Constraints and contributing factors to implementing Climate Change Education as an emerging curriculum area at the basic education level in Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

Abstract

Ghana adopted the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda and introduced a new educational curriculum in the September 2019/2020 academic year for primary schools to educate her citizens on climate change as stipulated in Article 6 of UNFCCC. The present study sought to explore the constraints and contributing factors that primary school teachers encounter in implementing climate change education curriculum. The purpose of the study is to investigate the constraints and contributing factors the primary school teachers in Cape Coast Metropolis encounter when implementing the climate change education curriculum in a bid to identify the support the teachers required to support their work with CCE as an emerging curriculum is in basic education level in Ghana. The study employed a qualitative research approach involving semi-structured interviews with 20 teachers from 10 randomly selected schools out of the 69 schools within the metropolis. One school was at least selected from each of the 6 circuits within the metropolis.The results suggest that teachers limited understanding of the concept of climate change education, students parental background and the lack of teaching resources are the constraints the teachers encounter in implementing the curriculum. However, the establishment of a professional learning community (PLC), teachers’ positive attitude towards the curriculum and teachers general understanding of the focus of the curriculum, are the contributing factors facilitating the implementation of the curriculum. Almost every teacher agreed that there should be training with regards to the tenets of climate change education to enable them to fully implement the curriculum as required. Key recommendations include that the PLC should be strengthened, essential teaching and learning resources are provided, resources persons with expertise in climate change education be invited to PLC sections to train teachers in the tenets of CCE, and CCE is factored in the initial teacher training courses.