Sustainable Education Affordances in Natural Sciences to Promote Quality Learning

This study explores the affordances for sustainable education (SE) in Natural Sciences (NS) teaching within South African schools, focusing on how teachers utilize available resources and curricula to promote quality learning outcomes aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG4). Adopting an interpretivist paradigm and an exploratory case study design, the research engaged five experienced NS teachers from socioeconomically disadvantaged schools in Bloemfontein. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and situation analysis, ensuring credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability. Findings reveal that despite teachers in under-resourced South African schools demonstrating resilience and innovation in advancing SE through NS, systemic inequities, lack of support, and environmental misalignment hinder meaningful progress. The findings reveal a stark contrast between the potential affordances for SE inherent in the NS curriculum and the challenging on-the-ground realities faced by dedicated teachers. Through the employment of the affordance theory, the research accentuates the potential of existing teaching environments to promote SE when adequately supported. Recommendations include targeted interventions to bridge resource gaps, collaborative stakeholder engagement, and a reorientation of teacher training to emphasize sustainability. This study contributes to the discourse on SE by providing insights into the practical realities of NS teaching in under-resourced contexts and advocating for systemic reforms to achieve equitable, quality education. We should not merely reform—We should revolutionize education.