Teachers' in Polish and Teachers' Values Related to Sustainable

Teachers’ values related to sustainable development

in Polish and Latvian secondary schools

Eugeniusz Świtała, MA

Daugavpils University

Institute of Sustainable Education

RESEARCH ADVISER: Dr. p aed., professor Ilga Sal īte

Daugavpils 2015

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My family

I would like to thank my supervisor Dr. paed., professor Ilga Salīte for her great support, and for giving me hope, belief and the key to unlocking the doors to academic experience and knowledge.

Special thanks to the staff of Institute of Sustainable Education for their great help.

Acronyms used in the doctoral thesis: ...... 6 Introduction ...... 7 Chapter 1 ...... 26 Theoretical basis for the conducted study ...... 26 1.1Phenomenological, constructivist and holistic background of the research...... 27 1.2 Development of a theory of Sustainable Development ...... 42 1.3 Development of theory of values ...... 55 1.4 Values education ...... 63 1.5 Education for sustainable development (ESD) ...... 68 1.6 Common links and relations between the core terms of the research ...... 72 1.7 Action research in theory and practice ...... 72 Chapter 2 ...... 77 Description of the empirical part of the research ...... 77 2.1 Research description and methodology...... 78 2.1.1 Research paradigm ...... 80 2.1.2 Participants ...... 80 2.1.3 Research tools ...... 82 2.1.4 Research process and design ...... 83 2.1.5 Process of analysis of the results...... 86 2.2 Limitations of the research ...... 87 Chapter 3 ...... 90 Situation in Poland and Latvia as a context of the study...... 90 3.1 Description of the situations of Poland and Latvia ...... 91 3.2 Socio-cultural contexts of Poland in Latvia – general information ...... 93 3.3 Educational contexts in Poland and Latvia ...... 95 Chapter 4 ...... 98 4.1 Content analysis and results ...... 98 4.1.1 The first stage of the research - frames of reference for values orientation in Europe ...... 98 Tendencies and values orientation in Europe and Poland...... 99 4.1.2 The second stage of the research - understanding of values and methods of nurturing values by secondary schools’ teachers ...... 104 4.1.2.1 Understanding of values ...... 104

The most important values in social life ...... 106 Definitely the most important value...... 109 4.1.2.2 Nurturing values ...... 111 4.1.3 The third stage of the research - understanding of SD and values related to SD ...... 113 4.1.3.1 Understanding of Sustainable Development ...... 114 4.1.3.2 Values related to SD ...... 115 Definitely the most important value from the point of view of SD...... 117 4.1.4 The fourth stage of the research - values orientation in Polish and Latvian schools ...... 118 4.1.4.1 Correlation of importance of values between schools ...... 125 4.1.4.2 Common results of rating the importance of values for Polish and Latvian teachers...... 126 4.1.4.3 Teachers’ comments on the research results ...... 129 4.2 Discussion of the results...... 137 4.3 Implications for school practice ...... 144 4.4Future research perspectives ...... 151 Bibliography: ...... 152 Internet databases: ...... 168 List of Figures ...... 174 Figures: ...... 190 Questionnaires: ...... 195

Acronyms used in the doctoral thesis:

AR – action research EAR – educational action research EFA – Education for All ESD – education for sustainable development ESS – European Social Survey ISE - Institute of Sustainable Education IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources LOV – List of Values LVI – Life Values Inventory MDGs – Millennium Development Goals NZCF – New Zealand Curriculum Framework PVQ – Portrait Values Questionnaire RVS – Rokeach Value Survey SD – sustainable development SVS –Schwartz Value Survey SWEDESD – the Swedish International Centre of Education for Sustainable Development UN – United Nations UNEP – United Nations Environmental Programme UNESCO – United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation VSD – Value Sensitive Design VFWS –- Value Framework of Workplace Spirituality WCED – World Commission on Environment and Development

Introduction

The beginning of the twenty-first century is the appropriate moment to ask questions about the future of civilisation and humankind. It demands an answer to the question whether the adopted model of development is the proper one, or whether maybe we are going in the direction of unsustainable development. In the process of social and cultural development, education and educational research for sustainable development (SD) on each particular level have always played a vital role. The role of education in the process of social-cultural development is particularly essential. The world at the beginning of the twenty-first century is unsustainable, as is shown in many international documents and studies (Pirages, 1996; Brown, 2005; Martenson, 2011). According to the United Nations Report GEO2 – 2012, the world is barrelling down an unsustainable path (UN Report GEO2, 2012). A similar statement – The United Nations Environmental Programme Report – shows that the global economic system is based on the pursuit of perpetual and unsustainable growth (UNEP Report, 2012). Ban Ki-moon (2013) acknowledged that environmental, economic and social indicators demonstrate that our current model of progress is unsustainable. Ours is a world of looming challenges and increasingly limited resources. SD offers the best chance to adjust our course (Ban Ki-Moon, 2013). The lack of sustainability results from the materialistic attitudes of people to each other, to the Earth’s resources and to the way in which these resources are used. Such was the meaning of Martin Luther King’s activity, which emphasised the importance of a widely understood education in the development of every society on Earth, in particular those societies which are enslaved by a political system or by an (often unconsciously) adopted system of values. Such a system of values deprives the society of its roots and often adheres to hedonistic values only. It focuses on our indulging in all kinds of pleasures instead of enjoying life as a fully- fledged human being. Martin Luther King had approached the problem of poverty largely by calling upon the state to increase educational opportunities, especially for the poor (Long, 2002). Education is one of the most effective means of intervention available to decision-makers in any country with regard to the population problem, which is perceived as a major threat to sustainability and SD(Hopkins & Mc Keown, 2005). There is also no better tool in the process of poverty prevention and 7 changing society, than education (Hopkins, 2005; Mc Keown, 2005; Sal īte, Ignatjeva & Salitis, 2007). From the research perspective, in the broadest sense, the modern paradigm of science has been used, seen by the world as a composite unit, along with the various adaptation or evolutionary processes occurring in it. Some theories were examined to choose the most adequate paradigm for this doctoral thesis. We started from Kuhn (1962) and his input for debates about culture, science and politics, his first use of the term paradigm, then paradigm related to globalisation, but with respect for human rights taken into account (Touraine, 2007). A strategic vision that incorporates a multilateral, great-power approach to the international relations of our era (Jablonsky, 1995) was also analysed, as well as a linear paradigm of re-engineering and reforming education to achieve a model of lifelong learning paradigm with education for any phase in one’s life (Cheng, 2005). But the most appropriate is that presented by Laszlo (2008, 2012). The person is seen as the essence of seeking their own path of development, aiming at SD. With the world understood in such a way, the prospect presented by Laszlo is very close (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2012). As Laszlo (2008) reports, more natural resources were used in the previous six decades than in the whole previous history of civilisation. Unless a global system of SD and a spirit of ecumenism and common responsibility for humankind are created, the future of Earth will be doubtful. Humans must change the idea and vision of their role in the environment and the role of the environment in their lives. SD cannot be only a slogan; it must be supported with real actions aiming to help and preserve our planet, its beauty and its unique quality. It should unite the efforts of politics and economics, support the role of society, including education for environmental protection, and the great, if not paramount, importance of SD should be emphasised. Therefore, education and education for sustainable development (ESD) are essential in this process. They should be based on values which form the foundations of moral education and help us to get to know one ourselves and others better. All actions should be taken with the values essential for social development in mind, particularly in the context of SD. It is especially important in the case of the development of the so-called Western countries, where the relativism of many values is obvious, where the truth usually means the majority’s opinion and good must be attractive and fashionable. From the point of view of moral education, the level of education in secondary schools is of particular importance. Learners at this age, being officially almost adult persons, have better

8 capabilities to analyse and evaluate their behaviour than they had at earlier levels of education. The work also uses the philosophy of science, presented by Rozov (1995, 2006) and his theory of socialnyie estafety (социальные эстафеты = social relay - link theory ). Use of the theory of Rozov (1995, 2006, and 2009) was determined by the conformity based on the paradigm of modern science and coincides with contemporary needs and expectations. This theory suggests that the task of modern science and the scientist is to show how a personality is handling the world. It is not enough to write about values and analyse them; it is more important to show how a personality uses the values in everyday activity and action. The basis of his objectives is to show the relationship of human activities and actions with the values presented by them. According to this theory, the concept of socialnyie estafety is defined as a dynamic wave, embodying a human activity and action (Rozov, 1995, 2006, 2009). The process of human action must be, in accordance with this theory, planned and properly addressed. Human action is a kind of wave, moving across the surface of water, which encounters various objects, ideas, concepts, people, etc. The direction, in which the movement takes place does not always coincide with the direction of the wave. But the wave is sweeping through and still remains the same. This wave reflects the human action. Every act of human activity is also the beginning of the next act of operation by the action of the wave. This is precisely what the creation of further acts of operations in accordance with the human will (Rozov, 2009). This model of human activity, from one act to another, in the form of a wave, is called the kumatoid (‘kuma’ – for the Greek wave). According to this theory, the school may also be a kumatoid which changes via activity and actions. Action research was used as a method of achieving the final results of this research. The spiral model of action research was used, although the author is aware of significant changes in action research during recent years. The author of this research has studied the experience of the staff of the Institute of Sustainable Education of Daugavpils University (ISE) regarding action research methodology and its use in pedagogical investigation. The full retrospective of this method can be found in the unpublished doctoral theses by Gedzune and Gedzune (2014). Taking into consideration the fact that active participation of teachers is the most important aspect while using action research, one can expect that the final results give the real view of the problem of understanding values and the importance of values education. Construction of a frame

9 of reference conformed to educational research for sustainable education carried out by the ISE. Research shows how great a change in the approach to the specific relationship between a personality and the environment has taken place (Sal īte, 1993, 2006, 2008). Evolution of perspective has gone from the typical ecological approach (Salite, 1993) towards ESD and sustainable education (Sal īte, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2010). The activity of the ISE, since the early 90s, has been focused, both in terms of teaching and scientific research, on environmental education. The changing perceptions of the role of the environment and the interdependence of the individual and the environment have caused a change in the perception of the role of science and have changed the understanding of the purpose and the scope of research. This process has been accompanied by a change in the awareness and the knowledge of the staff as well as the implementation of developed and innovative teaching programmes in this area. This process is, in fact, similar to the aforementioned socialnyie estafiety of Rozov (2006). Research in the area of environmental education has been the stimulus and the beginning of research directed towards ESD. The first comparative research among The United States, New Zealand, Fiji, South Korea and Latvia was carried out as early as 2006. The researchers also discussed the issues of SD and values (Sal īte, 2006). This doctoral thesis develops a current trend of international comparative research at the ISE. The first stage was related to comparing the understanding of the concept of value by teachers in Poland and Latvia. The next step was more focused on the concept of value, including the issue of nurturing values and the mutual relationship between SD, values and values education (Świtała, 2010, 2011, 2012; Kasel, 2012; Nová ček, 2013). The research presented in this doctoral thesis has been extended as a collaborative research, based on a comparative approach. The group of academics conducting the study consists of the author and Amarella Eastmond Spencer (Autonomous Yucatan University in Merida,Mexico), Michele Martin (Sustainability for Seychelles, Seychelles), Ahmad Qablan (Hashemite University Zarqa, Jordan) and Shafqat Rasool (GC University, Faisalabad, Pakistan). The joint research was based on the methodology developed in this research. In these studies, the tools and methods developed and presented in this doctoral thesis have been used. The experience gained during the studies has also been used in this doctoral thesis. The results were presented in St. Petersburg during the 11th International JTEFS/BBCC conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education , Educational environment: Seeking sustainable solutions June 3–7, 2013, Saint-Petersburg, Russia. The research gave a broader

10 perspective of the problem of values and understanding of sustainable development. The results confirm some important findings of the research on which this doctoral thesis is based, which was particularly important. The author of the research provides a comparison between Polish and Latvian secondary school teachers’ views in the field of values related to sustainable development and the process of values education. Comparative research was carried out with respect for culture and the social and cultural context for activities and actions in both Polish and Latvian school environments. On the one hand, the research results show quite a significant difference in understanding the notion of values among teachers in Poland and Latvia. In Poland, values are mostly understood as norms and principles, but in Latvia as material and non-material goods. On the other hand, choosing the most important values in social life related to SD, from a given list of values, gave similar models of the importance of values for both countries, taking into account the statistical correlation. Both countries have similar social, cultural and economic development trends, which could be the justification of the results. They are in the process of building a democratic system with all its benefits and imperfections. The scope of the research, i.e. the understanding of the notion of value and SD seems to be interesting mainly because both countries are at the same level of social and economic development, and the issues related to values are not a subject of particular interest. The reasons behind this situation are many. First of all, the issue of values is associated in Latvia with the era of Soviet occupation and in Poland with the Church, mainly the Catholic Church, which has been recently strongly criticised by the media, not always for justified reasons. Therefore, due to such associations, it is not ‘in’ to talk about values in either of these countries. In this research, ESD is an education based, first of all, on education for those values which are essential in the process of social development both of an individual and of the whole society. Among the most important definitions of values and the ways of understanding, are those that perceive values in the ecocentric and cosmocentric context and mention their holistic character. Values are difficult notions to define; they have a number of meanings and are connected with many disciplines. In times of a holistic perception of the world and, in particular, a holistic attitude to the process of education, it is difficult to find one definition that would be acceptable to everybody, or at least to a majority. The concept of a value as a mystic connection between the material and non-material world of an individual and his/her culture, ( Świtała, 2010), is highlighted in the present doctoral

11 thesis. Mysticism is understood in the broad sense of the word, and it means a cognisable phenomenon based on feelings, emotions and experience. This concept demonstrates the mystic connection between the material and non-material spheres of an individual’s life and his/her activities and actions, including values as a basis of actions and cultural processes. This kind of understanding of mysticismresults from understanding of this term as related to a very important academic phenomenon, which is very difficult to describe and explain in a very simple way, because, in fact, in academic paradigm, it is a human state of mind with its roots in biological properties and social, cultural and political experience. This phenomenon was not examined in this thesis. Such a concept is coincident with perceiving an individual not only as a material form of energy, but as a creature that needs to be considered according to material and wave concepts both occurring at the same moment (Laszlo, 2008, 2010). Laszlo (2008, 2010) also claims that values are incorporated in the moral system in which an individual lives. The moral system is characterised mainly by the possibility of making choices. The process of change is also connected with a change of values due to human’s experience. Action always enriches human experience and human life at the same time. An individual can feel really free if he/she can choose. The possibility of choice gives a sense of freedom. However, it is not a sense of absolute freedom, but a freedom limited by the framework of the culture in which they live. Kant claims that only actions performed from duty alone deserve moral praise or our esteem (Hochschätzung ) (Pippin, 2000). Only when an individual has an opportunity to make choices, can we tell whether he/she behaves morally or not. For this reason, the definition of values adopted by the National Consultation Group in New Zealand is essential from the point of view of these deliberations. ‘Values are internalised sets of beliefs or principles of behaviour held by individuals or groups. They are expressed in the way people think and act. They are based on our cultural, religious, philosophic and spiritual traditions, and on current critical reflection, dialogue and debate’ (NCG statement, 2004; NZCF, 1993, p.5). A moral system understood in this way generates a specific system of values that applies to a given society. The New Zealand case was studied by the author because the analysis of different cases from all over the world shows that the social and cultural context plays a vital role in the understanding of values. Values and social and cultural context are interdependent. The analysis also allows us an evaluation of a complex entity ( kumatoid ) as in the New Zealand case. The concept of values and the system of

12 values as defined by the researchers from New Zealand is very specific. It is difficult to agree with its objectives, particularly in terms of understanding the role and the place of culture in this area. Culture is treated on a par with philosophy and religion. This interferes with the modern understanding of culture and the contemporary perspective, understood very broadly, which also includes philosophy, religion, material and non- material assets, social thought, etc. This definition also interferes with the specific categorisation and hierarchy of concepts. It places the subcategories at the same level as the specific categories of concepts. The concept of culture in this work is understood as used by the World Commission on Culture and Development in its report ‘Our Creative Diversity’ (1995). Culture is the whole complex of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features that characterises a society or a social group (Hofstede, 1980; Konsa, 2004). According to different understandings of culture, we can find many different definitions of sustainability (Huckle, Sterling, 1996; Sandell, Öhman,&Östman, 2005; Chalkley, Haigh, & Higgitt, 2009) and values on which sustainability is based. The system of values is understood as an objective element of the culture of an individual who lives in a specific society; a set of attitudes, norms and standards as well as objects which are accepted in a given society, although the system does not have to be accepted by all members of the society. The system of values consists of many values belonging to different categories. Does an individual really have a possibility of making choices, particularly in the moral and ethical spheres of life these days? Today, in people’s opinion, truth is nothing more than the majority’s opinion and goodness is seen in the categories of beauty and attractiveness, meaning of course physical attractiveness. After all, goodness is not perceived as an individual’s authentic value or the value expected by an individual, but as attractiveness on the assumed material or non-material market. Nowadays a personality possesses an ability to make choices, mainly involving the choice of a particular action. Through this kind of action, people have a possibility to make their lives better. If people make their life better, it means that they will select the values that enrich them and are the basis of their behaviour and conduct. At the same time, a personality is developing. In this sense, culture influences an individual’s values, and values influence human culture at every possible level: personal, local, national and transnational (Matusewicz, 1975). People really have a possibility to make choices by their own action. Through these actions they are able to make their lives

13 better. Values create their life, and also, indirectly, their culture and the social culture, on different levels. Through the history of science it was clear that values are not so easy to define and describe. The term ‘value’ could be analysed from many different points of view: psychological, philosophical, economic, historical or sociological. The term could have many different meanings (Rokeach, 1972, 1973, 1979; Hofstede, 1980; Schwartz, 1992; Sasaki, 1998; Varga, 2008; Sharabi, Harpaz, 2009; Agera, 2010; Srinivasan, 2011; Jain, 2011; Horley, 2012; Minkov, Hofstede, 2012). Throughout history, the meaning of values has also changed. It is also associated with the change of the paradigm of modern science. The role of science, according to Rozov (2009), is not to describe previously conducted experiments, research and phenomena (as they have already been described) and to compile texts. The role of science is to present an authentic action through the work of scholars, describing their authentic activities directly related to reality. This doctoral thesis is devoted to the understanding of the notion of value in a context of SD, with particular consideration of their importance in a process of implementing ESD, among teachers in Polish and Latvian secondary schools. This process is based or should be based on values education as one of the most important pillars of education for sustainability (McNerney, Davis, 1996; McMillan,Higgs, 2003; Lang, 2007;Sterling, 2012). Why does the author focus on values and provide a comparison between the situations in Poland and in Latvia? The answer to the first question seems to be quite obvious and explicit – because these are the values that create a human being and society, and at the same time, values are created by a human being and society. Values, particularly at the end of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21st century, quite often seem not to be fully understood, used with embarrassment and very often considered to be out-of-date. After years of dominance of the socialist point of view in pedagogy both in Poland and Latvia, and of explicitly understood values, contemporary people are entangled in numerous modern trends and social currents and pilloried by the media, which often adhere to the relativistic approach to this notion. People find it difficult to realise which values they really serve, which values they live by and which values they are influenced by. Hence the intention to ponder on a large scale the essence of the notion of value and how it is understood, particularly as seen from the angle of a teacher whose influence on the shaping of an individual’s views as well as the views of the whole society is indisputable. In the complex process of education, no matter which educational paradigm is

14 considered to be the leading one, whether it is didaskalocentrism (‘didasco’ – for the Greek teach , ‘centrum’ – for the Greek centre ) with society in the centre of the educational process or paidocentrism (‘pais’ – for the Greek child , ‘centrum’ – for the Greek centre ) with the student in the centre of this process, the basic task of the educational process is to facilitate individual development – either of the student or society. This development should be understood as SD with its three basic areas – society, environment and economy - and the way these areas interpenetrate and connect with one another. Many authors add a fourth or even a fifth dimension of sustainability. Mostly culture is added as the fourth dimension. It is a wrong interpretation of culture. In this case, a broad category is added, which includes, in fact, subcategories like society, economy or environment. The answer to the latter question is definitely much easier – no comparative research in the field of education on the examples of Poland and Latvia has been carried out so far. In this doctoral thesis, the author aims to show how different cultural determinants, conditions of living and individual experience affect the understanding of the notion of value and how teachers in Poland and Latvia teach values or organise a value-oriented didactic process. It is difficult to draw an educational comparison because the data used for characterising national criteria and peculiarities have specific contexts that cannot be compared internationally since meanings in the understanding of national traditions or everyday experiences may not coincide. One of the most important aspects of each comparison is a cultural one (Panduranga, Bhatta, 2009; Harung, 2010; Bain, Vaes, Kashima, Haslam, & Guan, 2012; Caprara, Alessandri, Trommsdorff, Heikamp, Yamaguchi, &Suzuki, 2012; Yamaguchi, 2012; Kim-Pong Tam, Hi Po Bobo Lau, & Da Jiang, 2012). This doctoral thesis is the first attempt at comparing some elements, such as values, nurturing values, SD and its meaning, of the educational environment in Poland and Latvia. The aim of this thesis is also to build a model for both countries, based on these elements which it is possible to compare. One might wonder what the sense of such research is. It is an indisputable fact that both countries are at a very similar stage of social and economic development. Both countries are at a similar stage of political system transformation, having undergone similar but not identical experiences in the last fifty years before regaining full sovereignty and independence. It is essential for the author of this doctoral thesis to get a full picture by finding answers to the following questions: which values are the most important ones from the point of view of the group

15 of people surveyed? How are these values understood by these people? And which of these values, in the respondents’ opinion, are the most important ones from the point of view of SD of society and the school as an essential element of society. Another important reason for choosing the subject of this paper is a passive interest in the understanding of values shown by secondary school teachers. Few academic papers have been written on this subject so far. For these reasons, this doctoral thesis is so innovative and constitutes a relatively important contribution to scientific development in this respect. Many works, including different doctoral theses from Poland, Slovakia, Croatia and Germany on problems of contemporary social and cultural phenomena, written in Polish, Slovak, English and German, were studied before choosing the concrete subject of this doctoral thesis. A broader view of the methods of work used in these doctoral theses, and extra language experience which influences the present work, was achieved in this way. There is a lack of doctoral theses devoted to values and values understanding. Some doctoral theses devoted to the understanding of values and values orientation were found, but the researches were based on students’ understanding of these concepts. It was hard to find examples which could help in designing the research. Some examples could not be used for a deeper explanation of the meaning of core concepts of this doctoral thesis. Finally the theme was chosen as below.

Theme Teachers’ values related to sustainable development in Polish and Latvian secondary schools.

The aim of the doctoral thesis The aim of the doctoral thesis is to present the results of the research on highlighting values related to sustainable development (SD) in Poland and Latvia by secondary schools teachers and compare two achieved models through using action research. The research is presented as a process of identifying values mainly from the point of view of social development which is an important component of sustainable development.

The objectives of the doctoral thesis are: 1. to compare the understanding of the notion of value as well as to develop some suggestions for introducing education for values in Poland and Latvia;

2. to compare the ways and approaches of nurturing values or organising the process of transforming values by the teachers within educational process in both countries; 3. to compare understanding of the notion of SD; 4. to distinguish values related to SD; 5. to identify adequate guidelines in this respect for school practice.

In this doctoral thesis, the following research questions were raised: 1. How do secondary school teachers in Poland and Latvia view the concept of value? 2. Which values, in their opinion, are the most important ones from the point of view of social development? 3. How do teachers in Polish and Latvian schools understand the concept of SD? 4. Which values, in their opinion, are the most important ones in the context of SD? 5. How do Polish and Latvian teachers nurture values or how do they organise the didactic process to achieve these specific values?

Subject and object of research

Object: Values related to sustainable development in the perspective of socio-cultural context and its influence on the process of education and education for sustainable development. Subject: Use of educational action research to obtain teacher’s views on values related to sustainable development. Methods: Educational action research (EAR) in two Polish and two Latvian schools was conducted to achieve the required results. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used in this research. Quantitative research methods were used during the process of AR only to make the process more intensive and more understandable for participating teachers. According to Kuhn (Kuhn, 2008) school is a complex, dynamic and open system. Measuring is not the most important in conducting a research but awareness of integrity, relations and interrelations are the most important aspects of the research.

Participants should be engaged in a critical discourse about the nature of the studied phenomenon and research must be goal – oriented. It coincides with Erwin Laszlo’s systems view and ‘organised complexity’. In fact a school is a self-organised system (Doll, 2008). In this work, taking into consideration the complexity of this system, the spiral model of action research was used (O’Brien, 1998; Sal īte, 2002, 2003; Kemmis, McTaggart, 2005; Holland, Mulcahy, 2007). The basis of the research consists of two Polish and two Latvian schools. One of the schools in Poland (school No. 1, n=43) is a large complex of schools located in a small town. It consists of a vocational school, a secondary technical school and a general secondary school. 43 teachers of different specialisations, with different periods of work experience and of different ages took part in the study. The other school (school No. 2, n= 21) is a general secondary school – a non-public school with public school accreditation, located in a large town. 21 teachers of general subjects, of different ages and with different periods of work experience, participated in the study. One of the Latvian schools (school No. 3, n= 30) is a large state gymnasium in a big town. It is a very good school within the local educational market, with long traditions and great authority. 30 teachers of general subjects, of different ages and with different periods of work experience participated in the study. The 2nd school (school No. 4, n= 21) is a Polish gymnasium in a big Latvian town. It is a very specialised school in the local market. 21 teachers of general subjects and different ages, with different periods of work experience participated in the study. Qualitative and quantitative content analysis was used. The doctoral thesis is divided into chapters. The first chapter includes the theoretical background of the research and the theoretical foundations of the notion of value, from Plato onwards to modern theorists of values. The author presents values from the point of view of philosophy, sociology, psychology and culture. He also formulates the working definition of a value for the purpose of this doctoral thesis. This chapter also provides some theoretical considerations of the notion of SD, with particular attention paid to the most contemporary theories in the area. The author also describes the ‘action research’ type of studies that he applied to carry out his research, along with the philosophical, psychological and methodological justification. The second chapter includes a detailed description of the research methods, along with their limitations, which were used to obtain the data. In the third chapter , the author gives a brief description of Poland and Latvia with particular consideration of the educational contexts as well as those contexts which are essential for education. The results of the

18 research are discussed in the fourth chapter , followed by conclusions and implications for school practice as well as the possibilities for implementation of the research results. The fourth chapter is also devoted to conclusions from the research carried out, on two levels: (1) the level of detailed conclusions resulting from the research carried out, and (2) generalised conclusions resulting from taking into consideration social and demographic factors, including the organisational factors of the education systems in Poland and Latvia as well as historical and political factors in both countries. The last part provides a bibliography and information about the materials and sources used in this doctoral thesis. Formulating research questions and hypotheses is one of the most difficult things in research. However, in the formulation any heuristics can be used. Inventiveness and intuition are especially important. The author of the doctoral thesis identified the most important arguments of the thesis as follows: 1. The understanding of the notion of value depends on the conditions in which a school functions only to some degree. The concept of ‘value’ is highly complex, and it is understood in many different ways. 2. The process of values education demands a considerable involvement from teachers and an adequate understanding of the concept of SD and ESD. 3. The understanding of the concept of SD among teachers is intuitive rather than based on scientific and theoretical knowledge. 4. Identification of the most important values, both from the point of view of socio- cultural development and SD, should result from the understanding of the requirements of social development and SD as well as the tasks with which education is faced in this respect. 5. The construction process of the model of a value system in a given social group or community can be described as a cognitive process, and it can be compared, using mathematical and statistical tools, with another similar model. This process is connected with the process of acquiring new knowledge by teachers. It is also possible to apply and utilise it in the process of planning school activity.

The novelty of this doctoral thesis The novelty of this doctoral thesis results from a number of aspects. First of all, attention should be paid to the following aspects: (1) The theoretical composition of the work is based on two streams: philosophical, represented by Laszlo; and the philosophy of science represented by Rozov. The author has joined Laszlo’s systemic paradigm of development with Rozov’s philosophy of science, which is based on human action and activity. This represents a new approach in a doctoral thesis in pedagogy. However it is still a doctoral thesis in school pedagogy, and this branch of science uses many different approaches to meet challenges in the development of every single student, which is the essence of teachers’ work. Such a concept allows us to base research on teacher’s action and activity using action research as the basis of the study. In this concept the author has found a way to direct teachers’ work towards sustainability, giving great importance to the values which sustainable development is based on. Such a way of thinking and acting supports sustainability and sustainable development in general.

(2) The thesis presents the results of the first really comparative research between Poland and Latvia in the field of education with particular focus on values related to sustainable development among secondary school teachers. Education is an area whose importance is hard to underestimate, especially in the field of social development and the tasks arising from this process. Countries such as Poland and Latvia should use their own experiences, especially considering the fact that the two countries are at a similar stage of development and are in the process of transition from a period of socialism (communism in the case of Latvia) to a market economy within a democratic state. Until now there were published some reports of international institutions (for instance OECD) including some factors or educational aspects of both countries but no one has provided a straight secondary school teachers oriented or teachers focused research in the field of values, particularly in the field of values related to sustainable development.

(3)The research was conducted on secondary school teachers’ understanding of values. The problem of understanding of values of a defined socio-professional group does not admit common solutions. Research on secondary school teachers’ understanding of values is very rare in Europe and the world. The author is not aware of a similar study conducted either in Poland or Latvia.

(4) The integration of AR and EAR with a dynamic school system, which gives teachers a possibility to find perspective on school as dynamic system and in the same time helps in discovering nurturing values process as phenomenon in which participants try to find values related to sustainability.

(5) The result of this research regarding understanding of the notion of sustainability is also a very important novelty. For secondary teachers, sustainability is a complex notion, mostly not understood by them. Nevertheless, teachers often have intuitions relevant to the meaning of sustainability.

(6)Sustainability is connected to values. Sustainability is, in fact, based on values. Understanding of values meaning thinking about what is desirable sets a correct course for the world’s development and provides the possibility of finding and establishing the right set of values that coincide with Rozov’s theory of socialnyie estafiety.

(7) The categorisation of values adopted in this doctoral thesis is also unique. It is based on the theory of fuzzy sets. This is a vertical categorisation with blurred boundaries. It corresponds to the specifics of the holistic approach to the concept of values.

(8) The definition of value adopted in the theoretical part as the mystical connection between the material and non-material parts of culture, which also contains the values specific to, and characteristic of it, seems to be the most appropriate one given the author’s holistic approach to research. It corresponds to the holistic approach to the problem of values, without dividing it into the psychological level that is characteristic of the individual, the sociological one - which is characteristic of a particular social group, and the cultural one - which is characteristic of a given society. The definition proposed by the author is applicable to each of the aforementioned levels without the need for division or separation.

(9)The models of the most important values achieved for individual schools are also unique. They show, in a three-dimensional way, the respective categories, their contents and the importance they have according to the respondents. The models provide a simple way to extract the values that are most important for SD, according to the respondents, and those that, in principle, do not play any significant role.

Approbation and dissemination of research results at international scientific conferences

10–12 February 2010, Bratislava (Slovakia) - participation in the 8th International Conference Dimensions of Citizenship and Education with a paper presented on ‘Values across Countries in Modern Societies’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the conference materials, paper published in conference proceedings.

17–19 May 2010, Paris (France) – participation in the 8th International JTEFS/BBCC Conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education with a paper presented on ‘Values in a Modern Societies from the Example of Polish and Latvian schools’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the Abstract Book, paper published in Journal of Teacher Education for Sustainability .

21-22 October 2010, Lahore (Pakistan) - participation in the 2nd International Conference in Lahore University of Education with a paper presented as a key note speaker – ‘United Nations Millennium Declaration and Teaching Values from the Example of Polish Schools’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the conference materials, paper published in conference proceedings.

01-03 November 2010, Ahmedabad (India) – participation in the international conference –‘Ethics and Values’ with a paper presented on – ‘Education for Sustainable Development Based on the Education for Values from the Example of a Private Secondary School in Leszno (Poland)’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published on the web page of the Conference.

14-17 February 2011, Augsburg (Germany) – participation in the International Conference on Education of the European Network of Excellence in Citizenship Education (ENERCE): ‘School and Community Interaction (SCI) ’ with a paper presented on ‘School Leadership and the Influence on the School Development Process’. Certificate, PPT presentation, paper published in a book edited by Springer.

18-21 May 2011, Siauliai (Lithuania) - participation in the 9th JTEFS/BBCC Conference: Sustainable Development. Culture. Education with paper presented on

– ‘Values in a Modern Societies: The Example of Polish and Latvian schools’. PPT presentation, abstract published in the Abstract Book,

14-18 February 2012 Granada (Spain) – participation with a paper presented in the international conference of the European Network of Excellence in Citizenship Education (ENERCE): ‘Challenges of Euro-Asia university cooperation’ - “The Professional Role of a Teacher in the Era of Globalization from the Example of Poland’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the conference materials, paper published in conference proceedings.

22-26 May 2012 Savonlinna (Finland) – participation in the 10 th JTEFS/BBCC conference ‘Sustainable Development. Culture. Education with a paper presented on ‘Values and Sustainability in Modern Society - the Example of Polish and Latvian Schools’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the Abstract Book.

28-30 April 2013 Chełm (Poland) – participation in the international conference ‘Primary education, implication for practice’ with a paper presented on ‘Teaching Values – Myth or Reality in Polish Schools’. Certificate, PPT presentation.

04-07 June 2013 Sankt Petersburg (Russia) – participation in the 11 th JTEFS/BBCC conference ‘Sustainable Development. Culture. Education’ with a paper presented on ‘Values and Sustainability in Modern Society: A Comparison of Sustainability-related Values held by Secondary School Teachers in Mexico, Pakistan, Poland and Seychelles’. Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the Abstract Book.

26-30 June2013 Yogyakarta (Indonesia) - participation in the APNME 8th Conference on Moral Education Learning from Diversity and Commonalty. Ways Forward for Moral Education in the Asia-Pacific with a paper presented on ‘Values and Sustainability in Modern Society: A Comparison of Sustainability-related Values held by Secondary School Teachers in Poland and Latvia’.Certificate, PPT presentation, abstract published in the Abstract Book,

Publication in scientific works Some parts of this doctoral thesis have been published in scientific journals and books: Świtała, E. (2010). Values across Countries in Modern Society – the Example of Polish Schools, 2011, Discourse and Communication for Sustainable Education, Vol.1, issue 2, 2010 (published in 2011)

Świtała, E. (2012). The Professional Role of a Teacher in the Era of Globalization on the Example of Poland, 2012 , eER - Educational Research eJournal - ISSN 2254-0385, © Faculty of Education. University of Alicante vol.1 (1).

Świtała, E. (2012). School Leadership and the Influence on School Development Process in A. Brunold & Ohlmeier, B. (Eds.), and School and community interactions: Interface for political and civic education (pp. 49–62). Augsburg, Germany: Springer VS. [ISBN978-3-531-19477-6]. Chapter DOI: 10.1007/978-3-531-19477-6. Abstracted/indexed by Springer Link.

And will be published in 2014: e-ER – Educational Research eJournal - ISSN 2254-0385 , © Faculty of Education. University of Alicante vol.5 (1).

And conference proceedings: Świtała, E. (2010). Values across Countries in Modern Society. In Dimenzie ob čianstva a výchova / Dimensions of Citizenship and Education. Proceedings of the 8th International Conference for Civic Education, 10–12 February 2010 (pp. 271–287). Bratislava, Slovakia: KEOVN. [ISBN 978-80-8118-061-3].

Świtała, E. (2010). United Nations Millennium Declaration and Teaching Values on the Example of Polish Schools. Proceedings of the 2 nd International Conference – Realizing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Through Teacher Education. (pp. 15-28). University of Education Lahore (Pakistan).

Świtała, E. (2010). Education for Sustainable Development based on Education for Values from the Example of a Private Secondary School in Leszno (Poland) (available

24 as electronic version only). Materials of International conference – Ethical Framework for a Sustainable World – www.earthcharterplus10.Org

Conference abstracts: Świtała, E. (2010). Values across countries in modern societies. Abstracts of the 8th international conference on education for civil society Dimensions of Citizenship & Education , 10–12 February 2010 (no page numbers). Bratislava, Slovakia: KEVON.

Świtała, E. (2010). Values in a modern societies from the example of Polish and Latvian schools in I., Mi čule & Dz., Iliško (Eds.), Abstracts of the 8th international JTEFS/BBCC conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education , 17–19 May 2010 (p. 95). Daugavpils: Daugavpils University Academic Press “Saule”. [ISBN 978-9984-14-485-6].

Świtała, E. (2010). Education for sustainable development based on the education for values on the example of Private Secondary School in Leszno (Poland) (available as electronic version only). Abstracts of international conference – Ethical Framework for a Sustainable World – www.earthcharterplus10.org.

Świtała, E. (2010) United Nations Millennium Declaration and Teaching Values on the Example of Polish Schools. Proceedings of the 2 nd International Conference – Realizing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Through Teacher Education. (no page numbers). University of Education Lahore (Pakistan).

Świtała, E. (2011). Values in a modern societies: The example of Polish and Latvian schools. In Abstracts of the 9th JTEFS/BBCC conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education , 18–21 May 2011 (p. 9). Siauliai, Lithuania: Vš Į Šiauli ų universiteto leidykla. [ISBN 978-609-430-068-4].

Świtała, E. (2012). Values and Sustainability in Modern Society - the Example of Polish and Latvian Schools. In J. Gröhn & U. Härkönen (Eds.), Abstracts of the 10th JTEFS/BBCC conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education , 22–25 May 2012 (p. 130). Savonlinna, Finland: School of Applied Educational Science and Teacher Education, University of Eastern Finland. [ISBN 978-925-61-0784-4].

Świtała, E. (2013). Values and Sustainability in Modern Society: A Comparison of Sustainability-related Values held by Secondary School Teachers in Jordan, Mexico, Pakistan, Poland and Seychelles. In N. Shesterneva & M. Zheblienok (Eds.), Educational environment: Seeking sustainable solutions. Abstracts of 11th JTEFS/BBCC conference Sustainable Development. Culture. Education , June 4–7, 2013 (p. 23). Saint-Petersburg: SPBSUACE. [ISBN 978-5-9227-0425-0].

Chapter 1 Theoretical basis for the conducted study

The first part of this chapter, contains the theoretical bases of the conducted study. In this chapter the philosophical and pedagogic theories on which the work is based are presented; particularly phenomenology, as a philosophical theory behind this work, and constructivism. The holistic pedagogic theory behind the approach is included in this chapter. The pedagogic theory is supplemented by Jack Mezierow’s theory of ‘transformative learning’. Phenomenology describes the world as it really is, without any presumptions (Schutz, 1997; Pollio, Craig and Thompson, 1997; Cohen, 2000; Klenke, 2008; Smith, Flowers & Larkin, 2009; Charmaz, McMullen, 2011). Constructivism, as an approach, allowed an investigation of the participants’ experience and knowledge to improve the research process and final use to which the process is put. Transformative learning theory and the holistic approach are strictly related to sustainability. Sustainable development needs a transfer of knowledge and transformative learning in the sense of Mezierow’s theory. Some authors explore the apparent conflict between environmental holism and the interests of individuals, incorporating the perspectives of ecofeminism, anthropocentrism, contextualism, and pluralism. The moral importance of the interrelationship of human beings, animals, plants, and non-living things in their common dependence on the ecosphere is an essential for socio–cultural development (Mariettaa, Jr., 1995). It is evident that humankind needs to change its philosophy of perceiving the world and nature – the philosophy of life as stated Laszlo (2008, 2009, 2010, and 2012). The holistic approach and constructivism allow a change of paradigm: from apart-from- nature model to person-as-a-part-of-nature model. The necessity of changing human-

26 centred ethics to life-centred ethics (non-anthropocentric - to stress the holistic view) is also evident (Taylor, 1995 in Marietta, Jr., 1995).

1.1Phenomenological, constructivist and holistic background of the research

Using action research as a basis for a study, as in the case of this thesis, it is impossible to conduct the study without both phenomenological and constructivist approaches and the author’s and participants’ active participation in the research. It is natural that analysing school life and teachers’ work one has to start with a phenomenological approach to define the real state of a school or educational system. Bearing in mind the development of every individual and of a school, the author has to show to the teachers, as the main protagonists in the educational process, a constructivist approach to education and educational processes. It was also necessary to show to the teachers the importance of phenomenological and constructivist approaches. That is why the philosophy on which the doctoral thesis is based is phenomenology: phenomenology, because the empirical part of the work is based on the type of research known as ‘action research’, which is the most natural method of investigation in the case of school reality. This kind of research allows us to analyse and then to describe all the essential aspects of school functioning in the most faithful and accurate way. It is also a starting point for the comparative research which is the essence of this doctoral thesis. A solid and honest description of the school reality under investigation should be provided with no prejudice, specific attitude or internal or external intentions on the part of the researcher – as is done in phenomenology, which starts the construction of a given theory with the description of a given situation as an actual and existing phenomenon. The spirit of this movement, whose name comes from Greek phainomenon , meaning ‘that which appears’, was essential for the deliberation of this thesis. The phenomenological method consists in the description and examination of what and howa phenomenon is given. It is a method of philosophising which diverges from the everyday mode of orientation in reality. What differentiates the phenomenological approach from the natural attitude is lack of assumptions. Phenomenology as a distinct new trend in philosophy was started in the years 1900–1901 by Edmund Husserl and became one of the most important branches of 20th century philosophy, along with Kantianism, idealism, hermeneutics and pragmatism. Phenomenological assumptions were formally published in the first edition of Logische Untersuchungen (Logical

Investigations) (Moran, 2002). Moran (2002) states that Husserl considered himself to be the precursor of a new discipline, a pioneer and discoverer of a new kind of consciousness, leading to transcendental subjectivism. In his opinion, this consciousness should be nothing but ‘a little tag-end of the world’ (ein kleines Endchender Welt). However, Husserl was not the first to use the term ‘phenomenology’. In fact, it started to appear as early as the 19th century in the works of such philosophers as Lambert, Kant and Hegel. According to Husserl’s theory, philosophy was redirected from metaphysical abstract speculations plunged into pseudo-problems towards a direct contact with things-in-themselves which are the objects of interest. Moran emphasises that Husserl’s phenomenology had a lot in common with William James’s radical empiricism. This trend was very strongly stimulated by Franz Brentano – a representative of descriptive psychology and Husserl’s teacher. However, it was not only Husserl and his closest assistants who contributed to the final shape of phenomenology. There were numerous philosophers who shaped the term and must be given credit for its development, among whom are above all: Edith Stein, Martin Heidegger, Eugen Fink, Roman Ingarden, Adolf Reinach, Marvin Farber, Alfred Schuetz, Raymond Aron, Hedwig Conrad – Martius and many others, including Max Scheler and Karl Jaspers. By many, phenomenology is defined more as a practice and not a systemic science. It was subjected both to internal (Heidegger) and external criticism (Moritz Schlick from the Vienna Circle). Franz Bretano, a representative of so-called descriptive psychology , was one of those who contributed the most to the development and consolidation of Husserl’s idea. As Moran (2002) points out, he was the guiding spirit of Husserl’s actions and ideas. Brentano believed that philosophy is a continuation of science, which has a considerable influence on the perception and description of the world. The most important feature of Brentano’s way of thinking was the intentional approach to reality as the key approach. Brentano’s concept of truth, according to which truth is what has been affirmed (recognised to be affirmed), was also borrowed by Husserl. What is important for his philosophy and what later was called reism is the idea that only things which can be localised in time and space exit; abstract entities such as qualities, relationships, characteristics or numbers do not exist. In his early writings, he claimed the existence of real things (Realia) and unreal beings (Irrealia) which are connected with the real ones in the form of judgments (opinions). Another theory that is

28 essential to Brentano’s views is the theory of wholes and their parts. According to Brentano (1889), ‘ just as the natural sciences study the properties and laws of physical bodies, which are the objects of our external perception, psychology is the science which studies the property and laws of our soul’ (Moran,2002, p.40). In Brentano’s opinion, our knowledge about physical (material) phenomena is as a rule fallible because we draw conclusions about the nature of physical objects while being affected by our own experience. Brentano believes that something can be perceived without being explicitly noticed (Moran, 2002). All mental processes are characterised by the intentionality that is connected with them. Brentano calls it intentional relation. (Moran, 2002). Such an approach is extremely important from the point of view of school life. An opinion or judgment about school is formed, as a rule, by drawing conclusions based on the observation of things and phenomena, but it is difficult for us to ignore our own experience while formulating a final opinion about a given concrete situation. We often take a specific approach to certain states or things without having explicit evidence for their existence, without seeing them. For instance, school ‘x’ is a good school – we are convinced that the school is good, but we are not able to give concrete evidence to prove it. Brentano’s theory was modified by Twardowski. First of all, he made a clear distinction between the explicit and implicit content (when we see a tree, the tree itself is explicit content whereas the leaves that we can see are the implicit content of the given tree) of any mental act and the object of this act. According to Twardowski (1894), ‘ what is presented in a presentation is its content, what is presented through a presentation is its object” ( Moran, 2002, p.56). Following Moran, it can be stated that in Husserl’s opinion phenomenology was ‘the science of science’. And he treated it as a scientific discipline. He thought that phenomenology was a science about all objects regardless of their nature as long as they start to exist in our consciousness. Husserl’s phenomenology was attractive as it talked about a revival concerning not only science, but also the way of perceiving the world and mankind, which was of particular importance for the young people of his time. According to Husserl, consciousness of a given fact, state of affairs or thing is the basis of all experience. Husserl’s phenomenology devotes considerable attention to human experience. It defines in a pioneering way the term ‘environment’ ( Umwelt ) and the concept of ‘life-world’ (Lebenswelt ) to describe what we call the human world. Moran (2002) says that:

‘Husserl saw the life-world as the universal framework of human endeavour — including our scientific endeavours. It is the ultimate horizon of all human achievement’ (p.182). The relation between thinking and being is also essential for Husserl. It is a factor which decides how consciousness of a given thing or state of affairs affects the construction of objectively new knowledge. During his scientific career, he went through three stages: psychologism, (a philosophical term, usually pejorative, which in his case turned out to be a kind of relativism and subjectivism), descriptive psychology and transcendental phenomenology . At the beginning of his scientific career, Husserl considered phenomenology to be not only a method that allows us to explain logical issues better, but also a comprehensive approach to science in general. Husserl emphasised that in order to get to know a thing or object, “we must go back to the things themselves” ( Wir wollen auf die ‘Sachen selbst’ zurückgehen. This means that we must perceive things as they are, we must get to know their primary nature, as Moran writes: ‘As Husserl will say, our cognitive acts (Erkenntnisse) and ‘lived experiences’ or ‘thought processes’ (Erlebnisse) can become knowledge only when they are confirmed or illuminated by fulfilling intuitions’ (p.96). Another important thing is the fact that by ‘cognition’ ( Erkenntnis ) Husserl understood experience through which something becomes known (is affirmed by us as known). Knowledge results from intended acts. At the time when he propagated the ideas of so- called ‘transcendental phenomenology’ he thought, as Moran writes, that ‘Phenomenology must explore not just the essential structures of all conscious experiences and their intentional objects, but the rootedness of these essences and objects in a transcendental realm and in the transcendental ego as their ‘absolute source’ (p.125) In Husserl’s opinion, a phenomenologist must start his work ‘in absolute poverty, with an absolute lack of knowledge’ if he wants to get to know the essence of a thing or phenomenon. Phenomenology is a return to ‘ phenomena ’. According to Moran, Husserl understood a phenomenon as ‘what appears as such’; in other words, everything that appears, including everything meant or thought, in the manner of its appearing, in the ‘how’ (Wie) of its manifestation. Such a point of view is also essential for the author and participating teachers. They have also started with a very poor knowledge of sustainability and values as a pillar of sustainability and sustainable development.

Martin Heidegger brought about a specific transformation in the understanding of phenomenology. In his main work, recognised as one of the most important works of20th century philosophy, ‘ Sein und Zeit’ (Being and Time, 1927), he presented many of the assumptions of his way of thinking. He focused on the question of being. According to his theory, things only ‘are’ whereas only humans ‘exist’. Analysing the sense of being, Heidegger turned 20th century philosophy towards the analysis of ‘being-in-the-world’, rejecting the idealistic approach to philosophy and Husserl’s view of the significance of intentionality. Heidegger announces that he proposes to investigate ‘the question of Being’ ( die Seinsfrage ), that is the ‘question of the meaning of Being’ ( die Frage nach dem Sinn von Sein ); Heidegger proposes to approach this question precisely through the phenomenon of the ‘forgetting of Being’ (Seinsvergessenheit) in contemporary thought, as stated by Moran. His open support for the Nazis brought about his dismissal from University, he was forbidden to teach until he acquired the right to retire and he lost his position for many years. For Heidegger, not only intentionality but also the linguistic aspect, i.e. talking about intentionality, the language a person uses, was of great significance. ‘It is not so much that we see the objects and things but rather that we first talk about them. To put it more precisely: we do not say what we see, but rather the reverse, we see what one says about the matter’ (Moran, 2002, p.234). What one can see in Heidegger’s works, his theory and way of thinking, is a fusion of phenomenology and hermeneutics. For the construction of this thesis, another important representative of both phenomenology and hermeneutics is Hans-Georg Gadamer. For him, the foundations of his philosophy lie in a widely understood linguistics which allows human to explain reality in an active way through participation. One of the most essential aspects of his philosophy is the element of communication by using works of art. The language of artistic works is a unique means of communication used by people. According to Gadamer, hermeneutics is the art of interpretation and understanding of a given thing or phenomenon. The key role in the understanding of a phenomenon is played by our earlier opinions and judgments about this subject, which are limited by the horizon of our experience (horizon as understood by Husserl). Hannah Arendt is also a very important representative of phenomenology. She seldom considered herself to be a representative of phenomenology, but she came to be recognised as a representative of phenomenology in the public sphere.

‘In Arendt’s case, understanding the world of appearances means an attempt to uncover the nature of human living ‘in the midst of the world.’ (Moran, 2002, p.288). In her work The Human Condition, she presented the phenomenological approach to the nature of human activity. According to Arendt, we deal all the time with individual human beings and not with abstract ‘humankind’. She saw the defined human nature as a product of philosophical thought in an attempt to define so-called universal human nature; for Arendt the highest form of human involvement was action, as Moran writes. Jean-Paul Sartre, proponent of existentialism in post-war Europe, also made considerable contributions to the development of phenomenology as a science and philosophy. For him, phenomenology mainly means the way in which notions and subjects appear in our consciousness. Human nature, according to Sartre, exists as the ‘in-itself’ ( être en-soi) and the ‘for-itself’ ( être pur-soi) . He was called a phenomenologist of the imagination. Maurice Merleau-Ponty described the ‘being-in-the-world’ (être au monde) as a constant correction of the way we perceive reality owing to our experience. The experience of the above-mentioned phenomenologists is extremely important to the author of this doctoral thesis in the process of conducting his research and explaining or describing the research results. Hence, phenomenology as a philosophy behind this kind of study is absolutely justified. That is the reason for which phenomenology has been used as the philosophical basis of my doctoral thesis. Willing to work with phenomenological assumptions, the author had to show teachers how to work, how to deal with experience and new knowledge gained in the research process in the most effective way. That is why the author has focused on constructivism as another important approach. The author wanted to show to the participating teachers how important constructivism is as an approach in education. Why is constructivism so important for this research? At the beginning of the theoretical considerations regarding constructivism, the author would like to share his idea of what constructivism is, based on his own practical experience and theoretical knowledge. According to the author of this doctoral thesis, constructivism is the knowledge of how a student or an adult creates (builds) new knowledge in the course of teaching–learning, with particular reference to the assimilation of knowledge already possessed in a process that is directed to the student (or the adult learner) in the anticipation of achieving the desired end. Moving from one stage to another, during the research, the research process was strictly connected with

32 construction and developing new knowledge by teachers – the participants of the research. This explains why constructivism is so important for this thesis. The principles of learning and their implications for designing learning environments apply equally to child and adult learning as is emphasised by Donovan and Bransford, and Pellegrino (Donovan, Bransford, & Pellegrino, 2011). The basic premise of constructivism, which refers to all ages, is the fact of the construction of the new knowledge based on, or on the basis of, one’s own experience (Cooper, 2007). Based on the work of various scientists, one can extract the basic principles of constructivism (Bodnev, 1986), namely: (1) the way knowledge is used for further learning, (2) active participation in the learning process through the troubleshooting process and (3) knowledge as an ever-changing state. The constructivist approach to learning processes requires a teacher to be not only the student’s guide but also a student, as a researcher of the school reality, so as to be able, on the basis of the certain observed and analysed situations, to create the right conditions for the student to gain specific new knowledge (Daugiamas, 1998). Constructivism is a theory of how the knowledge of a person is constructed, especially in contact with the knowledge already possessed by him. Constructivism includes mainly the statements made most distinctively by Piaget (1896-1980), Vygotsky (1896-1934) and Bruner (1915-). According to Piaget, if the world is beyond direct cognition and we can come to know it only by using logical operations, our knowledge is a kind of structure which is tested in action – both the effectiveness of action and the understanding of the world (Bruner, 1996). According to Vygotski (1980), the mind which acts as intermediary between the external world and individual experience is not only a logical calculator. The mind is a process which attributes a certain meaning to an experience. The construction of meaning, according to Vygotski (1980, p.33), requires not only the language itself, but also a cultural context in which the language is used. Mental development consists in improving the symbolic structures which are rooted in culture. Such mental structures are a cultural product (Bruner, 1996). Such attribution of cultural meaning takes place in discussed contexts, in different ecological niches, individual values and their meaning. People learn how to interact with the environment, actively construct their knowledge using previously acquired and possessed knowledge. They do not register information but build the structures of knowledge using available information (Svedlow, 2012). Consequently, constructivism stresses the process as a result of which learners create and develop their own knowledge. One of the most important practical consequences of

33 such assumptions is a directive which says that during the preparation of curricula more attention should be paid to making them a challenge to the present understanding of the world rather than to adjusting them to the students’ (recipients’) possibilities (Lunenburg, 1998). Below are the two basic propositions of constructivism: (1) knowledge is actively constructed by the cognitive subject; (2) acquiring knowledge is an adaptation process during which the organisation of the experienced world takes place (Olssen, 1998). The basic pedagogical demand of constructivism is that students should be active and creative while working. It is disputable whose knowledge should be the main point of reference in all pedagogical activities. According to Shapiro (1994), the perspective of teaching and learning should stress the activity of the learners who construct their own reality. Detailed assumptions of constructivism as a theory of knowledge and cognition can be listed as follows: (1) knowledge does not exist ‘outside us’, reality and observer are unity, it is the observer who attributes a certain meaning to what can be seen, (2) knowledge is defined in time and specified by cultural contexts, (3) knowledge is not just facts, phenomena and theories, but also the ability to use and interpret them, (4) it is not a teaching, but a learning theory, (5) it also describes how knowledge is generated, (6) learning from such perspective is a self-regulating struggle with the conflicts resulting from already existing knowledge, (7) environment has an influence on the construction of new knowledge (Fosnot, 1996). The constructional approach is of great significance in the case of research. Numerous reforms currently being introduced are based on the assumptions of constructivism. Research is being carried out in order to stimulate discussions in individual schools and enhance their development, which on the micro scale, is a kind of reform within a given school. Dougiamas (1998) distinguishes five different varieties of constructivism: (1) Trivial constructivism According to trivial constructivism, knowledge is actively constructed by the learner rather than passively obtained from the human environment(Glasersfeld, 1990 in Daugiamas 1998). Trivial constructivism, however, does not at all refer to what the 'environment' is, what the 'knowledge' is nor to what the relationships between science and the environment are(Daugiamas, 1998).

(2) Radical constructivism Radical constructivism states that cognition(learning) is a dynamic process of adapting events through their interpretation with the use of our experience. The learner does not have to construct knowledge of the 'real' world. Glasersfeld (1990 in Daugiamas1998) emphasises that a human being lives in his/her imaginary world and the process of communication between people does not provide or require the same interpretation or understanding of the world. It is artificial to expect the same or a compatible meaning and understanding(Hardy &Taylor, 1997). (3) Social constructivism In this case ,in the social world (environment) of the learner, there are also people who have a direct impact on the person. This group should include first of all teachers, friends, other students and other persons directly involved in the activities of the learner. This approach takes into account the social nature of the processes within the 'collaborative learning' as well as a broader discussion on the subject, including science (Daugiamas, 1988). Many scientists go back to Vygotsky in their deliberations. He stressed the importance of society for the development of the person. (4) Cultural constructivism In this case it is assumed that, apart from the direct influence of the environment on the learning process, culture also has an impact. Such elements as customs, religion, biology and language become involved in the process. It can be assumed that the learning process will also be affected by the appearance of teaching materials and the way they are manufactured. People need a new conception of the mind. Not new for every individual but as a biological, developing system which exists in an individual’s brain, tools, artefacts and symbolic system and which allows us to facilitate social and cultural interaction(Vosniadou, 1996 in Daugiamas, 1988). Daugiamas (1988) pointed out that tools and teaching aids have a great impact on the learning process. They force the change of programmes and approaches to the learning process. A computer and its impact on learning might be a good example of that. ‘Higher mental functions are, by definition, culturally mediated. They involve not a direct action on the world but an indirect one, one that takes a bit of material matter used previously and incorporates it as an aspect of action. Insofar as that matter it has been shaped by prior human practice (e.g. it is an artefact), current action incorporates

35 the mental work that produced the particular form of that matter’. (Cole, Wertsch, 1996 in Daugiamas, 1988, p.15) Cobern (1993)stresses the clear contextuality of the learning processes and acquiring new knowledge. (5) Critical constructivism Critical constructivism assumes a critical impact of learning on the environment and the culture and adds a critical dimension to these processes to ensure better results. According to Taylor (1996), critical constructivism is a kind of social epistemology that addresses the socio-cultural context of knowledge construction and serves as a referent for cultural reform (Daugiamas, 1988). Constructivism, as emphasised by Tobinand Tippins(Tobin &Tippins, 1993), is a philosophy in the sense that it allows you to build and builds the diagrams and models for the processes of teaching, learning and the curriculum of development. Wendland (Wendland, 2011)adds a sixth type of constructivism: (6) Communication constructivism Communication constructivism is understood as the creation of not only knowledge but also the world through acts of linguistic communication. The world is understood as a cultural and social realities The world, which is inhabited, is tested, interpreted, processed and - above all – constructed by an individual (or more precisely by any kind of human collective) (Wendland, 2011). Wendland(2011) distinguishes two perspectives of constructivism: (1) ‘the weak form of the constructivist perspective’, understood as the creation of human theoretical and practical knowledge about the world and (2) ‘the strong constructivist perspective’, according to which an individual constructs not only the knowledge of the world, but also the world itself, understood by him/her as a socio-cultural reality. The difference in his/her opinion is based primarily on the fact that not every researcher taking on the weak perspective is willing to take on the strong one. All of the kinds of constructivism presented above have their own exemplification in school practice and methodological processes at school, and school development process as a background to action research and this thesis. Taking into consideration the complexity of a school development process, it is necessary to mention the theory of holistic approach and its implementation in school practice. It is also a very important issue in the analysis process of school life and all processes characteristic to the development of schools. School life and all school

36 processes cannot be analysed in any other way than using a holistic approach. All school processes can be analysed only in a holistic way. A recently developed holistic theory presents a new conceptualisation of knowledge and learning (Yang, 2004). According to Yang (2004) holistic theory defines knowledge as a social construct with three distinctive and interrelated facets – explicit, implicit and emancipatory knowledge. Knowledge is viewed as human beings’ understanding of reality through mental correspondence, personal experience and emotional affection with outside objects and situations. This theory not only identifies characteristics of the three facets or layers of knowledge but also points out that it is learning that unifies different facets. Each of the three facets of knowledge provides a support needed for the other facets to exist. Holistic learning theory suggests that knowledge is created and transformed through the interactions among explicit, implicit and emancipatory knowledge. Holistic learning theory further suggests that learning is not only an individual activity but also a social event (Yang, 2004). An individual learner has to interact with his/her immediate social group or organisation within certain social and cultural contexts. School and its problems should be perceived and solved holistically, that is, considering all factors and persons that have any influence on the school as a whole and not as separate elements isolated from the whole. Both material and non-material elements which create a school are of equal importance in this approach. Students, teachers or parents cannot be separated from the material environment which constitutes the basis of the functioning of the school. Students, teachers and parents are an integral part of school and it would be difficult to discuss each of these subjects separately without violation of the internal structure and regulations of a given school. The process of teaching and learning which takes place in a school is deeply rooted in cultural contexts of the environment within which the school operates. According to the theory, the purpose of the holistic approach – in all kinds of academic and professional fields – is to give us an adequate explanation of social or natural phenomena related to school learning and values in an explicit way. Knowing how important it is to transfer knowledge from one person to another, one cannot carry on valid and important ‘action research’ without the theory of transformative learning. This pedagogical theory, which the author uses in this doctoral thesis, is based on Jack Mezierow’s (2000) theory. Historically, adult education has been seen as a movement – a movement towards freedom and liberation that is both

37 personal and social (Cranton, 2006). Transformative learning is defined as a process by which previously uncritically assimilated assumptions, beliefs, values and perspectives are questioned and thereby become more open, permeable and better justified. This cognitive, rational approach has been elaborated on by theorists who incorporate the role of imagination, intuition, soul and affect into their understanding of the transformative process. The model of adult education illustrated below might be applied to this thesis (Mezierow, 2000):

Figure 1. Author’s visualisation of Mezierow’s theory

This model of adult education might be used in the case of participatory action research which the author uses as a research method. Transformative learning includes participation in constructive discourse in order to use the experience of others. The focus of transformative learning is on: (1) how to learn to negotiate and act our own purposes, values, feelings and meanings, and (2) how to gain a greater control over our lives as socially responsible decision makers. It is typical for learning in contemporary societies that share democratic values. Mezierow’s model of adult education assumes that there is no outside coercion, and the model of the discourse suggests an equal opportunity for all participants to contribute. (3) Moreover, participants are informed on the topic to be discussed, and there are norms of courtesy provided. What is more, there exists active listening by participants and taking turns to talk. Besides, the students are studying issues in advance. In order to fully participate in a discourse, participants must have the following: (1) more accurate and complete information, (2) freedom from coercion and distorting self-deception, (3) openness to alternative points of view: empathy and concern about how others think and feel, (4) the ability to weigh evidence and assess arguments objectively, (5) a greater awareness of the context of idea, (6) an equal opportunity to participate in the various roles of discourse and (7) willingness to seek understanding. This way of learning may take two forms (Mezierow, 2000):

normative impressionistic learning learning

- common values oriented - learning to enhance one’s learning impressions on others

Transformative learning has: (1) an individual dimension and (2) a social dimension. According to Habermas (1984), there are two major domains of learning:

instrumental learning communicative learning

- learning to control and manipulate the - learning to know what others mean when environment of other people they communicate with another person

Why is this theory so important in my doctoral thesis and particularly in my research? Teachers participating in my action research could feel they are being transformed from one stage of their knowledge, for instance, of values, to a higher one. In fact, being ‘transformed’, they obtained a new wisdom – practical wisdom which has a significant influence on the next stages of my research. Adult learning, described very often as ‘voluntary’, in this aspect is voluntary self-development of teachers’ skills and practical knowledge. It is part of self-directed (very often cold autonomous) adult learning. Through the influence of humanism, we tend to see adult education as collaborative and participatory, similar to participatory action research. There are many patterns or systems of understanding in adult learning. Merriam and Brockett (1997) present a philosophical classification system that includes liberalism, progressivism, behaviourism, humanism and radicalism. The behaviourists of the 1950s saw learning as a change in behaviour; the humanists of 1960s viewed learning as personal development. Transformative learning theory is based on constructivist assumptions. Meaning is seen to exist within ourselves, not in external words. We develop a personal meaning from our experience and validate it through interaction and communication with others.

To conclude, transformative learning theory is based on the notion that we interpret our experience in our own way, and that how we see the world is a result of our perceptions of our experience (Tyler & Cranton, 2012). The theoretical basis of this thesis consists of four elements: phenomenology, constructivism, holism and transformative learning. Combining those theories to fulfil all the assumptions included in the research paradigm and find the answers to the research questions is an interesting process. The process includes: 1) identification of teachers’ state of knowledge and consciousness in the field of interest, 2) providing the teachers with the proper tools for construction of new knowledge based on their experience and activity through transformative learning and 3) using a holistic approach to school life and the school development process. Both the researcher and teachers have been working with a holistic approach, as this one, which allowed for the creation of a real picture of school and teachers’ awareness of school development which should be sustainable. The second part of first chapter, presents some theoretical considerations on some interrelated ideas and concepts such as sustainable development ( SD) , value, values education and education for sustainable development ( ESD). This chapter provides a general perspective of the research constructed and the general concept of contemporary philosophy of science. It also highlights a broader philosophical research paradigm in the context of philosophy of science and particular theories connected to values, values education, SD and ESD. This chapter also focuses on the theory of action research and justification of using action research as a research strategy. Laszlo’s (1995, 2007, 2008) paradigm was used as the philosophical paradigm, in view of the need to find a sustainable direction for human action. This research perspective was constructed on the bases of a holistic view and system theory in which sustainability and values are vital concepts. The content of such concepts is impossible to explain without subjective human contexts and without a system; the human being is within the system. It means that the human being is at the centre of interest. Being a core for a development paradigm, these concepts are also a core for SD. The paradigm states the connections, connectedness and interdependence of these terms, particularly the connectedness between SD and values, on which SD is based. A contemporary holistic view of the world is the basis of the social and cultural development of society and the development paradigm of science and culture. A holistic view has been typical for SD for a long time. It is also typical for seeking a possibility

40 to identify principles and conditions in which society can find a way to, and achieve, sustainability. One cannot analyse these terms separately. They cannot be extracted from interdependent contexts, especially from the cultural context. SD, both of every individual and of the whole society, is based on values, and values have a great importance for SD. Development in general, and particularly SD, are strictly related to activity and action, which have great importance in the context of culture (Rogoff, 2003; Valsiner, 2000; Njoh, 2006; Doma ński, 2009; Schwarzer, Frensch, 2010; Ahmad, Ajaz Akbar Mir, 2012). To comprehend this process, one can use Rozov’s (1995, 2006, 2009) theory of socialnyie estafiety . His theory was based on research on epistemological and philosophical problems. The theory of socialnyie estafiety was developed as a holistic picture of human cognition. Each personality or social act implies a new one. Individual cognition is not concern with the world’s perception but with his/her activity and action in the world (Rozov, 2006). Activity and action are also a basis of human development, which is also a basis of Rozov’s theory. It means that, in social and cultural development, one should be focused on action and activity. According to Rozov’s theory, an individuals’ cognition is a creation of the world, which is explored by them. Human actions are determined by two different groups of factors: (1) social and cultural (the subjective ones) and (2) natural (the objective ones). Therefore an individual’s creation should be in concordance with nature. Such an understanding of values can be found in research with a broad philosophical perspective (Sal īte, 1993; Rozov, 2009). SD and values are very difficult to define and understand. Many authors present different approaches to the meaning of SD (Gillespie, 2001; Schubert, Störmer, 2007; Corcoran, Osano, 2009; Yigitcanlar, 2010; Jaeger, Tabara, & Jaeger, 2011). Sometimes they deny the sense and even the possibility of such a development (Corcoran, Osano, 2009), treating it as utopia. The subject has been researched in philosophy (Blewitt, Cullingford, 2004; Norton, 2005; De Pater, Dankelman, 2009; Kervalishvili, Michailidis, 2012; Sarkar, 2012), ecophilosophy (Myerson, Rydin, 1996; Pawłowski, 2011; Singh, 2011), holistic education (Sing, 1995; Smith, 2003; Banse, Nelson & Parodi, 2011; Al-Jayyousi, 2012), values education (De Pater, Dankelman, 2009;Lovat, Toomey, 2009; Mulla, Krishnan, 2011) and sustainable education (Sterling, 2006; Sal īte, 1993, 1998).

It is evident that one needs education in order to achieve sustainability. It is the only possible way to implement SD in real life. Education, especially ESD, in this case is of particular importance. SD, which is the general context of the doctoral thesis, is presented as a process with a dual or even multidimensional nature. On the one hand, as a purely political process, it is initiated by the United Nations (UN) and its agencies due to the specific policies of international organisations and individual countries. On the other hand, it is also a scientific concept that scientists have been struggling with for several years. The concepts and their contents are not always similar. According to the political meaning, as presented officially by the UN (Brundtland Report, 1987), SD involves the following spheres: social, economic and environmental; but, according to the purely scientific meaning, the sphere of culture is also added, as well as others, depending on the approach of the author. Whatever the considerations are, values and values education are one of the most important pillars. Therefore, values and values education are yet another element, the next level, in theoretical considerations. The subject of values has been dealt with in terms of psychology, sociology and culture. Being focused on human action, action research was used as a methodology of work.It is described in the second part of this chapter. The final conclusions are related to justification of the use of action research in the research process and relations between Rozov’s theory and action research. This process of finding relations and connections between these two aspects is a new to this work as well. Both Rozov’s theory and the principles of this research are based on action as the theory of socialnyie estafiety is also based on action and activity. What is very important is that research action needs explicit goals. A theoretical frame of references was established based on Laszlo’s paradigm. Action research as a method of work is absolutely justified because of the essence of SD, values, values education and ESD.

1.2 Development of a theory of Sustainable Development

Fromm (2011) has pointed out that an individual is largely associated with the world, and he/she is a part of nature like the sun, the moon, stars, trees and flowers, animals and groups of people (Fromm, 2011). That is the message to all of us – how important the relations between environment and an individual are. It is also a message for contemporary society, which is vitally important in the social development of ‘an Earth society’ (‘a global society’).

It is also worth quoting Langbain and Walter-Jörg (2005), who acknowledge that ‘all seven world religions together provide the perfect base for thousands of years of searching paradise ... for peace on the Earth’ (p.262). It means that only common effort and common hard work, despite religious differences, could provide a prosperous future for the Earth and all people in the world. As Mandolini (2007) pointed out, SD is a means to the integral development of a human being, and it allows him/her to move ahead, to plan his/her own activity and action. As Kofi Annan – United Nations Secretary-General said on March 14, 2001 in Bangladesh, ‘ Our biggest challenge in this new century is to take an idea that seems abstract – SD –and turn it into a reality for all the world’s people.’ A very important feature of SD comes from Mahatma Gandhi’s experience, ‘ Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.’ (Weber, 2004, p.227). It is the essence of responsibility which is needed for implementing SD. The challenges of globalisation , however problematic for many scholars, who perceive it as a treat, could be very important in the shift of future development of the Earth’s society (Haslam, Bain, Douge, Lee, & Bastian, 2005; Pfaller, Lerch, 2005; Buksinski & Dobrza ński, 2005;Clack, 2006,Åslund & D ąbrowski, 2008). Globalisation includes many different approaches to contemporary socio- economic problems. In fact, it is a revolution in all spheres of social life, rapid transformation in economic, political and social structures as well as changes in views, attitudes and modes of operation (Buksi ński, Dobrza ński, 2005). These problems influence values, values education and SD as well (Åslund, D ąbrowski, 2008,). The second half of the 21st century and the beginning of the 21st century, the era of globalisation, have mounted challenges that need to be approached seriously by the human race and individual societies (Laszlo, 2008). Firstly, each challenge should be analysed and responded to in a holistic manner, without singling out its individual elements. Secondly, to solve civilisation’s problems, in particular social ones, the principles of SD must be applied. How can we speak about the development of Earth’s society if poverty and the number of poor are still increasing and there have never been so many hungry people on the Earth (Gillespie, 2001)? SD needs such approaches that consider the human environmental system as a whole (Jaeger, Tabara, & Jaeger, 2011). The simplest definition of SD one can find is development that lasts, maximising the present needs of human beings, but in the context of their future needs (Schubert, Störmer, 2007). From a practical point of view, SD should be associated with the beauty of nature and the surrounding world as well as with a satisfying and safe life for the

43 inhabitants of our planet. SD should guarantee to the international community the disappearance of such basic social problems of developing countries as (1) lack of access to drinkable water, (2) lack of access to education for all children and (3) deprivation and poverty. It should also guarantee that the present standard of living of the inhabitants of developed countries is maintained. In particular, it should guarantee the future inhabitants of our planet at least the same or a higher standard of living. Since the early 80’s the concept of SD has evolved very intensively. Brundtland (1987) argues in the report ‘Our Common Future’ (WCED, 1987), that (1) the Earth is one but the world is not. We all depend on one biosphere for sustaining our lives. Yet each community, each country, strives for survival and prosperity with little regard for its impact on others; (2) environment and development are not separate challenges: they are inexorably linked; (3) ecosystems do not respect national boundaries. Water pollution moves through shared rivers, lakes and seas. The atmosphere carries air pollution over vast distances. Major accidents – particularly those at nuclear reactors or at plants or warehouses containing toxic materials – can have widespread regional effects. It means that we need an integration between development and the environment. A clear definition of SD was first used during the UN conference in Rio de Janeiro in 1996, and it comprises a harmonious social and economic development as well as particular care of environment and its development. In the report of the Brundtland Commission (1987), SD is defined as development that meets the needs of present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The definition contains two concepts: (1) the concept of human needs , essentially the needs of the world’s poor, and (2) the very important ideas of limitations to meeting present and future ‘needs’ of world society. According to this report (1987), SD (1) is not a fixed state but a process of permanent changes which guarantees the development of the present generation and the progressive transformation of the generation; (2) takes into account the needs and expectations of future generations; (3) takes into account 3 interconnected dimensions: environmental, economic and social; (4) is a growth, but not only that; there must be also a change in the content of growth, which must be less resource- and energy-intensive, (5) depends on political will. SD was also used in the economic sphere as the need for limitation of uncontrolled industrialisation ( Lanza, 1997).

In many countries, some indicators have been established to define sustainable development. One of the most significant examples could be the United Kingdom Example, which says that SD is a development which constitutes a sustainable society in which: 1. resources are used in an efficient way and the amount of rubbish and waste is minimised by recovering it through recycling; 2. environment pollution is kept at levels which do not pose a threat to natural systems and allow maintenance of the ecological balance; 3. the diversity of nature is valued and actions are taken to protect it; 4. wherever possible, the needs of local communities are met by services and goods provided locally; 5. access to good food, water, housing and fuel to make cooking and heating possible is ensured to everybody; 6. everybody has access to satisfying and rewarding work, unpaid work is valued and remuneration for work is fair and adequate; 7. human health is protected through safe, clean, pleasant environments and health services provide care as well as prevention actions; 8. access to facilities, services, goods and other people does not have an adverse impact on the environment, and it is not limited only to those who own a car; 9. everybody has the right to live without fear of persecution due to their religion, race, sex or sexual preferences; 10. everybody has access to the skills, knowledge and information needed to play a full part in a society; 11. all sections of the community are equally empowered to make decisions having an impact on the whole community; 12. opportunities for culture, leisure and recreation are readily available to all; 13. Places, spaces and buildings work well, wear well and look well. Settlements are ‘human’ in scale and form. Diversity and local distinctiveness are valued and protected. (Levett-Therivel, Cave & Rao, 2010).

SD is in fact a more political than scientific term, but, no matter what kind of definition we adopt, its essence remains the same. In subsequent international legal acts, the crucial role of education in the process of SD implementation was pointed out and emphasised. There are many different attempts to define SD. It can be defined based on

45 the following 1) resource economy – considering potential resources; 2) compromise between present and future – the accentuation of human needs; 3) a humanistic welfare- sensitive economy, requiring organisational changes; 4) environmental capacity – harmonisation of the capacity of ecosystem with quality of life; 5) system of entirety – holism, coherent development, 6) transformation – social awareness, spirituality, 7) environment, morality and ethics – standards of a moral system, elaboration of a values system; 8) social economic aspect -harmonisation of ecological processes with quality of life; 9)influence of environmental improvement, nature protection - development of environmentally friendly activities (Grabovska, 2006); 10) energy connections, including resource exploitation, between humans and the environment; 11) psychological relationships with the ecosphere as human attitudes regarding the issues of energy and resource exploitation change (Salite, 2002). Salte (2002) also stresses the endless discourse and changes in the approach to environmental problems and their solution, from anthropocentrism to ecocentrism and forward, nowadays, to ecocentrism and cosmocentric orientation. Salite and Pipere (2006) define SD as a stimulus for diversity and development and an issue to be dealt with. Traditionally we can present the essence of SD in the form of a Venn diagram (Fig.1):

Figure 2. Venn diagram of SD (three-dimensional)

Contemporary understanding of SD could be presented in the form of a diagram. It presents a dynamic balance between cultural differences and emerging global ethics.

Dimension of sustainability Value Principle

Social sustainability Peace and equity

Ecological sustainability Conservation

Economic sustainability Appropriate development

Political sustainability Democracy

Figure 3 . The dynamic balance between cultural differences and emerging global ethics (Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future , UNESCO Programme, 2010)

The four dimensions of SD (Fig.2) permit us to expect, in the social dimension – peace and equality on Earth; in the ecological dimension – proper nature protection and care of the environment; in the economic dimension – development in the right direction; and in the political dimension – democracy as the political system. According to The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN, 2006), we can present SD in this way (Fig.3):

economy

society

environment

Figure 3. International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Recourses model of SD (2006)

A model of SD based on an Islamic worldview is provided in Figure 4 (Al-Jayyousi, 2012). It means that, even from the religious point of view, it is possible to determine the definition of SD.

Justice ‘Adi’

Limit of Good life Excellence Mischief „Ihsan” ‘Fasad’ ‘Hayat Tyebeh’

Social capital ‘Arham’

Figure 5. Model of SD based on Islamic worldviews (Al-Jayyousi, 2012)

SD and its concepts have been the subject of many international meetings and initiatives. The most import are: Agenda 21, adopted in Rio de Janeiro in 1992; the World Summit on SD held in Johannesburg in 2002; the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); and Education for All (EFA). Following Kartikeya Sarabhai (2005), Director of the Centre for Environment Education in Ahmedabad in India, one can say that now we need not only to change the paradigm of development but we also have to change the paradigm of education to achieve sustainability. In the educational paradigm, the main focus should be on: (1) Learning rather than teaching. This change is fundamental to the way one thinks of education – education, from being something that society determines for its citizens, or adults decide for their children, will have to become ‘seeker’ oriented. The classical ‘guru’ concept of ancient India where the guru would teach, as strictly as a teacher, but recognise that the pupils would someday seek their own path. Teaching, therefore, needs to be focused on making the student a better learner, rather than filling the

48 student with information per se. And ESD is not only about learning individuals, but learning institutions and societies. (2) Lifelong and continuous rather than confined to a specified period. Education was something thought of as an activity you essentially did during the first quarter or so of your life. It aimed to give you the knowledge and skills required for the rest of your life. With the rapid pace of change today, this is obviously not quite enough. Institutions have started a variety of in-service courses. Increasing adult education programmes are available. Non-formal opportunities, and opportunities for community education have increased manifold. But the older paradigm still remains largely intact. In a new world through internet and other emerging educational opportunities, it is likely that certification will no longer be based on ‘residency’ factors. Technology is also driving people to learn new skills. But there are still many who have a diffident attitude towards new learning. ‘I’m too old’ to learn. Distance learning is emerging as a major alternative way for learning. But issues such as access for all, digital divide, are continuing concerns. (3) Multi-sourced and accessed rather than top down, controlled, and orchestrated The school and the textbook no longer have the virtual monopoly they had on the child’s mind. Most children have independent access to information, without ‘gate keepers’. Even parents can’t ‘control’ the educational exposure the child has. And this is only going to increase. The teacher now has to ‘compete’ with other sources. The student can verify information given in the class room. (4) Empowering rather than socializing (indoctrinating). ESD is about individuals and communities, questioning, visioning and making changes. It is, in that way, contrary to conventional education which is a process of a system meant for fitting people to fit in and not upset the status quo, to a process where people are empowered to change the world. (5) Global and yet locale specific . Education today needs to give people global perspectives and connections, and at the same time enable them to interpret generic learnings in their local context, and to not only act locally, but see the wider impacts of their actions. (6) Capacity building to build abilities for critical thinking and problem solving. With the onslaught of information from various sources and ever increasing amounts of data, the issue is often of being able to select and process information, critically analyse it, and take decisions based on this. It is these skills that ESD attempts to develop.

(7) Multi-disciplinary approach as opposed to a single new discipline. Real world problems need integrated, multi-disciplinary solutions while most institutions—from school education on, and including government—are organised sectorally. This compartmentalisation starts with school education. An important task for ESD is to break these barriers, and help in seeing connections and the holistic linkages. (8) Sensitive to gender, diversity etc. ESD needs to not only be sensitive to, but also support and enhance the celebration of diversity—of cultures, languages, societies, and diversity in the natural world. Sensitivity to gender, equity and other issues, needs to be an integral part of ESD, and it needs to be inclusive of, as against discriminatory on, gender, caste, and other factors. (9) Participatory and based on learning with peers. Conventional education dictates what and how learners should learn. In an increasingly complex world, people will decide what they need to learn and how best, and when, they need to learn. ESD needs to empower and enable learners to learn when, where, what and how they choose, as opposed to one-directional teacher to passive learner’. (Education for a sustainable Future, International Conference, Ahmedabad, India, 18-20 January 2005,Kartikeya Sarabhai Background of the Conference) The main principles described in the UNESCO’s Programme of Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future (2010) give us a future picture of the world which would be focused on: (1) care for each other and the value of social justice and peace, (2) appropriate development of all people, (3) protection of Earth’s natural systems and using different resources and (4) and full introduction of democratic procedures. Although the Plan of Implementation of SD adopted at the conference in Johannesburg in 2002 does not concentrate on education, it sets the following tasks for individual societies and governments of these countries within the process of implementation of SD: − intensifying the process of SD implementation as the pace of implementation so far was recognised to be too slow; − respecting the agreements and declarations from Rio and Agenda 21 as well as reaching the Millennium Development Goals; − adopting a commitment to build a global society that respects the principles of humanitarianism, social justice, sensitivity to other people and their needs.

The essence of SD is connected with change, the change of human life as the most important fact. It could be achieved by a planned action and human activity, having clear goals and a clear vision of the future. In an era of globalization, SD is a challenge for Earth’s society as it looks to its future. It is also particularly important from the point of view of contemporary business. It is a tool of influential people all over the world. Globalisation is a big challenge for Earth’s society as well (Buksinski, Dobrza ński, 2005; Pfaller, Lerch, 2005;Clack, 2006; Åslund, D ąbrowski, 2008).

SD in Poland .No matter how SD is approached – whether as an educational issue or an issue connected with a specific orientation of social activity – it should be reflected in the legal acts of every country. SD is mentioned in many Polish legal acts, but the understanding of this concept is very often limited in a specific way. In Article 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland (1997), SD is mentioned as one of the most important principles to be implemented definitely as legally binding: ‘The Republic of Poland shall safeguard the independence and integrity of its territory and ensure the freedoms and rights of persons and citizens, the security of the citizens, safeguard the national heritage and shall ensure the protection of the natural environment pursuant to the principles of SD’ (p.2). However, it fails to provide a definition of SD, and there is no reference to the way it should be understood. It is difficult to determine whether in this provision the principle of SD refers to environmental protection only or to the other previously mentioned spheres as well. Article 74 contains the following provisions: ‘public authorities shall pursue policies ensuring the ecological security of current and future generations; protection of the environment shall be the duty of public authorities; the right to be informed of the quality of environment and its protection; support for the activities of citizens to protect and improve the quality of the environment’. References to SD can be found in other legal acts as well: − Act of 27 April 2001 on Environmental Protection Law (Journal of Laws No.25, 2008, item 150, wording since 7 March 2013) – environmental protection should be implemented according to the principle of SD. − Act of 27 March 2003 on Spatial Planning and Development (Journal of Laws No.80, 2012, item 647) also says that spatial order and SD are the basis for all

actions, referring to the definition of SD provided in the Act - Law on Environmental Protection. − The Principles of Regional Development Support Act of 12 May (Journal of Laws No. 48, 2000, item 550) is another document that mentions the considerable role of SD. The Act on Environmental Protection Law (Journal of Laws No.25, 2008, item 150, wording since 7 March 2013) in Article 4.50 provides the following definition of SD. Whenever in the act reference is made to: ‘sustainable development – it shall mean social and economic development in which the process of integration of political, economic and social activities takes place, the balance in nature and stability of basic natural processes are preserved so as to guarantee the possibility of satisfying the basic needs of individual communities and citizens, both to the present and future generations’. Article 8 states that: ‘Policies, strategies, plans and programs related particularly to industry, power industry, transportation, telecommunication, water management, waste management, spatial development, forestry, agriculture, fishery, tourism and land management should take into account the principles of environmental protection and sustainable development’. Unfortunately, in these provisions, no reference to education is made and no guidelines are given in this respect. As shown in the aforementioned provisions, the main emphasis is put on environmental protection. SD in a theoretical sense is present in Polish legislation in many areas, particularly in urban planning, environmental protection, construction law and law defining the principles of regional development. Unfortunately, all the other important aspects of SD are omitted. On such understanding of SD the activities which can be considered as aiming to implement education for sustainable development are based. The understanding and implementation of ESD in Poland is rather specific. Generally, in most documents, even the official ones, SD is understood as a development in the sphere of ecology and undertaking actions aiming at environmental protection. In a document from 1999, the national strategy was defined as follows – Through Education to Sustainable Development, National Strategy for Environmental Education. The National Strategy for Environmental Education points out the most important tasks for educational institutions within the scope of ESD only in the field of 52 environmental education. It specifies the tasks for each level of education in this respect. Five out of 16 websites run by school superintendent’s offices – institutions which are responsible for the work quality of schools and educational establishments - were analysed for the purpose of this doctoral thesis, and the picture that has emerged is rather sad. Only in one case does the website include some information in this respect and even then it is limited to the problems of natural environment protection only. On the other websites, there is absolutely no information about this issue. What is significant is that the decade of ESD announced by the United Nations lasts until 2014, and Poland, as a member, accepted a set of defined tasks to be implemented. The implementation must be responsible and in accordance with the current theory of SD. The concept of SD and its understanding in Poland is based on a traditional meaning of SD narrowed, in fact, to ecological education. This concept has a particular influence on the activity among society and schools in this area. It is necessary to change the SD paradigm as it was understood at least at the beginning, as a way of implementing sustainability into a real life.

SD in Latvia .In Latvia, in 2010, a special document called “Sustainable Development Strategy of Latvia until 2030” or ‘Latvija2030’ was developed by the Saeima of the Republic of Latvia. The document was prepared after consultation with representatives of different age groups and different social groups, including experts in various fields led by an associate professor, Roberts Ķī lis, as part of the activities of, and measures taken by the Ministry of Regional Development and the Government of Latvia. This document defines SD as an integrated and balanced development of social welfare, environment and economy that satisfies the present social and economic needs of the inhabitants and ensures conformity with environmental requirements, without endangering the possibility of satisfying the needs of future generations, as well as ensuring the preservation of biological diversity. For the first time, the document was prepared in cooperation with scientists, experts and representatives of different social groups. It defines the national development plan until 2030. Work on the document began in 2007 and ended in 2009 with a great national debate on the subject. Primarily, the document was to be a response to the challenges of globalisation by creating a Model for Sustainable Development of the Country.

The document (2010) assumes that: ‘ In 2030, Latvia will be a thriving country of active and responsible citizens. Everyone will have the opportunity to feel safe and belonging to Latvia, everyone here will have the opportunity to achieve his/her goals. The strength of the nation will lie in inherited, discovered and newly created cultural and spiritual values, the richness of language and knowledge of other languages. It will unite society for the creation of new, diverse and unique values in economy, science and culture, and these values will also be appreciated, known and respected outside Latvia’ (p.11). It highlights the important role that education is to play – education which, especially in the 21st century, is to be at a very high level to meet the public challenges. The document assumes that Latvia must be set up on the values that will allow it to use the principles of SD. In particular, the importance of values such as creativity, knowledge and openness to new ideas which should enrich every citizen and the whole country was highlighted. Special emphasis was placed on its culture, which is considered to be a national heritage which enriches every person and which is of great importance to them. All of this is designed to build the productive (creative) Latvian society that will protect the national identity, language and any tangible or intangible heritage of society with respect for its diversity. Family and children are considered to be the most important social values. Productivity (creativity) is to be based on a school educational programme, which is considered the most important in Latvia, and society is to become a creative one, participating in the democratic processes in the country. In terms of education, the most important task is to make a shift of the educational paradigm in the direction of creating the best educational systems in the European Union and becoming a leading country in adult education. According to this document, Latvia should achieve a state where educational and cultural education institutions should become the centres of social networking, in the management of which parents, teaching staff and educators, as well as a wider local community, including entrepreneurs and representatives of professional associations, participate and co-operate. The situation in Latvia seems to be much better, at least theoretically and taking into account the activity of academic centres as well as the institutions responsible for the quality of education and the functioning of schools and educational establishments. One of the institutions which play an extremely important role as far as the popularisation of this subject matter is concerned is Daugavpils University, which has been actively engaged in ESD for a long time. The activity of the Institute of Sustainable Education as a research institution is also extremely important. Following

54 the academic publications of Daugavpils University, one can see how the notion of SD has evolved in research work from 1996 until the present day.

1.3 Development of theory of values

According to Konsa (Konsa, 2004), the development of society is impossible without knowing the values of society. SD is also not possible without values, because values are one of the most important pillars, according to Lovat and Toomey (2009). As stated by Williams (1979), in social science research, ‘ the term ‘values’ has been used variously to refer to interests, pleasure, likes, preferences, duties, moral obligations, desires, wants, goals, needs and many other kinds of selective orientation. What are values and how should they be understood, particularly from the social point of view and at times when the issue of SD of society is so important? In socio-cultural development processes, values display the changes that take place and are manifested as values-based attitudes’. Values, starting from the progenitor of this notion – Plato (Tatarkiewicz, 1988) who understood values as the basis of human virtue, have been an object of interest for many theorists all over the world throughout history. It was Nietsche (1885) who was the first, with his famous statement ‘Der Gott ist Tot’ , questioned the existence of God and consequently the existence of values related to religion. Since that time, many theorists have worked on the concept of values (Young, 1949; Kluckholm, 1962; Goldschmidt, 1953; Krech, Cruchfield, 1962; Drobnickij, 1966; Bem, 1970; Szczepa ński, 1970; Hollander, 1971; Rokeach,1973; Matusewicz, 1975; Williams, 1979; Misztal, 1980; Gasiul, 1987; Schwartz, 1994; Huitt, 2004; Friedman, Kahn & Borning, 2006; Haydon, 2007; Chang, Fleischmann, 2010; Świtała, 2010). Therefore, how should the notion of value be understood, what do values mean for people, how do they influence their lives and actions? Another question is that of how people influence these values, how they try to change them and how they actually change them. While wanting to change the appropriate social context and to place values amongst closely connected notions and to give them an appropriate philosophical sense, resulting from a general philosophy as well as from the philosophy of science, the author created the following model after long consideration. Looking at Laszlo’s (2012) theory, which indicates the necessity for changing one’s life philosophy, and Rozov’s (2009) philosophy of social continuity, it should be

55 noted that both approaches identify human actions as the basis for all changes. Laszlo points out the necessity for changes, and Rozov shows how these changes should be conducted, taking into consideration their form, i.e. the form of social continuity. Human actions shouldbe based on appropriate and appropriately used values. Both individual values and general social values play an important role in the process as they are harmonised with each other. Rozov’s metaphor of social continuity is a perfect tool allowing for understanding the role and meaning of values for social and economic development. The wave used in the metaphor depicts human actions, actions which always have an appropriate social context. Such actions are usually voluntary but not free as they must be planned actions and must be completed in a planned manner. Each action of this type must have an appropriate objective, which also results from the fact that the achievement of the defined goal is a characteristic of this action. Rozov’s rolling wave induces appropriate changes in society. This wave influences values agreed to within a given society in absolute terms, but it is also exposed to the impact of values presented by a given society. This process changes depending on which values are encountered, but its essence remains unchanged. This is still the same wave, a wave of social and cultural changes in a given society, the wave which sustains this development, which is supported in a significant manner. It is very important that this process is the responsibility of education and, in particular, schools as the aforementioned ‘kumatoid’ according to Rozov. The ‘kumatoid’, plays a significant role in the process of social and economic change, and influences the process of shaping individual and collective values. Which values are the most important in this process? What definition of values should be adopted for educational purposes as the most appropriate one which meets the requirements of the contemporary school? The definitions of values analysed so far and the approach of many authors to this issue do not allow us to choose one definition which best meets the needs of social and economic development and, as a result, the process of SD (Scheler, 1926; Ayne Rand, 1961; Huitt, 2004). Nevertheless, it is a very important characteristic of education and schools in particular, to be able to store and present a lot of varying possibilities to satisfy the expectations of each student. As Haydon (2007) points out, there is no correct definition of values because of the complexity of the concept and its possible use. This concept has evolved over the ages, and, at present, we can distinguish many different definitions. The concept is not clear and not explicit. One can consider and analyse definitions and notions of values on

56 various planes which correspond to appropriate social levels. Considerations on psychological grounds which correspond to the individual level lead in various directions (Young, 1949; Maslow, 1959; Parsons, White, 1968; Bem, 1970; Hollander, 1971). Young’s (1949) definition deserves special attention here. He (Young, 1949) acknowledges that value is a union of ideas and attitudes which create a scale of preferences and priorities, both for motives or objectives and actions. Sociological considerations corresponding to the level of the defined social group also lead in various directions. They show enormous richness of definitions, but, again, they are very difficult to adopt and apply from the point of view of education (Kluckholm, 1962; Krech &Cruchfield, 1962; Rescher, 1969; Rokeach, 1972, 1979; Thomas, Znaniecki, 1976). Kluckholm’s (1962) definition is worth emphasizing due to its focus on objectives and actions. According to him, value is a defined or deducible conception of what is desirable, characteristic of the individual or the group and exerting influence on the choice of available ways, means and goals of action. Values considered from the cultural point of view correspond to the national or supranational level focused on a deep social and cultural context. The diversity of theoretical approaches is surprising in this case (Goldschmidt, 1953; Drobnickij, 1966; Hutcheon, 1972; Rokeach, 1973; Schwartz, 1994; Friedman, Kahn & Borning 2006; Cheng & Fleischmann, 2010). The definition which best corresponds to considerations at the cultural level is that provided by Drobnickij (1966), namely : ‘value is an object of unfulfilled need, something that should be acquired and it remains a value until it is achieved. The moment the object is acquired, the value ceases to play the role of ‘value’, from that moment a man takes a matter-of-fact attitude towards it …, value is a phenomenon which occurs only when a direct contact … of a man with a certain sphere or reality is made impossible or difficult’ ; and the definition by Braithwaite and Blamey (1998), which defines values in the following way: ‘ Values … are principles for action encompassing abstract goals in life and modes of conduct that an individual or a collective considers preferable across contexts and situations’ (p.364). An even deeper analysis of this notion can lead to many other definitions and various understandings of the notion of values. The philosophical, i.e. immaterial, character of values results in a great difficulty in identifying and defining them in an unambiguous manner. Values cannot be measured, they are immeasurable notions from the point of view of mathematics. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to fit them in contemporary educational requirements

57 or any other detailed teaching. Therefore the philosophical notion is the most appropriate for explaining their essence – in this case, the notion of Rozov’s socialnyie estafiety . A characteristic feature of philosophical notions is the difficulty of defining them on the basis of specific and rational knowledge. They exist only in human thoughts, in a personality’s immaterial world. However, the task of education involves supporting values and cultivating those which are commonly recognised as significant. Through the process of adaptation as well as evolution, education plays a very important role in the process of transformation of values from one society to another, from one generation to another, from one level of social and cultural development to the level of SD. Amongst various approaches and definitions, taking into consideration their importance for development, we should remember and use what Plato wrote and said about values. The precursor of this notion, Plato recognised justice as the most important value in life ( ‘virtue’ according to Plato); however, justice was understood at the time in a completely different way than it is today. The state and the interests of the state were of the greatest importance to Plato. Even a lie in the interest of the state was justified. The base of statehood was upbringing and gradual proceeding to further stages of initiation, which made education play a very important role. Different kinds of crisis dominate the modern world – the crisis of the state, society, family and perhaps a crisis of values as well. How to cope with the constant dilemma of the modern world – how to live, how to function in a modern society; which values to hold or be guided by? How to bring up the young generation and what is the role of school and teachers in this process? The question, however, is still open – are there any values which constitute a kind of universal set, the absolute, values that are accepted by everybody irrespective of religion or outlook on life? And if there are, what are these values? Anthropocentrism (Bruskotter, 2007; Allen, 2010;Boddice, 2011; Acton, 2012) is one of the most important approaches to the theory of values. This century has been deeply rooted in decades-old scientific theories. It is also visible in the aforementioned definitions. While defining the notion of value, attention was in principle paid to the needs of a human being and not to the environment or a human being as part of environment. It was the human being that dominated the pondered and quoted theories that very often came down to human understanding and knowing right from wrong.

What was considered to be right was a certain value, and what was recognised as wrong was not a value. However, at the beginning of the 21st century, it is difficult to accept the anthropocentric approach to the notion of value only, particularly with reference to school, the activities of which should always be considered in a holistic way with the ecocentric aspect of reality taken into account (Sal īte, 1998). A school cannot be separated into fragments or separate parts so as to evaluate some phenomenon, attitude or tendency. The holistic view of school, understood as a complex open system, and understanding its problems in a holistic way is the challenge of our times. It is also an answer to the question of how the understanding of SD and ESD should be improved as this notion is not widely or well understood. Nowadays, many researchers from the area of labour and marketing define value according to the needs of these two disciplines. Mostly, value is understood as material wealth or particular behaviour, or individual characteristics of employees or managers. Values can also be understood as a mystical connection between the visible and invisible parts of culture (between the body and the soul) which is characteristic of a particular society. Also, culture is understood as the product of an adequate system of values. This is a special meaning and understanding of values as a trans-disciplinary term and cognition. It connects the material and non-material world. It is also a kind of interconnectedness of those two worlds: material and non-material in the sense of objects which are desirable to an individual or a given group. Adapting the understanding of culture as seen by Mistrik (2002), one can represent it in this way (Fig.5).

Figure 6. Author’s model of values – adaptation of Mistrik’s understanding of culture.

There exist a lot of definitions of values, and, in the same way, there exist a lot of various classifications. Basically, each classification is based on different features. Therefore, we can encounter classifications of values based on a historical approach (Hitlin, 2003; Palispis, 2007); on the type and philosophy of approach (Chang, Fleischmann, 2010); on the area of human activity (Spranger, 1914; Allport, 1960); on the areas of a person’s professional activity (Bernthal, 1962); on presented interests of a given group (England, 1967); on the organisational culture of work (Hofstede, 1980); on general behaviour and consumer behaviour (Kahle, 1988; Crace &Brown, 1995). The classifications of values prepared by the following authors deserve special attention. As Rescher (1969) argued, consideration of different aspects of classification can shed further light on understanding of the concept of values. He (Rescher, 1969) proposed six principles as criteria for classifying values. These principles show that value classification can be approached from many directions. He (Rescher, 1969) differentiated values by: (1) the subscribership to the value, in which values can be grouped as personal values, professional or work values, national values, etc; (2) the objects at issue, in which values can be classified with respect to their appropriate group of objects, such as thing values, environmental values, individual or personal values, group values and societal values; (3) the sort of benefits at issue, in which values can be projected into a corresponding classification such as material and physical, economic, moral, social, political, aesthetic, religious (spiritual), intellectual, professional and sentimental; (4) the sort of purposes at issue, in which values can be classified according to the specific type of purpose served by realisation of the valued context, such as the bargaining value of a certain resource, or the persuasive value of an argument; (5) the relationship between subscriber and beneficiary, in which values can be classified as self-oriented (or egocentric) values and other oriented (or disinterested) values; (6) the relationship of the value to other values. In this approach, certain values are viewed as subordinate to other values. The subordinate values may be classified as instrumental or means values. Self- sufficient values, which are not viewed as subordinate, can be classified as intrinsic or end values (Rescher, 1969 as cited in Cheng, Fleischmann, 2010). There are more classifications of values. Kahle (1988) designed a list of values (LOV) to measure consumer attitudes and behaviour. It is focused on personal values that apply to people’s daily lives. The LOV contains 9 values which were derived from Rokeach’s (1973) list of 18 terminal values, Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs and

60 other values research literature. It has been widely used in advertising and marketing research as well as other fields. Nine values make up the LOV: (1) fun and enjoyment, (2) warm relationships, (3) self-fulfillment, (4) being well respected, (5) a sense of accomplishment, (6) security, (7) self-respect, (8) a sense of belonging and (9) excitement (Kahle et al., 1988 as cited in Cheng & Fleischmann, 2010). According to Schwartz (1994), values are concepts or beliefs, and they pertain to desirable end states or behaviours, transcend specific situations, guide selection or evaluation of behaviour and events and are ordered by relative importance. Schwartz (1994) specifies 56 basic human values that can be grouped into ten value types: 1. ‘Power : social power , authority , wealth , preserving my public image , and social recognition . 2. Achievement : successful , capable , ambitious , influential , intelligent , and self- respect . 3. Hedonism : pleasure , and enjoying life . 4. Stimulation : daring , a varied life , and an exciting life . 5. Self-direction : creativity , curious , freedom , choosing own goals , and independent . 6. Universalism : protecting the environment , a world of beauty , unity with nature , broad-minded , social justice , wisdom , equality , a world at peace , and inner harmony . 7. Benevolence : helpful , honest , forgiving , loyal , responsible , true friendship , a spiritual life , mature love , and meaning in life . 8. Tradition : devout , accepting portion in life , humble , moderate , respect for tradition , and detachment . 9. Conformity : politeness , honouring of parents and elders , obedient , and self- discipline . 10. Security : clean , national security , social order , family security , reciprocation of favours , healthy , and sense of belonging’ (Schwartz, 1994 in Cheng, Fleischmann, 2010, p.5).

Jurkiewicz and Giacalone (2004) proposed a framework of organisational values that promote employees’ experience of transcendence through the work process. The values proposed by Jurkiewicz and Giacalone (2004) are: (1) benevolence , (2) narrativity , (3) humanism , (4) integrity , (5) justice , (6) mutuality , (7) receptivity , (8)

61 respect , (9) responsibility and (10) trust (Jurkiewicz, Giacalone, 2010 as cited in Cheng & Fleischmann, 2010). Value sensitive design (VSD) was created by Friedman (2006) for examining human values implicated in technology design. Key values that VSD identified for design and use of technology are the following: (1) human welfare , (2) ownership and property , (3) privacy , (4) freedom from bias, (5) universal usability , (6) trust , (7) autonomy , (8) informed consent , (9) accountability , (10) courtesy , (11) identity , (12) calmness and (13) environmental sustainability (Friedman et al., 2006 as cited in Cheng & Fleischmann, 2010). Inglehart (2008) has created the world values survey which identified two major dimensions of cross-cultural variation: (1) t raditional/secular-rational values and (2) survival/self-expression values (Inglehart, 2008 as cited in Cheng, Fleischmann, 2010).

Scheler (1926) gave the first hierarchy of values: (1) Absolute values. (2) Spiritual values (cultural). (3) Vital values. (4) Utilitarian values. (5) Hedonistic values. According to Scheler (1926), values are independent from the object which identifies them. In fact, they are features of the reality that surrounds us. Values are highly diverse, they are not equal to each other, and they can be ranked. Higher values are per se , self-evident and not because we value them more highly. Values are recognised mainly intuitively. To know that tolerance or truthfulness are values, there is no need for induction – we know that on the basis of our experience, but, at the same time, our experience can neither invalidate nor prove it. The character of this cognition a priori is emotional, not intellectual. Hence, emotions have a cognitive value (Ingarden, 1974). Scheler (1926) gives us an answer to the issue of the existence of objective values. Do they really exist or are we perhaps dealing with value relativism? Objective values do exist and what differs is our attitude to specific values, which is an element of morality (Ingarden, 1974). Nowadays, it is very difficult to talk about the issue of values without the extensive sphere of business. This is today’s most common reference for values.

1.4 Values education

Just as the notion of values is closely connected with Rozov’s (2006) theory of socialnyie estafiety, so also the idea and sense of education for values are closely connected with this notion. Education for values is a process which should be included in the general education process conducted at school, which should be inseparably connected with it. It should also have the character of Rozov’s (2006) metaphorical wave which leads from one act to another, changing the school reality and the understanding of the world and the necessity for changing human behaviour and perception of the world, as was emphasised by Laszlo (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012) on numerous occasions. Values education is based on the activity and actions of teachers and students (Meyer, Burnham, & Cholvat, 1975; Meyer, 1976; Venkataiah, 1998; Cheng, Li & Nai-Kwai Lo, 2006; Zajda & Daun, 2009; Lovat, Clement, & Toomey, 2010; Harland, Pickering, 2010). That is the connection between school and society. Every society tries to build its system of values. The system of social values is shaped in the process of socio-cultural development as well as during the development of an individual who is the basic unit of society. This process should be reflected in values education. Values education is an explicit attempt to teach about values and/or valuing (Superka, Ahrens, & Hedstrom, 1976). Values education is a well-known process in many countries, especially in Asia and the Pacific Region, particularly in such countries as Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, etc. Among many others the Australian example shows the variety of ESD. The Values Education Programme in Australia is described in a document entitled “National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools” (Commonwealth of Australia 2005) and prepared by The Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA). In this document, it is stated that: ‘Australia’s future depends upon each citizen having the necessary knowledge, understanding, skills and values for a productive and rewarding life in an educated, just and open society. High quality schooling is central to achieving this vision. … Schooling provides a foundation for young Australians’ intellectual, physical, social, moral, spiritual and aesthetic development’ (p.2).

Values education in this programme is defined as: ‘Any explicit and/or implicit school-based activity which promotes student understanding and knowledge of values, and which develops the skills and dispositions of students so they can enact particular values as individuals and as members of the wider community’ (p.8). The basic points of the above-mentioned programme are: − strict relation with a school programme on each level, − interconnectedness with school curriculum, − involving the whole school in the process. The main aims of the programme are stated below: − preparation of the school mission and vision with the whole school community, − building students’ resilience and responsibility by involving them in school life, − making values a core point of school curricula. There are ‘Nine Values for Australian Schools’ (p.4): (1) care and compassion, (2) doing your best, (3) fair go, (4) freedom, (5) honesty and trustworthiness, (6) integrity, (7) respect, (8) responsibility, (9) understanding, tolerance and inclusion. It is in fact the basis to teach students the acceptance of diversity within a democratic society, being included and including others. This programme helps students to apply some extremely important values such as freedom, honesty and compassion. It is also a kind of cooperation among students, school staff and parents to create an appropriate atmosphere to practice responsibility and to strengthen students’ resilience. The other very significant example of good practice is New Zealand’s example of values education. Values Education in New Zealand Schools is another very interesting programme established in 2004 by the Ministry of Education, New Zealand Curriculum Framework (NZCF, 1993). The Department of Education and the National Consultation Group (NCG) adopted the following definition: ‘Values are internalised sets of beliefs or principles of behaviour held by individuals or groups. They are expressed in the way people think and act. They are based on our cultural, religious, philosophic and spiritual traditions, and on current critical reflection, dialogue and debate’ (NCG statement, 2004; NZCF, 1993, p.5). The main features of the programme are: − values should be deeply rooted in the school curriculum,

− values education is about those values which are adopted by schools, − values in the curricula should affect all members of the schooling community, − Western values and non-Western values should be adopted by schools in New Zealand in the mainstream curriculum, − children learn attitudes and values from their family, from the community, from society and, increasingly through the media, In this programme, schools are focusing on the main group of values. (1) The so-called Western values such as honesty, individual rights, responsibility and respect for property which derive from Judeo-Christian religion are being highlighted. What is interesting is that this list does not include a strong value of nature, the Earth or the environment. (2) Non-Western values, which means New Zealand European values that are unique values of Aotearoa New Zealand P ākeh ā: aroha (regard for the survival and well-being of the community), mauri (living force contained in animate and inanimate objects), ihi (the vital force of a person), mana (absolute uniqueness of any individual), wairua (spirit of an individual), whenua (spiritual connection between M āori and the land), tapu (sacred state of a person), rangatiratanga (an ability to be together among a group of people), kaitiakitanga (M āori association with the environment), manaakitanga (ethic of caring), kotahitanga (everybody’s contribution to well-being). All the so- called non-Western values are more connected with the environment and nature, they are more ecocentric. New Zealand’s programme of values education is a combination of Western and non-Western values to connect the people of various orientations and social and ethnic backgrounds. It is also a tool to connect people of various cultural backgrounds and cultural differences. This multi-cultural packaging of information about Pacific values encourages a better understanding of each other in order to build a sustainable future. Multiculturalism is always present in Pacific region daily life. Therefore it is very important in the social development of these countries, taking into consideration examples such as the following: ‘My mother was born in a village on Suvai’i and her mother was part Samoan, part Chinese. My father was born in New Zealand and is Palagi. My mother met my father in New Zealand, and she has lived in New Zealand for most of her adult life. In the 1996 census, she identified herself as a New Zealander in the question on ethnicity. I identified myself as both Samoan and European’ (NZCF, 1993, p. 23).

It is very important to include both Western and non-Western sets of values, which is particularly difficult. Culture and the incorporation of cultural differences is very important on the road to creating a modern, democratic society. The Pacific context shows that culture is very important in creating good relationships with the other members of a given society. Each culture creates values and values create the given culture, as was stated before. In the case of New Zealand, values are strictly connected with social relationships. The so-called Asian ethnicities of New Zealand determine another set of values: pupils’ understanding of themselves as global citizens, the lifelong learning process, the transnationalism of Asian people, economical success, patriarchal authoritarianism, although: ‘Hierarchies are not necessarily described as indicating that one had power over all others, but rather they are all as they should be’. (Values in the New Zealand Curriculum: A Literature Review, p.59) Because communities in New Zealand consist of M āori, P ākeh ā, Europeans, Pacific Islanders and Asians, the common programme of implementing values education is so important in the sense of caring of the future of society. The Malaysian example of values education is also very interesting, particularly for Europeans. Malaysian moral and values education has always been at the centre of interest in many schools and the essence of education in general. Since 1980s, moral education has been obligatory in Malaysian schools. For non-Muslims, moral education is a required subject, while in Arabic and Koranic schools, the education is strictly based on Islamic ethics and moral approach to values. The negative consequences of ‘Westernisation’ and the influence of moral education on Malaysian society have been underlined by the media, elites and policy makers. 16 core values are integrated into the curriculum in Malaysia: (1) cleanliness of body and mind: personal cleanliness, cleanliness of the environment; (2) compassion and tolerance: compassion, generosity, charity, tolerance, consideration, hospitality, patience; (3) cooperation: mutual responsibility, fraternity; (4) courage; courage as opposed to foolhardiness; (5) moderation: moderation in thought, moderation in speech, moderation in action; (6) diligence: industriousness, hard work, perseverance, dedication; (7) freedom: freedom within the law, freedom to choose, freedom from slavery; (8) gratitude: gratefulness, thankfulness, appreciation; (9) honesty: truthfulness, trustworthiness, faithfulness, sincerity; (10) humility and modesty: as opposed to showing off, as opposed to arrogance, admission of one’s fault; (11) justice: a sense of fair play, concept of reward

66 and punishment; (12) rationality: flexibility of thought, weighing of alternatives; (13) self-reliance: responsibility, independence, autonomy; (14) love: love for the environment, love for life and humanity, love for the nation, patriotism, love for peace and harmony; (15) respect: respect for rules, law and authority, respect for time and punctuality, respect for institutions, respect for exemplary behaviour, respect for parents, respect for elders, teachers and leaders, respect for another’s beliefs and customs, respect for knowledge and wisdom; (16) public spiritedness: spirit of gotong royong (working together), sensitiveness towards societal needs (Ahmad, 1998). As stated in the National Philosophy of Education (Ahmad, 1998): ‘Education in Malaysia is an ongoing effort towards further development of the potential of individuals in a holistic and integrated manner, so as to produce individuals who are intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically balanced and harmonious based on a firm belief in God. Such an effort is destined to produce Malaysian citizens who are knowledgeable, who possess high moral standards, and who are responsible and capable of achieving a high level of personal well-being as well as able to contribute to the harmony and betterment of the nation at large’ (Ministry of Education, Integrated Curriculum For Secondary Schools 1993, p.7). It shows how important values education is for this society. As Ahmad (1998) acknowledges, these values are derived from religions, traditions and customs of the people, while taking into consideration universal aspects. They are related to human relationships in everyday life, and are particularly relevant to relationships within the family, peer group and society as well as different organisations. The examples of advanced values education presented above allow us to draw some important conclusions. (1)Values education is an active educational process, closely connected with the specific cultural context of a given country. (2) It cultivates the values which are characteristic of a given society. (3) It must be conducted in a holistic manner, including all spheres of social life. (4) It takes into account the development of an individual person as well as the whole society and the country. What is very interesting is that the set of values is also very anthropocentric but with small interest in living in a good relationship with a given environment. The notions of value and values system must also be discussed in a holistic context, similarly to research carried out in the field of education or for the needs of education. Education is an extremely complex sphere of social life. A large number of

67 mutual reactions and interactions in this area require the application of an adequate kind of research in order to achieve the best possible results. Quoting Taylor (2000 as cited in Sunley and Locke, 2010), ‘clearly the teacher is the critical mediator of values, but little is known of teachers’ ideologies, either in terms of their own values, their attitude to promoting values in teaching or their values priorities . . . Do they just go along with the school’s culture on values, whether or not they affirm these values themselves?’ (p.410) Any teacher’s approach to presented values in his/her role in a values education process is undisputed. It is his/her role to transmit the values and the final effect both in the individual and in the collective dimension. It coincides with the general goals of pedagogy to create conditions and take care of the process of the individual development of every single students.

1.5 Education for sustainable development (ESD)

In this part, the process of ESD will be presented in a more detailed manner as a process of key importance for the achievement of SD . It is still an open question – what is the connection between sustainability and development? Is SD really possible? If it is possible, one of the most important issue is ESD . Is SD not a kind of utopianism as stated by Corcoran and Osano (2009)? If not, the most important thing is education for sustainability. From the point of view of sustainability, implementation of ESD must be a part of school daily life and society, and it must go hand-in –hand with values education. It is the most important process from the point of view of our future. In theory, one can use one of the three terms: education for sustainability (EfS), ESD or sustainability education (SE) interchangeably. McKeown (2002) wrote that education is an essential tool for achieving sustainability, particularly sustainability of society. The connections between activities and actions are important for the development of a structure of kumatoids (schools, other institutions) and socio-cultural contents which are essential for a deeper understanding of the evolution in general and an understanding of sustainability and specific conditions of the evolution of human beings included in their environment. What does ESD mean? The theory in this case is very rich, and different points of views are presented (Huckle & Sterling, 2001; Sandell, Öhman, & Östman, 2005;

Chalkley, Haigh, & Higgitt, 2009; Clugston, 2010; Toh Swee-Hin, 2010;Jackson, 2011; Namutenya, 2011; Hopkins, 2012). The author of this thesis would like to focus on official documents of international bodies, as SD and ESD are more a political than a theoretical approach to social life. Two pedagogical interpretations of ESD can be distinguished: (1) ESD as a transfer of the ‘appropriate’ sets of knowledge, attitudes, values and an individual’s behaviour, and (2) ESD as a developing of people’s capacities and opportunities to engage with sustainability issues so that they themselves can determine alternative ways of living through the traditions and specifically understood issues, like governance and participation, in a particular region or country (Wals, 2009). In practice, this means that the educational process needs to be organised in a different way than it has been so far. As a matter of fact, changes are required in a modern education paradigm from the paradigm rooted in the past and in teaching content to a future-oriented paradigm which focuses on student’s activities aimed at developing specific personal traits and skills that will enable the student to participate actively in social life on local, regional, national and international levels. So there is a wide range of interpretations of ESD, but there is no consensus yet about some core components. The tradition in governance could dictate whether a country favours a more pedagogical orientation towards ESD, consequently implying (social) learning, participation and capacity-building, or a more instrumental orientation that emphasises a change in people’s behaviour (Wals, 2009). In the 57th meeting of the UN in December 2002, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the Decade of ESD (DESD) 2005–2014 and designated UNESCO to promote and implement this decade. There are four paramount areas of action of the DESD: I promote basic education; II reorient and revise education programmes; III develop public understanding and awareness; IV provide practical training (UNESCO and Sustainable Development, 2005). The most important UNESCO initiatives in the field of SD, all over the world, are stated below: 2005–2015 – International Decade for Action ‘Water for Life’ 2005–2014 – United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development 2003–2012 – United Nations Literacy Decade

2001–2010 – International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Nonviolence For the Children of the World 1997–2006 – First United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty and standard-setting instruments: 2002 – The Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development 2002 – Johannesburg Plan of Implementation 2000 – Dakar Framework for Action, Education for All: Meeting our Collective Commitments 2000 –Millennium Declaration 2000 – Millennium Development Goals 2000 – Earth Charter 1992 – Convention on Biological Diversity 1992 – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 1992 – Agenda 21, Chapter 36: Promoting education, public awareness and training 1992 – Agenda 21, Chapter 35: Science for SD 1992 – Agenda 21: Global plan of action for SD 1992 –Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (UNESCO and Sustainable Development, 2005)

To meet the needs of the DESD, with extensive contributions from staff at Griffith University, RMIT University and SWEDESD the UNESCO Programme “Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future” was prepared. The Coordinators of the project were John Fien, Clayton White and UNESCO Project Manager Jeanne Damlamian. Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future is UNESCO’s response to that challenge and a major contribution to the United Nations World Summit on SD (Johannesburg, September 2002), as Koïchiro Matsuura – a former Director-General – notes in the introduction to the Programme. The Programme consists of four modules: (1) Curriculum rationale; (2) Contemporary issues; (3) SD across the curriculum; (4) Teaching and learning strategies.

It is a programme about teaching about the complexity of the surrounding world. It is about teaching what kind of world we would like to have in future and how we would like to protect the Earth – to save its beauty and all its resources for the next generation. Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future contains 27 professional development modules, organised in four thematic sections. Curriculum Rationale (the first thematic section).A sequenced introduction to global realities, imperatives for SD and educational issues that form the rationale for Educating for a Sustainable Future are presented, including: exploring global realities, understanding SD, a future perspective in the curriculum, reorienting education for a sustainable future, accepting the challenge.

SD across the curriculum (the second thematic section).An overview of ways in which Educating for a Sustainable Future can be integrated into all areas of the curriculum, especially into cross-curricular themes such as citizenship, health and consumer education. This part of the Programme consists of: sustainable futures across the curriculum, citizenship education, health education and consumer education.

Contemporary issues (the third thematic section). An illustration of how different curriculum themes may be reoriented to integrate an interdisciplinary emphasis on sustainable futures, which covers the following issues: culture and religion for a sustainable future, indigenous knowledge and sustainability, women and SD, population and development, understanding world hunger, sustainable agriculture, sustainable tourism, sustainable communities, globalisation and climate change.

Teaching and learning strategies (the fourth thematic section). This part of the programme presents practical advice on using teaching and learning strategies that can help students achieve a wide range of knowledge, skills and values as objectives of ESD: experiential learning, storytelling, values education, enquiry learning, appropriate assessment, future problem solving, learning outside the classroom, community problems.( Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future , UNESCO, www.unesco.org/education)

The above-mentioned Programme is only one, but a very important, example presented by the author for the purpose of explaining the ESD. UNESCO and its initiatives play a very important role in the process of implementing ESD, particularly the programme “ Reorienting Teacher Education to Address Sustainability” in which Daugavpils University actively takes part. The main goal of the programme is to: (1) reorient teacher education and training towards sustainability; (2) create an international network of institutions, especially universities, to change curricula; (3) change the educational paradigm and change the focus on skills and values, on which SD is based, and (5) make changes at all levels of education: from pre-school level to universities, where all policy-makers are educated. The examining of ESD is only possible through the action research process. Action research is based on an individual’s action and activity.

1.6 Common links and relations between the core terms of the research

Taking into consideration the aforementioned approaches to sustainable development, it is possible to conclude that sustainable development is a development which is inseparably connected with culture, the notion of value and the system of values prevailing in society. Since human activity and action are at the heart of SD, any society that dreams of SD must put a great emphasis on values education and ESD. Despite the significant importance of values education for social-cultural development, no plans for implementation in this respect exist either in Poland or in Latvia apart from general documents. No method of implementing values education or ESD has been described. It is necessary to incorporate teachers in the process of ESD and, through students, the whole society. Only through planned action, can we change society and our future.

1.7 Action research in theory and practice

The previously defined frame of reference for the research which constitutes the basis for this doctoral thesis assumes that: (1) action research will be used for the achievement of the adopted objectives; (2) the research process within ‘action research’ will allow us to define and find the key issues connected with understanding of values and education for values, as well as SD and ESD; (3) all limitations resulting from the research process will also be assessed and taken into account.

To initiate the action research, the author accepted the working (prototype) definition of values as the ‘conception of the desirable’; values as what we aim at and what we want to achieve or possess, being an element in a widely understood environment. This perspective was deemed appropriate for discovering a frame of reference (set of values) to be studied at the initial stage of action research. Generally, the action research method strictly coincides with Rozov’s theory of socialnyie esatfiety and kumatoid . Both are focused on the action and activity. The action research method, as was mentioned earlier, is one of the most popular in pedagogical and educational research. Action research has a very long history and tradition. A German psychologist Kurt Lewin (1946) is generally considered the ‘father’ of action research. Lewin first used the term ‘action research’ in his paper “Action Research and Minority Problems” in 1946. He is one of the founders of the Gestalt school. Lewin was concerned with social problems and focused on participative group processes for addressing conflicts, crises and changes, generally within organisations. As Sal īte (2008) notes, action research is not the only method. It is a strategic approach to achieving knowledge from the integration of a broad range of methods and methodology. The starting point in achieving new knowledge lies in the different feelings of research participants (Enosh, Ben-Ari, & Buchbibnder, 2008 as cited in Salite, 2008). O’Brien (1998) describes Kemmis’s simple model of the cyclical nature of the typical action research process – in a cyclical form. Each cycle consists of four steps: planning, acting, observation, reflection (Fig.6).

Figure 7. Simple Action Research Model (from MacIsaac, 1995 as cited in O’Brien, 1998)

O’Brien (1998) defines action research as being well-known by many other names, including participatory research, collaborative inquiry, action learning and contextual action research, but all are variations on a theme. Simply put, according to him (1998), action research is ‘learning by doing’ – a group of people identify a problem, do something to resolve it, see how successful their efforts were and, if not satisfied, try again. While this is the essence of the approach, there are other key attributes of action research that differentiate it from common problem-solving activities that we engage in every day (O’Brien, 1998).ADetailed Action Research Model, adapted from Susman (1983) by O’Brien is presented below (Fig.7):

DIAG NO SING

Indentfying or defining a problem

A C T I O N SPECIFYING P LA N N IN G LEA R N IN G Considering Indentifying general alternative courses f in d in g s o f a c tio n

EVALUATING TAKING ACTIO N

Studying the Selecting a course consequences of an o f a c tio n a c tio n

Figure 8. Detailed Action Research Model (adapted from Susman 1983, by O’Brien) O’Brien (1998) provides a clear definition of action research. ‘Action research ... aims to contribute both to the practical concerns of people in an immediate problematic situation and to further the goals of social science simultaneously. Thus, there is a dual commitment in action research to study a system and concurrently to collaborate with members of the system in changing it in what is together regarded as a desirable direction. Accomplishing this twin goal requires the active collaboration of researcher and client, and thus it stresses the importance of co- learning as a primary aspect of the research process’ (p. 2). Holland and Mulcahy (2007) suggests a spiral concept of action research (Fig.8).

Figure 9 . Steps of Action Research Circle (Holland and Mulcahy, 2007)

Norton (2009) emphasises that pedagogical action research requires: (1) a reflective practitioner; (2) self–refle ction; (3) transformation of professional perspective and (4) collaboration. We can say that collaborative reflective practice is strictly connected with action research and developing teaching and learning. ‘The fundamental purpose of pedagogical action research is to systematically investigate one’s own teaching/learning facilitation practice, with the dual aim of improving that practice and contributing to theoretical knowledge in order to benefit students’ learning’ (Norton, 2009, p.59) As many theorists emphasise, one of the most important roles in action research is the role of researcher. According to O’Brien (1998), the researcher plays many roles, such as: a lead planner , a catalyser, a facilitator, a teacher, a designer, a listener, an observer, a synthesiser, a reporter. Which functions are the most important ones? It seems to be leader, observer and reporter. Those functions guarantee the right action research process. The situation in which action research is carried out in the r eal world also causes ethical problems related to the research. Firstly the researcher has to allow participants to influence the research. Secondly, he/she must be sure that the right person is asked. Thirdly, the researcher takes responsibility for the r esearch and for maintaining confidentiality. Justification of using the action research method . A school could be analysed on the basis of system theory as a complex social system. We can extract such elements from the system as: (1) the attributes of an individual child; (2) the quality of the classroom; (3) the factors of the school itself; (4) the interface between the school and community and (5) the forces operatin g at the level of the state and national educational system (Bookok, 1980 in Dunn et al., 2007). The system is, in fact, based on action. But we

75 should also analyse school life as a whole. The best way is using action research, particularly participatory action research. There is cooperation between the researcher and the client. In this case – teachers and schools. One of the streams of action research is educational action research. Educational action research was established by John Dewey – one of the greatest American educational philosophers of the 1920s and 30s - who believed that professional educators should become involved in community problem-solving. Its practitioners, not surprisingly, operate mainly out of educational institutions and focus on curriculum development, professional development and applying learning in a social context. It is often the case that university-based action researchers work with primary and secondary school teachers and students on community projects. Action research is more comprehensive problem-solving than a single method for collecting and analysing data. Those various methods that are generally common in the qualitative research paradigm include document collection and analysis, participant observations, questionnaire surveys, structured and unstructured interviews and different case studies. That is why this kind of research is most adequate to the topic of my thesis. Schools should be analysed in a holistic way because of their level of social interactions. It is not possible to extract any single body from the school life and try to describe it without any connections to other parts. Action research requires constructing the new knowledge based on the knowledge and experience of participants (Sal īte, Gedzune, Gedzune , 2009), and this is also present in my research. Kemmis and McTaggart (2005) identified four different generations of action research: (1) Lewin’s work and the introduction of action research into education in the United States of America by Corey; (2) action research under the influence of British academics like Adelman and Eliot; (3) the Australian tradition of action research; (4) the period of fusion between critical emancipatory action research and participatory action research. Action research is used in real situations, rather than in contrived, experimental studies, since its primary focus is on solving real problems. It can, however, be used by social scientists for preliminary or pilot research, especially when the situation is too ambiguous to frame a precise research question. Mostly, though, in accordance with its principles, it is chosen when circumstances require flexibility, the involvement of the people in the research, or when change must take place quickly or holistically. It is often the case that those who apply this approach are practitioners who wish to improve understanding of their practice, social change activists trying to mount an

76 action campaign or, more likely, academics who have been invited into an organisation (or other domain) by decision-makers aware of a problem requiring action research, but lacking the requisite methodological knowledge to deal with it. All these approaches should lead us to view a school as a sustainable system which is characterised by such factors as diversity, complexity, interdependence, partnership, adaptation, co-evolution, feedback, cycles, disturbance and resiliency (Capra, 1996 in Dunn et al., 2007). Action research seems to be the most efficient as far as qualitative research is concerned. It allows analysis of the reality covered by the research in a holistic manner, as required by the subject and the object of the research. The complexity of the research subject also seems to be of great importance. Moreover, at present, this type of research is one of the most popular types of research in the field of pedagogy. The abovementioned theoretical aspects of the core concepts have been highlighted as a philosophical and theoretical perspective of this action research. Theoretical considerations concerning values, values education, SD and ESD show their extraordinary and surprising diversity. This study presents one of the possible models of mutual connections and influences among these notions which are of great importance for the conducted research, based on Laszlo’s general philosophical theory and using the philosophical foundations of Rozov’s theory. These two theories, which are key to the frame of reference presented in this study, allow for understanding the essence of values education quite simply as part of a process aimed at achieving SD. The first one presents a general picture of the problem while the second identifies tools for solving the problem. The frame of reference presented here gives a picture of an active, consistent, logical and well-planned process aimed at achieving the desired research results.

Chapter 2 Description of the empirical part of the research

The chapter contains a detailed description of research, with special consideration given to the research paradigm; a description of the research methodology and a description of

77 the participants as well as the methods of analysis of the results. It includes a picture of the research process with all its limitations.

2.1 Research description and methodology

This research was preceded by an analysis of the tools and methods used in the European Social Survey (ESS). The author has seen a coincidence between the ideas of the ESS study and the general frame of the study presented in this thesis. There was another reason for focusing, during the preparatory steps, on ESS. ESS includes some values supporting sustainable development and sustainability as well. ‘ The European Social Survey is an academically-driven multi-country survey, which has been administered in over 30 countries to date. Its three aims are, firstly - to monitor and interpret changing public attitudes and values within Europe and to investigate how they interact with Europe's changing institutions, secondly - to advance and consolidate improved methods of cross-national survey measurement in Europe and beyond, and thirdly - to develop a series of European social indicators, including attitudinal indicators. In the fourth round, the survey covers 31 countries and employs the most rigorous methodologies. It is funded via the European Commission's 6th Framework Programme, the European Science Foundation, and national funding bodies in each country. It involves strict random probability sampling, a minimum target response rate of 70% and rigorous translation protocols. The hour-long face-to-face interview includes questions on a variety of core topics repeated from previous rounds of the survey and also two modules developed for Round Four covering Experiences and Expressions of Ageism and Welfare attitudes in a changing Europe’. (ESS4 - 2008 Documentation Report retrieved 20 November 2009 from http://www.europeansocialsurvey.org). The analysis of ESS data was the basis of the next steps of the present study. The main and basic empirical data used for analysis refer to data from European Social Survey Round 4. ‘ In the part on public values a scale proposed by Schwartz (Shalom H. Schwartz – professor of The Hebrew University in Jerusalem) and called Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) (Schwartz, 1994) was used by ESS researchers. The PVQ includes short verbal portraits of different people. Each portrait describes the person’s goals, aspirations or wishes that point implicitly to the importance of one single value type. For each portrait, the respondents gave an answer to the question: How much are

78 you like this person? The following values and categories were given to the respondents to choose from: (1) Very much like me; (2) Like me; (3) Somewhat like me; (4) A little like me; (5) Not like me; (6) Not like me at all; (7) Refusal; (8) Don't know; (9) No answer. It must be noted that the respondents were asked to compare the portrait to themselves rather than themselves to the portrait. The similar judgements are likely to focus on these value-relevant aspects’. (ESS4 - 2008 Documentation Report retrieved 20 November 2009 from http://www.europeansocialsurvey.org). The author of this doctoral thesis analysed data from ESS that pertain to different spheres of human activity. However, in this doctoral thesis only values connected to school and education, as a basis of the development of an individual student, are presented due to the fact that the data lead the researcher to the discovery of the conceptual frame of reference for further research in the field. The most important areas were analysed, with particular attention paid to values connected to school, education in general, school development and development in general, as the basis of an individual student’s development. The scale used in the survey is recognisably compatible with the scale used by scientists in the EES research. All the survey results were analysed by the author using the Excel program. To make the analysis easier, the EES results are shown in percentages. The study was conducted by the author in four schools, and it was a typical educational participatory ‘action research’. In order to attain the intended research objectives, the author carried out action research in two Polish and two Latvian schools from February 2010 to March 2011. The four stages of the research were carried out as follows: the first stage in 2009/10; the second stage in 2010/11; the third stage in 2011/12; the fourth stage in 2012/13. For the purpose of this study, the following definition of a value has been taken into consideration. It is ‘a process of reaching a specified, intended and expected goal, state or attitude; value is seen as an intended process, governing the behaviour of an individual so that some specified needs, both material and non-material, are fulfilled. The author accepted the working (prototype) definition of values as the ‘conception of the desirable’.

2.1.1 Research paradigm The whole research is deeply rooted in sustainability and SD. The philosophical context of the research includes phenomenology and constructivism. The educational philosophy of the research is related and parallel to the general philosophy of the research. As a pedagogical approach, holism and transformative learning have been adopted. The main focus is on values, particularly on teachers’ values and their ability to implement values education in real life. The process of implementating values education could be seen as a kind of Rozov’s socialnyje estafiety. Implementation of changes, using different actions, is always the hardest part of the process of development. But it is a need and a must of the contemporary world.

Figure 10.Model of the author’s research paradigm.

The research was based on the above paradigm. Each stage of the research was subordinated to this paradigm. The results presented in the practical part are strictly related to the core of this paradigm – values and their understanding, particularly values related to sustainability

2.1.2 Participants One of the Polish schools (school No. 1) is a large complex of schools located in a small town. It consists of a vocational school, a secondary technical school and a general secondary school. 43 teachers of different specialisations, with different periods of work experience and of different ages took part in the study. The other school (school No. 2) is a general secondary school – a non-public school with public school accreditation, located in a large town. 21 teachers of general subjects, of different ages and with

80 different periods of work experience participated in the study. One of the Latvian schools (school No. 3) is a big state lower secondary school in a large town. It is a very good school on the local educational market, with long traditions and considerable authority. 30 teachers of general subjects, of different ages and with different periods of work experience participated in the study. The other school (school No. 4) is a Polish lower secondary school in a big Latvian town. It is a much specialised school in the local market. 21 teachers of general subjects and different ages, with different periods of work experience participated in the study. The selection of Polish lower secondary schools was made by the author on purpose so that the performance of a Polish school which functions in a specific ecological niche could be analysed and, in the future, an attempt at a deeper analysis of this phenomenon can be made. The selection of schools was made by the author taking into account their location, the region and number of students. The Latgale region in Latvia is more or less similar to the Wielkopolska region in Poland. Both are located close to the border and show quite a wide diversity as far as the citizens’ nationality and religious backgrounds are concerned. In both cases, one school is a very big one and the other one is a very specific school in the educational systems of Poland (a private school) and Latvia (a minority school). Number of participants:

Table 1. Participants in the research.

Schools that participated in Country n the study

School No 1 Poland 43

School No 2 Poland 21

School No 3 Latvia 30

School No 4 Latvia 21

Total 115

Subjects taught, professional experience, age of the teacher and gender were not taken into consideration by the author in the process of elaborating the results of the research. Participation in this research was voluntary for everybody, but none of the teachers wanted to be excluded because of their own interest in the future implementation of the results as a part of a process of school development. Teachers wanted to have an

81 influence on their future work and the directions of the work. The Polish participants were more engaged in the research process than the Latvians. The Latvians were more passive and not as enthusiastic in the research process. Nevertheless, the participants’ contributions to the research were substantial. The discourse with them during all meetings allowed the author to prepare better tools for the next steps and allowed him to better understand the ongoing processes during the study. The experience shared by the author and the participants shows how important values education is for Polish and Latvian schools.

2.1.3 Research tools There are many different surveys, described by Cheng and Fleischmann ((2010), for instance, Rokeach Value Survey (RVS) (Rokeach, 1973), List of Values (LOV) (Kahle, 1988), Schwartz Value Survey (SVS) (Schwartz, 1994), Life Values Inventory (LVI) (Crace, Brown, 1995), The Value Framework of Workplace Spirituality (VFWS) (Jurkiewicz, Giacalone, 2004), Value Sensitive Design (VSD) (Friedman at al., 2006), but the author did not find an appropriate one for his research. The questionnaires used in the present research were prepared by the author for many different reasons. Firstly, the author wanted to have a tool which would not limit the respondents by possible answers being given. Secondly, there should not be any suggestions from the researchers in the questionnaire. Thirdly, the questions should be very open, especially because of the author’s intention to introduce a specifically new categorisation and classification of values. The technical process of tools preparation was as follows: at first, the tools were prepared in the Polish language, then the questionnaires were translated into English and later on they were translated from English into Latvian and then back into Polish. All answers from the Polish participants were given in Polish, and, for the needs of this doctoral thesis, they were translated into English. The same applied to the Latvian answers – they were given in Latvian and then translated into English; some answers from the Latvian participants were given in Polish. Those answers were directly translated into English. The 1st stage – the questionnaire was prepared by the author, based on ESS questions, with the intention of comparing the declarative and real life level of understanding of some phenomena in social life related to values. The 2nd stage – the questionnaire consists of four questions. The first one was of a particular

82 importance for the research. It was a question about understanding of the notion of ‘value’. This stage also includes questions concerning which values are the most important for social development of society and a question, very difficult for teachers, about their work on a given subject – how they teach values in class. The tools of the 2nd stage allowed the author to establish a list of 59 values which are important for the social development of society. This set of values was organised into five separate categories which were further elaborated. The 3rd stage tools were connected with the understanding of SD and values related to SD. The 4th stage was based on the assessment of the listed values according to a scale proposed by Schwartz in SVS, using a scale from -3 to 3 and quantitative tools for elaborating and explaining data. The last stage was devoted to teachers’ comments on the result of the research. They were asked to comment on (1) general research results and (2) methods of nurturing values and an understanding of some notions, such as honesty, friendship, tolerance, family and responsibility and security. As stated above, teachers have made some comments, using ICT technology, on the received results and their understanding of some values, the core results of the research. These should give an overview of the issue – how close is the comparison with the results obtained?

2.1.4 Research process and design The study was preceded by a workshop for teachers, the subject of which was to work out a strategy and a plan for school development, taking into account the systems of values which prevail in schools. The workshops were run in Polish in Polish schools and in English in Latvian schools with a simultaneous translation into Latvian. The workshop preceding the first survey was on the process of development in general, social and individual development and processes connected with development. It was also about the idea of any survey and this particular author’s survey in the process of action research. The 2nd workshop included the presentation of the results of the first stage and an introduction to the subject of values and the problem with extracting a single definition of values. There were no author’s suggestions on understanding the notion of ‘value’ or any other suggestions of values classifications. The 3rd workshop included the presentation of the results of the 2nd stage and an introduction to the concept of SD. The term ‘sustainability’ was presented as a term which is used very often but

83 sometimes without an adequate understanding. It was the basis for asking the teachers about their own understanding of the term ‘SD’. The participants were asked to indicate the values which, in their opinion, are the most important for SD. The participants also ranked each value on a scale -3 to 3 to build a model of values adopted in a given school and country. The general idea of the research can be shown in the form of a diagram as below. The process is repeated cyclically as the research goes at each stage to a higher level of teachers’ understanding of the research idea and research subject. The subject of values is studied in more detail, followed by the analysis of the most significant values from the point of view of SD. The research process shows the development of teachers’ understanding of a need to involve values education as pillar of education for sustainable development.

Figure 11. The research design ( the first stage 2009/10; the second stage 2010/11; the third stage 2011/12 ; the fourth stage 2012/13)

The process of the research can also be compared to a model proposed by Bana (2010) as a spiral process of going up and up with the understanding of the research subject. Bana’s presentation shows that on every higher level each participant is more knowledgeable in the studied subject, which is really the case here, taking into account the previous professional experience coming from each previous stage of the research.

Figure 12. Adapted IMSTRA model for teaching practice: spiral development. Note: Adapted from Singer and Moscovici (2008) by Bana (2010)

As the research was carried out, it was noticeable that teachers’ knowledge about this issue increased, starting from an understanding of the notion of value, through the educational process in which the teacher is focused on value-oriented education, to an understanding of the notion of SD and its numerous aspects. This process can be shown in the form of the following cyclical diagram, which in the essence corresponds to the model of Rozov’s kumatoid :

Figure 13. The process of learning through the research process.

Discussions with teachers showed how important this research was for them and how important the experience they gained from participation in this research was. It was a real process of learning by participation and using teachers’ own experience and each successive stage was founded on a higher level of teachers’ knowledge.

2.1.5 Process of analysis of the results The basic empirical data came from the analysis of answers given to the open questions included in the questionnaires at each stage. The process was manual and ongoing. The qualitative and then quantitative data analyses were the basis for achieving the final results. To achieve the final comparison, the author used quantitative tools, particularly frequency and counting correlation between data. The 1st questionnaire, provided in Polish schools, was a basis for the preparation of the tools for the subsequent stages of the research. In the 2nd questionnaire, the three questions were related to an understanding of the notion of value, and the respondent could define a value as he/she understood it, choosing the values considered to be important (each respondent could indicate five different values), choosing the value considered by the respondent to be the most important one and specifying the methods of work used by teachers to nurturevalues within the subjects they teach. The author used his own classification of values in the form of 5 separate categories: norms, individual characteristics, attitudes, aspirations and goods (material and non-material). This kind of classification was also a suggestion from the participants at the Polish schools. The classification was proposed to Latvian participants and accepted by them. Categorisation of the concept of value has been made based on horizontal categories without clearly specified boundaries. This is necessary when a concept as ambiguous as values is categorised. Membership in a particular category may be full or partial, or there is no membership in this category at all. A member of a category which is the most representative of it is thought to be a prototype of this category (Rosch, 1978). Membership in a given category coincides with the understanding of fuzzy sets theory and in particular with the membership in fuzzy sets (Łachwa, 2001) because this theory assumes that an element may belong to a particular category fully, partially or not belong to it at all. Membership in a given fuzzy set is an ordinary function of a given set A to a closed interval [0,1]. The closer to one the value of the element is, the higher the degree to which this element belongs to the set. Conversely, the closer to zero the value of the function is, the lesser the degree to which the element belongs to a given fuzzy set. For the clarity of this discussion it must be assumed that both the set and the membership relation to the set are primitive notions, and there is no need for further definition. Rosch asserts (1978) that certain kinds of categories and categorisation exit nowhere but in poets’ minds, and they will never be found in a real world, and the adopted categories

86 should be treated as psychological principles of categorisation for the needs of this research. The results of qualitative and quantitative research were analysed by the author with the use of the Excel and SPSS IBM Statistics program for tabular presentations among others. For increased clarity, the author presented the data in the form of tables and diagrams in the appendices. The author has used only the basic tools (frequency, correlation) of SPSS IBM Statistic having in mind the necessity of preserving the continuity of the research process. Generally all kind of statistical tools must be used with a deep author’s awareness of its role. In such a small sample which one usually have in AR there is a very thin border between the real results and a generalised results based on this sample. The quantitative analysis in this case should only be, in author’s opinion, an impetus for a discourse and discussion among research participants. On each stage of the research there was presented a part of quantitative research. It was a real impetus for discussion and planning the next stage of the research. It was necessary to have a good plan both of the research and of every single action study. The research process described here was like a means of ascending from one stage to the next higher stage, but in fact it was going deeper into teachers’ knowledge, enlarged by their experience and understanding of the research subject, to find answers to the research questions posed in this thesis. The most important in the case of this research was increasing of teachers’ engagement in the research process and obtaining results possible to implement in a real school life taking into consideration the feature of a school as a kumatoid, as evolutionary dynamic complex system. It was not important for the author to measure everything during AR but the most important were the expected results of the whole research process and the interplay between teachers and school environment.

2.2 Limitations of the research

The factor which determines the research the most and which gives rise to some problems is the fact that the environmental conditions of the schools which were examined are different. Each of the schools functions in a quite different environment. The environmental dissimilarity results from the differences between the conditions in Poland and Latvia as well as from the differences between local communities. However, all the institutions have similar tasks to accomplish as secondary schools. One of the

87 tasks which seems to be the most important is to prepare students for final external examinations. At the same time, such external examinations play a crucial role as entrance examinations to higher education institutions, which has significant consequences as far as the functioning of these schools is concerned. Another extremely important limitation of this research is the attitude to research connected with the issue of value. Particularly in the Latvian schools, the attitude was negative, which is probably associated with the recent history of the country – the Soviet period and the communist system. In Polish schools, on the other hand, the issue of values is often associated with the Church, Church teaching and the Christian system of values. The 3rd essential factor, particularly at the stage of preparing the results, was the understanding of individual notions, such as work, family, etc., which is of significant importance in the phase of result interpretation. For simplification purposes, the author left the issues unresolved and this subject may provide material for another stage of his research activity. The 4th important limitation was the scarcity of information in this respect that can be found in the theoretical literature. So far, research into the understanding of the issues and notions of values among secondary school teachers has not been very extensive. Additionally, the research is also of educationally comparative character, which creates further limitations arising from, for instance, different ways of understanding and defining the terms and notions related to education and school life. The 5th limiting factor was the language in which the tools for quantitative research were prepared. At first, the tools were prepared in Polish, then translated into English and from English into Latvian. The author participated himself in the process of translation into English. He asked native speakers of Latvian help to translate the tools into Latvian. English is not the author’s mother tongue. The available literature was only in English, German and Russian, and this also created some difficulties in a proper understanding of the nuances of some concepts. The main problem was related to using such terms as ‘nurturing values’, ‘teaching values’, ‘forming values’, ‘transmitting values’, especially because such terms and processes exist in the Polish language, but the meaning is not similar to the meaning in English in literally translation. Finally for the purpose of this research the term ‘nurturing values’ was used. The 6 th obstacle as identified by the author was the understanding of the term “Latvian” in Latvian schools. In the case of the Daugavpils region, which is populated

88 with a large number of national minorities, particularly Russians and Poles, it is essential. For the purpose of this doctoral thesis, the following definition was adopted and used during the workshops with teachers and in further discussions: a Latvian is a person who lives at present in the territory of Latvia. The intention behind such a decision was to simplify matters in order to avoid extremely fragmented results while not minimising the importance of national minorities currently living in the territory of Latvia. The period of time since Latvia regained its independence in 1992 seems to have been long enough to adopt such a solution. This kind of problem did not arise in the case of research carried out in the Polish schools. The 7th limitation, which had a slight influence on the research, was a one-year difference in time between the research carried out in Poland and the research in Latvia. However, there is another problem – the problem of international comparative research. As Durkheim famously puts it, ‘comparative sociology is not a particular branch of sociology: it is sociology itself’ (Jowell, 1997, p.4). Problems arise from the considerable differences in an international comparison between different understandings of many terms and processes. It is also particularly important in the context of research and the context of any processes being examined. Following Jowell (1997), the strict standards we apply to the evaluation of national surveys are too often suspended when it comes to cross-national studies The ten rules suggested by Jowell (1997), were implemented by the author while carrying out this research: Rule 1: The scientist should not interpret survey data (and perhaps any other data also) relating to a country about which they know little or nothing. Lack of knowledge about social structure, history and culture of country under investigation is the main reason. Rule 2: The analysis of cross-national data should resist the temptation to compare too many countries at once. This is the reason why the author compares only two countries. Rule 3: Providing cross-national surveys one should pay as much attention to the choice and compilation of aggregate-level contextual variables as one does to individual-level dependent and independent variables. Rule 4: The scientist contemplating or engaged in cross-national studies should be as open about their limitations as they are enthusiastic about their explanatory powers.

Rule 5: Stringent and well-policed ground rules for comparable survey methods should become much more common in comparative studies than they are now. Rule 6: Analysts of cross-national data should undertake to suspend belief initially in any major inter-country differences they discover. Rule 7: Emerging naturally from the six previous rules, cross-national surveys should ideally be confined to the smallest number of countries consistent with their aims, rather than celebrating as many nations as possible in their purview. Rule 8: In order to transform cross-national surveys from parallel exercises into joint ones, collective development work, experimentation, scale construction and piloting should be undertaken in all participating nations. Rule 9: Routinely provide for secondary analysts of the data (and primary analysts for that matter) detailed methodological reports about each participating nation’s procedures, methods and success rates, highlighting rather than suppressing variations. Rule 10: Routinely include methodological experiments in cross-national research. The author tried to avoid mistakes which could result from breaking the above rules bearing in mind the importance of this study. Each stage was precisely prepared and thought out after consultations with participants during action research.

Chapter 3 Situation in Poland and Latvia as a context of the study. The purpose of this chapter is to outline the general situation in Poland and Latvia. A brief description of the situation will help to provide a thorough insight into the key data for the two countries, with particular emphasis on the educational and social contexts that may have an impact on the educational situation in the two countries. Their situations seem to be similar, especially if one does not penetrate too deeply into the nature and the causes of each country’s state of affairs. However, a deeper analysis of the phenomena would certainly show the differences between the situations of Poland and Latvia; especially given the fact that Latvia was, for 50 years, a part of the Soviet Union, deprived of its statehood and the possibility of self-determination. The other essential differences between the countries is their ethnic composition and the role of religion in each of them. The data on the two countries is provided in Table 2.

Table 2. General information about Poland and Latvia (source: Eurostat)

Poland Latvia

System Parliamentary republic Parliamentary republic

Inhabitants 38 million inhabitants 2 million inhabitants

Religions Roman Catholicism - 94,2 % Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia - 34,2 %

Catholicism - 24,1 %

Russian Orthodox - 17,8 %

Nationalities Polish – 93,72 % Latvians - 62,1 %

German – 0,07 % Russians - 26,9 %

Belarusian – 0,07 % Belarusian - 3,3 %

Polish - 2,2 %

Ukrainian - 2,2 %

Geographical Central Europe East Europe situation

The noticeably large ethnic and religious diversity in Latvia might affect the research results, especially in such a delicate matter as the issue of values and their understanding. The ethnic and religious diversity is the result of Latvia’s complex history over the centuries and its geopolitical location. The low diversity of Polish society is primarily the result of changes after the Second World War, which ‘moved’ Polish territory to the west, leaving behind the ethnic and religious diversity which was so characteristic of the interwar period in the east.

3.1 Description of the situations of Poland and Latvia

The existence and functioning of every country is the outcome of the interactions between society, economy and the environment which can be presented in the form of a model reminiscent of tri-dimensional space.

World economy

World society

World environment

Figure 14. Author’s tri-dimensional space of social development (The position of the elements, each representing a given country, in the graph is random).

When comparing the situation in countries, first of all, we should locate the countries in the above-mentioned space and describe them briefly. To characterise the conditions in both countries means to specify certain features of each ecological niche which the countries represent. Poland is a country situated in central Europe, with a population of about 40 million inhabitants, characterised by low ethnic, cultural, religious and linguistic diversity. There are only a few ethnic minorities in the territory of Poland. The German minority, which is the biggest, live in Silesia, the Lithuanian and Belorussian minorities – in the north-eastern part of Poland, the Ukrainian minority – in the east and the Slovak and the Czech minorities – in the south. A vast majority of Polish citizens declare themselves to be Catholics. Among religious minorities are the followers of the Orthodox Church, Protestantism and Judaism. The history of Poland provides numerous examples of how often, depending on the political situation, the system of values has changed; how often the current needs of the country and its current situation put the values necessary at that time on a pedestal. The years of partition and the post-war history of Poland are good examples in this respect. Since 1990, following the changes which started in the 1980’s, Poland has been a fully sovereign and independent country. It is a member of many important international organisations, such as NATO (since 2000) and a member state of the

European Union (EU) since 2004. Poland is a country of extremely rich culture and history, and it boasts beautiful, wild and unspoiled natural areas. Latvia is a Baltic Republic situated in northern Europe. A former Soviet republic, it was incorporated into the USRR in 1940 and remained under Soviet occupation until 1991. It is a country of high ethnic, religious, cultural and linguistic diversity. Russians, Poles and Belarusians constitute the largest ethnic minorities. The Orthodox Church and Catholicism are the predominant religions, but there are also followers of Protestantism and Judaism. The most ethnically diverse region is Latgale, with the majority of inhabitants being Russian and the others being Latvian and Polish in equal numbers. Since regaining independence in 1990, Latvia has been building and developing its statehood, contending with many ethnic and economic problems and, first of all, struggling to become independent of Russia. It has been a member state of NATO since 2003 and a member of the EU since 2004, when it joined at the same time as Poland. Nature and the unspoiled environment are great assets of this country. The data presented below show the most significant indicators, from the point of education, for Poland and Latvia which were available and up-to-date at the time when the research was carried out.

3.2 Socio-cultural contexts of Poland in Latvia – general information

This part of the thesis shows the socio–cultural contexts of Poland and Latvia. It presents different data on changes in the societies of both countries over the last decade, especially taking into consideration Polish and Latvian membership of the European Union, which is significant from the point of view of both societies.

Population of Poland and Latvia: absolute figures (as of 1st January each year):

Table 3. Population of Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

EU 27 495 291 925 497 686 132 499 686 585 501 084 516 502 369 211

Latvia 2 281 305 2 270 894 2 261 294 2 248 374 2 074 605

Poland 38 125 479 38 115 641 38 135 876 38 167 329 38 529 866

Detailed differences in the population figures are shown in Table 3 as the differences in population at the end and the beginning of a given year.

Table 4. Changes in population in Poland, Latvia and the UE (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

EU 27 2 409 804 2 000 443 1 381 948 1 453 584 1 294 201

Latvia -10 411 -9 600 -12 922 -18 733 -32 842

Poland -9 838 20 235 31 453 32 708 8 581

Table 5. Total populations of Poland and Latvia as percentages of the total population of the EU(source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

EU 27 100 100 100 100 100

Latvia 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,4

Poland 7,7 7,7 7,6 7,6 7,7

The tables above indicate a steady increase in the population of the EU. The highest increase was noted in 2006, which was the 3rd year of Polish and Latvian membership. In the last few years, the population of Poland has increased in absolute figures, but it still makes up a smaller part of the EU population than before. The population of Latvia, on the other hand, keeps decreasing both in absolute figures and as a part of the whole EU population. In the period of time under analysis, the population of the EU has decreased in such countries as Hungary, Estonia, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Romania, Latvia and Germany. However, the reasons for the decrease in population in Germany were probably different than in the other countries. A permanent decrease in the Latvian population is stable, which is not very optimistic for the future of the country. The declining tendency was especially visible in the years 2004 and 2005. The situation in Poland was very similar, however, an increase in population was recorded in 2008. This was a result of political changes in Poland and the promises made by a new government which encouraged Polish emigrants to return to Poland.

Both Poland and Latvia are at a very dangerous point in their development. Both countries are losing the new generation of well-educated people, who decide to live abroad for economic reasons. This creates many social problems, particularly in all spheres related to family, children and education. Natural changes in populations are presented in Tables 5, 6 and 7. Table 6. Number of births in Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

the EU 27 5 282 493 5 428 874 5 372 259 5 370 625 5 229 813

Latvia 23 273 23 948 21 677 19 219 18 825

Poland 387 873 414 499 417 489 413 300 388 416

Table 7. Number of deaths in Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

the EU 27 4 796 136 4 832 849 4 843 118 4 847 139 4 822 290

Latvia 33 042 31 006 29 897 30 040 28 540

Poland 377 226 379 399 384 940 378 478 375 501

Analysis of the data shows that the decrease in the population of Poland and Latvia is not just a simple difference between births and deaths. One reason is definitely emigration, as mentioned above, of people who want to find better jobs and better living conditions in such countries as the United Kingdom, Norway and Ireland.

3.3 Educational contexts in Poland and Latvia

Below are the figures showing the number of students in Poland and Latvia as well as in the EU. Table 8. Number of primary school students in Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010

the EU 27 28 385 689 28 288 593 28 082 419 27 940 929

Latvia 121 345 117 129 114 312 113 753

Poland 2 484 891 2 385 255 2 294 434 2 235 018

Table 9. Number of lower secondary school students in Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010

the EU 27 22 283 865 22 193 607 22 065 847 21 938 990

Latvia 91 142 82 566 73 698 66 247

Poland 1 548 484 1 473 309 1 402 446 1 346 112

Table 10. Number of upper secondary school students in Poland, Latvia and the EU (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010

the EU 27 22 085 482 22 002 375 21 712 061 21 805 909

Latvia 104 603 100 239 97 808 94 941

Poland 1 931 102 1 875 523 1 837 850 1 770 013

Table 11. The ratio of the number of students to the number of teachers in Poland and Latvia (source: Eurostat)

2007 2008 2009 2010

Latvia 10,6 11,3 10,6 11,2

Poland 11,7 11,6 11,4 11,2

It is worth emphasising that there is no big difference in the ratio of the number of students per teachers. But it is relatively low if compared to other countries, for instance, the UK, where the ratio is about 16. This factor can influence the quality of education. The number of students, both in Poland and Latvia, who leave their country is increasing and so is the number of foreign students who come to stay in these countries. One of the most significant determinants of an effective school is the possibility of equipping the student with various skills, including the ability to use foreign

96 languages as a tool of communication. Less than 1% of students, both in Poland and Latvia, are not taught any foreign languages. Students are usually taught one foreign language at primary school level, one or two at the lower secondary level and two or more at the upper secondary school level. We can also observe an increase in students coming to Poland and Latvia. And vice versa, a slow but steady increase in the number of departures has been noted, which coincides with the tendency in the EU. This increase is higher in Latvia. It could be a determinant of the general situation in a given country but in addition, this group probably includes students leaving the country and staying with one parent who is abroad. The EUROSTAT rate remains stable both in Poland and Latvia. However, it is definitely lower in Poland; indeed it is very low compared to other EU countries. It could mean that these countries are not very popular as a place of study in Europe, or that they are not prepared to give lessons in foreign languages. Total public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP is on the average EU level both in Poland and Latvia (source: EUROSTAT). Although in Latvia and Poland expenditure on education fluctuated slightly in the years from 2004 to 2011, it was always higher than the EU average. Never, since 1990, has Polish education been a priority for people in power. It has been the subject of many promises but not of real action. There is no better way to fight poverty and inequality than education, as d’Orville and Le Saux state (2011). The statistical data presented above is very rich and interesting material for researchers of different academic disciplines. It provides the possibility to work with ‘live’ material and in a real social context. The author has chosen only the parts which were necessary for finding educational contexts and carrying out the research. The general description, mostly numerical data, gave the author the possibility of finding some similarities and differences between both countries. The similarities were especially important in the process of preparing the research tools, which have to be understandable in both countries. The quantitative data, coming mostly from EUROSTAT, also provided the possibility of rethinking the research processes, to prepare a good plan for analysis and to find a proper frame of reference. The general data, describing the situation in both countries, coincide with the holistic approach of the study, giving a general view of the countries within their educational systems. A school is not excluded from the society but rather is an important part of the society. Thinking about the development of every society, one has to remember that school and

97 education is the best way to influence the whole society and to guide it in the right direction – the direction of sustainable development. Education should be a core point of interest for everybody if society wants to develop successfully.

Chapter 4 Analysis and interpretation of research results

This chapter presents the research results. It discusses the results from the ESS, with a particular reference to general trends within the values of European societies. It was the basis for elaborating the research tools for this particular research. This general framework was the basis for determining the scope of research and the preparation of appropriate research tools. It also discusses the results in detail, namely: the understanding of the concept of value by the teachers. The study determined how the teachers form values as part of their courses. The results of this part of the study refer to the understanding of the concept of SD. This chapter provides references to certain values from the point of view of socio-cultural development and, in particular, the SD of society. This chapter also presents three-dimensional models of values for each of the participating schools and cumulatively for Polish and Latvian schools. All elaborations were based on qualitative and quantitative analysis of the results, carried out personally by the author. To analyse and produce the data, Excel 2007 and the IBM SPSS Statistics were used. In developing the data, the author also used the elementary tools of mathematical statistics, such as frequency, correlation, etc.

4.1 Content analysis and results

4.1.1 The first stage of the research - frames of reference for values orientation in Europe

The first stage of the research was a preparatory stage for the whole work. It was divided into two parts A and B. Part A was the analysis of ESS data and part B was the analysis of Polish respondents’ answers. The results of the research at the first stage

98 were the basis and the starting point for further work with Polish teachers aimed at preparing questionnaires for subsequent stages of the research. This stage was also very important due to its role in creating a general framework of reference and context for the research. Active participation on the part of the teachers allowed for preparing the questionnaires for further stages of the research.

Tendencies and values orientation in Europe and Poland

Part A Research of ESS content and evaluation of the data it contains from the perspective of values research allowed us to form a conception of the character of values suggested by ESS. In the context of this research, we addressed values that relateto individual activity, from the perspective both of the aim of action and of the individuals’ interest in secure surroundings and material well-being. Thus, this doctoral thesis illustrates some of these values suggested by ESS: the importance of making one’s own decisions and being free, the importance of care for nature and environment, the importance of following traditions and customs, the importance of living in secure and safe surroundings, the importance of being rich, having money and expensive things. On the basis of these values the author formed the initial conceptual frame of reference for this study, and this was later used for evaluation of research participants’ views on various issues.

(1) The importance of making one’s own decisions and being free (Table 59, p.183) The ESS researcher asked the respondents about freedom in making their own decisions and being free. This is one of the most important factors in modern democratic society. The results show that freedom in making decisions and being free is the most important for respondents from such countries as Switzerland (85.7%), Germany (78.5%), Slovenia (78.4%) and the Netherlands, where it is very important or important for 76.5 % of respondents. Poland ranks in the middle with a result of 69.6 %. Decision-making and freedom are not very important or not important at all for the largest number of respondents in such countries as Bulgaria (9.4%), France (12.4%) and the Russian Federation (6.1%).

(2) The importance of thinking new ideas and being creative (Table 60, p.184)

The question about the importance of developing new ideas and being creative is closely related to the previous question. In the process of building a new democracy and fulfilling the potential of their own country, creativity is one of extremely important attitudes shown by citizens. The results are as follows: creativity is the most important for respondents from Cyprus (72.9 %) and Switzerland (61.2 %), but it is on a very low level in such countries as Bulgaria (35.9 %) and Portugal (37.4 %). Poland is in the middle of this table (49.1 %).

(3) The importance of trying new and different things in life (Table 61, p.185) The importance of trying new and different things in life is the most important for the citizens of Slovenia (57.9%), Hungary (46.1%) and Spain (43.3%), but it is not very important for respondents from Norway (30.7%), Sweden (32.2%) and Denmark (36.0%). Poland, with a result of 45.7%, is in the upper middle part of the table. Such a situation is understandable in the Scandinavian countries – it is probably the result of the wealth of these nations and their rich previous experience.

(4) The importance of people being treated equally and having equal opportunities (Table 62, p.185) This is most important factor in such countries as Spain (87.2%), Cyprus (86.4%), Slovenia (82.8%) and Slovakia (78.8%). Poland is behind these countries – 77.2%. Less importance is attached to this aspect in Estonia (59.4%) and Bulgaria (63.9%).

(5) The importance of helping people and caring for others’ well-being (Table 63, p.186) Helping people is more important for respondents from Spain (85.6%), Cyprus (81.4%) and Israel (79.2%), whereas it is very important for only 49.7% of Portuguese citizens and 55.5 % of the Russian Federation respondents. Poland ranks in the middle of the group of countries with a result of 63.6%. Only 5.1% of the Russian Federation citizens declare that it is not important. All countries of Western Europe are in the middle of this table, which comes as a surprise considering the deeply rooted democratic processes in these countries.

(6) The importance of understanding different people (Table 64, p.187)

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Understanding other people is a very important attitude for respondents from Switzerland (77.5%), Spain (76.1%) and Slovenia (65.2%), but, for the respondents from Portugal (42.7%) and Hungary (49.9%), it is not a preferable attitude. Poland, with a result of 62.9%, is situated in the middle level.

(7) The importance of caring for nature and the environment (Table 65, p.187) Attitudes stressing the importance of caring for nature and environment are present in such countries as Hungary (80.2%), Slovenia (79.6%) and Spain (77.2%) but are less important in Portugal (49.9%). Poland, with a result of 73.8%, is one of the leading countries in this list.

(8) The importance of following traditions and customs (Table 66, p.189) Following traditions and customs is more important for respondents from Cyprus (77.4%), Poland (69.0%), Israel (64.3%) and Slovakia (59.9%). More liberal when it comes to traditions are respondents from France (34.7%), Portugal (39.7%) and Estonia (42.6%). The situation in the leading countries is probably the result of historical experience.

(9) The importance of living in secure and safe surroundings (Table 67, p.189) This is a very important factor for as many as 85.9% of respondents from Cyprus, 82.5% from Hungary, 81.9% from Slovakia and 80.4% from Spain. However, it is very important for only 46.0% of Danes, 42.6% of Norwegians and 33.5% of Swedes, . Poland, with 73.3% of respondents declaring living in secure and safe surroundings to be very important, is near the top of the table.

(10) The importance of being rich, have money and expensive things (Table 68, p.189) 39.3 % of respondents from Israel and 28.6% from the Russian Federation declare that being rich, having money and expensive things is important for them, whereas 4.6% of Finnish and 6.6% of Swedish respondents declare that this attitude is not important for them. 18.4 % of the Polish respondents declare this attitude to be important.

The results described above show how high the “wave” of changes during recent years in European societies has been, taking into consideration the values which are most important in social life. It shows differences in socialnyje estafiety in Europe and

101 in Poland as well. Changes in Poland and Europe are not always going in the same direction. National experience probably has a significant influence on these directions. On the basis of the research results described above, some conclusions can be made. Particularly: (1) In countries where a given value is met, society does not perceive it as really essential. (2) The level reached is a declarative level, and it often fails to have anything in common with the respondent’s actual system of values. (3) The results obtained prove and justify the working definition of value adopted by the author.

Part B The results of part A were the basis for creating a programme and a model of action research first in the Polish and then in the Latvian schools. As mentioned before, in this doctoral thesis, the author conducted action research through which he sought to identify the research participants’ opinion on the values that were selected for the initial research stage. The aim of the first stage of results from the action research conducted in two Polish schools was to confirm or deny the general tendencies by asking teachers to evaluate some questions related to their own opinion about Polish people. The values that were selected from ESS were taken as a frame of reference and offered to the research participants for evaluation, as mentioned above. This enabled the author to obtain their individual reaction to these values, which marked the beginning of action research where the issue of values will be treated more broadly and deeply. Having analysed the research participants’ conceptions of the suggested values, it is possible to reach definite conclusions.

(1) Making one’s own decisions and being free (Figure 26, p.190) For 81.4 % respondents from school No. 1 and 76.2 % respondents from school No. 2 it is a very important or important factor; in Poland – 69.6%. Freedom is indeed a significant value for Polish society, as a result of the nation’s history and experience.

(2) Being ready to help people and care for others’ well-being (Figure 27, p.190) There is a big difference between both schools and the general situation in Poland. In school No.1, 32.6% of those surveyed and in school No.2, 33.3 % have chosen this factor as very important or important, but in school No. 2 there were more ‘important’ than ‘very important’ responses. Generally, in Poland, 63.6 % of respondents chose the

102 first two grades. Why? Because of the way the question was put – the ESS researcher asked respondents to compare their own attitudes with the models presented to them, whereas the author asked the respondents about their opinions of other Poles.

(3) The importance of following traditions and customs (Figure 28, p.191) There is a significant similarity between school No. 2 and the ranking for Poland. 57.1% of the respondents in school No. 2 and 69.0% of the ESS respondents answered that this factor is ‘very important’ or ‘important’ for them. 41.8% of the respondents from school No.1 answered in the same way. School No. 1 is a very active school locally – they know how difficult it is to involve people in special activities connected with following national and regional traditions.

(4) Care of nature and the environment (Figure 29, p.191) These results are very interesting. 33.3 % of respondents from school No. 2 and 30.2% from school No. 1 gave the answer that this factor is ‘very important’ or ‘important’ whereas, in the ESS research, 73.8% of the respondents chose equivalent answers. This is because the ESS research considered attitudes, and the present study refers to the point of view of respondents on the situation in our society. This point of view comes more from real practice, especially in the case of school No.1, rather than from mere declarations.

(5) The importance of living in secure surroundings (Figure 30, p.191) 69.8 % of the respondents in school No.1 and 85.7% of the respondents in school No.2 chose the answers ‘very important’ or ‘important’. 73.3% of the ESS respondents chose equivalent answers.

(6) The importance of being rich and having money (Figure 31, p.192) The results of this question are the most interesting of all. In school No.1, 58.2% of the respondents and, in school No.2, 61.9 % of the respondents answered that this factor is ‘very important’ or ‘important’. In the ESS research, only 18.8% of the respondents gave the equivalent answer.

The above answers show that the declarative level of respondents could be different from reality. They also show that the direction of the “wave” at the level of

103 society could be different from that observed in smaller social groups, in this case schools.

4.1.2 The second stage of the research - understanding of values and methods of nurturing values by secondary schools’ teachers

4.1.2.1 Understanding of values

Quantitative and qualitative content analysis was carried out on the basis of the results obtained from the surveyed teachers. The first question the respondents were asked was an open question: How do you understand the notion of value? The respondents gave the following answers, which have been grouped and put into the categories below: In the respondents’ opinion, values are (the original wording has been preserved):

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Table 12. Teachers’ understanding of the concept of values

Polish schools Latvian schools

(1) Principles (Norms) (16 respondents in school No.1 (1) Principles (Norms) (5 respondents in school No.3 and 8 respondents in school No.2 defined values as) and 7 respondents in school No.4 defined values as) - norms which function in social life, - norms in social life, - specific standards of behaviour, - norms and values of my life, - it is a norm which is very important to me, - something that has an influence on my behaviour, - it is a norm which shows what actions need to be - a rule without which life would be unbearable, taken, - principles according to which we should live, - it is a set of all assumed norms which help us make - a moral principle that is important to a person when decisions, creating relationships with the world, - values are certain principles which are very - a notion that concerns all that is precious, necessary important in an individual’s life, for a person’s full and complete development, - a system of unwritten (ideals) that exists in a society, (2) Individual characteristics (8 respondents in school No.1 and 3 respondents in school No.2 defined values as) (2) Individual characteristics (3 respondents in - characteristics which show ‘the value of the person’ school No.3 and 5 respondents in school No.4 defined - characteristics which enrich a person, values as) - characteristics which allow a person to be a good - characteristics and things that are assessed as the Polish citizen and a good employee, most important and significant, - values are a set of behaviour patterns and - an invaluable set of characteristics that personality traits which are shaped in an individual, characterises the nature of a person, - a set of characteristics specific for an individual or a - the most valuable character trait, group, - characteristics which are helpful while making a decision, - it is a characteristic, a virtue, which should govern a person’s behaviour,

Polish schools Latvian schools

(3) Aspirations (7 respondents in school No.1 and 2 (3) Aspirations (0 respondents in school No.3 and 4 respondents in school No.2 gave the following respondents in school No.4 gave the following answers) answers) - values are the most important goals and aspirations - aspirations in my life, in a person’s life, - an entity according to which we try to evaluate our - high ideals in the life of each person, surroundings, - essential goals and plans in life, - the aim of a person’s activity, - value means kindness, wisdom, aim in life,

(4) Material and nonmaterial goods (2 respondents (4) Material and nonmaterial goods (10 respondents in each of the schools gave these answers) in school No.3 and 11 respondents in school No.4 -it is something material a person aims at and wishes gave such answers) to possess, - things which have influence on my life, - it is something with a specific meaning, - something that is important in my life, - things which are important to me, - it is something that is valuable (5) Attitudes (nobody in school No.1 and 2 (5) Attitudes (3 respondents in school No.3 and 1 respondents in school No.2 gave these answers) respondent in school No. 4 gave these answers) - values are attitudes which are considered to be - values are our attitudes,

105 valuable and desired, - values are patterns of behaviour passed from one generation to another,

The results presented above indicate a high differentiation in the responses in both countries. For Polish teachers, values are mostly standards to be complied with by society and individual characteristics. For Latvian teachers, on the other hand, values are mostly material and non-material goods. This situation is probably caused by cultural conditions and the history of the two countries. It is also influenced by the current economic situation, as the prototypical definition of values created for the purposes of the present thesis cannot be forgotten. Considering the type of responses and their orientation, it is surprising how anthropocentric the responses are. Very few respondents demonstrated differences from the anthropocentric approach to understanding values. By and large, the respondents see all values with a human being at the centre of interest, with no attention given to a generally understood environment and an ecocentric orientation. The results obtained seem to be extremely unsatisfying, taking into consideration all the actions undertaken at national and international levels within the scope of activities and initiatives regarding SD. However, the results obtained show how distant the reality is from theoretical assumptions: a reality which the authors of educational policy and institutions and international organisations operating at the highest levels often forget about.

The most important values in social life

The second question concerns the issue of the most important values in social life. The respondents were given the following instruction: Indicate the five most important values in social life. On the basis of the answers given by respondents, a list of 59 items in Poland and a list of 53 items in Latvia (in the respondents’ own words) have been made. The answers are based on the respondents’ personal experience. They were given no theoretical background and no theoretical preparation. This procedure was aimed at preventing the provision of any guidelines or directing the respondents towards, for instance, responses which might for a number of reasons be expected or ‘convenient’. All answers obtained, which are examples of values, have been classified and assigned to one of five categories. The categories used in this doctoral thesis are not clear-cut, therefore some doubts whether or not a given value belongs to a specific

106 category may arise. According to the theory of fuzzy sets, a given element may belong to a given category, partially belong, or not belong to it at all. For instance, friendship may belong to the category of aspirations and to the category of non-material goods at the same time. This is consistent with the principle of not creating clear-cut categories.

Table 13. Table of values.

Individual Goods– material Norms Attitudes Aspirations characteristics and nonmaterial security keeping one’s word kindliness effectiveness dignity ethical behaviour loyalty accuracy (*) career wisdom honour responsibility friendliness love money humanitarianism courage independence friendship family organisational skills objectivity job tradition law-abidingness (*) satisfaction(*) justice diligence patriotism stability faith tolerance dedication helping others recognition(*) knowledge freedom truthfulness respect for others credibility health righteousness(*) respect for culture life punctuality ability to live in a society reliability faithfulness God religiousness social sensitivity conscientiousness understanding the other person frankness honesty compassion understanding perseverance(*) trust obligation kindness (*) – these values were indicated only by teachers in Polish schools

God as a value was indicated only twice in the Latvian schools. The author, with consent from the participants, has decided to exclude this term from the list because “God” in his and the participating teachers’ opinion is per se a value . The results for Polish schools (Table 37, p.175) and a comprehensive list of results – 10 items for each school - are as follow: among teachers in school No. 1 the most frequent answers were: honesty (22 out of 43), friendship (17 out of 43) and diligence (15 out of 43) and in school No. 2 the most frequent answers were: honesty (11 out of 21), friendship (8 out of 21) and tolerance (6 out of 21). Teachers also gave such answers as:

107 family, respect for others, love, patriotism, freedom and dedication. In both cases, the dominant answers were: (1) honesty and (2) friendship. More than 50% of the respondents chose this answer. This means that these values are really of great importance for the Polish teachers. The results for Latvian schools (Table 38, p.175) and a comprehensive list of results – 10 items for each school - are as follow: among teachers in school No. 3 the most frequent answers were: health (10 out of 30), family (15 out of 30) and children (6 out of 30) and in school No. 4 the most frequent answers were: health (15 out of 21), family (15 out of 21) and job (11 out of 21). Teachers also gave such answers as: love, friendship, freedom, responsibility, justice, tolerance, stability and honesty. The Latvian teachers provided responses which were consistent with their prior declaration that they mostly understood values as tangible and intangible goods. Health and family were also included in the category of material and non-material goods, and these two were the most frequently selected responses in the case of Latvian teachers. Half of the respondents chose health as the most important value in society, and more than a third of them chose the family. The most important values in social life both in Poland and Latvia are provided in Table 14.

Table 14. The most important values in teachers’ opinion in social life (Polish-Latvian comparison)

Poland n= 61 freq. Latvia n= 51 freq. honesty 33 health 25

friendship 25 family 22

tolerance 20 love 13

family 17 job 11

diligence 16 friendship 10

respect for others 12 freedom 9

love 11 children 9

patriotism 11 responsibility 8

freedom 8 justice 6

dedication 7 tolerance 5

The results given above show the first attempt at detailed analysis of teachers’ perception of values and the importance of values among Polish and Latvian teachers. It

108 also led to a first realization of the difficulties which might be found in the process of implementing values education in schools and society. But it was also a first attempt within a mechanism of planning their activity as part of a process of both school development and development of each kumatoid.

Definitely the most important value

Following the established plan of the action research, and the research process in general, teachers had to answer the question: which value, in your opinion, is definitely the most important. Respondents should indicate only one – the most important value for social life. Honesty and family were recognised as definitely the most important values in both Polish schools. Although the schools work in very different environments and conditions, the answers are similar. In school No. 1 (Table 39, p.176), 14 out of 43 teachers gave the answer that honesty is definitely the most important value in social life. In school No. 2 (Table 40, p.176), 7 out of 21 teachers gave the same answer. In both cases, family was in the second position in teachers’ choices. The collected results for both Polish schools are presented below:

Table 15. Definitely the most important value chosen by teachers in Poland

Poland frequency % honesty 21 54.1 family 12 19.7 health 3 4.9 love 3 4.9 diligence 3 4.9 respect for others 3 4.9 trust 2 3.3

In the Latvian cases, the respondents chose family and health as the most important values. Although the schools work in very different environments and conditions, the answers are similar. In the case of school No. 3 (Table 41, p.176), 9 out of 30 teachers gave these answers, but in the case of school No. 4, 13 out of 21 chose similar answers. In school No. 3 (Table 42, p.177) as many as 16.7% of the respondents gave no answer, which is utterly incomprehensible. The collected results for both Latvian schools are provided in Table 16.

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Table 16. Definitely the most important value chosen by teachers in Latvia

Latvia Frequency % family 14 27.5 health 8 15.7 humaneness 3 5.9 children 3 5.9 responsibility 3 5.9 love 2 3.9 security 2 3.9 life 2 3.9

The achieved results for Polish and Latvian schools allow us to create a deeper comparison.

Table. 17. Definitely the most important value – comparison between teachers’ answers in Poland and Latvia

Poland n= 61 freq. % Latvia n= 51 freq. %

honesty 21 54.1 family 14 27.5

family 12 19.7 health 8 15.7

health 3 4.9 humaneness 3 5.9

love 3 4.9 children 3 5.9

diligence 3 4.9 responsibility 3 5.9

respect for others 3 4.9 love 2 3.9

trust 2 3.3 security 2 3.9

life 2 3.9

The comparison of teachers’ answers to the question confirms the prior tendencies and orientation of teachers from each kumatiod . In the case of Polish schools, by far the most important values were: honesty,

110 family and health. Honesty, for more than half of the respondents, is the most important one from the point of view of social development. In the case of Latvian schools, the most important ones were: family and health. For nearly one-third of the respondents family is the most important value in terms of social development.

4.1.2.2 Nurturing values

Answering the open question: How do you nurture values within your subject?, the respondents gave us their point of view on their real action in the school didactic process as part of the school development process. The respondents from Polish schools answered as follows: The most common methods of nurturing values within the subjects taught by respondents from the school No. 1 (Table 43, p.177) include: (1) teachers’ own example (5 out of 43), (2) showing standards of behaviour/role models (5 out of 43) and (3) application of clear requirements (3 out of 43). They also mentioned: organisation of work, drawing attention to national values, showing trust towards students, demonstrating the role of tolerance, admission of their own errors or mistakes, discussions with students about their values, prohibition of cheating, praising the ability to admit being wrong, teaching understanding for others, creating the right atmosphere, diligent performance of tasks undertaken, lack of criticism and allowing students to have their own opinions. Three respondents gave no answers, which constitutes 14.3%. The most common methods of nurturing values within the subjects taught by respondents from school No. 2 (Table 44, p.178) include: (1) teachers’ own example (10 out of 21), (2) prohibition of cheating (7 out of 21) and (3) showing standards of behaviour/role models (6 out of 21). Teachers from this school mentioned likewise: showing the role of tolerance, rebuking students for inappropriate behaviour, fair marking, showing no favouritism to any students, teaching honesty, drawing attention to risk or threat, teaching teamwork, discussions with students about their values, application of clear requirements, lack of criticism and teaching self-acceptance. 17 respondents gave no answers, which constitutes 39.5%. The respondents from Latvian schools answered as follows:The most common methods of nurturing values within the subjects taught by respondents from school No. 3 (Table 45, p.178) include: (1) teachers’ own example (5 out of 30), (2) using different texts (4 out of 30) and (3) talking about life (4 out of 30). They also mentioned:

111 discussion and talking about values, showing examples from daily life, showing good examples from Latvian history, teaching group work and paying attention to the history and geography of Latvia. Six respondents gave no answer, which constitutes 20.0%. The most common methods of nurturing values within the subjects taught by respondents from school No. 4 (Table 46, p.179) include: (1) using different texts (5 out of 21), (2) own personal example, teaching the right attitude and teaching real world events (2 out of 21 in each case). They also mentioned: paying great attention to the environment, teaching group work, discussion and talking about values, talking about life, loving yourself and others and encouraging pupils to think about values. Three respondents gave no answer, which constitutes 14.3%. In three out of the four schools under analysis, the teachers provided the same response, i.e. their own example. It is significant that these are two Polish schools and the Polish junior high school in Latvia. Final comparison of Polish and Latvian teachers’ answers: The collective results for Poland and Latvia are presented in Table 18 and Table 19: Table 18. Nurturing values as viewed by the teachers – the results for Poland

Poland n=64 frequency

own example 15

showing standards of behaviour/role models 11

prohibition of cheating 8

showing the role of tolerance 5

rebuking for wrong behaviour 4

application of clear requirements 4

showing no favouritism to any students 3

fair marking 3

teaching honesty 3

drawing attention to risk or threat 2

teaching teamwork 2

discussions with students about their values 2

drawing attention to national values 2

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Table 19. Nurturing values as viewed by the teachers – the results for Latvia

Latvia n=51 frequency

using different texts 9

own personal example 7 talking about life 5 teaching the right attitude 2 by teaching real world events 2 teaching group work 2

discussion and talking about values 2

showing examples from daily life 2

paying attention to history and geography of Latvia 1 showing good examples from Latvian history 1

The teacher’s own example is the method which is most often used while forming values in Polish schools. Other common methods include showing patterns or role- models to follow and making students work on their own, with a ban on cheating at the same time (cheating is a serious problem in Polish schools). The teachers’ own example as the most frequent method of nurturing values for Polish teachers within their subject creates an optimistic picture because such responses show how important the teacher’s planned actions and behaviour are in the educational process. This method was also often indicated by the Latvian teachers. Basically, this allows for drawing a very important conclusion: due to the environment and cultural and social conditions, the most frequent way of nurturing values was the same. The term nurturing values was used as a shortcut of the processes: (1) one, deeply rooted in traditional pedagogy understood as a passive process of teaching and (2) the second one as nowadays meaning of the process of transmitting values in an educational process. This process is understood by teachers and theoreticians in different ways.

4.1.3 The third stage of the research - understanding of SD and values related to SD

In the 3rd phase of the study the participants answered some questions related to understanding of SD and values related to SD. This stage of the research was very

113 important taking into consideration teachers’ experience from the previous stages and their increased knowledge of values and values education.

4.1.3.1 Understanding of Sustainable Development

In this phase of the study the participants answered the following question: How do you understand SD? The participants from Polish schools gave the following answers (put into the respective categories by the author): The teachers (n=43) in school No.1 ( Table 47, p.179) understand SD mainly as (1) a development based on values (13 answers), (2) harmonious development of society (9 answers), (3) comprehensive development (8), (4) aiming at a balance between different spheres of life (5 answers), (5) spiritual development (5 answers) and (5) aiming at achieving goals (5 answers). Such understanding of sustainable development does not fully coincide with the general understanding of sustainable development but it is a typical for that state of teachers’ awareness of SD and coincides with the traditional (according to the Brundtland Commission Report) understanding of SD. The teachers (n=21) in school No. 2 (Table 48, p.180) understand SD as (1) a comprehensive development (11 answers), (2) development which takes into account different values (4 answers), (3) development aimed at achieving goals (3 answers), (4) development providing equal opportunities (2 answers) and (5) well-thought-out (2 answers). In both schools the most common answers concerned development aimed at different values (30.2% of respondents in school 1 and 19.04% of respondents in school 2) and at comprehensive development (18.6% in school No. 1 and 52.4% in school No. 2) traditional understanding of SD (as in the Brundtland Report)sporadically occurred in individual cases. What is very interesting is the fact that Polish teachers had no previous ideas of sustainability and sustainable development. Their knowledge was based on previous experience gathered within the action research with which they were involved. Polish teachers are not very much aware that SD must be fully planned, taking into account the vision of the future of the world and particularly the vision of a given school. The participants from Latvian schools gave the following answers (put into the respective categories by the author):

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For the teachers (n=30) from school No. 3 (Table 49, p.180), SD means: (1) a long-term planned development (7 answers), (2) a development which is rooted in the future (4 answers), (3) development aimed at different values (3 answers), (4) an economically justified plan for the future (2 answers) and (5) development that helps us to improve (2 answers). 10 respondents gave no answer, which constitutes 33.3%. Latvian teachers underline that SD is grounded in the future and the aspect of planning. Such understanding could mean that they are more oriented towards theoretical aspects of SD than Polish teachers. For the teachers (n= 21) from school No. 4 (Table 50, p.180), SD means: (1) a development which ensures the same conditions we have today for future generations (14 answers), (2) thoughtful use of resources (5 answers), (3) responsible development (4 answers), (4) development that respects the environment (3 answers) and (5) development without limits, development with ability to learn as long as one lives, development based on analysing the daily life of society, development aimed at different values, development to satisfy our needs, spiritual development and helping people (2 answers in each case). For the Latvian teachers, SD is mostly a planned development with future generations in mind. The responses of the Latvian teachers are dominated by the responses provided by teachers from School No. 4, which was involved in actions connected with SD in its earlier work, hence their responses are consistent with the applicable definition and understanding of SD. The data were confirmed in an interview with the deputy head teacher.

4.1.3.2 Values related to SD The respondents chose 5 out of 62 values that came up in the first part of the study and which were indicated to be the most important ones from the social point of view. The participants could not modify the way the particular values were formulated. Answers for the question: Which are the most important values from the point of view of SD, gave such results: The values chosen in school No. 1 are closely linked to family and its role in, and influence on, society within SD (Table 51, p.181). The responses in school No. 2 (Table 52, p.181) point to the values connected with development and relationships in a given society as a whole. The most common responses given in both schools are responsibility, family and the ability to live in society. As the value which is essential

115 from the point of view of SD, responsibility was chosen by 37.5% of respondents. This choice seems to be understandable – SD is a responsible development in the social, economic and environmental field. It should be noted that these values correspond to the fundamental values listed in the Millennium Declaration of the United Nations (2000). The results for the both groups are provided in Table 20:

Table 20. The most important values in the context of SD from the point of view of teachers in Poland

n=64 frequency % responsibility 24 37.5 ability to live in a society 21 32.8 family 21 32.8 security 19 29.7 tolerance 18 28.1 honesty 14 21.9 respect for others 12 18.8 social sensitivity 12 18.8 health 12 18.8 reliability 12 18.8

The values chosen in school No. 3 (Table 53, p.181) are strictly related to some characteristics of modern post-communist states. They are justice, security, freedom, responsibility and tolerance. The responses in school No. 4 (Table 54, p.182) are more related to material and non-material goods like education, health and environment. But the responses also include responsibility. The results for both the Latvian groups are provided below: Table 21. The most important values in the context of SD from the point of view of teachers in Latvia

n=51 frequency % responsibility 10 19.6 health 10 19.6 justice 9 17.6 education 8 15.7 security 6 11.8 freedom 6 11.8 health 6 11.8 tolerance 5 9.8 traditions 5 9.8

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Responsibility, health and justice are considered to be the most important values from the point of view of SD by the Latvian teachers. Approximately 20.0 % of the teachers considered responsibility or health to be the most important. Choosing responsibility as the most important value related to SD is probably a result of increasing teacher awareness and knowledge through the action research provided by the author. It also shows how the “wave” of teacher development works in practice.

Definitely the most important value from the point of view of SD.

Answering the question: Indicate definitely the most important value in the context of SD teachers showed how deeply they understand SD and values related to SD. (Table 55, p.182 and Table 56, p.182 - Polish teachers’ answers and Table 57, p.183 and Table 58, p.183 – Latvian teachers’ answers) School No. 1 and No. 2 8 7 5 6 4 4 4 4 4 2 0 School No 1 and No 2

Figure 15. Definitely the most important values – summary of teachers’ answers in Poland

In all, the respondents (n=64) listed 25 different values which are the most important, in their opinion, in the context of SD. This indicates a significantly varied understanding of SD as well as varied opinions as to which values are the most important ones for SD. Definitely the most important values in the context of SD in Latvian schools are presented in figure 16:

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School No. 3 and No. 4

8 6 5 6 4 3 3 4 2 2 2 2 2 0 school No 3 and No 4

Figure 16. Definitely the most important values – summary of teachers’ answers in Latvia.

The Polish and Latvian teachers found it very difficult to indicate the most important value from the point of view of SD. In both cases, lists consisting of approximately 20 values were obtained. However, the largest number of teachers indicated responsibility in both cases. Choosing responsibility in both cases shows how important planning and responsible implementing of SD are for future societies and the development of the world in general. Each society could choose its own way of development (creating their own wave of development and their own, particular activity) but the final result in each cases should be the same – sustainable development.

4.1.4 The fourth stage of the research - values orientation in Polish and Latvian schools

The main aim of this part of the work was the preparation of a kind of general model of system of values in each school and each country, taking into consideration SD. Answering the question: Which values, in your opinion, listed below are the most important for the SD of a society and your school, and rating the values, the respondents provided the possibility of creating a model of values orientation in each school and each country. The respondents rated each value from the list on a 7-grade Likert scale: -3 (definitely no), -2 (no),-1 (somewhat no), 0 (I have no idea), 1 (somewhat yes), 2 (yes), 3 (definitely yes). Rating gave the respondents the possibility to ‘measure’, as Schwartz (1994) stated, those “negative” values which they wish not to express or promote. This is also a very important issue in cross-cultural research, as it is possible that a value which is not ‘positive” in one culture could be ‘positive’ in another culture. The results are as follows:

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School No. 1 Table 22. Importance of values – school No. 1 (Poland)

material

aspirations and non- norms individual attitudes ra rate rate (Series 3) rate material rate (Series 1) characteristics Series 3) te goods Series 2) (Series 4) keeping one’s kindliness effectiveness dignity security 3 word 2 2 2 3 honour 2 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career 1 wisdom 2 humanitarianism 2 responsibility 3 friendliness 2 love 2 money 1 individual attitudes aspirations goods norms characteristics ethical behaviour 2 courage 2 independence 2 friendship 2 family 3 organisational objectivity job satisfaction tradition law-abidingness 2 skills 2 2 2 2 justice 3 diligence 2 patriotism 2 stability 2 faith 2 tolerance 2 dedication 2 helping others 2 recognition 2 knowledge 2 truthfulness respect for credibility health freedom 2 2 others 2 2 3 righteousness respect for life 2 culture 2 3 punctuality ability to live 2 in a society 2 reliability 2 faithfulness 2 social religiousness 1 sensitivity 2 conscientiousness understanding the other 2 person 2 frankness 2 honesty 3 compassion 2 understanding 1 perseverance 2 trust 2 obligation 2 kindness 2

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School No. 1

3 2 1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Series1 3 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 Series2 2 2 3 2 222222212232 1 2 2 2 2 Series3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Series4 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 Series5 3 2 1 3 2 2 2 3 3

Figure 17. Importance of values – school No. 1 (Poland)

The teachers from school No. 1 decided that the most important values are those which had previously been classified as the commonly accepted and prevailing norms in society, and personal traits of individual members of society. This seems to be justified, taking into account the fact that these teachers recognised safety and justice as the mo st important values for SD. Responsibility, which was earlier classified by them as a norm and an individual trait, was also ranked relatively high. The values previously included in the group of aspirations were ranked significantly lower, with career as a value classified particularly low. School No. 2

Table 23. Importance of values – school No. 2 (Poland)

material and aspirations norms individual attitudes non-material rate rate rate (Series 3) rate rate (Series 1) characteristics (Series 3) goods (Series

(Series 2) 4) keeping one’s kindliness effectiveness dignity security 3 word 3 -2 3 3 honour -1 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career -3 wisdom -2 humanitarianism 2 responsibility 3 friendliness -1 love -1 money 3 ethical behaviour 3 courage 0 independence 2 friendship -1 family 0 organisational objectivity job tradition law-abidingness 3 skills 3 1 satisfaction 1 0 Sequel to Table 23 see on p. 120.

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Sequel to Table 23. justice 3 diligence 2 patriotism 0 stability 2 faith 0 tolerance 1 dedication 2 helping others 3 recognition -1 knowledge 3 truthfulness respect for credibility health freedom 2 3 others 1 1 1 right eousness respect for life 0 culture 1 3 punctuality ability to live -1 in a society 3 reliability 2 faithfulness -2 social religiousness 0 sensitivity 0 conscientiousness understanding the other 3 person -1 frankness 1 honesty 3 compassion 0 understanding -2 perseverance 2 trust 0 obligation 1 kindness 1

Figure 18. Importance of values – school No. 2 (Poland)

In the opinion of teachers from school No.2, the most important values were those which had previously been classified as the commonly accepted and prevailing norms in society and personal traits of individual members of society. As in the case of school No.1, this seems to be justified bearing in mind that for these teachers the most important values for SD were responsibility and honesty. They ranked responsibility and respect for other people relatively high, but put the values previously included in

121 the group of aspirations decidedly the lowest on the ranking list. Career as a value was particularly low-ranked, and so were love and friendship. School No. 3

Table 24. Importance of values – school No. 3 (Latvia)

material

aspirations and non- norms individual attitudes rate rate rate (Series 3) rate material rate (Series 1) characteristics (Series 3) goods (Series 2) (Series 4) keeping one’s kindliness effectiveness dignity security 3 word 3 3 2 3 honour 3 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career 2 wisdom 3 humanitarianism 3 responsibility 3 friendliness 2 love 2 money 2 ethical behaviour 3 courage 2 independence 2 friendship 2 family 3 organisational objectivity job tradition law-abidingness 3 skills 3 3 satisfaction 2 2 justice 3 diligence 2 patriotism 2 stability 3 faith 2 dedication helping recognition knowledge tolerance 3 3 others 3 2 3 truthfulness respect for credibility health freedom 2 3 others 3 2 3 righteousness respect for life 3 culture 2 3 punctuality ability to live 2 in a society 2 reliability 3 faithfulness 2 social religiousness 2 sensitivity 2 conscientiousness understanding the other 3 person 2 frankness 2 honesty 3 compassion 3 understanding 2 perseverance 3 trust 3 obligation 2 kindness

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School No. 3

3 2 1 0 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Series1 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 Series2 3 2 3 2 323332323233 3 2 3 3 2 Series3 3 2 2 2 3 2 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 Series4 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 Series5 3 3 2 3 2 2 3 3 3

Fig. 19 Importance of values – school No. 3 (Latvia)

According to teachers from school No.3, the most important values were those which had previously been classified as the commonly accepted and prevailing norms in society and personal traits of individual members of society. As in the case of schools Nos.1 and 2, the choice seems to be justified taking into accou nt the fact that the same teachers recognised responsibility, justice and tolerance as the most important values for SD. They also ranked high the values which belong to the group of material and non - material goods. They assessed the values previously incl uded in the group of aspirations decidedly the lowest.School No. 4 Table 25. Importance of values – school No. 4 (Latvia)

material

aspirations and non- norms individual attitudes rate rate rate (Series 3) rate material rate (Series 1) characteristics (Series 3) goods (Series 2) (Series 4) security keeping one’s kindliness effectiveness dignity 2 word 2 2 2 2 honour 2 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career 1 wisdom 2 humanitarianism 2 responsibility 3 friendliness 2 love 3 money 2 ethical behaviour 2 courage 2 independence 2 friendship 2 family 3 law-abidingness organisational objectivity job tradition 3 skills 2 2 satisfaction 2 2 Sequel to Table 25 see on p. 123 .

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justice 2 diligence 1 patriotism 2 stability dedication helping recognition tolerance 2 2 others 2 truthfulness respect for credibility freedom 2 2 others 2 righteousness respect for 2 culture 3 punctuality ability to live 2 in a society 2 reliability 2 faithfulness 2 social religiousness 0 sensitivity 2 conscientiousness understanding the other 2 person 2 frankness 1 honesty 2 compassion 2 understanding 2 perseverance 2 trust 2 obligation 3 kindness 2

3 2 1 0 1 3 5

1 2 3 4 Series1 2 2 2 2 Series2 2 2 3 2 Series3 2 2 2 2 Series4 2 1 3 2 Series5 2 2 2 3

Figure 20. Importance of values – school No. 4 (Latvia)

For teachers from school No. 4, the most important values were those which had previously been classified as material and non-material goods and the norms commonly accepted and prevailing in society and personal traits of individual members of society. The choice seems to be justified as the teachers decided that responsibility and safety are the most important values for SD. The values previously included in the group of individual traits were ranked definitely the lowest. Religiousness and career, included previously in the group of aspirations, were put particularly low.

4.1.4.1 Correlation of importance of values between schools

The author has counted the statistical correlation between the two Polish schools according to the previously rated importance of each value. The results are provided in Table 26. Table 26. Correlation of importance of values between the Polish schools

Correlation S1 – S2 (data approximate to Likert scale) – Poland

S1 S2 Pearson’s correlation 1 0.332 S1 Bilateral significance 0.010 N 59 59 Pearson’s correlation 0.332 1 S2 Bilateral significance 0.010 N 59 59

Results show the positive weak association between variables – the rate of importance of each value.

The results for Latvian schools are provided in Table 27.

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Table 27. Correlation of importance of values between the Latvian schools

Correlation S3 –S4 (data approximate to Likert scale) – Latvia

S3 S4 Pearson’s correlation 1 0.345

S3 Bilateral significance 0.008 N 59 59 Pearson’s correlation 0.345 1 S4 Bilateral significance 0.008 N 59 59

The results shows a positive weak association between variables as in the previous case.

4.1.4.2 Common results of rating the importance of values for Polish and Latvian teachers. The results for Poland and Latvia are presented below. First the author presents the models and then the correlation between Poland and Latvia. The results are as following: a/. Poland

Table 28. Importance of values from the point of view of Polish teachers

material

aspirations and non- norms individual attitudes rate rate rate (Series 3) rate material rate (Series 1) characteristics (Series 3) goods (Series 2) (Series 4) security 2 keeping one’s 1 kindliness 2 effectiveness 2 dignity 2 word honour 2 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career 2 wisdom 2 humanitarianism 2 responsibility 2 friendliness 2 love 2 money 2 ethical behaviour 2 courage 2 independence 2 friendship 2 family 2 law-abidingness 2 organisational 2 objectivity 2 job 2 tradition 2 skills satisfaction justice 2 diligence 2 patriotism 2 stability 2 faith 2 tolerance 2 dedication 2 helping 2 recognition 2 knowledge 2 others freedom 2 truthfulness 2 respect for 2 credibility 2 health 2 others righteousness 2 respect for 2 life 2 culture punctuality 2 ability to live 2 in a society reliability 2 faithfulness 2

Sequel to Table 28 see on p. 126.

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Sequel to Table 28. religiousness 2 social 2 sensitivity conscientiousness 2 understanding 2 the other person frankness 2 honesty 2 compassion 2 understanding 2 perseverance 2 trust 2 obligation 2 kindness 2

b/.Latvia

Table 29. Importance of values from the point of view of Latvian teachers

material

aspirations and non- norms individual attitudes rate rate rate (Series 3) rate material rate (Series 1) characteristics (Series 3) goods (Series 2) (Series 4) security 2 keeping one’s 2 kindliness 2 effectiveness 2 dignity 3 word honour 2 loyalty 2 accuracy 2 career 2 wisdom 3 humanitarianism 2 responsibility 3 friendliness 2 love 2 money 2 ethical behaviour 3 courage 2 independence 2 friendship 2 family 3 law-abidingness 3 organisational 2 objectivity 2 job 2 tradition 2 skills satisfaction justice 2 diligence 2 patriotism 2 stability 2 faith 2 tolerance 2 dedication 2 helping 3 recognition 2 knowledge 3 others freedom 2 truthfulness 3 respect for 2 credibility 2 health 3 others righteousness 3 respect for 3 life 3 culture punctuality 2 ability to live 2 in a society reliability 2 faithfulness 2 religiousness 2 social 2 sensitivity conscientiousness 2 understanding 2 the other person frankness 2 Sequel to Table 29 see on p. 127.

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Sequel to Table 29. honesty 3 compassion 3 understanding 2 perseverance 2 trust 3 obligation 2 kindness 2

The results obtained in the case of the Polish schools are extremely polarised, although in the case of individual schools distinct tendencies and relationships can be seen. In the case of the Latvian schools, there is a distinct tendency to recognise the values which belong to the group of individual traits as well as material and non-material goods as the most important values. The values which were definitely ranked the lowest are the values that belong to the group of aspirations. This is absolutely logical taking into account the fact that SD is understood as a responsible process aimed at ensuring future generations at least the same living conditions as those enjoyed by the present generation. Such understanding of SD pushes individual aspirations and ambitions of particular members of society into the background for the benefit of the common good and the welfare of the whole society. The author has counted the statistical correlation between Polish and Latvian schools.

Table 30. Correlation of importance of values between Polish and Latvian schools

Correlation Poland -Latvia (data approximate to Likert scale )

Poland Latvia Pearson’s correlation 1 0.553 Poland Bilateral significance 0.000 N 59 59 Pearson’s correlation 0.553 1 Latvia Bilateral significance 0.000 N 59 59

It shows a positive weak association between variables – the rate of importance of each value. The models of importance of each value obtained for Poland and Latvia indicate their great resemblance; the correlation coefficient is 0.553 in both cases, and the values

128 which belong to the group of norms and individual traits have been recognised as the most important ones. Norms and rules prevailing in society are indeed of the greatest importance in the context of the SD of a society – that is responsible and harmonious development with consideration shown for the living conditions of the future generations. Individual traits are also in this case an essential factor having influence on SD, as the results achieved by society with respect to development are the outcome of the work of individual members of society, disregarding the individual aspirations and ambitions of each member of society.

4.1.4.3 Teachers’ comments on the research results

In order to compare the meaning of some values, at least in one country, the author asked Polish participants to answer the questions about their understanding of some values. Using ICT (google.docs.com), the author received Polish teachers’ comments on the results obtained. The respondents were asked to give the answer to such questions as: (1) How do you find the final results of the research? (please make general comments on the research results), (2) Please make any relevant comments related to understanding of values and understanding SD, and (3) How do you understand such terms as responsibility, security, honesty, tolerance, family and friendship? It is worth noting that the comments on the research were obtained from the teachers after all of the levels of research, and (in the case of Polish schools) after the trial to use the results of the research for the development plan of the school, taking into account the tasks resulting from the assumptions of SD. At this time, the knowledge and experience of teachers was definitely greater than before the research. Therefore, the teachers were able to analyse the problem better and more deeply, and provide more substantive answers.

Teachers’ comments on general research results Teachers’ comments on general research results coincide with the author’s conclusions and his interpretation of the research results. Teachers were surprised that there is such a big difference in understanding of the notion of ’value’ between the Polish and Latvian teachers. The Polish teachers mostly understand ‘value’ as rules, standards in a society, but for the Latvians, ‘value’ is mostly related to material goods.

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Below are some of the teachers’ comments (original wording preserved): T1 . The most striking difference in the definition of value is that the first Polish teacher association provides standards, rules of functioning in society while the Latvian teachers understand the value of a material good . T2. I think that there is a big difference in the approach to the value, based on the findings presented in schools. T3. I have the impression that Polish teachers focus more attention on relationships (friendly relationship). Latvians pay more attention to the future (health, family, work). [sic]

Teachers’ comments on understanding of particular values and SD: The most surprising for the teachers was the difference in the approach to material goods. This also coincides with the author’s understanding of values presented in the theoretical part of this study. The term value was given to the respondents without any explanations whether it is related to personal values or any other sets of values. That is why the respondents could have very different points of view. Their comments show that the understanding of given values is more or less similar in both Polish and Latvian cases. Some teachers’ comments: T1. Both Polish and Latvian teachers, according to the research results, are trying to give students their own attitude as a good example. It seems that the Polish teachers place a greater emphasis on good cooperation with students. In their statements, they often appear to be talking about establishing clear requirements, fair assessment, the organisation of work. It is a striking fact that in both Polish schools the answers refer to the prohibition of cheating in the classroom. The statements from Latvia did not mention prohibition of cheating. T2 . I was surprised by the discrepancy between the Polish and Latvian teachers in terms of the approach to material goods. T3. Attention is drawn to a comparison of the definition of value. For the Polish teachers, values are primarily ‘principles’ and, for the Latvian teachers, values are primarily ‘material goods’. Material goods as a priority must have a strong justification in the culture of the country.

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Teachers’ comments on understanding of SD The results and the comments show that the Polish teachers’ knowledge of sustainability is not satisfactory. The Latvian teachers’ answers are more professional and more related to the generally accepted definition of SD, if such exists, or to an official understanding. Some teachers’ comments: T1. It seems that the Latvian teachers understand sustainability as preparing young people for life, caring for future generations. They are more focused on taking care of the environment and prudent use of resources. T2 . It seems to me, they are thinking about sustainability in a broader perspective than the Polish teachers, taking into account the future. T3. The Polish teachers focus more on balanced and comprehensive development, creation of equal conditions and achieving objectives. [sic]

Teachers’ comments on understanding of some selected values This is a very important part of the research, because it shows how deep the similarity in understanding of given values is, which is important from the point of view of research results. Table 31. Teachers understanding of ‘responsibility’

Teachers’ answers

Responsibility Taking care of somebody

Responsibility for your own actions and acquisition of obligations towards others

Bearing the consequences of their actions, of relatives’ actions (especially their children), and other people’s, for their own sins and mistakes

Ability to accept the consequences of their own behaviour and choices

Reliability, conscientiousness, dependability, trustworthiness

Responsibility – it is fulfilling all your obligations, duties, promises. It is also taking care of matters, people, animals, etc. To be responsible means that you always think of all the consequences of your actions that you might face.

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Generally, we can assume that responsibility is understood by teachers as meaning to bear the consequences of their actions and being ready to take care of other people. It is a very anthropocentric approach to the notion of such a ‘value’ as responsibility. Responsibility is also personalist in nature. As Karol Wojtyła (1960) (later, Saint John Paul II but at the time a representative of phenomenology) writes, responsibility is primarily being responsible for another human being. It is understood not only as a utilitarian principle, but also as a principle accepting full humanity, that is, along with its spiritual sphere. Speaking of responsibility, we can always consider it at many levels: (1) individual; (2) group; (3) local; (4) regional; (5) national and (6) transnational. At each of the levels, responsibility is seen in a different way, but it should always be understood as the responsibility for actions at any of the levels. Table 32. Teachers understanding of ‘security’

Teachers’ answers

security State in which one can develop

State free of risk situations or the risk of losing something

Avoiding taking risks, the state in which we have a sense of confidence and stability

Confidence and peace

A sense of stability, lack of fear, a basic human need

It is a state of feeling safe in a given environment, situation. It is a freedom from danger, risk or injury. It is also creating a positive atmosphere so that everybody feels comfortable.

Security for respondents is generally related to living in a state of stability, without any risk for personal development. According to the respondents, only the state of security guarantees the development of individuals and society as a whole. We should not forget, however, that there is, in principle, no stabilised condition. Stabilisation is a fiction. Stabilisation is the lack of action. And the lack of action is stagnation. Stability often means retreat in the course of development, a kind of numbness. In the development of society the ability to take risks is the most important, the risk of changes primarily, because they are the engine of growth at each of all the levels. Thus, the respondents’ perception of security, according to the author, is very static and it is not possible to accept it at the level of school.

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Table 33. Teachers understanding of ‘honesty’

Teachers’ answers

honesty Living following values which I believe in

Inability to deceive (fraud)

Reliability, diligence in one’s proceedings, respecting other people’s property and a great righteousness and the total inability to fraud

Behaviour – according to the rules established in the community, integrity and reliability

Proceeding in accordance with the accepted system of values

Honesty could be defined as being truthful, sincere, fair, upright, being honourable in principles, intentions and actions

Honesty is understood as living following values, with an inability to deceive, both in personal and social life. The Universal Encyclopaedia of PWN (1996) defines honesty as: ‘Maintaining the recognised standards of moral integrity in their fulfilment, integrity; it indicates both the particular action in the particular circumstances, as well as a permanent character trait’. (p.599) It is, therefore, of static and dynamic nature. As one of the teachers commented: this is a specific character trait and the characteristic of a particular action. “Only the good life is a happy life”, Plato said. The unconditional honesty drawn from the modern business and business ethics is notable. According to the managers of Spectres: ‘Constant acting in a sincere and transparent way, in everything we do, doing what is right, even if it means the loss of profits, keeping our promises and commitments, treating our employees and business partners fairly and with respect’ (http://www.bksv.com/) This term, from the border of the business world, is perhaps the most important from the point of view of the modern world and the problems of modern societies.

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Table 34. Teachers understanding of ‘tolerance’

Teachers’ answers

tolerance Respect for the freedom and choices of other people

Respect for opinions, beliefs and behaviours different from their own

An open and objective attitude towards other people and respect for other people's views, different attitudes and beliefs

Respect for others

Respect for otherness that does not affect our dignity

The capacity for recognising and respecting the beliefs or practices of others. It is also a fair, objective attitude towards opinions, beliefs, religion or even race which is different from your own

The understanding of the term ‘tolerance’ converges with scientific and political understanding. According to Article No. 1 of the UNESCO Declaration of Principles on Tolerance: ‘Tolerance is respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of our world's cultures, our forms of expression and ways of being human. It is fostered by knowledge, openness, communication, and freedom of thought, conscience and belief. Tolerance is harmony in diversity. This is not only a moral duty, but also legal and political condition. Toleranc e, the virtue that makes peace possible, helps to replace the cultures of war and peace’.

According to the definition of the dictionary of the Polish language, tolerance is: ‘respect for opinions, beliefs, preferences that differ from one’s own’(p.267). The Universal Encyclopaedia of PWN defines tolerance as a: ‘ the recognition of the rights of others to hold opinions, tastes, etc., different from those of the assessing one,’ (p.405). The fact that we do not accept some of the actions of others, e.g. driving a car very fast, in excess of the permissible limit, does not mean that we are not tolerant. If the conduct includes the violation of our rules and our dignity, we have the right to disagree with it, but that does not mean the lack of tolerance. This is the meaning of some of the teachers’ statements.

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Table 35. Understanding of ‘friendship’

friendship Relations thanks to which we do not feel alone

Interpersonal relationship consisting of full acceptance, mutual trust and respect

This close relationships based on mutual affection, understanding and shared experience

Kindness, honesty, care which exist between people

Empathy, compassion and mutual understanding

Friendship is a feeling of comfort and emotional safety with a person. It is when you do not have to weigh your thoughts and measure words, before expressing them in front of your friend. It is when someone knows you better than yourself and is sure to be with you in every emotional crisis

Friendship is understood as interpersonal relationships based on respect for another person and on mutual understanding. Even in ancient times, Cicero defined friendship as ‘compliance in all of the divine and human things combined with mutual affection and love’ (Kasjan, 2006, p.14), while Kasjan (2006) himself provides the following definition of friendship: ‘friendship is true and lasting loving that grows from mutual friends’ excellence and virtue; such an alliance, once concluded, shall not be broken either by a difference of desires or the contradiction of will’ (p.15). The Polish language dictionary defines friendship as 'a close and cordial relationship with someone based on mutual goodwill and trust and benevolence, kindness shown to someone’(www.wspj.pl,p.245). Bellah et al (1996) suggest that the traditional idea of friendship has in fact three components: ‘Friends must enjoy each other’s company, they must be useful to one another, and they must share a common commitment to the good’ (p.115) . For Adams and Allan (1989), friendship is a relationship presented as voluntary, informal and personal, while operating within the constraints of class, gender, age, ethnicity and geography – and this places a considerable doubt on the idea that friendship is a matter of choice. According to Blum (1980) friendship involves a high level of development and expression of the altruistic emotions of sympathy, concern and care – a deep caring for and identification with the good of another from whom one clearly knows oneself to be distinct.

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Many contemporary writers in the West tend to present friendship as private, voluntary, and happening between autonomous individuals (Doyle, Smith, 2002), and in a similar sense teachers make comments about the understanding the term ‘family’. Table 36. Teachers understanding of ‘family’

Teachers’ answers

Family One of the most important values, which includes friendship, knowledge and love

The highest value in human life, the relationship of mutual feelings, actions and dependencies

A social unit; people who share emotional and family ties. Each person is a member of a particular family. People also join the family blood ties. Traditionally, people in the family have great common feelings such as love, friendship, mutual respect, trust, and many others

A social institution whose members are bound not only by material goods, but also feelings and confession of the same values

‘Social unit, with emotional relations, with common responsibility and support’

Family – generally it’s your relatives who you live with under one roof. However, your nearest and dearest can also be called your family although you do not necessarily have to be related to them. Family is who you consider to be the most trusted, reliable and loving

Family is definitely the most difficult value to describe and define. On one hand, it is an institution (social unit), but, on the other, it is one of the highest values. According to Zaborowski (1969), family can be defined as a natural group based on blood relationship, marriage or adoption. The group is a community, whose primary function is to maintain the species (biological) continuity of the community. Family members are nodes with kinship as well as legal and economic relationship (Zaborowski, 1969). According to Szczepanski (1970), ‘family is a group made up of individuals linked by marriage and parental relationship’ ( p. 300) Tyszka (1979) defines the family as ‘ the primary social group consisting of parents and children, which is characterised by a formal relationship, housing and material community and the functions they fulfil: procreative, social, cultural, economic ones’ (p.58 ).

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Corbet (2004), following the Australian Bureau of Statistics, gives the definition of a family as ‘two or more persons, one of whom is age 15 years or over, who are related by blood, marriage (registered or de facto), adoption, step or fostering’(p.32 ) The conservative attitudes of Polish society, in principle, mean we cannot expect to understand the family as anything but the traditional concept, namely as a union of man and woman and the children they share or the children of one of them, sometimes adopted ones. The answers given by the teachers related to understanding of the concept of the family are, thus, consistent with those that we find in the literature mentioned above, as well as official documents in different countries.

4.2 Discussion of the results.

According to Alfred Schuetz (1984): ‘Our knowledge of the world, the colloquial and the scientific one, contains constructs, that is, the collections of abstractions, generalisations, formalisations, idealisations specific to certain levels of the organisation of thinking. Strictly speaking, there are the bare facts. All of the facts are always already-selected ones from the context of the facts of the universe by the activity of the mind. The facts are therefore always interpreted facts(...)’ (Wendtland, 2011, p.11). The research results developed by the author have arisen from such facts. The author considers the experience and the knowledge acquired by the teachers as the most important result of sharing this experience with others. Fulerton (1915) writes that people are social creatures, and they are greatly fortified in their opinions by the consciousness that others share them. This is very important for teachers, especially at the secondary school level when the teacher deals with “nearly” adult people, and the ability to transfer knowledge and skills is of strategic importance. ESS data which is available to researchers was examined, and several values were selected to be used in the first stage of action research. To begin the action research, those values were selected which permit, on the one hand, an identification of the features of sustainable activity and, on the other hand, the establishment of the significance of material versus sustainability-oriented values. The following sustainability-oriented values were selected from ESS: an individual’s ability to make their own decisions, to be free and to care for nature and the environment. In the action context these values incorporate such related values as following one’s own customs

137 and living in secure surroundings. In effect, the selected values and the assumption about their relatedness in the above-mentioned structure (making one’s own decisions and caring for nature and the environment and coordination of the content of secure surroundings and the traditions and customs incorporated in this action) unfolded as a frame of reference which was used for the evaluation of both ESS data and the action research participants’ views. ESS data allowed us to establish that in several European countries making one’s own decisions and being free is an important value (Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia and Poland). Care for nature and the environment is a significant value in Hungary, Slovenia, Spain and Poland. After examining the two above-mentioned values, certain similarities could be traced in Slovenian and Polish assumptions about these values that characterise action. The value of the action content of the traditional and secure surrounding in Slovenia and Poland is evaluated as significant, but the assumption about the importance of material values in these two countries is evaluated as insignificant. After examining the views of the action research participants, it became apparent that an individual’s ability to make his/her own decisions and be free, and to care for nature and the environment, were ranked lower if compared with ESS data (Poland). The same tendency was identified in the views of the action research participants regarding the values that characterise the content of action – they were ranked lower than ESS and only differed slightly from the evaluation of such values as making one’s own decisions and caring for nature and the environment. The first stage of action research allowed us to establish that, in the teachers’ assumptions, making one’s own decisions and being free as well as caring for nature and the environment, traditional action and secure surrounding were considered values of approximately similar significance (in quantitative evaluation). But do teachers’ arguments, personal experiences and knowledge contribute at the basis of these views if they are studied qualitatively? What features of sustainability do teachers identify in their experiences and personal knowledge? The action research stage allowed us to unfold a simple frame of reference which let us evaluate the significance of the first conception of the values that characterise sustainable action on the level of tendencies. The study revealed the need to examine pupils’ assumptions about the content of the selected frame of reference from a qualitative perspective, which becomes the next research objective.

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The results achieved in the second stage of the study show how wide and diverse the understanding of the notion of value is. In most answers, the Polish respondents described values as norms and principles that regulate social life whereas the Latvian respondents saw them as material and non-material goods. There are also some differences between the answers given in the two countries owing to very different conditions and environments. Anthropocentrism, deeply rooted in the answers, is also reflected in the quoted theoretical definitions. The results obtained indicate how important proper public spirit and standards of behaviour approved by the citizens are for Polish society. This results from the fact that an adequately high standard of living has been reached in Poland in comparison with previous years. Most citizens are satisfied with their standard of living. However, more and more attention is being given to the ethical side of social life, and this probably explains the results obtained. The material and non-material goods which dominate in Latvia also seem to be logical. Most of Latvian society aim to reach a desired standard of living and to have some basic non-material goods, such as work, family or friendship guaranteed. The indicators of social expectations are particularly vital in an ongoing period of deep economic crisis in this country at the time the research was carried out. While defining the notion of value, attention was in principle paid to the needs of a human being and not to the environment or a human being as part of the environment. In Poland and Latvia, the time for deep reflection and proper actions with respect to responsibility and work for the environment and its SD has probably not come yet. What is considered to be right by teachers who responded is a certain value, and what was recognised as wrong was not a value, quite apart from whether the respondents represented an eco-centric or anthropocentric orientation. However, here at the beginning of the 21st century, it is difficult to accept the anthropocentric approach to the notion of value only, particularly with reference to a school, the activities of which should always be considered in a holistic way, with the ecocentric aspect of reality taken into account. In both Polish schools the most important value is definitely honesty. Honesty was also often mentioned as an essential value by the respondents in Latvian schools. Why honesty? The reason for this strong emphasis on the role of honesty is probably

139 lack of honesty in social relations. Both Poland and Latvia experience all kinds of shocking corruption scandals from time to time. These scandals are not connected with the economy only; corruption is rife in political circles, mainly at a point where politics and business meet. The degree of confidence in state institutions and agencies is very low. At the same time, the subsidies coming in from the European Union give rise to allegations of their not necessarily honest distribution and investment. Many cases of irregularities in expenditure have also been noted. All this leads to a low degree of trust towards those in power in both countries. Thus, honesty seems to be crucial for further harmonious development of Polish and Latvian societies. Health and family are two values very frequently highlighted in both countries. These values are connected with two extremely significant aspects of human life. They also show per se the most essential aspects of social life in these countries. Family has always been regarded as a very important element of social life and the process of education. It has been a pillar of strength for education. At the same time, history has shown both societies that in the process of development and in social life, it is important to be self-reliant and that in order to succeed you need first of all health. In both Polish schools the author received almost the same answers, which suggests that the schools’ environments do not play a significant role for respondents. The situation in Latvian schools was similar. This fact proves that the environment in which the respondents live had little influence on the answers given. Contemporary Poland and Latvia are quite evenly developed countries. The place of residence is not a factor which significantly determines access to the basic commodities of civilisation. It also seems to be logical in the case of teachers – it has no influence on their social awareness and their awareness of the problems of the surrounding world. Additionally, the respondents were teachers – probably the best educated social group in both societies. Their relatively high level of education definitely had an influence on the answers. In the process of nurturing values the most important element is the teachers’ and educators’ own example, demonstrating standards of behaviour. This seems to be particularly well-founded taking into account the fact that the issue of ‘teaching values’ seems to be extremely problematic. The following question is fundamental: Can we talk about teaching values’? In the author’s opinion, it is justifiable to say that values can only be formed, transferred or transmitted – handed down from generation to generation or during the process of teaching and learning. In this situation, the teacher’s own

140 example or indications of standards of behaviour plays a very important role. Janusz Korczak, one of the most famous Polish pedagogues, has written extensively on this subject. The way of nurturing values is understood in Latvian schools, as the selection and use of appropriate texts, seems to be a total misunderstanding of the question or an extremely superficial attitude to the issue. This is one of pieces of evidence showing very passive methods of nurturing values used by teachers. Basically, it is not about teaching methods, as each method can have and has an activating influence provided that it is properly applied and used. The text is the basis but not the essence of the teacher's activity and work. For teachers of many specialisations, the text basically does not play an important role, and the teaching process is conducted by the teacher without any obstacles. Nevertheless, even for teachers of specialisations where the text plays an important role, it is difficult to regard such a method of nurturing values as satisfactory. Teaching through action, indeed as planned action, should be considered the most important method for nurturing values both for the teacher and the students. The teachers’ own example and discussion about life, which were highlighted by the Latvian teachers, probably have similar grounds as in the case of Polish schools. Conversation about life, understood as a discussion and transmission of important information about life (including essential values in social life), is a very important element in handing values down from generation to generation and in the process of school education. The fact that many teachers gave no answers to the question of how do they nurture values within their subjects or during school activities is also a very important result obtained in this research. It is alarming, as it shows that many teachers are not fully aware of their responsibility in this respect. They probably give more attention to the didactic process, which they separate from the process of education. This is typical of Polish secondary school teachers, whose work is usually limited to passing knowledge in a given academic subject. These teachers do not want to remember that they are also educators who are responsible for the process of education in their schools and consequently for the process of handing down proper, socially-accepted and desired values. The results of the study show that, when asked the question: Are we ready to transform values in Polish and Latvian schools? , (1) the teachers do not always understand the notions/concepts used and the questions asked by the researcher, and (2)

141 there is a great difference between the respondents’ declared and actual level of understanding of the notions/concepts. Education based on values should comprise not only moral aspects, but also social, emotional, psychological, spiritual and intellectual aspects of personality development. The values which we want to teach in schools may also, after a slight modification, be useful in a family. The results obtained with regard to the understanding of the notion of SD are also surprising and indicate a poor understanding of the notion by secondary school teachers in Poland and Latvia. In Polish schools, SD is most often understood as a responsible development. Actually, this partly coincides with the theoretical understanding of SD. Such understanding of SD results rather from an intuitional understanding of this notion than from the teachers’ authentic and responsible actions in this respect. Such understanding of SD results also from teachers’ life experience, as well as their professional experience. In fact, this understanding is based on the following three pillars: intuition, life experience and professional experience. Teachers’ knowledge in this respect is constructed in this way because, as mentioned in a previous part, no organised information system exists in Poland for teachers in this respect and even official documents present a very limited understanding of the notion of SD. In Latvian schools, SD is mainly understood as development to ensure conditions for future generations which are not lower than ours, and prosperous development grounded in the future. SD, in Latvian respondents’ opinion, is also well- planned development for a long period. It sounds rather like empty words – there is no direction for society or school, and no idea of what should be done or which attitudes are the most important for future generations. The Latvian teachers’ point of view is focused on the results of human activities, whereas the Polish teachers concentrate on the activities of the members of society. This situation, however, seems to be a little surprising given that teachers have access to all available sources. It may result from Latvian teachers’ extremely passive attitude towards work, which was also mentioned by the author as one of the essential limitations of the research. While carrying out educational action research, one must be prepared for many surprises, including study results which are surprising for the author. Action requires permanent reflection (Dewey, 2011).

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In both Polish and Latvian cases, definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD are: (1) responsibility and (2) security. The Latvians are also aware of the importance of education and the role of education in the above-mentioned process of SD in each society, if, of course, awareness exists (Dewey, 2012). All values, especially those that have been classified as material or non-material goods, meet the theoretical assumptions of the definition of values proposed directly by the author. Family is, on the one hand, an institution and the material goods associated with it and, on the other hand, the emotional ties between its members, such as love, trust, etc. Work is not only personal labour and everything associated with it, a measurable revenue received by an employee, but also the entire emotional area connected with the work, interpersonal relationships with other employees, etc. Thus, the above examples indicate the significant combination of the material and non-material realm in the understanding of given values. The models of values prepared on the basis of the last stage of the research for the individual schools and separately for Poland and Latvia show a weak positive correlation. This points to the following fact: despite working in completely different conditions and despite other cultural conditions, the understanding of values is similar. The respondents very often highlight the same or very similar aspects of understanding values as well as of SD, and agree on the most important values for this development. This probably has a deep cultural basis, hence the similarity of responses and, consequently, of perception of the world. European culture, which has its roots and sources in Christianity and Judaism, has a significant influence on the European perception of the world. It is also confirmed by the aforementioned comparative research conducted by the author with a group of specialists from other countries, including Poland, Mexico, Pakistan, Jordan and the Seychelles. The results of this research definitely and unambiguously show a very significant influence of religion and culture on perception of the world and preferred system of values. Despite the very different environments in which Polish and Mexican schools operate, the final results of the research were very similar; a very strong positive correlation was obtained. But definite differences was obtained, for instance, between Poland and Pakistan or between Mexico and Pakistan. The responses of Seychelles teachers indicating Christianity as

143 their religion isolated from the other responses of teachers are also strongly positively correlated with the results of teachers from Mexico and Poland. The similarity of the history and experience of Poland and Latvia over the centuries is a very important explanation for the research results, as it influences teachers’ experience and the ways in which teachers act and work. It also consolidates their awareness and their way of thinking and functioning. Thus, culture creates the values which are complied with or considered to be very important in the life of society.

4.3 Implications for school practice

The process and the results of the research indicate the importance of experience in the construction of human consciousness, both direct and indirect experience. An individual is part of a specific human group which he/she co-creates, and which has also a great influence on his/her perception of the world, on the evolution of this perception of the world through experience gained, both individual and collective one. According to Williams (1979), ‘values as empirical elements in human behaviour certainly arise out of human experience’ (p.16). An individual, along with the whole human population and other species living on the Earth, constitutes an inseparable part of its ecosystem. He or she is subject to similar or the same rules as the rest of the ecosystem, including the process of evolution. Creating a specific culture or being under the influence of the culture of his/her own society or other societies, a human automatically subjects his/her own culture to the process of evolution. The ecosystem’s evolution is accompanied by cultural evolution and vice versa. The impact of culture on the environment is substantial, whereas the impact of the environment on culture is definitely less significant. What occurs here is a process of co-evolution of the ecosystem and cultures, which is a process of their mutual adjustment. The influence of an individual on the environment which results directly from the specific way in which person treats the surrounding world is of particular importance.

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Figure 21. Author’s model of the coevolution of ecosystem and culture .

Being at the same time an element of both the ecosystem and the culture, an individual causes a certain complication in the process of analysis of the coevolution of the earth’s ecosystem and culture. As emphasised by Laszlo (2008), the activity of individuals in recent decades has been particularly dangerous for the Earth’s ecosystem. Modern civilisation is on the brink of collapse. Now, there are only two possible ways out of this situation: either a total collapse occurs or there will be a turning point which will allow the human race to develop further. In order to reach such a turning point that will make further development of the human race possible, we must totally change our way of thinking about the Earth’s ecosystem, and also change human activity. In a process of co-evolution between the ecosystem and culture which is organised in such a way, there is always a specific prototype of the system of values which functions in a given society as well as a prototype definition of a value, because the system of values is an element of the culture in each society. The more representative the prototype of the category is, the more features (attributes) of the other elements it has. Prototypes are those elements of a particular category which best reflect the features and structure of this category as a whole. Tversky (1979, as cited in Rosch, 1979) formalises the concept of a prototype and defines it as the member or members of the category with the highest similarity (summed similarity) to all members of the category. A prototype, according to Rosch’s (1979) theory, can be presented in the following way:

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Peripheral members of prototype

Central members of prototype - nucleus

Figure 22. Model of a prototype (Rosch, 1979).

Rosch (1979) assumes that in each category there are members (elements) which are more representative of the prototype (and constitute its centre or nucleus) and less representative members (elements) of the category which form its peripheral part. Transition from one area to the other is fluid and vague. Membership in a particular category is defined based on comparison with the prototype. The prototype of a value system is defined by a set of values which are generally accepted in society and by society, and a prototype definition of values describes them in the most understandable and adequate way for society. The system does not have to be accepted by every single members of society as a whole. However deeply rooted in engineering science the concept of prototype may be and despite the material way in which it is understood, from the point of view of social sciences we can talk about a prototype as a non-material product of human thought because such a prototype reflects the system of values prevailing or dominant in society. It can be presented in the following way:

146 or

Fig. 23 Author’s visualisation of system of values

Such a prototype should be discovered at each level of human life: from local up to supranational or planetary level. The ecosystem and culture continually coevolve with each other. Assuming the existence of many ecosystems and cultures at a local level and their coevolution, we may expect a process of analysis and changes at the higher levels of a wider ecosystem and culture, up to a supraregional /supranational level, i.e. to a planetary level and a single world culture. Such a system at the highest level is what we should pursue if we care about the well-being and future of the human race.

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Figure 24. Author’s model of culture and ecosystem coevolution

The process of coevolution definitely has a great impact on the system of values dominant at a specific level under discussion. Taking into consideration the fact that values create culture and at the same time that they have a significant influence on it, whereas culture creates new values, we can expect a system of values which is adequately changed and adjusted to the real world at each higher level. This is the only way, through evolution, in which we can achieve a system of values that will satisfy the whole Earth’s ecosystem. The co-evolution process needs to assume gradual adjustment of culture and the ecosystem so as to ensure the human race a full and comprehensive development. A system of values understood in this way is directly connected with the understanding of the concept of value. Definitions of values can be considered from many different points of view and levels of many sciences, as mentioned in previous chapters. This is the reason why we should prepare a new kind of teacher, who will be aware of his/her duty and responsibility in a given society and fulfil the tasks arising from the educational paradigm.

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Such opportunities are obtained through the use of the results of any research on the educational processes, including the present study. Such research should be closely linked to, and serve, school practice. The following model proposed by Donovan, Bransford and Pellegrino (2011) shows how to strengthen the links between research and school practice.

Figure 25. Model for strengthening the link between research and practice.

Talking about the local level in this case one should think about the school level and the process of school development, which include the students’ development as well. In this research, a very close working relationship between the author and the teachers participating in it could be seen. It can, therefore, be inferred that teachers should adopt and implement the results of the research into their practice, in a form to be identified by them. An important process observed during the research was an increased awareness of the problems to be solved within education for values. Awareness of the problems allows identification and solution. A teacher and his work should be centred around the student and not on the contents of the didactic process if we are to expect the development both of students and a school as a whole. Dewey (1988) pointed out that a school is like a small society. All

149 actions should be carried out taking into consideration a wide range of suggestions contained in various documents, not only internal national ones, but also international ones such as the Millennium Declaration of the UN, the Earth Charter, etc. Such a focus on the learner should be expressed primarily in the proper design of curricula and school activities programmes. Curricula in the post-socialist countries are very often oriented towards content but not on the action. As for education in values, it is particularly important that programmes are action-oriented. Such an orientation allows the learner to see the essence and meaning of human life and society. The educational process in such a case will be not oriented towards theoretical knowledge, but it will be closer to the learner and the teacher. The school programme, built in the right way, taking into account the learners’ participation in the teaching and learning process, will certainly give bigger and better results. Such a programme will guarantee a harmonious and comprehensive development of the student. It is also necessary to have a school discussion about the methods of nurturing values within subject groups, understood as signposts in the work with students. Any methodological approach to the process of ‘nurturing values’ which will be used at a school must fulfil the expectations of learners and parents, who play one of the most important roles in the educational process. Of course one should not forget, as Heidegger(2000) writes, that teaching is an extremely difficult process. It is more difficult than learning. This situation is affected, in his opinion, by what should be the essence of learning, namely ,giving the learner opportunities and freedom (liberty) in the learning process. Polish and Latvian schools need a special programme for nurturing values or values education. Values are the essence of development and particularly for sustainable development. Values direct our action and behaviour, describe the connection with the internal and external world. Only through values one can show the connections between world development problems and a human being development. If one dreams of sustainable society at first should focus his/her activity on values education. Values education, implemented as a cross-curriculum path, which is based on and connected with a responsible teacher. A teacher who is a student’s guide in nowaday’s chaotic world. A teacher who, by his/her own example, will show the best example of behaviour and who will show the socially preferable moral attitude and way of life. Such a programme should be prepared by theoreticians and practitioners together with the focus on complexity and openness of the school system. It must be implemented at a

150 national level as in other countries, particularly in the countries of south-eastern Asia or Australia. Through such a process, it is possible to strengthen social responsibility, especially for the future of each community as well as a common future. There is no better means to changing the way of thinking and mentality in these societies than through education. This process may be successful only if implemented slowly and with the use of all possible methods. ‘What else should be spokenand thoughtabout being, exceptthatit is? ’ Heidegger (2000) asks. Paraphrasing the question, modern civilisation is this ‘being’. To change it, one should actually start talking and thinking about it, as it actually is. Our task as humans, through certain of our activities, is to watch over the change and adapt to modern conditions and expectations.

4.4 Future research perspectives

The research, tools and methodologies presented here have already been used in other international studies. Research has been conducted in Poland, Mexico, Jordan, Pakistan and the Seychelles with the cooperation of the following authors: Amarella Eastmond Spencer of the Autonomous University of Yucatan in Mexico; Achmad Quablan of the Queen Rania University of Amman, Jordan; Michele Martin of Sustainability for Seychelles; and Shawqat Rasol of the Feisalabad University in Pakistan. During the above-mentioned research, the author’s tools were used. With the author’s consent, they have been modified. Of the three questionnaires, one was developed to consist essentially of closed questions. This was due to the fact that answers to open questions, with such a culturally and linguistically diverse group, could be subject to large errors caused even by the process of translation of the tools and the responses given. A section consisting of socio-economic questions was added to the questionnaire. This were essential in this case, because the authors wanted to focus on diversity of religion, and examine how, if at all, it has an impact on the understanding of the concept of values and on the selections made. The results indicate a very strong influence of religion on perception of the world and the values that are considered to be the most important in the context of SD. In order to confirm or deny the obtained results, the author plan to repeat the study in other countries with different religious grounds. Namely, the research is to include South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and India.

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The research results were put to practical use in Polish schools to elaborate a school development programme, which is a must in every school in Poland. The goals of school activities were based on the results obtained. On the other hand the research methodology and research design, as well as the research tools, could be used in many other countries. They could be used for the identification of values orientation among teachers in the given country. The research could inspire other authors to study this very important sphere of social life, with particular focus on values and values oriented towards sustainability in a society as well as human actions and activity in this field.

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Internet databases:

1. Data from European Social Survey:

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1.2 ESS2: http://ess.nsd.uib.no/ess/round2/notes.html

1.3 ESS3: http://ess.nsd.uib.no/ess/round3/notes.html

1.4 ESS4: http://ess.nsd.uib.no/ess/round4/notes.html

2. Data from World Values Survey: http://www.wvsevsdb.com

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3.1 www.ko.poznan.pl

3.2 www.ko.wroclaw.pl

168

3.3 www.ko.bydgoszcz.pl

3.4 www.ko.szczecin.pl

3.5 www.ko.gorzow.pl

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Appendicies

List of tables:

Table 1.Participants in the research……………………………………………………81 Table 2. General information about Poland and Latvia ...... …91 Table 3. Population of Poland and Latvia and the UE…………………………………93 Table 4. Changes in population in Poland, Latvia and the UE ...... 94 Table 5. Total population of Poland and Latvia compared to the total population of the EU………………………………………………………………………………………93 Table 6. Number of births in Poland, Latvia and the UE ...... 95 Table 7. Number of deaths in Poland, Latvia and the UE……………………………...94 Table 8. Number of primary school students in Poland, Latvia and the UE….………..95 Table 9. Number of lower secondary school students in Poland, Latvia and the UE….95 Table 10. Number of upper secondary school students in Poland, Latvia and the UE………………………………………………………………………………………95 Table 11. The ratio of the number of students to the number of teachers in Poland and Latvia ...... 96 Table 12. Teachers’ understanding of the concept of values…………………………104 Table 13. Tables of values…………………………………………………………….106 Table 14. The most important values in teachers' opinion in social life (Polish-Latvian comparison)………………………………………………………………………..…108 Table 15. Definitely the most important value chosen by teachers in Poland Error! Bookmark not defined...... 109 Table 16. Definitely the most important value chosen by teachers in Latvia……………………………………………………………………………….…109 Table. 17. Definitely the most important value – comparison between Poland and Latvia ...... 110 Table 18. Nurturing values as viewed by teachers – the results for Poland…………..112 Table 19. Nurturing values as viewed by teachers - the result for Latvia ………...….112

Table 20. The most important values in the context of SD from the point of view of teachers in Poland ...... 116

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Table 21. The most important values in the context of SD from the point of view of teachers in Latvia ...... 116 Table 22. Model of importance of values – answers of teachers from school No. 1 (Poland) ...... 119 Table 23. Model of importance of values – answers of teachers from school No. 2 (Poland)…………………………………………………………………………...…..119 Table 24. Model of importance of values – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)……………………………………...………………………………………...121 Table 25. Model of importance of values – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)……………………………………………………………….………………122 Table 26. Correlation of importance of values between the Polish schools….………124 Table 27. Correlation of importance of values between the Latvian schools...... …….125 Table 28. Model of importance of values from the point of view of Polish teachers………………………………………………………………………………..125 Table 29. Model of importance of values from the point of view of Latvian teachers……………………………………………………………………………….126 Table 30. Correlation of importance of values between Polish and Latvian schools….27 Table 31. Teachers' understanding of ‘responsibility’………………………………...130 Table 32 Teachers' understanding of ‘security’……………………………………….131 Table 33. Teachers' understanding of ‘honesty’………………………………………132 Table 34. Teachers' understanding of ‘tolerance’…………………………………….133 Table 35. Understanding of ‘friendship’ ...... 135 Table 36. Teachers' understanding of ‘family’ ...... 136 Table 37. The most important values in social life - Polish teachers’ answers ...... 175 Table 38. The most important values in social life - Latvian teachers’ answers ...... 176 Table 39. Definitely the most important value – teachers' answers from school No.1 (Poland) ...... 176 Table 40. Definitely the most important value – teachers' answers from school No. 2 (Poland) ...... 177 Table 41. Definitely the most important value – teachers' answers from school No. 3 Latvia) ...... 177 Table 42. Definitely the most important value – teachers' answers from school No. 4 (Latvia) ...... 177 Table 43. Nurturing values – teachers' answers from school No. 1 (Poland) ...... 178 Table 44. Nurturingvalues – teachers' answers from school No. 2 (Poland) ...... 178 Table 45. Nurturingvalues –teachers' answers from school No. 3 (Latvia) ...... 179

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Table 46. Nurturingvalues – teachers' answers from school No. 4 (Latvia) ...... 179 Table 47. Understanding of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 1 (Poland) ...... 179 Table 48. Understanding of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 2 (Poland) ...... 180 Table 49. Understanding of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 3 (Latvia) ...... 180 Table 50. Understanding of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 4 (Latvia) ...... 180 Table 51. The most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 1 (Poland) ...... 181 Table 52. The most important values from the point of view of SD –teachers' answers from school No. 2 (Poland) ...... 181 Table 53. The most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 3 (Latvia) ...... 181 Table 54. The most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 4 (Latvia) ...... 182 Table 55. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No.1 (Poland) ...... 182 Table 56. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No.2 (Poland) ...... 182 Table 57. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – teachers' answers from school No. 3 (Latvia) ...... 183 Table 58. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD –teachers' answers from school No. 4 (Latvia) ...... 183 Table 59. Importance of making one's own decision and being free ESS4-2008, ed.1.0 Raw numbers ...... 183 Table 60. Importance of thinking new ideas and being creative. ESS4-2008, ed.1.0 Raw numbers ...... 184 Table 61. Importance of trying new and different things in life. ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 185 Table 62. Importance that people are treated equally and have equal opportunities ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 185 Table 63. Importance of helping people and care for others well-being ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 186 Table 64. Importance of understanding different people ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 187 Table 65. Importance of care for nature and the environment ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 187 Table 66. Importance of following traditions and customs ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 1889

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Table 67. Importance of living in secure and safe surroundings ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 1899 Table 68. Importance of being rich, having money and expensive things ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers ...... 189

List of Figures

Figure 1. Author’s visualisation of Mezierow’s theory ...... 467 Figure 2.Venn diagram of SD ...... 47 Figure 3.The dynamic balance between cultural differences and emerging global ethic (Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future, UNESCO Programme) ...... 47 Figure 4.International Union for Conservation of Nature model of SD ...... 47 Figure 5.Model of SD based on Islamic worldviews (Al-Jayyousi, 2012) ...... 59 Figure 6.Author’s model of values – adaptation of Mistrik’s understanding of culture 73 Figure 7. Simple Action Research Model (from MacIsaac, 1995 as cited in O’Brien, 1998)...... 74 Figure 8.Detailed Action Research Model (adapted from Susman 1983, by O’Brien) O’Brien (1998) provides a clear definition of action research ...... 74 Figure 9. Steps of Action Research Circle (Holland and Mulcahy, 2007) ...... 74 Figure 10. Model of the author’s research paradigm...... 80 Figure 11. The research design ...... 84 Figure 12. Adapted IMSTRA model for teaching practice: spiral development Note: Adapted from Singer and Moscovici (2008) by Bana (2010) ………………...... ….84

Figure 13. The process of learning through the research process...... 85 Figure 14. Author’s tri-dimensional space of social development (The position of the elements, each representing a given country, in the graph is random)...... 92 Figure 15 Definitely the most important values – summary for teachers’ answers in Poland ...... 117 Figure 16. Definitely the most important values – summary for teachers’ answers in Latvia...... 118 Figure 17. Importance of values – school No. 1 (Poland) ...... 120 Figure 18. Importance of values – school No. 2 (Poland) ...... 121 Figure 19. Importance of values – school No. 3 (Latvia) ...... 1242 Figure 20. Importance of values - school No. 4 (Latvia)……………………………..123

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Figure 21. Author’s model of the coevolution of ecosystem and culture ...... 145 Figure 22. Model of a prototype (Rosch, 1979)...... 146 Figure 23. Author's visualisation of system of values………………… ……………145

Figure 24. Author’s model of culture and ecosystem coevolution ...... 148 Figure 25. Model for strengthening the link between research and practice...... 149 Figure 26. Making one’s own decisions and being free……………...... ………….190

Figure 27. Being Ready to help people and care for others' well-being……………...190

Figure 28. Importance of following own traditions and customs…………..…..…….191

Figure 29. Care of nature and the environment…………………………….….……...191

Figure 30. Importance of living in secure surroundings………………………………191

Figure 31. Importance of being rich and having money………………………………192

Figure 32. The most important values in social life from the point of view of Polish teachers……..…………………………………………………………………………192

Figure 33. The most important values in social life from the point of view of Latvian teachers………………………………………………………………………………..192

Figure 34. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 1 (Poland) ...... 1933 Figure 35. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 2 (Poland) ...... 193 Figure 36. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 3 (Latvia) ...... 194 Figure 37. Definitely the most important value –answers of teachers from school No 4 (Latvia) ...... 1944

Tables

Table 37. The most important values in social life – Polish teachers’ answers

S1 S2 Total n= 43 21 64 honesty 22 11 33 friendship 17 8 25 tolerance 14 6 20 family 13 4 17

175

diligence 15 1 16 respect for others 9 3 12 love 9 2 11 patriotism 10 1 11 freedom 3 5 8 dedication 0 7 7

Table 38 The most important values in social life – Latvian teachers’ answers

S 3 S 4 Total n= 30 21 51 health 10 15 25 family 7 15 22 love 5 8 13 job 11 11 friendship 10 10 freedom 5 4 9 children 6 3 9 responsibility 5 3 8 justice 6 6 tolerance 5 5 stability 5 5 honesty 4 4 security 3 3 faith 3 3

Table 39. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No. 1(Poland)

S 1 n=43 frequency % honesty 14 32.6 family 9 20.9 love 3 7.0 diligence 3 7.0 respect for others 2 4.7 patriotism 1 2.3 justice 1 2.3 ability to live in a society. 1 2.3 trust 1 2.3 health 1 2.3

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Table 40. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No. 2 (Poland)

S 2 n=21 frequency % honesty 7 33.3 family 3 14.3 health 2 9.5 accuracy 1 4.8 humanitarianism 1 4.8 responsibility 1 4.8 law-abidingness 1 4.8 respect for others 1 4.8 freedom 1 4.8 trust 1 4.8

Table 41. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)

S 3 n= 30 frequency % family 8 26.7 justice 2 6.7 responsibility 2 6.7 love 2 6.7 security 2 6.7 life 2 6.7 health 1 3.3 God 1 3.3 tolerance 1 3.3 objectivity 1 3.3 wisdom 1 3.3 faith 1 3.3 honesty 1 3.3 No answer 5 16.7

Table 42. Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)

S 4 n= 21 frequency % health 7 33.3 family 6 28.6 God 2 9.5 humaneness 1 4.7 justice 1 4.7 peace 1 4.7 awareness 1 4.7 children 1 4.7 responsibility 1 4.7

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Table 43. Nurturing values – answers of teachers from school No. 1 (Poland)

n= 43 frequency own example 5 showing standards of behaviour / role models 5 3 application of clear requirements organisation of work 2 drawing attention to national values 2 showing trust towards students 1 showing the role of tolerance 1 1 admission of own errors or mistakes discussions with students about their values 1 prohibition of cheating 1 praising the ability to admit being wrong 1 teaching understanding for others 1 1 creating the right atmosphere diligent performance of undertaken tasks 1 lack of criticism 1 allowing students to have their own opinions 1

Table 44. Nurturing values – answers of teachers from school No. 2 (Poland)

n= 21 frequency own example 10 prohibition of cheating 7 showing standards of behaviour/role models 6 showing the role of tolerance 5 rebuking for wrong behaviour 4 fair marking 3 showing no favouritism to any students 3 teaching honesty 3 drawing attention to risk or threat 2 teaching teamwork 2 discussions with students about their values 1 application of clear requirements 1 lack of criticism 1 teaching responsibility for another person 1 teaching how to have a discussion 1 teaching self-acceptance 1

178

Table 45. Nurturing values – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)

n=30 frequency own example 5 using different texts 4 talking about life 4 discussion and talking about values 2 showing examples from daily life 2 showing good example from our history 1 teaching group work 1 paying attention to the history and geography of 1 Latvia

Table 46. Nurturing values – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)

n=21 frequency using different texts 5 own personal example 2 teaching the right attitude 2 by teaching real event of the world 2 paying great attention to the environment 1 teaching group work 1 discussion and talking about values 1 talking about life 1 by loving yourself and others 1 encouraging my pupils to think about values 1

Table. 47 Understanding of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 1 (Poland)

n= 43 frequency development aimed at different values 13 harmonious development 9 comprehensive development 8 aiming at balance between different spheres of 5 life spiritual development 5 aimed at achieving goals 5 providing equal opportunities 4 systematic 4 well-thought-out 3 physical 3 without limits 2 taking into consideration people’s abilities 1 development which allows one to make one’s 1 own decisions development of all branches of economy 1 development aimed at maximum results 1

179 development that respects the environment 1 having social trust 1

Table 48. Understanding of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 2 (Poland)

n=21 frequency comprehensive development 11 development taking into account different values 4 aimed at achieving goals 3 providing equal opportunities 2 well-thought-out 2 aiming at balance between different spheres of 1 life spiritual development 1 systematic 1 development of all branches of economy 1 development that respects the environment 1 development that respects tradition 1 development aiming at eliminating inequalities 1

Table 49. Understanding of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)

n=30 frequency planned development for a long period 7 prosperous development grounded in the future 4 development aimed at different values 3 economically justified plan for the future 2 development that helps us to improve 2 development with priority on life needs 1 independent development over the entire life 1

Table 50. Understanding of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)

n=21 frequency development to ensure conditions for future 14 generations not lower than ours thoughtful use of resources 5 responsible development 4 development that respects the environment 3 development without limits 2 development with ability to learn as long as one 2 lives development based on analysing the daily life of 2 society development aimed at different values 2 development to satisfy our needs 2 spiritual development 2 helping people 2 development with cooperation with nature 1

180

comprehensive development 1 preservations of cultural and historical riches 1 survival model of humanity 1

Table 51. The most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 1 (Poland)

n=43 frequency family 19 security 18 ability to live in a society 15 responsibility 12 health 11 tolerance 10 social sensitivity 8 family happiness 8 diligence 8 justice 7

Table 52. The most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 2 (Poland)

n=21 frequency responsibility 12 tolerance 8 honesty 8 respect for others 7 ability to live in a society 6 reliability 6 conscientiousness 5

Table 53. The most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)

n=30 frequency justice 9 security 6 freedom 6 tolerance 5 responsibility 5 health 4 stability 3 knowledge (*) 3 honour 3 honesty 3 faith 3 dignity 3 cooperation 3

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(*)-values added to the list by the Latvian respondents

Table 54. The most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)

` frequency education (*) 8 health 6 environment 6 responsibility 5 traditions 5 thrift (*) 3 family 2 nature (*) 2 conservation 2 protection 2 healthy lifestyle (*) 2 (*)-values added to the list by the Latvian respondents

Table 55. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No.1 (Poland)

n=44 frequency security 5 health 4 love 4 justice 3 family 3 responsibility 3

Table 56. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No.2 (Poland)

n=18 frequency responsibility 4 ability to live in a society 2 respect for others 2 tolerance 2 honesty 2

182

Table 57. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 3 (Latvia)

n=30 frequency security 4 stability 2 purposefulness (*) 2 life 2 justice 2 tolerance 2 (*)-values added to the list by Latvian respondents

Table 58. Definitely the most important values from the point of view of SD – answers of teachers from school No. 4 (Latvia)

n=21 frequency responsibility 5 education (*) 4 nature (*) 3 environment (*) 3 spirituality (*) 1 natural resources (*) 1 money 1 modesty (*) 1 learning 1 communication skills (*) 1 (*)-values added to the list by Latvian respondents

Table 59. Importance of making one’s own decision and being free ESS4-2008, ed.1.0 Raw numbers

Not Some- A Very Not like Like what little Total Country much % % % % like % me % me like like 100% like me me at me me all Belgium 464 26.5 771 44.0 349 19.9 108 6.2 48 2.7 13 0.7 1753 Bulgaria 507 23.4 659 30.5 551 25.5 243 11.2 134 6.2 69 3.2 2163 Cyprus 344 28.5 550 45.5 221 18.3 56 4.6 31 2.6 7 0.6 1209 Denmark 518 32.7 563 35.5 295 18.6 141 8.9 62 3.9 5 0.3 1584 Estonia 392 23.8 709 43.0 342 20.8 125 7.6 65 3.9 15 0.9 1648 Finland 470 24.7 783 41.2 429 22.6 152 8.0 51 2.7 17 0.9 1902 France 619 30.0 551 26.7 338 16.4 300 14.5 215 10.4 41 2.0 2064 Germany 856 31.3 1291 47.2 407 14.9 113 4.1 58 2.1 13 0.5 2738 Hungary 472 32.9 510 35.5 298 20.8 108 7.5 39 2.7 9 0.6 1436 Sequel to Table 59 see on p. 184

183

Sequel to Table 59. Israel 971 40.6 946 39.5 337 14.1 98 4.1 33 1.4 8 0.3 2393 Netherlands 491 28.4 830 48.1 302 17.5 58 3.4 31 1.8 15 0.9 1727 Norway 274 19.7 490 35.2 336 24.2 215 15.5 67 4.8 9 0.6 1391 Poland 378 23.7 733 45.9 309 19.4 113 7.1 54 3.4 9 0.6 1596 Portugal 329 14.1 729 31.2 831 35.6 368 15.7 69 3.0 11 0.5 2337 Russian Federation 642 25.9 850 34.3 585 23.6 251 10.1 111 4.5 39 1.6 2478 Slovakia 333 18.5 687 38.2 534 29.7 165 9.2 61 3.4 17 0.9 1797 Slovenia 429 33.9 563 44.5 186 14.7 57 4.5 25 2.0 5 0.4 1265 Spain 780 30.4 1078 42.1 451 17.6 148 5.8 83 3.2 22 0.9 2562 Sweden 339 21.7 594 38.1 400 25.6 166 10.6 55 3.5 6 0.4 1560 Switzerland 783 43.9 744 41.8 187 10.5 42 2.4 22 1.2 4 0.2 1782 United Kingdom 722 31.2 970 41.9 360 15.5 164 7.1 88 3.8 12 0.5 2316 N= 11113 28.0 15601 39.3 8048 20.3 3191 8.0 1402 3.5 346 0.9 39701

Table 60. Importance of thinking new ideas and being creative. ESS4-2008, ed.1.0 raw numbers

Not Very A Some- Not like muc Like little Total Country % % what % % like % me % h like me like 100% like me me at me me all Belgium 250 14.3 575 32.9 529 30.3 233 13.3 135 7.7 25 1.4 1747 Bulgaria 266 12.5 497 23.4 550 25.9 311 14.6 324 15.2 179 8.4 2127 Cyprus 432 35.7 450 37.2 164 13.6 92 7.6 61 5.0 11 0.9 1210 Denmark 433 27.4 516 32.6 358 22.6 178 11.2 86 5.4 12 0.8 1583 Estonia 161 9.8 491 29.8 547 33.2 223 13.5 187 11.3 39 2.4 1648 Finland 275 14.5 594 31.2 583 30.7 274 14.4 144 7.6 31 1.6 1901 France 483 23.4 548 26.5 499 24.2 346 16.8 152 7.4 37 1.8 2065 Germany 541 19.8 1052 38.5 637 23.3 262 9.6 194 7.1 45 1.6 2731 Hungary 352 24.5 463 32.2 301 20.9 168 11.7 112 7.8 43 3.0 1439 Israel 713 29.9 863 36.2 416 17.4 224 9.4 139 5.8 30 1.3 2385 Netherlands 342 19.9 651 37.8 458 26.6 174 10.1 70 4.1 26 1.5 1721 Norway 264 19.0 471 33.9 386 27.8 211 15.2 51 3.7 6 0.4 1389 Poland 235 14.7 546 34.3 383 24.0 212 13.3 181 11.4 37 2.3 1594 Portugal 239 10.2 635 27.2 835 35.7 449 19.2 132 5.6 47 2.0 2337 Russian Federation 445 18.2 631 25.8 658 26.9 330 13.5 296 12.1 87 3.6 2447 Slovakia 293 16.3 609 33.9 512 28.5 202 11.3 125 7.0 53 3.0 1794 Slovenia 215 17.1 501 39.9 319 25.4 102 8.1 97 7.7 21 1.7 1255 Spain 486 19.0 897 35.1 635 24.8 287 11.2 198 7.7 54 2.1 2557 Sweden 273 17.6 462 29.8 512 33.1 210 13.6 82 5.3 10 0.6 1549 Switzerland 415 23.2 678 38.0 424 23.7 133 7.4 118 6.6 18 1.0 1786 United Kingdom 506 21.9 766 33.1 506 21.9 286 12.4 221 9.6 27 1.2 2312 N= 7619 19.3 12896 32.6 10212 25.8 4907 12.4 3105 7.8 838 2.1 39577

184

Table 61. Importance of trying new and different things in life. ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Rawnumbers

Not A Very Some- Not like Like little Total Country much % % what % % like % me % me like 100% like me like me me at me all

Belgium 267 15.2 523 29.8 454 25.9 314 17.9 168 9.6 28 1.6 1754 Bulgaria 273 12.7 477 22.3 528 24.6 383 17.9 313 14.6 168 7.8 2142 Cyprus 217 18.0 347 28.7 258 21.4 164 13.6 164 13.6 58 4.8 1208 Denmark 207 13.1 362 22.9 372 23.5 313 19.8 289 18.3 37 2.3 1580 Estonia 193 11.7 441 26.8 471 28.6 268 16.3 216 13.1 57 3.5 1646 Finland 237 12.5 528 27.8 525 27.7 334 17.6 216 11.4 57 3.0 1897 France 407 19.7 466 22.6 369 17.9 461 22.3 311 15.1 51 2.5 2065 Germany 290 10.6 780 28.6 703 25.7 469 17.2 393 14.4 96 3.5 2731 Hungary 290 20.3 368 25.8 325 22.8 233 16.3 154 10.8 58 4.1 1428 Israel 575 24.1 675 28.3 489 20.5 347 14.5 235 9.8 67 2.8 2388 Netherlands 213 12.3 548 31.7 468 27.1 304 17.6 156 9.0 37 2.1 1726 Norway 139 10.0 288 20.7 349 25.1 299 21.5 278 20.0 35 2.5 1388 Poland 202 12.7 526 33.0 372 23.3 235 14.7 209 13.1 50 3.1 1594 Portugal 136 5.8 449 19.2 753 32.1 581 24.8 310 13.2 114 4.9 2343 Russian Federation 266 10.8 516 20.9 605 24.6 432 17.5 432 17.5 213 8.6 2464 Slovakia 195 10.8 484 26.9 582 32.4 285 15.9 192 10.7 60 3.3 1798 Slovenia 231 18.3 500 39.6 260 20.6 150 11.9 101 8.0 20 1.6 1262 Spain 394 15.4 716 27.9 618 24.1 397 15.5 317 12.4 120 4.7 2562 Sweden 149 9.6 350 22.6 427 27.5 381 24.5 209 13.5 36 2.3 1552 Switzerland 260 14.6 542 30.5 460 25.9 250 14.1 205 11.5 59 3.3 1776 United Kingdom 339 14.6 634 27.4 467 20.2 434 18.8 385 16.6 55 2.4 2314 N= 5480 13.8 10520 26.6 9855 24.9 7034 17.8 5253 13.3 1476 3.7 39618

Table. 62 Importance that people are treated equally and have equal opportunities ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

Not Very A Some- Not like much Like little Total Country % % what % % like % me % like me like 100% like me me at me me all Belgium 484 27.6 861 49.1 315 18.0 67 3.8 22 1.3 3 0.2 1752 Bulgaria 644 29.8 739 34.1 483 22.3 147 6.8 105 4.9 46 2.1 2164 Cyprus 427 35.3 617 51.1 122 10.1 35 2.9 5 0.4 2 0.2 1208 Denmark 441 27.9 594 37.6 283 17.9 172 10.9 69 4.4 20 1.3 1579 Estonia 293 17.8 684 41.6 390 23.7 154 9.4 94 5.7 28 1.7 1643 Finland 630 33.1 799 41.9 326 17.1 102 5.4 37 1.9 11 0.6 1905 France 973 47.1 618 29.9 317 15.4 115 5.6 32 1.5 10 0.5 2065 Germany 718 26.2 1317 48.1 438 16.0 148 5.4 99 3.6 16 0.6 2736 Hungary 465 32.4 504 35.1 276 19.2 116 8.1 60 4.2 15 1.0 1436 Israel 1035 42.9 868 36.0 312 12.9 113 4.7 66 2.7 20 0.8 2414 Netherlands 419 24.3 864 50.2 339 19.7 48 2.8 38 2.2 14 0.8 1722 Norway 323 23.3 600 43.3 263 19.0 151 10.9 42 3.0 7 0.5 1386 Sequel to Table 62 see on p. 186.

185

Sequel to Table 62. Poland 429 26.9 803 50.3 259 16.2 70 4.4 30 19 6 0.4 1597 Portugal 622 26.5 765 32.6 656 27.9 241 10.3 47 2.0 18 0.8 2349 Russian Federation 666 27.0 923 37.4 532 21.6 215 8.7 97 3.9 34 1.4 2467 Slovakia 605 33.7 810 45.1 320 17.8 42 2.3 14 0.8 6 0.3 1797 Slovenia 385 30.5 661 52.3 143 11.3 34 2.7 36 2.9 4 0.3 1263 Spain 1070 41.8 1164 45.4 269 10.5 47 1.8 6 0.2 6 0.2 2562 Sweden 484 31.2 639 41.1 279 18.0 122 7.9 24 1.5 5 0.3 1553 Switzerland 635 35.7 776 43.6 255 14.3 64 3.6 47 2.6 3 0.2 1780 United Kingdom 656 28.4 984 42.6 359 15.5 212 9.2 85 3.7 13 0.6 2309 N= 12404 31.3 16590 41.8 6936 17.5 2415 6.1 1055 2.7 287 0.7 39687

Table. 63 Importance of helping people and caring for others’ well-being ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 Raw numbers

Not A Very Some- Not like Like little Total Country much % % what % % like % me % me like 100% like me like me me at me all Belgium 426 24.3 864 49.3 376 21.4 68 3.9 18 1.0 1 0.1 1753 Bulgaria 595 27.6 858 39.7 521 24.1 114 5.3 54 2.5 17 0.8 2159 Cyprus 437 36.1 549 45.3 154 12.7 61 5.0 9 0.7 1 0.1 1211 Denmark 451 28.5 738 46.6 281 17.7 97 6.1 13 0.8 5 0.3 1585 Estonia 240 14.6 589 35.8 542 32.9 205 12.5 56 3.4 13 0.8 1645 Finland 353 18.7 782 41.4 603 32.0 114 6.0 26 1.4 9 0.5 1887 France 602 29.1 614 29.7 450 21.8 344 16.7 46 2.2 10 0.5 2066 Germany 695 25.4 1274 46.5 515 18.8 170 6.2 70 2.6 16 0.6 2740 Hungary 358 25.1 505 35.4 377 26.4 146 10.2 35 2.5 7 0.5 1428 Israel 1033 43.5 849 35.7 358 15.1 106 4.5 23 1.0 8 0.3 2377 Netherlands 368 21.3 838 48.5 404 23.4 83 4.8 24 1.4 11 0.6 1728 Norway 284 20.5 615 44.4 325 23.5 135 9.7 23 1.7 3 0.2 1385 Poland 211 13.2 805 50.4 434 27.2 113 7.1 23 1.4 11 0.7 1597 Portugal 347 14.8 821 34.9 795 33.8 307 13.1 60 2.6 20 0.9 2350 Russian Federation 500 20.4 857 34.9 690 28.1 281 11.5 98 4.0 28 1.1 2454 Slovakia 376 20.9 756 42.0 548 30.5 87 4.8 24 1.3 7 0.4 1798 Slovenia 279 22.1 686 54.2 239 18.9 37 2.9 19 1.5 5 0.4 1265 Spain 1058 41.2 1142 44.4 292 11.4 68 2.6 6 0.2 4 0.2 2570 Sweden 312 20.0 666 42.7 399 25.6 162 10.4 19 1.2 1 0.1 1559 Switzerland 532 29.8 849 47.6 316 17.7 71 4.0 12 0.7 4 0.2 1784 United Kingdom 670 28.9 1112 48.0 337 14.6 157 6.8 34 1.5 6 0.3 2316 N= 10127 25.5 16769 42.3 8956 22.6 2926 7.4 692 1.7 187 0.5 39657

186

Table. 64 Importance of understanding different people ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

Some A Not Very - Not Like little like Total Country much % % what % % like % % me like me at 100% like me like me me all me Belgium 306 17.5 868 49.6 417 23.8 114 6.5 42 2.4 3 0.2 1750 Bulgaria 369 17.3 722 33.9 627 29.5 276 13.0 96 4.5 37 1.7 2127 Cyprus 269 22.3 586 48.6 253 21.0 72 6.0 23 1.9 4 0.3 1207 Denmark 332 21.0 698 44.1 346 21.9 154 9.7 44 2.8 8 0.5 1582 Estonia 246 14.9 685 41.6 455 27.6 169 10.3 69 4.2 22 1.3 1646 Finland 341 18.0 857 45.2 517 27.3 138 7.3 36 1.9 8 0.4 1897 France 594 28.8 686 33.2 469 22.7 252 12.2 44 2.1 20 1.0 2065 Germany 573 21.0 1379 50.5 522 19.1 170 6.2 75 2.7 13 0.5 2732 Hungary 253 17.7 461 32.2 428 29.9 205 14.3 61 4.3 23 1.6 1431 Israel 802 33.3 998 41.4 420 17.4 127 5.3 53 2.2 11 0.5 2411 Netherlands 223 12.9 859 49.7 474 27.4 115 6.7 45 2.6 11 0.6 1727 Norway 156 11.2 610 43.8 392 28.1 191 13.7 43 3.1 2 0.1 1394 Poland 262 16.6 729 46.3 375 23.8 143 9.1 56 3.6 10 0.6 1575 Portugal 285 12.2 715 30.5 846 36.1 381 16.3 91 3.9 23 1.0 2341 Russian Federation 443 18.0 863 35.1 700 28.5 263 10.7 150 6.1 40 1.6 2459 Slovakia 208 11.6 709 39.7 650 36.4 155 8.7 50 2.8 15 0.8 1787 Slovenia 222 17.6 599 47.6 278 22.1 100 7.9 52 4.1 8 0.6 1259 Spain 749 29.3 1197 46.8 477 18.6 111 4.3 23 0.9 3 0.1 2560 Sweden 206 13.3 590 38.0 443 28.5 235 15.1 70 4.5 10 0.6 1554 Switzerland 520 29.3 856 48.2 303 17.1 66 3.7 28 1.6 4 0.2 1777 United Kingdom 451 19.6 1090 47.3 455 19.7 230 10.0 71 3.1 8 0.3 2305 N= 7810 19.7 16757 42.3 9847 24.9 3667 9.3 1222 3.1 283 0.7 39586

Table. 65 Importance of care for nature and the environment ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

A Not Very Not Like Somewhat little like Total Country much % % % % like % % me like me like me at 100% like me me me all Belgium 500 28.5 812 46.3 332 18.9 84 4.8 20 1.1 6 0.3 1754 Bulgaria 720 33.7 834 39.0 394 18.4 144 6.7 31 1.5 13 0.6 2136 Cyprus 424 35.1 487 40.3 206 17.0 82 6.8 10 0.8 0 0.0 1209 Denmark 464 29.3 670 42.4 318 20.1 103 6.5 21 1.3 6 0.4 1582 Estonia 534 32.5 713 43.4 233 14.2 95 5.8 29 1.8 39 2.4 1643 Finland 628 33.0 763 40.1 366 19.2 102 5.4 31 1.6 14 0.7 1904 France 733 35.5 606 29.4 373 18.1 275 13.3 58 2.8 19 0.9 2064 Germany 760 27.8 1199 43.8 508 18.6 171 6.3 75 2.7 23 0.8 2736 Hungary 626 43.7 523 36.5 207 14.5 51 3.6 18 1.3 7 0.5 1432 Israel 841 35.2 962 40.3 373 15.6 134 5.6 54 2.3 24 1.0 2388 Netherlands 370 21.6 799 46.6 412 24.0 92 5.4 32 1.9 11 0.6 1716 Norway 247 17.7 515 37.0 373 26.8 186 13.4 59 4.2 12 0.9 1392 Sequel to Table 65 see on p. 188. Sequel to Table 65. Poland 404 25.3 773 48.5 286 17.9 94 5.9 30 1.9 8 0.5 1595

187

Portugal 371 15.8 799 34.1 778 33.2 327 14.0 57 2.4 9 0.4 2341 Russian Federation 861 34.8 870 35.1 472 19.1 180 7.3 64 2.6 29 1.2 2476 Slovakia 439 24.4 800 44.5 434 24.2 98 5.5 22 1.2 4 0.2 1797 Slovenia 408 32.3 598 47.3 175 13.8 49 3.9 29 2.3 5 0.4 1264 Spain 803 31.4 1170 45.8 398 15.6 157 6.1 26 1.0 3 0.1 2557 Sweden 331 21.3 577 37.1 404 25.9 184 11.8 49 3.1 12 0.8 1557 Switzerland 701 39.2 774 43.3 235 13.2 64 3.6 11 0.6 1 0.1 1786 United Kingdom 583 25.2 942 40.7 449 19.4 257 11.1 65 2.8 19 0.8 2315 N= 11748 29.6 16186 40.8 7726 19.5 2929 7.4 791 2.0 264 0.7 39644

Table. 66 Importance of following traditions and customs ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

A Not Very Not Like Somewhat little like Total Country much % % % % like % % me like me like me at 100% like me me me all

Belgium 245 14.0 674 38.5 411 23.5 265 15.1 112 6.4 43 2.5 1750 Bulgaria 668 30.6 740 33.9 476 21.8 210 9.6 56 2.6 34 1.6 2184 Cyprus 493 40.6 446 36.8 181 14.9 66 5.4 24 2.0 3 0.2 1213 Denmark 328 20.7 520 32.8 336 21.2 198 12.5 160 10.1 42 2.7 1584 Estonia 199 12.1 500 30.5 366 22.3 271 16.5 213 13.0 92 5.6 1641 Finland 222 11.7 531 27.9 527 27.7 330 17.4 186 9.8 104 5.5 1900 France 339 16.5 374 18.2 305 14.8 458 22.3 379 18.4 201 9.8 2056 Germany 369 13.5 907 33.2 651 23.8 405 14.8 309 11.3 93 3.4 2734 Hungary 380 26.4 445 30.9 314 21.8 161 11.2 100 7.0 38 2.6 1438 Israel 767 31.9 778 32.4 357 14.9 260 10.8 155 6.4 87 3.6 2404 Netherlands 228 13.3 581 33.8 465 27.1 265 15.4 128 7.5 50 2.9 1717 Norway 152 10.9 431 31.0 347 24.9 238 17.1 185 13.3 39 2.8 1392 Poland 363 22.7 739 46.3 299 18.7 121 7.6 61 3.8 14 0.9 1597 Portugal 267 11.4 665 28.3 792 33.8 444 18.9 151 6.4 27 1.2 2346 Russian Federation 587 23.8 856 34.7 580 23.5 264 10.7 128 5.2 51 2.1 2466 Slovakia 400 22.2 679 37.7 480 26.7 163 9.1 53 2.9 25 1.4 1800 Slovenia 197 15.6 506 40.1 312 24.7 123 9.7 94 7.4 30 2.4 1262 Spain 596 23.2 832 32.4 527 20.5 326 12.7 209 8.1 79 3.1 2569 Sweden 169 10.9 386 24.8 393 25.3 301 19.3 203 13.0 104 6.7 1556 Switzerland 278 15.6 547 30.7 417 23.4 257 14.4 196 11.0 88 4.9 1783 United Kingdom 401 17.3 797 34.4 411 17.8 326 14.1 305 13.2 75 3.2 2315 N= 7648 19.3 12934 32.6 8947 22.5 5452 13.7 3407 8.6 1319 3.3 39707

188

Table. 67 Importance of living in secure and safe surroundings ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

Not Some A Very Not like Like -what little Total Country much % % % % like % me % me like like 100% like me me at me me all

Belgium 322 18.3 707 40.3 392 22.3 207 11.8 98 5.6 29 1.7 1755 Bulgaria 781 35.8 825 37.8 370 16.9 128 5.9 57 2.6 22 1.0 2183 Cyprus 579 47.8 461 38.1 127 10.5 33 2.7 9 0.7 2 0.2 1211 Denmark 252 15.9 476 30.1 367 23.2 246 15.5 204 12.9 39 2.5 1584 Estonia 346 21.0 683 41.5 337 20.5 148 9.0 101 6.1 31 1.9 1646 Finland 390 20.5 678 35.7 487 25.6 220 11.6 112 5.9 14 0.7 1901 France 497 24.1 482 23.3 395 19.1 347 16.8 276 13.4 68 3.3 2065 Germany 591 21.6 1072 39.2 537 19.6 255 9.3 244 8.9 34 1.2 2733 Hungary 699 48.7 485 33.8 169 11.8 57 4.0 17 1.2 8 0.6 1435 Israel 1095 45.5 790 32.8 307 12.7 135 5.6 64 2.7 18 0.7 2409 Netherlands 235 13.6 538 31.2 505 29.3 272 15.8 145 8.4 31 1.8 1726 Norway 181 13.1 408 29.5 335 24.3 289 20.9 150 10.9 18 1.3 1381 Poland 414 25.9 757 47.4 228 14.3 136 8.5 46 2.9 17 1.1 1598 Portugal 541 23.0 634 27.0 722 30.7 338 14.4 94 4.0 23 1.0 2352 Russian Federation 980 39.7 813 32.9 373 15.1 172 7.0 105 4.3 25 1.0 2468 Slovakia 747 41.6 724 40.3 252 14.0 51 2.8 13 0.7 10 0.6 1797 Slovenia 345 27.3 611 48.4 168 13.3 77 6.1 51 4.0 11 0.9 1263 Spain 940 36.6 1124 43.8 315 12.3 130 5.1 47 1.8 10 0.4 2566 Sweden 125 8.1 394 25.4 434 28.0 370 23.9 199 12.8 29 1.9 1551 Switzerland 448 25.2 634 35.7 344 19.3 173 9.7 157 8.8 22 1.2 1778 United Kingdom 502 21.7 937 40.5 387 16.7 264 11.4 198 8.6 25 1.1 2313 N= 11010 27.7 14233 35.8 7551 19.0 4048 10.2 2387 6.0 486 1.2 39715

Table. 68 Importance of being rich, have money and expensive things ESS4-2008, ed.2.0 raw numbers

Very A Not Some- Not much Like little like Total Country % % what % % like % % like me like me at 100% like me me me me all

Belgium 28 1.6 110 6.3 300 17.1 577 32.9 532 30.3 206 11.8 1753 Bulgaria 105 4.8 216 9.9 472 21.6 458 21.0 573 26.3 358 16.4 2182 Cyprus 54 4.5 182 15.0 277 22.8 241 19.9 264 21.8 195 16.1 1213 Denmark 40 2.5 114 7.2 239 15.1 350 22.1 633 40.0 208 13.1 1584 Estonia 52 3.2 178 10.8 360 21.9 342 20.8 506 30.8 205 12.5 1643 Finland 19 1.0 69 3.6 301 15.8 480 25.2 646 34.0 387 20.3 1902 France 49 2.4 68 3.3 101 4.9 278 13.4 983 47.5 589 28.5 2068 Germany 58 2.1 200 7.3 475 17.3 569 20.8 1063 38.8 373 13.6 2738 Hungary 79 5.5 197 13.7 358 25.0 324 22.6 356 24.8 120 8.4 1434 Israel 413 17.1 537 22.2 454 18.8 438 18.1 444 18.4 133 5.5 2419 Netherlands 25 1.5 95 5.5 326 18.9 531 30.8 486 28.2 260 15.1 1723 Norway 19 1.4 61 4.4 228 16.4 310 22.3 584 42.1 186 13.4 1388 Sequel to Table 68 see on p. 190.

189

Sequel to Table 68. Poland 70 4.4 223 14.0 337 21.1 340 21.3 508 31.9 116 7.3 1594 Portugal 42 1.8 159 6.8 500 21.3 617 26.3 683 29.1 343 146 2344 Russian Federation 252 10.2 457 18.4 660 26.6 431 17.4 485 19.5 196 7.9 2481 Slovakia 81 4.5 309 17.2 544 30.3 434 24.2 298 16.6 130 7.2 1796 Slovenia 16 1.3 124 9.8 278 22.0 221 17.5 460 36.5 163 12.9 1262 Spain 55 2.1 235 9.2 404 15.8 530 20.7 1054 41.1 286 11.2 2564 Sweden 21 1.4 80 5.2 271 17.5 346 22.3 609 39.3 222 14.3 1549 Switzerland 42 2.4 118 6.7 295 16.7 361 20.4 716 40.4 239 13.5 1771 United Kingdom 102 4.4 193 8.4 264 11.4 435 18.8 1011 43.7 306 13.2 2311 N= 1622 4.1 3925 9.9 7444 18.7 8613 21.7 12894 32.5 5221 13.1 39719

Figures:

Making one's own decisions and be free 60,0 50,0 40,0 1 30,0 2 % Poland 20,0 10,0 0,0 definitely yes yes rather yes rather no no definitely nodo not know no answer

Figure. 26 Making one’s own decisions and being free

Ready to help people and care for others well - being

60,0

50,0

40,0 1 30,0 2 % Poland 20,0

10,0

0,0 definitely yes rather yes rather no no definitely do not no answer yes no know

Figure. 27 Being ready to help people and care for others’ well-being.

190

Importance of following one's own traditions and customs

50,0 45,0 40,0 35,0 30,0 1 25,0 2 % 20,0 Poland 15,0 10,0 5,0 0,0 definitely yes rather yes rather no no definitely do not no answer yes no know

Figure. 28 Importance of following own traditions and customs

60,0 Care for nature and environment 50,0

40,0

30,0

20,0 1 % 10,0 2 Poland 0,0 definitely yes rather yes rather no no definitely do not no answer yes no know

Figure. 29 Care of nature and the environment

Importance of living in secure surroundings

70,0 60,0 50,0 40,0 1 2 % 30,0 Poland 20,0 10,0 0,0 definitely yes rather yes rather no no definitely do not no answer yes no know

Figure. 30 Importance of living in secure surroundings

191

Importance of being rich and having money

50,0 45,0 40,0 35,0 30,0 1 25,0 2 % 20,0 Poland 15,0 10,0 5,0 0,0 definitely yes rather yes rather no no definitely do not no answer yes no know

Figure 31. Importance of being rich and having money

35 33 30 25 22 25 20 17 17 20 15 16 14 13 15 11 12 11 11 9 9 10 8 6 8 7 7 10 4 5 3 2 3 5 1 1 0 0

school nr 1 school nr 2 school nr 1 and 2

Figure. 32 The most important values in social life f rom the point of view of Polish teachers

30 25 25 22

20 15 15 15 13 school No 3 1111 10 1010 9 9 10 8 8 school No 4 7 6 6 6 5 5 5 55 5 5 school No 3 and No 4 4 4 4 5 3 3 33 3 3

Figure. 33 The most important values in social life from the point of view of Latvian teachers

192

school No. 1 14 15 9 10 3 3 5 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 school No 1

Figure. 34 Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 1 (Poland)

school No. 2 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 school No 2 1 0

Figure. 35 – Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 2 (Poland)

193

school No. 3 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 school No 3 2 1 0

Figure. 36 – Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 3 (Latvia)

school No 4 8 6 4 2 0 school No 4

Figure. 37 – Definitely the most important value – answers of teachers from school No 4 (Latvi a)

194

Questionnaires:

A. Questionnaire No. 1 (Polish and English version)

Co rozumiesz pod poj ęciem warto ści?

How do you understand the term ‘value’?

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Jakie warto ści w życiu społecznym s ą dla Pani/Pana najwa żniejsze ?

Wymie ń przynajmniej pi ęć .

------

Which values are most important for you in social life?

Please mention at least five.

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Dla ustalonych dla siebie warto ści przypisz ka żdej warto ść w skali od 1 do 6.

For the chosen values assign an importance on a scale from 1 to 6

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Która warto ść dla Pani/Pana jest zdecydowanie najwa żniejsza?

Which value is, definitely, the most important for you?

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Jak kształtujesz te warto ści na własnym przedmiocie?

How do younurture values in your subject?

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195

Czy Pani / Pana zdaniem Polacy:

What is your opinion about the Polish?

a/ cz ęsto pomagaj ą innym a/ they very often help other people

Zdecydowanie Tak Raczej nie Nie Zdecydowanie Nie wiem Brak tak nie odpowiedzi odpowiedzi

definitely yes yes somewhat no definitely no I do not no answer no know

b/ s ą egoistami i my ślą tylko o sobie b/ they are egoist and think only about themselves