Adaptation of Environmental and Sustainability Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT

The delivery of environment and sustainability education in pre-service teacher programmes was challenged due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown conditions. In this chapter, we examine our histories and experiences as three academics adapting environment and sustainability education during forced remote learning. While there is research regarding remote learning, an examination of the unique circumstances that transpired when shifting to forced remote learning conditions during a pandemic is necessary. Using collaborative autoethnography, we explore meaning making and how we adapted our thinking and delivery from outdoor experiential activities to remote learning activities whilst trying to create meaningful experiences for our students who were restricted in their environments. Drawing on Yuval-Davis' theory of situated intersectionality, we recognise that adapting to forced remote learning gave us an opportunity to lean on each other for support despite the various academic stages we occupied. Our diverse histories and experiences re-emerged in a collective and yet different learning space. The situated intersectionality of our collaboration and the physicality of our present locations enhanced how we learnt and worked together by deepening our own understanding and practices. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022.