Analysis of Elementary School Students' Environmental Awareness and Civic Engagement after Participation in Social Studies and Volunteer Activities

The purpose of this study is to examine how school education and volunteer experiences at home affect elementary school students' environmental awareness and civic engagement, and to provide data for teaching methods and lesson designs that can enhance elementary school students' environmental awareness and civic engagement. To achieve this, an independent samples t-test and multiple regression analysis were conducted using the first-year data from the DELS(Daegu Education Longitudinal Study), focusing on items related to ‘social studies teaching methods’, ‘students' awareness of social studies classes’, ‘environmental awareness’, and ‘civic engagement’. The results are as follows: First, elementary school students who experienced volunteerism at home had higher levels of environmental awareness and civic engagement. Second, the efficacy of the teaching method, as well as the level of awareness about the class, were found to have a direct correlation with the level of environmental awareness. Additionally, the findings indicated that the awareness of social studies classes exerted a significant influence on the environmental awareness of elementary school students. Third, the efficacy of teaching methods and class awareness were directly correlated with the level of civic engagement. The findings of this study are significant in that they confirm the possibility that elementary school students, through practical activities with meaningful others, can clearly conceptualize and internalize abstract concepts, and the more effectively they learn, the more likely their actions will translate into practice.