Auditing the University: Promoting Business Education …
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7 Research Findings and Discussion
7.1 Development of Sustainability Knowledge
Students’ reflections in the Phase 2 survey suggested they all gained knowledge of
environmental, social and economic sustainability and global issues:
Students reported:
I started with no knowledge and now I am quite good
This module has helped me develop more sustainable thinking and develop ideas on ways
we could act sustainably
I feel I have gained a great amount of knowledge
I learned by doing my assignment and through the module. It made me think more ethically
and I came up with better solutions.
I feel that I have gained some important insights into sustainable development
Students appear to have progressed up at least one rating scale with the majority
perceiving they ended the module with good or very good knowledge. Whilst this
is self-reported, it indicates that ABL can provide sufficient learning for students to
recognise their own knowledge and skill development.
The Phase 1 survey suggests students have a lower awareness of social sustainability than environmental activities at the beginning of the module; 65% of students
believed they possessed little knowledge and 24% no knowledge of social sustainability; only 11% of respondents perceived they had a good knowledge. In comparison,
50% of students reported good or very good knowledge of environmental sustainability. Phase 2 survey responses, however, suggest learning of social and environmental
sustainability and had taken place with all of students believing they had developed
good or very good knowledge within these two areas.
Students reported lower levels of economic sustainability knowledge growth. In
the Phase 1 survey almost 60% of students possess little or no knowledge of economic
sustainability. This reduced to 27% with little knowledge at the end of the module.
However, whilst the students developed knowledge of economic sustainability this
was not as great as for environmental or social sustainability. The author suggests
this may result from the apparent lower focus that economic sustainability receives
within the university’s sustainability activities and their greater prior knowledge and
ease with current environmental debates. Modification to the audit template and
additional focus from the sustainability practitioners may presents an opportunity
to raise the profile of economic sustainability within future module occurrences to
obtain a balance of learning across all three areas of sustainability.
Phase 1 survey responses suggest students’ initial knowledge of environmental
activities appears to have come from their personal interest and undertaking extracurricular activities during their university career. Only 29% of students confirmed their
knowledge came from previous Level 4 university studies. As sustainability is not
taught at this level within Worcester University’s Business School the author suggests
this response is likely to have been made by Exchange Students within the module.
313
7 Research Findings and Discussion
7.1 Development of Sustainability Knowledge
Students’ reflections in the Phase 2 survey suggested they all gained knowledge of
environmental, social and economic sustainability and global issues:
Students reported:
I started with no knowledge and now I am quite good
This module has helped me develop more sustainable thinking and develop ideas on ways
we could act sustainably
I feel I have gained a great amount of knowledge
I learned by doing my assignment and through the module. It made me think more ethically
and I came up with better solutions.
I feel that I have gained some important insights into sustainable development
Students appear to have progressed up at least one rating scale with the majority
perceiving they ended the module with good or very good knowledge. Whilst this
is self-reported, it indicates that ABL can provide sufficient learning for students to
recognise their own knowledge and skill development.
The Phase 1 survey suggests students have a lower awareness of social sustainability than environmental activities at the beginning of the module; 65% of students
believed they possessed little knowledge and 24% no knowledge of social sustainability; only 11% of respondents perceived they had a good knowledge. In comparison,
50% of students reported good or very good knowledge of environmental sustainability. Phase 2 survey responses, however, suggest learning of social and environmental
sustainability and had taken place with all of students believing they had developed
good or very good knowledge within these two areas.
Students reported lower levels of economic sustainability knowledge growth. In
the Phase 1 survey almost 60% of students possess little or no knowledge of economic
sustainability. This reduced to 27% with little knowledge at the end of the module.
However, whilst the students developed knowledge of economic sustainability this
was not as great as for environmental or social sustainability. The author suggests
this may result from the apparent lower focus that economic sustainability receives
within the university’s sustainability activities and their greater prior knowledge and
ease with current environmental debates. Modification to the audit template and
additional focus from the sustainability practitioners may presents an opportunity
to raise the profile of economic sustainability within future module occurrences to
obtain a balance of learning across all three areas of sustainability.
Phase 1 survey responses suggest students’ initial knowledge of environmental
activities appears to have come from their personal interest and undertaking extracurricular activities during their university career. Only 29% of students confirmed their
knowledge came from previous Level 4 university studies. As sustainability is not
taught at this level within Worcester University’s Business School the author suggests
this response is likely to have been made by Exchange Students within the module.