The aim of this study was to examine the contribution of teachers’ initial training (field of study, attending education for sustainable development (ESD) course/s) as well as student teachers’ socio-demographic characteristics (gender and age) to their readiness to implement ESD (intention to implement ESD and teachers’ self-efficacy). A total of 706 student teachers studying at six Croatian universities participated in the study. It was determined that female student teachers express greater intention to implement ESD, however the gender differences were not found on teachers’ self-efficacy for ESD. Furthermore, the older the participants, the lesser the extent to which they express their intention to implement ESD. Student teachers in the field of the natural sciences express the intent to implement ESD to a lesser extent compared to students from other fields (humanities, arts, and social sciences). Lastly, it was determined that student teachers who have attended ESD course/s express higher levels of intention to implement ESD as well as teachers’ self-efficacy for ESD. In that sense, the higher the number of attended ESD courses, the higher student teachers’ readiness to implement ESD. Based on the results of this study, recommendations for teacher education programs have been offered.

In education for sustainable development, widely regarded as a framework that offers us the opportunity to improve the ways in which we cope with climate change issues, the need for student teachers to express willingness to act in order to deal with numerous issues and challenges of sustainable development, especially climate change, is of particular importance. Therefore, the focus of this study is on the examination of predictors of student teachers’ willingness to act in a climate-change mitigation and adaptation context. For the purpose of this study, measurement instruments of willingness to act in climate change mitigation and adaptation context, attitudes towards climate change, perception of action possibilities in climate change mitigation and adaptation context, interest in climate change and concern for ecological problems were validated. A total of 201 student teachers from the University of Rijeka (Croatia) participated in the study. It was determined that (I) attitudes towards climate change, (II) perception of action possibilities in climate change mitigation and adaptation context and (III) interest in climate change represent significant predictors of willingness to act in climate-change direction and mitigation contexts. Based on the results of this study, recommendations for teacher education in the climate change context have been offered.

This study contributes to the understanding of student teachers’ sustainable behaviors. (Future) teachers are perceived as models of social learning as they model desirable behavior, attitudes, values, and emotions while living and demonstrating a pro-sustainable lifestyle. Therefore, it is essential to understand which personal variables, aptitudes, and psychological benefits predispose them towards a pro-sustainable lifestyle. This study’s intent was to consider components that can affect sustainable actions such as psychological tendencies (e.g., attitudes, motives, beliefs, values, norms) and consequences (e.g., well-being or happiness) associated with sustainable actions. This study’s main objective was to test the sustainable behavior model on a sample of student teachers. A total of 496 student teachers participated in the study. The results analyzed by SEM indicate that student teachers’ sustainable behavior is directly predicted by their intention to act, which is both positively and significantly influenced by indignation and affinity towards diversity. Additionally, sustainable behaviors slightly (but statistically significantly) predict the self-assessment of happiness. These findings contribute to a better general understanding of sustainable behaviors’ antecedents and repercussion variables, especially within a student teacher population.

The study aims to understand the relationship between predictors of student teachers’ intention to implement education for sustainable development (ESD). It proposes and evaluates the intention to implement the ESD model, which identifies the following predictors of student teachers’ intention to implement ESD: (I) teacher self-efficacy, (II) teacher beliefs (about learning and teaching), (III) the assessment of the ESD value and (IV) attitudes towards sustainable development (SD). Using structural equation modeling, 706 student teachers’ data have been analyzed. Teacher self-efficacy and ESD value assessment have a direct positive effect on the intention to implement ESD. Furthermore, the assessment of ESD values and constructivist teacher beliefs has an indirect positive effect on the intention to implement ESD mediated by teacher self-efficacy. The more student teachers assess themselves as capable of ESD implementation, nurturing constructivist beliefs about the nature of knowledge, learning, and teaching, as well as value education as a tool for advancing society toward SD, the higher their intention to implement ESD in the future.

Školska klima podrazumijeva relativno trajnu kvalitetu školske okoline nastalu kombinacijom fizičkih i socijalnih čimbenika (poput formalne organizacije, neformalne organizacije, ličnosti sudionika i specifičnosti upravljanja školom, Domović, 2003), a utječe na ponašanje njenih članova. Temelji se na zajedničkoj percepciji ponašanja svih aktera u školi. U ovom radu autorice se bave nekim aspektima percepcije školske klime srednjoškolaca. Istraživanje je provedeno na uzorku od 287 srednjoškolaca iz šest srednjih škola na području Zagreba, Rijeke i Osijeka. Dva su temeljna cilja ovoga rada. Prvi cilj istraživanja bio je ispitati metrijske karakteristike instrumenta Hrvatskog upitnika školske klime za učenike (HUŠK-U, Velki i Kuterovac Jagodić, 2012) na srednjoškolskom uzorku. Potvrđena je jednofaktorska struktura i visoka pouzdanost upitnika za srednjoškolsku populaciju. Drugi cilj rada bio je utvrditi postoji li razlika u percepciji školske klime između državnih škola i škola čiji je osnivač vjerska zajednica s pravom javnosti. Rezultati upućuju na općenito pozitivnu percepciju školske klime na uzorku srednjoškolaca. Iako su na razini lokacije škola obuhvaćenih ovim istraživanjem pronađeni specifični obrasci percepcije školske klime učenika iz državnih škola i škola čiji je osnivač vjerska zajednica s pravom javnosti, na ukupnom uzorku nije pronađena razlika u percepciji školske klime između tih dviju skupina učenika. Pronađena je samo razlika u percepciji školske klime između mlađih i starijih srednjoškolaca. Sukladno s prijašnjim istraživanjima mlađi srednjoškolci percipiraju školsku klimu pozitivnijom od starijih srednjoškolaca.

Cognitive interviewing is one of the pre-testing methods that is used in scale development to inform item revision decisions and to provide validity evidence of response processes for questionnaire items. Cognitive interviewing usually consists of a series of successive rounds of interviews in which all aspects of the survey are applied and (consequently) adapted. The scientific literature lacks a systematic review as well as consensus on the specifics of the design and adequate practice of cognitive interviewing. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to offer an overview of the method of cognitive interviewing and to point out open questions that have the potential to generate new research ideas that would improve the method of cognitive interviewing. A review of the literature points to certain conceptual problems in defining this method, but also to prolific areas for further research on cognitive interviewing.