Lectures on ecology and environmental protection - previous knowledge and present attitudes of first year university students
Abstrakt
The presented article contributes to a discussion how to increase the efficiency of the environmental education offered by upper secondary schools. It offers an insight into the environmental literacy and attitudes of young technically oriented Czech university students at a faculty of pharmacy, in preparation for non-teaching and non-ecological professional careers.
An optional questionnaire was evaluated at the end of the course 'Ecology for Pharmacists' taught in the first year for over 120 students. The goal was to assess the environmental knowledge acquired by students at secondary education level and then to see their interest in ecology and/or specific environmental problems.
The results showed positive relationships to environmental protection and education, although more technically oriented. The level of environmental knowledge gained from the secondary education seemed to be low in many cases.
It is concluded that the environmental literacy and consciousness of university students in technical fields is very important, since they will become managers and executives deciding about more or less environmentally friendly policies and strategies.