Investigating Home Economics Teachersí Food Waste Practices and Attitudes

Abstract Although studies highlight the role of education in sustainable Food Waste (FW) behaviors, few studies examine basic education pedagogies concerning FW. The present research explores Finnish comprehensive schoolteachersí food and FW attitudes, personal FW practices, and FW pedagogy - educational approach, learning environment, classroom actions, and learning materials. Principal Component Analysis and Spearman correlation analyses of data from a convenience-sampled survey examined FW attitude and practice connections. Respondents (n=52), mostly females (85 %) and Home Economics teachers (62 %), reported two main attitudinal components. Wide Range Responsibility (WRR) represented holistic, global, and communal FW perspectives, while Restricted Responsibility (RR) represented individual and hedonistic FW views. WRR together with school related environmental activities correlated significantly with teacher pedagogical practices to enhance pupilsí ability to recognize factors influencing their FW practices. As personal attitudes may carry into teachersí pedagogical practices, future research should examine teachersí personal values and their consistency with basic curriculum values.