Analysis of sustainability literacy and behavior among pre-service teachers: informing the development of edutourism-integrated learning resources in higher education

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the sustainability literacy and behavior profiles of pre-service teachers, as well as the potential of educational tourism (edutourism) in supporting sustainability literacy and behavior. The study involved 298 pre-service teachers from science and social science education programs. The research instruments included a sustainability literacy test covering three domains (environmental, economic, and social), a sustainability behavior questionnaire, a student perception questionnaire, and a learning document analysis. The findings indicate that the sustainability literacy of pre-service teachers is at a high level, with varying scores across the environmental, social, and economic domains. In contrast, their sustainability behavior remains at a moderate level, revealing a gap between students' sustainability literacy and their sustainability behavior. Analyses of students' perceptions and focus group discussions (FGDs) involving relevant stakeholders highlight the need to develop experience-based learning resources that incorporate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and foster communication skills to bridge the gap between sustainability literacy and behavior. Edu-tourism offers considerable potential as a learning resource because its characteristics align well with the identified learning needs.