Acquisition of Environmental Subject Knowledge in Pre-school Children

An International Study

Abstract

This paper provides a description and discussion of selected aspects of the preliminary findings of an international research project entitled 'Emergent Environmentalist!'. The project as a whole uses autobiographical, qualitative analysis to investigate the acquisition of environmental subject knowledge and concern. The paper provides an overview and discussion of one sub-study of the project, which is an investigation into the acquisition of environmental subject knowledge in pre-school children. It describes the semi-structured interview format used to find out details of the children's knowledge and misconceptions of four environmental issues, provides illustrations of concept maps constructed from the data obtained, and discusses some of the implications of the findings for teachers in early years classrooms.