Attitudes Toward Environmental Literacy: A Study of Early Childhood Education Teachers in District Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the environmental literacy of Early Childhood Education
(ECE) teachers of District Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with the special focus on the attitude
component. Using a census sampling technique, the population of Total ECE teachers in Tehsil
Takht Bhai (i.e., 63 teachers) comprising 36 males and 27 females were included. Data collection
was carried out by an adapted version of Kayaoglu's (2021) Environmental Literacy
Questionnaire and data analysis was conducted via descriptive and inferential statistics with the
support of thematic qualitative analysis of the open-ended answers of the teachers. Findings
showed that male ECE teachers achieved higher scores on the measures of attitude compared with
females, indicating stronger pro-environmental orientations. The qualitative results indicated that
although most teachers recognized the importance of environmental issues, there were often more
opportunities for male teachers than female teachers, less institutional support and less access to
professional training. The study concludes that the environmental attitudes of teachers are
affected by gender, opportunities for training, and school culture. Recommendations include
targeted professional development programs and gender-sensitive capacity building to facilitate
equitable and sustainable practices in environmental education.