MEO Municipal Education Office
NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration
NCCAP National Climate Change Action Plan
NCCRS National Climate Change Response Strategy 教育学paper代写
NGO Non Governmental Organization
UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNEP United Nations Environmental Programme
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1: Background of the Problem
Climate change constitutes one of the 21st century key challenges to development world over (UNDP, 2007). As such, climate change and global warming have become issues of global concern in the recent decades. This is evidenced by the flurry of conferences, campaigns, reports and researches on climate change since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. While there are natural causes of climate change, the current warring trend is blamed on human activities mainly burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial pollution (IPCC, 2007; Weart, 2010). All these anthropogenic activities either increase the concentration of green house gases in the atmosphere (Canadell et al., 2010) or interfere with the absorption of carbon by terrestrial sinks leading to global warming (IPCC, 2007). 教育学paper代写
Nevertheless, climate change only became an issue of international concern after 1988, despite previous scientific warnings (Christianson, 1999). Numerous studies conducted since then reveal that the vast majority of people across the world, especially in developing countries, are unaware of climate change (Bostrom et al., 1994; Bord et al., 1998; Pew Global Attitudes, 2006; Pugliese and Ray, 2009; Africa Talks Climate, 2010).
Despite their high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change, countries in sub-Saharan Africa have the lowest level of awareness on climate change (Africa Talks Climate, 2009b).
A report on South African awareness of climate change stated that Africans have very limited understanding of global climate change, despite their awareness of changing weather patterns (Taderera, 2010). Most Africans equate climate change to changes in weather patterns yet climate change does not only entail changes in weather patterns (Africa Talks Climate, 2009b). The low level of awareness on climate change across sub-Saharan African countries can be attributed to limited awareness campaigns (Taderera, 2010). Besides, African countries have got too many problems ranging from poverty to political conflicts hence climate change is never a priority issue (UNFCCC, 2007; UNDP, 2007). 教育学paper代写
Just like awareness, perception of climate varies across regions in the world. Climate change is perceived as a serious problem in the developed world compared to developing countries, despite developing countries being the most vulnerable to climate change impacts (Pugliese and Ray, 2009). Perception of climate change is necessary for adaptation to and mitigation of climate change. People only become concerned and interested in something when it is perceived as a serious problem and a risk. Perception of climate change as a risk has been increasing worldwide, but it is still low in developing countries (GlobeScan, 2006). The improvement in perception over the years is mainly due to the fact that climate change impacts have increased over the years.
At the national level, the majority of Kenya’s population is unaware of climate change, notwithstanding climate variability being experienced in the country (Africa Talks Climate, 2009a).
Nevertheless, the Kenyan government is aware of and concerned about climate change as a development issue. The government has drafted NCCRS-2010, which outlines actions to be taken to mitigate and build resilience to the impacts of climate change.
Even as resources are put together to mitigate climate change, there is a need to educate people on what climate change really is. Increasing people’s awareness on climate change through education is an important measure to persuade people at all levels in the community to play an active role in mitigating climate change. In this regard, Kenya is considering a revision of its school curricula to include climate change education at all levels (GoK, 2010). 教育学paper代写
Before, integrating climate change education into school curricula, especially at primary school level, it is paramount to evaluate the teachers’ level of awareness on climate change. Whereas there has been attempts to evaluate climate change awareness among Kenyans in general as documented in the GoK (2010) and Africa Talks Climate (2009a and b), very little have been done to investigate climate change awareness among teachers. This study seeks to assess the level of climate change awareness among primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality.
1.2: Problem Statement
Awareness creation has proved to be an important steppingstone towards solving a problem. It is only after the public is made aware of the prevailing problems that they see the need of acting to solve them. In this regard, the UNFCCC emphasizes education, training, and research as important tools in climate change awareness campaigns. 教育学paper代写
Education, whether formal or informal, is key to understanding, adapting to and mitigating climate change (UNESCO, 2009). Information on global problems such as climate change should thus be incorporated into the school syllabus right from the basic education level. In this context, primary school teachers have arguably a central role in climate change awareness campaign. They teach the future generation who will not only experience the impacts of climate change, but also become important decision-makers and stakeholders in the society. This role, therefore, requires teachers to be fully aware of climate change as a global issue of concern.
Kenya already acknowledges the need to incorporate climate change education into school curricula at all levels to improve nationwide awareness on climate change (GoK, 2010).
This need is well documented in the NCCRS and forms an important component in the NCCAP which is still under development. The NCCRS categorically states that:
Small sections of climate change have already been entrenched into the nation’s primary school curriculum, but this only forms 0.36% of the curriculum (NCCAP, 2012). Besides, only 1.11% of issues related to climate change are addressed directly or indirectly by the Primary Teacher curriculum in Kenya (NCCAP, 2012). The majority of primary school teachers in Kenya may thus have limited understanding of climate change. This low level of awareness may have serious implications on the inclusion of climate change knowledge into the primary school curriculum in the country. With this in mind, this study was more concerned with assessing the level of climate change awareness and perception among primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality.
1.3 Justification for the Study
The justification of this study lies in Article 6 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which call party governments to design programmes for increasing awareness on climate change through education, training and research.
The government is already in the right track by developing the nation’s CCRS and CCAP, which both brings to the fore the need for incorporation of climate change knowledge into school curriculum at all levels of the education system in Kenya. However, any climate change education program can only be successful if the teachers have good mastery of the subject. Hence, assessing the teachers’ level of awareness on climate change is a timely enterprise. 教育学paper代写
Further, the need for proper planning to ensure that the intended goal of climate change education, as outlined in UNESCO (2009) is met also forms the rationale for this study. Further, the choice of Kisumu Municipality as the study area is informed by its high vulnerability to the impacts of climate change given its location just at the show of Lake Victoria.
1.3: Research Questions
This study intended to assess primary school teachers’ level of awareness and perception of climate change. The study was interested in finding answers to the following questions.
- What are the factors influencing the teachers’ level of awareness on climate change?
- What is the primary school teachers’ general perception of climate change?
- What is the primary school teachers’ opinion on inclusion of climate change education into primary school curriculum in Kenya?
1.4: Hypotheses
Based on the objectives, this study was guided by the following null hypotheses.
H0: Primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality are not aware of climate change.
H0: Primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality do not perceive climate change as a major threat.
H0: Primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality are against inclusion of climate change education into primary school curriculum in Kenya.
1.5: Objectives
The main objective of this study was to assess the level of awareness on climate change among primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality. This involved assessing the teachers’ understanding of climate change. With this broad objective, the specific objectives of this study were:
- To determine the factors influencing the teachers’ level of awareness on climate change.
- To evaluate primary school teachers’ general perception of climate change.
- To assess primary school teachers’ opinion on inclusion of climate change education into primary school curriculum in Kenya.
1.6: Significance of the Study and Anticipated Output
The main purpose of this study was to assess teachers’ knowledge of climate change and identify how the teacher’s level of awareness can be enhanced before integrating climate change knowledge into the primary education curriculum in Kenya.
Assessing the level of climate change awareness among teachers in Kisumu Municipality does not only aid in understanding teachers’ perception of climate change, but also provide a framework for climate change education policy planning and implementation in primary schools in Kenya. The researcher believes that the findings of this study will be helpful to the nation’s policy makers especially now that the National Climate Change Action Plan is underway. This study will also provide a framework for future research on climate change education as an important tool for awareness creation. 教育学paper代写
Further, most documented research on climate change has concentrated on climate change impacts, adaptation options, and to some extent general public perception. Studies on climate change awareness based on specific populations are scanty. This study will, therefore, fill this gap by taking a different approach and evaluating teachers’ awareness and perception of climate change.
While Kisumu seems to be a preferred study area for most research works on social problems, very little studies have been conducted on climate change. To the best of researcher’s knowledge, there has never been a study of this nature undertaken in Kisumu Municipality hence the study will fill this perceived gap.
1.7: Conceptual Framework
Adaptation to and mitigation of climate change directly depends on the level of awareness and perception, which are influenced by the prevailing policies and climate change education. Available policy on education will determine the teachers’ level of climate change awareness and perception in that, teachers may be exposed to more knowledge on climate change through professional trainings or become more involved in climate change issues. This will in turn influence their actions to adapt to and mitigate climate change while at the same time determining how teachers conduct climate change education.
When teachers are aware of climate change and perceive it as a threat, they are likely to be compelled to take necessary adaptation and/or mitigation actions, which also includes imparting knowledge on climate change to pupils, who will eventually play a role in transferring this important knowledge to the society through their families. Hence pupils’ level of climate change awareness and perception will directly depend on climate change education. 教育学paper代写
This research thus seeks to achieve three important goals: assess teachers’ level of climate change awareness; evaluate teachers’ perception of climate change; determine the implications of the teachers’ low level of awareness on climate change education policy planning. The results of the study will be used to recommend appropriate CCE policy interventions that will eventually enhance teachers’ capacity for climate change education as well as mitigation and adaptation to climate change at the school level. Fig. 1 below is an illustration of the conceptual framework of this study.
Figure 1: The interaction between teachers’ level of awareness and perception of climate change and actions toward climate change adaptation and/or mitigation
1.8: Operational Definition of Terms 教育学paper代写
Climate Change: shifts in traditional climate patterns of a given place outside the normal range of natural climate variability attributed to both anthropogenic and natural factors.
Climate Variability: short term fluctuations in elements of climate including rainfall, temperature and humidity attributed to both anthropogenic and natural factors.
Climate Change Education: the type of education targeting attitudes and behaviour change towards sustainability, and which is able to help learners understand and interpret impacts of climate change.
Climate Change Awareness: teachers’ common knowledge on climate change; its causes, impacts and possible adaptation and mitigation measures.
Climate Change Perception: teachers’ interpretation of climate change as a risk.
Upper Primary: standard four to eight of the 8-4-4 system.
1.9: Scope of the Study
This study focused focus on both public and private primary schools in Kisumu Municipality. Its scope covered both urban and sub-urban schools. Only schools practicing the 8-4-4 system of education were considered for the study. The study was, however, delimited to teachers in these schools excluding other administrative staff. Only upper primary school teachers were considered for the study. The study focused on a sample of 100 teachers drawn from 20 schools within the study area.
1.10: Limitations and Assumptions of the Study 教育学paper代写
The study targeted upper primary school teachers within Kisumu Municipality. The assumption was that the concept of climate change is best suited for upper primary syllabus. The researcher assumed that primary school teachers in the study area knew very little about climate change. It was also assumed that no researcher bias would significantly affect the sampling, interpretation and synthesis of data that emerged from field data collection.
This study was, however, limited in its location. The urban location of this study makes it limited as its findings may not be generalized to the whole nation. The results might not be the same if the same study is repeated in a pure rural setup.
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 The Evolution of Climate Change as Problem of Global Concern
Scientific warnings on the possibility of human influence on the global climate system dates back to the late 19th century. However, conclusive evidence linking climate change to anthropogenic factors emerged in as from 1950s when Keeling from Scripps Institution of Oceanography started measuring atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration in ice-cores. The results of Keeling’s study revealed beyond any reasonable doubt that the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is increasing, but with seasonal variations, and this increase can be linked to industrial development (Keeling, 1960).
The 1960s and 1970s saw some development in the concern about global warming. However, the global attention on climate change was only captured for the first time by the Brundtland Report, Our Common Future, published in 1987, which highlighted a number of environmental problems including climate change. The report stated that the world’s climate is on a warming trend and is being driven by the unsustainable development practices of humankind (UNWCED, 1987).
On the contrary, the public’s concern on climate change was not captured by the Brundtland’s Report, but by the unusual heat wave and drought of the summer 1988 (Unga, 1992).
This year also saw the discovery of hole in the ozone layer in the northern hemisphere ( ). With these concerns and the Brundtland Report placed into global perspective, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established in 1989 to carry out periodic assessments on the global climate system. IPCC is the leading global scientific research body on climate change. 教育学paper代写
It produces its assessment reports based on scientific research submissions from different scholars across the world. The IPCC published its first assessment report in 1990. The report of Working Group I, which was based on scientific studies of the physical aspects of climate, confirmed that the world’s climate is actually warming and action needs to be taken to curb further anthropogenic interferences of the climate system (IPCC, 1990). IPCC have published three more reports since then and all of them point to the same direction: global warming is real. The forth assessment report, for instance, asserts that climate change is unequivocal and there is a 99% probability that it has been caused by green house gases from anthropogenic activities (IPCC, 2007).
The IPCC’s first assessment report managed to trigger global concern in as far as climate change is concerned.
This was evidenced by the 1992 UNCED (also known as the Rio Earth Summit), which was attended by heads of states from over 100 countries around the world. Even though the UNCED was a follow up conference of the 1972 Stockholm Conference on Human Environment, it for the first time brought to the attention of the world the fact that climate change is happening, its being driven by human interference of the climate system, and there is need for immediate and joint action to mitigate it while at the same time adapting to its disastrous impacts (United Nations, 1992). 教育学paper代写
Consequently, the UN Climate Change Convention (commonly referred to as the UNFCCC) was adopted during the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to provide a framework for global action against climate change. The UNFCCC has so far been ratified by 194 states and 1 regional economic integration organization (UNFCCC, n.d). The implementation of the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol has managed to not only spark global action on climate change, but also create awareness on the issue (Eze, 2011).
The implementation of the UNFCCC required constant monitoring, something that has been achieved through the yearly conference of parties (also known as CoPs).
While these meetings were meant to monitor progress and chart the way forward on a yearly basis, they have played a significant role in creating awareness on climate change. The media coverage of these conference proceedings has made the public more aware of climate change now than it was when the Climate Change Convention was adopted in 1992.
At the national level, party countries to UNFCCC has domesticated the convention with most of them, Kenya inclusive, developing national climate change response strategies and action plans. This shows the level of concern about climate change as a global problem by these nations. However, this high level of concern can also be attributed to the impacts of climate change now being experienced by many countries around the world ( ).
Even with these developments, there is still a substantial majority of the population world over that is unaware of climate change. Most people are not able to differentiate between climate change and global warming hence the need to create awareness on climate change especially through education.
2.2 Defining Climate Change 教育学paper代写
Climate change is most often equated to global warming. Many authors define climate change as the anthropogenic alteration of global climate system through combustion of fossil fuel, deforestation, and other related activities that contribute to increased concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (Sexton et al., 2001; Weart, 2010; Trenberth, 2011; Curry, 2011). This definition is in line with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, 1992: Article 1).
However, there are also natural causes of climate change. Scientists thus consider climate change to be any change in climate attributed to either natural or anthropogenic causes. In this regard, IPCC defines climate change as a change in the state of average weather patterns attributed to both natural and human induced factors and which in addition to variability persists over long periods (IPCC, 2007).
Both of these definitions are relevant in understanding global climate change.
While the former is more relevant in defining the current global warming, the latter gives a scientific definition of climate change that is applicable to climate changes over the centuries. However, both of these definitions concentrate on the cause of climate change more than giving a clear impression of what the phrase “climate change” means.
A comprehensive definition of climate change was provided by John P. Holdren, a renowned scientist from Harvard University, in his 2006 public lecture titled Meeting the Climate-Change Challenge. In his lecture notes, Holden (2006) defines the phrase “climate change” as alterations in earth’s weather patterns in terms of the averages, the extremes, the timing, and the spatial distribution of weather events manifested in the form of hot or cold, wet or dry, snowpack or snowmelt, winds or storm tracks, and ocean currents or upwellings, which are in addition to rising global temperatures. From Holden’s definition, climate change thus entails a measurable trend in global climate towards extreme regardless of the cause. Hence, when talking about climate change, the indicators in question has to be measurable and they must portray an extremity in their behaviour, i.e. a trend different from the normal pattern. 教育学paper代写
2.2.1 What about Global Warming?
Climate change is often used interchangeably with global warming. Yet global warming simply refers to rising global temperatures. The Science Dictionary defines global warming as a sustained increase in the average atmospheric global temperature, which is capable of causing changes in the global climate system (Global warming, n.d). Global warming is thus a prerequisite for climate change.
Available scientific evidence shows that the earth experienced an average warming of approximately 0.6 oC during the 20th Century (IPCC, 2001) and is expected to warm by about 2-3 oC by the end of the 21st century (IPCC, 2007). According to Holden (2006), the last 50 years of the 20th Century were the warmest in 600 years. Further, the top ten global warmest years with temperatures above the 20th C average are all in the first decade of the 21th Century except for one (NOAA, 2010) as illustrated in table 1 below. This warring trend is blamed on human activities mainly burning of fossil fuel, deforestation, and industrial air pollution (Weart, 2010). All these activities have lead to increased concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere enhancing greenhouse effect and hence rising temperatures. 教育学paper代写
Table 1: Global Top 10 Warmest Years
| Global Top 10 Warmest Years (Jan-Dec) | Temperature Anomaly oC | Temperature Anomaly oF |
| 2010 | 0.62 | 1.12 |
| 2005 | 0.62 | 1.12 |
| 1998 | 0.60 | 1.08 |
| 2003 | 0.58 | 1.04 |
| 2002 | 0.58 | 1.04 |
| 2009 | 0.56 | 1.01 |
| 2006 | 0.56 | 1.01 |
| 2007 | 0.55 | 0.99 |
| 2004 | 0.54 | 0.97 |
| 2001 | 0.52 | 0.94 |
Source: NOAA (2010)
Climate change and global warming are often discussed in global terms, yet their effects vary across the globe. Nevertheless, one thing that remains clear is that that the world is warming and this warming has altered the global climate system hence climate change. The 2010 NOAA State of the Climate Report confirmed that all the indicators are already behaving as earlier predicted by climate models (those expected to increase like temperature, humidity and sea level are increasing while those expected to decrease like glacier, snow cover, and sea ice are decreasing) (Blunden, Arndt, and Baringer, 2011), hence sufficient evidence that the world’s climate has changed.
2.3 Global Public Climate Change Awareness and Perception 教育学paper代写
2.3.1 Factors Influencing the Publics Level of Awareness on Climate Change
Various studies have revealed climate change awareness and perception varies within and across regions as will be seen later in this dioscussion. The question is, why does climate change awareness? A review of literature shows people’s level of climate change awareness and perception is influenced by factors which can be categorized into three as follows: demographic factors including age, gender, level of education; personal experience including experience of extreme weather events; access to information including media coverage of the issue and advocacy.
Age is a critical predictor of an individual’s familiarity with climate change issues. According to a study conducted by Saroar and Routray (2010), age correlates positively to familiarity with climate change/ extreme weather events.
Similarly, education has a significant influence on people’s level of a wareness of climate change.
People with high levels of education are likely to be aware of climate change as have been revealed in various studies (Hasan and Akhter, 2011; )
Just like age and education, gender is another predictor of climate change awareness. Studies have revealed that men are more ware of climate change than women ( ). This is mainly due to the fact that men have a relatively high access to information through print and electronic media.
Away from demographic factors, exposure potential also plays a key role in shaping people’s familiarity with climate change. People who live in disaster prone areas are likely to be more familiar and concerned about climate change. 教育学paper代写
Lastly access to information is critical in shaping climate change awareness. People who read newspapers and other related prints, listen to radios or watch TVs, and have access to the Internet are more likely to be familiar with climate change than those who do not have access to such media of information.
2.3.1: Public Awareness Level on Climate Change
Climate change only became a serious issue of global concern after 1988- the first hottest year recorded since mid 19th century as testified by Dr. James Hansen of NASA before the U.S. Congress in 1988 (cited in Christianson, 1999). Awareness studies conducted since then, especially in the developed world reveals that climate change awareness level is high in developed countries (Bostrom et al., 1994; Kempton, 1997; Bord et al., 1998), but still not a priority environmental issue in most of these countries (Leiserowitz et al., 2005; Leiserowitz, 2006). 教育学paper代写
A global opinion poll conducted by Gallup between 2008 and 2009 in 128 countries around the word revealed that people in Europe and America are more aware of climate change than those in Africa, Asia, and Middle East regions (Pugliese and Ray, 2009). Similar findings were revealed by Pew Global Attitudes survey conducted in 2006, which found that respondents from developed countries are increasingly aware of climate change compared to those in developing countries. This low level of awareness in developing countries calls for attention as it might have serious implication for climate change policy development and implementation.
While the Gallup and Pew Global Attitudes opinion polls provide a global outlook, they are shallow studies based on only limited questions and hence reveal very little information on climate change awareness. Basically, Gallup survey was only interested in gauging people’s basic understanding of climate change.
2.3.2: Public Perception of Climate Change
There is a public consensus throughout the world that climate change is happening, but perception of climate change differs across countries in the world. A Global Health of the Planet Survey conducted in 1992 on 24 countries around the world revealed that 13 of the studies countries, out of which 8 are European countries, perceived climate change as a serious problem of global concern (Dunlap, Gallup and Gallup, 1993). On the contrary, the USA Today’s 1992 national survey revealed that 38% of the respondents had limited knowledge of global warming (cited in Bord, Fisher, and O’Conner, 1998). Nevertheless, 63% of those who responded to the opinion question perceived global warming as a ‘major threat’ (Bord, Fisher, and O’Conner, 1998).
Global perception of climate change as a major threat has been increasing over the years.
GlobeScan conducted a follow up of their 2003 global survey in 30 countries between 2005 and 2006 to examine the publics’ perception of climate change as a serious problem and revealed that climate change is perceived as a serious risk worldwide. Their findings reveal that concern for climate change risk seems to have grown over the years. This can be attributed to increased frequency of observed impacts worldwide, scientific certainty, and awareness campaigns worldwide arising from the yearly UNFCC CoPs that draws global attention. 教育学paper代写
Perception of climate change as a major threat also varies between developed and developing countries. While some opinion polls have revealed that perception of climate change as a major threat is high in developing countries (GobeScan, 2001; Pew Global Attitude, 2006), the Gallup survey conducted between 2008 and 2009 revealed that people in developed countries are more likely to perceive climate change as a major threat. However, opinion polls may be misleading hence the need for an in-depth study to gauge the public’s level of awareness and perception of climate change. All the same, the low level of awareness and perception of climate change as a major threat profound the need to educate the public on climate change.
2.4 Public Climate Change Awareness and Perception in Africa 教育学paper代写
According to a regional survey conducted by Africa Talks Climate in ten sub-Saharan countries including Kenya in 2009, people in sub-Saharan Africa are poorly informed about climate change. Most respondents considered climate change to be an abstract, despite their understanding of changing weather patterns (Africa Talks Climate, 2009b). Similar findings were revealed by a report on South African awareness of climate change, which stated that Africans have very limited understanding of global climate change, despite their awareness of changing weather patterns (Taderera, 2010). However, country specific studies reveal conflicting findings.
A descriptive survey conducted by Acquah (2011) using a random sample of 78 respondents to evaluate public awareness and quality of knowledge regarding climate change in Ghana revealed a higher level of awareness on climate change among inhabitants of central region of Ghana. Nonetheless, Aquah’s study is limited in its sample size and may not be representative of the general population in central Ghana.
In a similar study, Oruonye (2011) examined the level of awareness on the impacts of climate change effects among tertiary institution students in Jalingo Metropolis,
Nigeria and found a surprisingly low level of awareness. Of the 225 students interviewed, 89% were unaware of climate change including its causes, effects, and possible adaptations or mitigations while another 18.8% had never had of climate change before (Oruonye, 2011). 教育学paper代写
According to a research conducted by Africa Talks Climate in 2009, most Kenyans are unfamiliar with the concepts of climate change and global warming, but are aware and concerned about frequent droughts and food scarcity in the country (Africa Talks Climate, 2009a). Similar concerns are expressed in GoK (2010), which states that the vast majority of Kenyans are unaware of climate change, despite their knowledge of changing weather patterns (GoK, 2010). The report calls for in-depth studies to examine the level of climate change awareness, and how this perceived low level of awareness can be improved in all age groups across the country.
2.4: The Role of Education in Creating Awareness on Climate Change
The need for education in dealing with climate change is well spelt in Article 6 of UNFCC. Education, whether formal or informal, has a central role to play in understanding, mitigating and adopting to climate change (UNESCO, 2009). UNESCO (2009) goes ahead to state that climate change education should focus on transforming learners into critical thinkers, lifelong learners and adoptable. In this regard, international conventions and protocols geared towards climate change mitigation like UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol can only succeed if the general public is sensitized to play a role in mitigating climate change.
While there are other methods of creating awareness like the media, education remains the most significant method for creating awareness on climate change.
According to Anderson (2010), teachers are an untapped resource that the world can use to combat climate change. Teachers can use their expertise to disseminate information on climate change beyond the school compounds and hence help individuals and communities make informed decisions and take sustainable actions to build a climate resilient society. 教育学paper代写
Hence, climate change education not only leads to awareness creation, but a total change in behaviour and attitude towards sustainability. Nevertheless, education is not a ‘magic bullet’ in tackling the problems of climate change unless coordinated educational interventions are pursued (UNESCO, 2010). The climate change education programme should be developed in such a way that it is able to help learners become responsible citizens capable of making responsible decisions that can lead to climate change mitigation and adaptation. Such programs should also allow teachers to use their expertise to create awareness on climate change to the wider community.
2.5 Climate Change Awareness and Perception in Africa 教育学paper代写
2.4: Conclusion
From the literature reviewed in this chapter, there exists a universal consensus across the world that climate change is happening. However, the level of climate change awareness is surprisingly low in the developing world, despite the fact that these countries are the most vulnerable to impacts of climate change. Perception of climate change as a major threat is also low, especially in developing countries.
Nevertheless, literature on climate change awareness and perception, especially focusing on teacher population is scarce. It has also been noted through the literature reviewed that most studies on climate change awareness have been in the form of opinion polls with no scientific backing. This study intends to fill this gap by undertaking an empirical study to assess the level of awareness on climate change among primary school teachers in Kisumu Municipality.
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 教育学paper代写
3.1.1 Physical location
This study was carried out in Kisumu Municipality. Kisumu Municipality is located along the shore of Lake Victoria within latitudes 0° 21′ N and 3° 00′ S and longitudes 31° 39′ E and 34° 53′ E. The municipality covers an area of 417 sq. km of which only 297 sq. Km is landmass (Maoulidi, 2008). It is the third largest city in Kenya with a population of 259, 258 based on the 2009 census ( ). The location of the study area in the national context is illustrated in Map 1 below.
Kisumu was founded in 1901 as a railway terminus and has since grown to be the headquarter of Nyanza province. It is supposed the headquarter of Kisumu County, and also holds high significance in the East Africa Lake Region affairs ( ). The Municipality covers both Kisumu East and West Districts consisting of urban and peri-urban settlements. 教育学paper代写
Kisumu has a well developed road network connecting it to the adjacent towns as well as the neighboring countries.
It also lies along the railway line connecting it to several neighboring towns and countries. Locally, Kisumu is well connected to towns such as Siaya, Busia, Kapsabet, Eldoret, and the sugar belt satellite townships of Muhoroni, Awasi, Chemelil, Miwani and Nandi Hills ( ). Internationally, Kisumu lies along the Trans African Highway which connects it to Uganda, Tanzania and by extension Rwanda, Burundi, DRC Congo, Zambia and Sudan ( ). Map 2 below shows the road networks connecting Kisumu to other places.
Map 1: The Location of Kisumu Municipality in Kenya
Source: Oxford Cartographers
Map 2: Google Earth Map Showing the Major Roads in Kisumu Municipality
Source: Google Earth
i.Administrative Units
The Municipality is divided into 25 sub-locations, which are grouped into 10 locations namely: Kolwa East, Central Kolwa, South West Kisumu, North Kisumu, Central Kisumu, East Kisumu, Kajulu West, Township, Kajulu East and West Kolwa ( ). The major administrative units of Kisumu Municipality are illustrated in Map 3 below. 教育学paper代写
Map 3: Kisumu Municipality (Administrative Units)
Source: Maoulidi (2008)
ii.Relief Features
Kisumu Municipality lies at an altitude of 1, 134 metres above sea level ( ). The topography of the area is relatively flat. The main physical feature in the area is Lake Victoria. There is also the Kisumu Impala Sanctuary, which is one of the Kenya’s smallest wildlife reserves.
iii.Climate
Kisumu is warm to hot all round the year. Temperature in the area ranges between 20 oC and 23 oC. The area also records a mean annual precipitation of 1, 278 mm. It is important to note that Kisumu is already experiencing climate variability. The temperature of the region has slightly increased and rainfall patterns have also changed over the years as illustrated in table 1 below. 教育学paper代写
Table 1: Kisumu Municipality: Temperature Variations Between (Insert Years)
iv.Education System in Kisumu Municipality
The education system in Kisumu Municipality consists of both formal and non-formal sectors. Education in the area is provided by both public and private sectors. Education institutions in the municipality include pre-primary institutions, primary and secondary schools, non-formal education centres, vocational institutions, and tertiary institutions ( ). The Municipal Council of Kisumu has Municipal Education Office (MEO), which handles the management of primary and Early Childhood Education Centres (ECEC) within the municipality on behalf of the Ministry of Education.
According to data obtained from the MEO, Kisumu municipality has a total of 172 primary schools out of which 119 are public. Table 2 below provides an illustration of education institutions within Kisumu Municipality in 2012. 教育学paper代写
Table 2: Number of Different Education Institutions in Kisumu Municipality
| Pre-primary (Public) | Pre-primary (Private) | Primary (Public) | Primary (Private) | Secondary (Public) | Secondary (Private) | Non-Formal | Vocational Institutions | Tertiary (Public/private) | |
| 119 | 53 | 28 | 8 | 21 | 15+ | ||||
| Total | 172 | 36 | 15+ | ||||||
Source: Author’s calculations based on data obtained from MEO and MOE officers
Primary schools in Kisumu Municipality are grouped into nine distinct school zones namely: Nhahera, Otonglo, Ojolla, Kajulu, Manyatta, Rweya, Central, Southern, and Raguma. An elaborate discussion of the distribution of primary schools in Kisumu Municipality by zone is provided under the sampling section.
v.Land Use
The main land use in Kisumu Municipality is fishing given its locational advantage at the shore of lake victoria. Other land uses in the area include rain-fed mixed farming and urban settlement.
3.2 Research Method and Design 教育学paper代写
This study took the form of a descriptive survey. This involved a critical review of literature as well as field collection of primary data to provide the variety of information needed to evaluate teachers’ level of awareness and perception of climate change. The adoption of a descriptive survey design was guided by its appropriateness in examining and describing the nature of a phenomenon (Mugenda, 2003) hence most appropriate in covering issues related to climate change awareness.
3.3 Population, Sampling and Data Collection Procedures
The study was carried out in public and private primary schools within Kisumu Municipality. The study targeted a population of teachers in the 172 primary schools in the study area, but only upper primary teachers were considered for the study. The choice for upper primary school teachers was guided by the assumption that climate change as a concept is too complex for lower primary pupils.
3.2.2 Sampling
Kisumu Municiplaity was purposively selected as the study area due to its diverse nature of settlement, which game the researcher the opportunity to collect data from schools located both in urban and peri-urban settlements. The decision of selecting Kisumu municipality as the study area was also informed by its high vulnerabity to climate change given its location and poverty levels.
The education sector was also purposively selected given its significant role in instilling knowledge on climate change at all levels. Further, the choice of primary school teachers as the unit of observation was guided by the vital role they would play not only in imparting knowledge of climate change, but also in shaping attitudes and behaviours of Kenyan young pupils. 教育学paper代写
The researcher used stratified random sampling to select 20 primary schools from 172 schools within Kisumu Municipality.
Schools were first stratified into zones and a sample drawn depending on the number of schools in each zone. At the zonal level, schools were stratified into public and private strata to ensure equitable allocation of samples. A sample of 20 schools was drawn as illustrated in table 1 below using the formula: 教育学paper代写
n/N * S
Where: n is the population within a stratum; N is the total population for all the strata, and S is the sample size.
Table 3: Sample Frame (Based on data from MEO, Kisumu)
| Zone | Number of schools sampled | Total | |
| Public | Private | ||
| Nyahera | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Otonglo | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Ojolla | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Kajulu | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Manyatta | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Central | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Southern | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Rweya | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Raguma | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total schools sampled | 20 | ||
Even at the school level, stratified random sampling was used to select respondents for the survey. Teachers were stratified into male and female to eliminate possibilities of sampling biasness. The researcher used a sample of 5 teachers from each school giving a sample size of 100 teachers. Due to questionnaire spoilage, the study was finally based on a sample of 96 respondents. A sample frame of 96 teachers was believed to be representative enough in this study.
3.2.3 Data Collection Procedures
Semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data. The use of a structured questionnaire in this study is in congruent with UNEP (2006), which emphasized the importance of questionnaire survey in gauging level of awareness on climate change among stakeholders and potential partners including government officials, business leaders, NGO representatives, journalists, scientists, clergy and youth. The questionnaire consisted of 4 sections.
Section A consisted of demographic questions. Section B consisted of awareness questions to establish respondents’ basic level of awareness and knowledge of climate change. Section C consisted of likert statements to further assess the respondents’ knowledge and perception of climate change and variability including its causes, effects, and possible mitigations. Section D consisted of policy questions to assess respondents’ opinion on inclusion of climate change knowledge into primary school curricula. A five categories Likert scale consisting of both positive and negative statements to gauge the respondents attitude on the scientifically identified causes, effects and mitigations of climate change.
3.3 Data Analysis 教育学paper代写
The researcher used computer aided statistical packages to analyze volumes of information collected using the above mentioned tool. Specifically, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Ms Excel was used for purposes of data analysis. This involved first cleaning and coding of the information recorded in the questionnaires.
The codes were then entered to the software and data analysis commands ran. Data analysis thus involved frequency counts, computation of percentages, mode, and correlation analysis. Specifically, percentages and frequency counts will be used to analyze demographic data against data on awareness. Mode will be used to analyse scaled data where appropriate. Correlation analysis will be used to analyze cause and effect data as well as data on perception. Tables, charts and graphs will be used to present analyzed data.
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 General Characteristics of the Population Sampled
The sampled population consisted of 96 respondents out of which 66.7% were male while 33.3% were female. Data obtained showed that ….. were young adults aged bwtween 18 to 30 years, …… were in the 31 to 40 age category while ….. were above 50 years. An elaborate illustration of the age distribution is presented in table 4 below. The data also revealed that 55.2% of the respondents were P1 teachers, 14.6% of the respondents had diploma while another 13.5% had degrees.
The rest either had upto form four level of education (8.3%), ATS (2.1%), P2 (2.1%) or masters (4.2%). 68.8% of the respondents were teachers in public schools while the remaining 31.2% were from private schools. The data also revealed that 43.8% of the respondents were from schools located in the urban centre while the remaining 56.2% were from schools located in the peri-urban. Further, it was noted that 63.7% of the respondents were from Kisumu County while the remaining were distributed across across 7 counties as illustrated below. Table 4 below provides a clear picture of the respondent’s characteristics. 教育学paper代写
Table 4: Respondents Characteristics
| Item | Total Frequency | Total Frequency Percentage |
| Respondent’s gender
Male Female |
64 32 |
66.7 33.3 |
| Respondent’s age structure
18 to 25 yrs 26 to 30 yrs 31 to 35 36- to 40 41 to 45 46 to 50 51 and above |
教育学paper代写 | |
| Respondent’s highest level of education
Form Four ATS P2 Diploma Degree Masters |
8 2 2 14 13 4 |
8.3 2.1 2.1 14.6 13.5 4.2 |
Respondents distribution by type of schoolPublic Private |
66 30 |
68.8 31.2 |
| Respondent’s distribution by school location
Urban Peri-urban |
41 55
|
42.7 57.3 |
| Respondent’s distribution by county
Kisumu Siaya Kisii Migori Homabay Bungoma Kakamega Nandi |
58 14 4 1 8 3 2 1
|
63.7 15.4 4.4 1.1 8.8 3.3 2.2 1.1 |
Out of the schools sampled, 70% were public while 30% were private. It was also noted that only 35% of the schools sampled were located in the urban centre while the remaining 65% were located in the peri-urban/rural areas.
Table 5: Schools characteristics
| Item | Frequency | % Frequency |
| School distribution by type
Public Private |
14 6 |
70 30 |
| School Distribution by location
Urban Pri-urban |
7 13 |
35 65 |
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APPENDICES 教育学paper代写
| Activity | Time Line | ||||||||||||||||
| [ 2012 ][ 2013 ] | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| Proposal Preparation and defense at the department | |||||||||||||||||
| Submission of proposal to the school | |||||||||||||||||
| Registration of proposal at Graduate School | |||||||||||||||||
| Data collection |
|
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| Data compilation and analysis | |||||||||||||||||
| Thesis writing | |||||||||||||||||
| Thesis submission
|
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| Thesis defense pending graduation | |||||||||||||||||
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