Environmental Attitudes of Future Early Education Teachers: Internal Structure

Taking into consideration the complexity of current environmental problems, the scale of human activity’s impact on the environment, uncertainties in assessing the risks, long-term and indirect consequences of this activity, the importance and necessity of environmental education becomes obvious and undeniable. An extremely important area is the environmental attitudes of teachers who work with preschool and primary school children and have been role models for them for many years, and their formation during university studies. The study analysed the environmental attitudes of preservice preschool, pre-primary and primary education teachers, their structure and significance for education. Using mixed methodology and data collection from 136 university students, six main components were identified: environmental awareness, attitude, habits, concerns, position, and citizenship. The study revealed that the most significant components are awareness, attitude, and habits, forming the basic structural block of environmental attitudes. The least significant was citizenship, although it is important for long-term changes. The results demonstrated that learners have a high level of awareness, understand the importance of nature conservation, and are inclined to sustainable consumption, however, active participation in environmental activities remains limited. The study also revealed that ecological habits, such as waste sorting, support for renewable energy or conscious consumption, are significant for the formation of sustainable behaviour. Factor analysis showed that the first three components are closely related, promoting the practical application of knowledge and values. The secondary block of components (concern, position, and citizenship) is more related to value attitudes and societal transformation. The study emphasises the need to strengthen environmental education in university study programmes, in order to form more active student citizenship and motivation in environmental activities. These results are important in preparing future teachers to effectively shape environmental awareness in the younger generation and contribute to long-term sustainability goals.