Science educators have become important key players in shaping public opinion on nature, the environment, and sustainability due to the incorporation of these concepts into the curriculum. Primary education is one of the platforms for developing a specific view regarding the relationship between the environment and humans. Essential Energy properly incorporates Education for Sustainability and is an exemplary project that will become the basis for similar educational programs.
Essential Energy is characterized by the features essential for sustainability education. One of these properties is the engagement of students through their reflection on their daily routines and ordinary objects they regularly use. As Gough and Sharpley put it, “developing embedded attitudes that have a purpose,” teachers should show that every person can make a difference by undertaking quite simple steps. During Lesson 3, learners are encouraged to contemplate the cost of energy and the work of their home appliances. Children can also use the power of the sun to transform energy and use it for such common purposes as heating water. Busch and Osborne also claim that making certain attitudes and behaviors “personally relevant to students” is essential for teaching sustainability concepts. The project in question manages to make pupils understand the relevance of their input and ways to contribute to the establishment of a sustainable society.
A hands-on approach and the actual use of the environment is another characteristic feature of effective education for sustainability. The same lesson is illustrative in terms of the use of the environment. Smyth emphasizes that the holistic approach to the environment is one of the important premises for the creation of sustainable societies. The environment should be regarded as a system involving nature, social constructs, personal aspects, and other components. During Lesson 3, students are encouraged to explore their homes, the school, and nature to complete certain academic tasks. Dillon et al. state that the value of outdoor learning cannot be overestimated, which is well-justified by the project under consideration.
Finally, the incorporation of the social dimension is also an important feature characterizing Essential Energy. As mentioned above, children are asked to think about the cost of energy for their households and the larger society. Busch and Osborne argue that the focus on the social dimension will help pupils to relate their needs to sustainable practices and current environmental issues. Learners will develop specific worldviews that will be based on the holistic view of nature and sustainability. Students will not simply learn about the properties of sunlight or the peculiarities of transforming energy. They will be invited to think of the outcomes of different behaviors as they will acknowledge their power to minimize the use of non-renewable sources of energy that are becoming scarce. Importantly, children will spend much time outdoors, which will help them to feel that they are a part of the larger system they can and should safeguard.