Climate change education and learner competency: Evaluating pedagogical approaches in Kenyan schools

Abstract

This article evaluates pedagogical approaches for climate change education (CCE) and learner competency in Kenyan schools. It combines narrative synthesis and a purposively delimited corpus of contemporary scholarly literature on the topic of climate pedagogy, learner competency, and African or Global South education contexts. The study was anchored in Epstein’s Overlapping Spheres of Influence Theory. A systematic source-identification process screened 72 records and retained six article documents for analysis. Article documents were included when they were peer-reviewed journal articles, accessible in full text, published within the defined search period, and directly focused on family-school-community partnerships, parental engagement, learner retention, academic resources, truancy, community participation, or education for sustainable development in basic education. The synthesis demonstrates the enhancement of learner competency with CCE extending beyond awareness and factual recall to offer a path to climate literacy, inquiry, transdisciplinary problem solving, local-community relevance, climate justice reasoning, action projects, and performing assessment. The evidence from meta-analysis and systematic review suggests climate education interventions have the potential to impact knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour, yet outcomes rely on age-appropriate pedagogy, context, resources, and the design of assessment. African scholarship also stresses local learning, community-based learning, and drawing a connection between ideas and the reality of climate change experiences of learners. The article calls for Kenyan schools to assess CCE through competencies that can be observed in action, like systems thinking, interpreting evidence, adapting plans, collaboration, communicating risk, and taking responsible action. It calls for teacher training, the inclusion of climate projects in schools, partnerships with the community, and competency-based assessment rubrics linked to real learner outcomes.