Climate change and adolescent participation in Armenia
Looking into knowledge, attitudes, practice and behaviors behind climate change awareness and education in Armenia
- Հայերեն
- English
Highlights
Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, and Behaviour Study on Climate Change and Adolescent Participation in Armenia is a first-time study of how much adolescents and adults from Armenia’s 52 consolidated communities know about climate change and how to mitigate its consequences.
The study measures the baseline situation as of 2022 with regard to understanding what climate change is and how it impacts communities, attitudes towards climate change and environmental issues, willingness to take action to address climate change and engage in environmental activism among adults and school-age children likewise.
The findings clearly indicate how central education is in addressing climate change and environmental issues. It adds to the growing evidence that Governments need to invest in climate education and embed climate change learning in the curriculum, combining with opportunities for children to engage in environmental activities and projects.
The study employed computer-assisted web interviews reaching out to 1,517 school students in 6-12th grades at 483 schools, including 45 students with special education needs, as well as computer-assisted personal interviews to reach out to 710 adults across 52 consolidated communities. Data collection amongst adolescents was ensured in collaboration with the National Center for Education Technologies.
Main findings from the 52 consolidated communities include:
- More adolescents (96,2%) have heard about climate change than adults (79,8%). Among them, the vast majority reported that they understand what climate change means, although the study uncovered gaps in knowledge, clearly showing the need to invest in climate education.
- Adolescents have heard about the Earth’s changing climate and weather patterns at school (68,4%), on the TV (43,7%) or on the Internet (35,5%), while adults have learned about it on TV (81,9%), on the Internet (44,8%), or on social media (34,7%).
- Around 67.9% of adolescents and 66.0% of adults are very concerned about climate change in their community, while 58.4% of adolescents and 70.3% of adults are very concerned about climate change in Armenia.
- 90% of adolescents are willing to learn more about climate change and their most preferred source are schoolteachers and the school administration.
- Only nearly half of the adolescents have ever heard from their teachers about what can be done to reduce climate change and what can be done to protect themselves and their families from the effects of climate change. Adolescents with special educational needs are not only the group with the smallest share of those who have heard about climate change, but also the group with the smallest number of sources of information about the issue.
