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Although population growth (PG) is acknowledged as a major factor that drives the global environmental crisis, this issue is rarely included in environmental and sustainability education (ESE) because of its controversiality. This mixed-methods study explores the perspectives of Israeli ESE and non-ESE teachers regarding PG as an environmental risk, their willingness to include PG in their teaching, the frequency and foci of including it, the reasons for including or disregarding it, and the factors that predict their inclusion of it. The findings reveal that the deep-rooted pronatalist culture in Israel and a national pronatalist agenda impact the education system. It was found that an academic background in ESE had limited impact on teachers' perceptions concerning PG or on their willingness to discuss its controversiality in class. Teachers' attitudes related to PG demonstrated socially, culturally, and politically oriented disavowal justification regarding the negative impacts of rapid PG. The absence of PG from school curricula and the Israeli public discourse have been reported as major reasons for disregarding it in schools. To encourage teachers to incorporate this controversial issue in their teaching, and successfully confront dominant pronatalist cultures, they need ongoing support. Stakeholders in the education system must bring the population debate into schools as part of human efforts to mitigate environmental degradation and as an opportunity to strengthen tolerance among students towards diverse opinions.

The historic total global human population dataset is available on Wikipedia and provides an opportunity for modelling with simple models such as the exponential and logistic differential equations for population. Using the per-capita population growth rate (PPGR) predicted by these two models and estimated PPGR from the data, we are able to estimate parameters for the exponential model and discover that we cannot estimate parameters for the logistic model. However, we are able to create a new differential equation that models this data using ideas from the derivation of the logistic model. This is the superexponential model that goes to infinity in finite time. While the initial exponential and superexponential models are good for approximating the population data, neither really matches the PPGRs estimated from the data. We switch to a hybrid model that better matches the estimated PPGRs. It is superexponential for the first portion of the data and logistic for the rest. This hybrid model greatly reduces the modelling error and can extrapolate from the data. We note that the model switches between superexponential and logistic around 1960, the year the FDA-approved oral contraceptives, a fascinating historical tie-in with our modelling.

In this paper, we discuss how a professor could have students, using rational and exponential functions, develop models for several different density-dependent populations based on characteristics of the species. Students would then need to choose an appropriate method from among three different analytic methods (find a solution, phase-line analysis, graphing approximate solutions) to analyse their models. We then discuss how to use aspects of a species' behaviour to choose an appropriate model from among the ones developed. Finally, we show how a professor could apply what students have learned to develop general principles for sustainable harvesting of such species.

This article examines how school and non-school policies interact to reinforce or disrupt school segregation in the context of suburban communities and how these systems are maintained by structural and institutional mechanisms. Methodologically, we use a case study approach to delve deeply into the interpretation and implementation of school attendance zone redesign and non-school policies, specifically land use policies and tools. We draw on neo-institutionalist theory and Ray's (2019) framework of racialized organizations to make sense of school districts, planning agencies, and their policies. We find that school district rezoning policies provide a weak regulatory framework for desegregating schools because school zoning decisions are not made in a vacuum but rather are shaped by policies and actions taken by other actors in a multi-level governance structure. School zoning policies themselves prioritized capacity over desegregation, and regulations and norms governing the public engagement processes privilege opposition to desegregation. Our study points to the importance of greater coordination across governmental levels and policy arenas, and underscores how desegregation policy is part of a political and relational process between advocates, elected leaders, families, and youth across policy sectors.

The study examines the effect of public education expenditures on gender inequality in education in sub-Saharan Africa. It covers 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2010-2019. The generalised method of moments was used. The estimator developed by Blundell and Bond was chosen. The following results are found: (i) public expenditure on education has a positive effect on gender equality in education at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels; (ii) remittances have a negative effect on gender equality in education at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels; (iii) population growth has a negative effect on gender equality in education at the primary and tertiary levels, but at the secondary level, the effect is positive. The main political implication is that sub-Saharan African countries must continue to invest in inclusive school to ensure gender equality, which remains a goal to be achieved in the region.

India is the second-largest tribal population in the world. However, after the seven decades of independence, the tribal groups are disadvantaged and socially backward from the cycle of growth in many areas such as health, education, employment, and empowerment, and more. Among these, for tribal society, education is an essential requirement. The state and central governments have initiated several programs to educate tribal groups. Many of these programs have achieved only 10 percent of the targets. The vast numbers of tribal peoples are missing their education at various levels. They lag in education due to the high illiteracy rates among the tribal population relative to Scheduled Castes (S.C.s). Hence, the time has come to consider tribal education and inclusive growth seriously. In this context, the comprehensive literature review seeks to provide a contemporary overview of India's current status and challenging issues of tribal education. The paper is purely based on second-hand information from various research studies conducted in India and collected from different government sources. The outcomes are more helpful in implementing schemes that can improve tribal literacy and inclusive growth perspectives.

The present study attempts to examine the impact of Public wellness, competitiveness and government effectiveness along with Literacy rate and Population growth on quality of education. For this research, the panel data has been collected over the period of 25 years for 10 Asian countries including World Bank and Global Economy data base. The data is specific to employed variables. Different statistical tests like Heteroskedasticity, Autocorrelation, Cross-section dependence and Multicollinearity, and the estimation of static and dynamic GMM [General Methods of Movement] were applied on the valid data. The results show that, public wellness, Government effectiveness, literacy rate and population growth significantly impact the quality of education in Asian Countries. Whereas the insignificant impact of competiveness was evidenced from outcomes of the research. This study is associated with all type of key implications in terms of theoretical, methodological, and practical perspectives as well. Lastly, various limitations have been given along with the recommendations for in-depth findings by the future researchers.

In the contemporary literature, several studies have attempted to see the effect of gender inequality and public expenditure on inclusive education. However, few have attempted to determine the gender inequality threshold. In this study, we first examined the threshold of gender inequality which, when exceeded, the effect on inclusive education becomes negative. Second, we examined the effect of public expenditure on inclusive education in 17 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, in the period from 2000 to 2019. The fixed-effect panel data model was used. The following results have been established: (i) the gender inequality threshold from which the effect of gender inequality becomes negative on the gross enrolment rate is respectively established at 0.38 in primary and 0.37 in secondary. At the higher level, the effect of gender inequality is linear and negative on the gross enrolment rate; (ii) public expenditure on education has a positive and significant effect at the primary and secondary level on inclusive education. However, its effect at the higher level is negative. As implications, the results constitute and intermediate objective for the countries for the sub-Saharan Africa which failing to achieve gender equality, would benefit from reducing inequality to 0.38 at primary level and 0.37 at secondary level. Secondary, education in order to cancel out the negative effect of gender inequality on gross enrolment rates at the primary and secondary level. Secondly, states must further consider public education expenditure as a relevant instrument for achieving SDG 4.

The burden placed by human activities on Earth is ever-increasing. Global environmental changes have profoundly affected the Earth's core systems and processes, thus, risking their stability. These core systems and processes are described in the planetary boundary framework. The drastic rate of environmental change over the last 200 years, which is also known as the Great Acceleration, has been depicted graphically by the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program. This study is aimed to: (1) examine the conceptions of students and scientists regarding socioeconomic growth within planetary boundaries; and (2) develop instructional guidelines based on the comparison of their conceptions. Accordingly, relevant conceptions of 22 junior and 20 senior secondary school students were analyzed. Scientists' conceptions were extracted by thoroughly analyzing nine publications, which were selected by systematic literature search. Student statements and scientific inferences were coded following established protocols. Our results indicated that junior and senior secondary school students considered global population growth to be the primary cause of global environmental changes. On the contrary, the scientists considered the quantity of natural resources consumed by rich countries in their economic pursuits as the most critical factor in environmental degradation. Based on our findings, we proposed instructional guidelines for planning lessons on changing current socioeconomic systems to enable humans to live within planetary boundaries.

Linguistic verbal arts deals with the use of chants, statements and verses of oral and written materials in expressing feelings using one language or the other. Among the challenges militating against expected human and material development in many African countries is population explosion. Available social infrastructures can no longer adequately satisfy the needs of the people. At present, in Nigeria compared with what obtained many years ago, religious practices are taken as excuses for marrying many wives when in the actual sense, there are often misinterpretations of the doctrines of the religions. The findings of this paper is that though many Nigerians are either Muslims or Christians with few number of traditional religious faith, the lust for marrying more than one wife did not make them obey the doctrines of their religious practices. This paper derives its strength from collation of verbal arts as expressed in the Holy Books of the Muslims, Christians and Ifa´ Oracle, one of the African traditional religions. The paper posits that no religion in Nigeria advocates for many wives and many children. The implication of this paper among others is that it provides valuable information on Nigerian population particularly as this concept remains a great troubling issue for Nigerian and many African governments. It is yet an attempt aimed at discouraging Africans from creating more problems for themselves and the continent through production of more children than they can cater for.

Pakistan is considered to be the fifth largest young country in the world. Around 63 percent population of the country comprises youth aged between 15 and 33 (UN Population Fund Report 2017). Such a large young population has posed daunting challenges to the social, economic and political sectors of the state. The fast rising youth bulge of Pakistan seems to be a constantly ticking time bomb instead of a demographic dividend, threatening its very own existence. Poor youth engagement in the productive political, educational, economic and socio-cultural activities indicates ineffectiveness of the public and private sectors policies especially at the state level. The current research study is intended to identify the key factors behind the disengaged and distressed youth of Pakistan in the three core areas of education, economy and politics. For this purpose, a systematic literature review was carried out in which national and international labor survey reports, youth development index, national youth program and federal education and economic policies were critically analyzed alongside the relevant research studies, non-government organizations' reports and media coverage for a dynamic overview. Besides, interviews of relevant stakeholders were also conducted to investigate the issue from diverse perspectives. Evidently, youth partnership, empowerment, and engagement in educational, economic and political sectors can be the only way forward to address the increasing challenges of the country.

The ongoing debates about the effects of human population growth (HPG) is one of the concepts in education for sustainable development (ESD). Beliefs toward HPG are an important construct for teacher education because beliefs potentially interfere with their instructional practices and students' beliefs, attitudes and behaviors. Accordingly, this study focused on developing and validating an instrument to explore pre-service teachers' beliefs toward the effects of HPG. The instrument was piloted, revised, and the main study was administered to 658 pre-service teachers. The instrument revealed five dimensions: requirements to support HPG; neo-Malthusian environmentalism; population and national economy; quality of human life; and population, resources and environment. Pre-service teachers' beliefs revealed that they needed additional support to understand multiple and nested interactions among HPG, urbanization, energy demand and national economy within the context of sustainability. This instrument is a promising tool to provide insights when designing courses on ESD for pre-service teachers.

Dr. Michael E. Newman presented the 2016 AAAE Distinguished Lecture at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Agricultural Education in Kansas City, Missouri in May, 2016. The article is a philosophical work based upon the author's experiences in the agricultural education profession.

Background: Many students solving quantitative problems in science struggle to apply mathematical instruction they have received to novel problems. The few students who succeed often draw on both their mathematical understanding of the equation and their scientific understanding of the phenomenon. Understanding the sensemaking opportunities provided during instruction is necessary to develop strategies for improving student outcomes. However, few studies have examined the types of sensemaking opportunities provided during instruction of mathematical equations in science classrooms and whether they are organized in ways that facilitate integration of mathematical and scientific understanding. This study uses a multiple case study approach to examine the sensemaking opportunities provided by four different instructors when teaching the same biological phenomenon, population growth. Two questions are addressed: (1) What types of sensemaking opportunities are provided by instructors, and (2) How are those sensemaking opportunities organized? The Sci-Math Sensemaking Framework, previously developed by the authors, was used to identify the types of sensemaking. Types and organization of sensemaking opportunities were compared across the four instructors. Results: The instructors provided different opportunities for sensemaking of equations, even though they were covering the same scientific phenomenon. Sensemaking opportunities were organized in three ways, blended (previously described in studies of student problem solving as integration of mathematics and science resources), and two novel patterns, coordinated and adjacent. In coordinated sensemaking, two types of sensemaking in the same dimension (either mathematics or science) are explicitly connected. In adjacent sensemaking, two different sensemaking opportunities are provided within the same activity but not explicitly connected. Adjacent sensemaking was observed in three instructors' lessons, but only two instructors provided opportunities for students to engage in blended sensemaking. Conclusions: Instructors provide different types of sensemaking opportunities when teaching the same biological phenomenon, making different resources available to students. The organization of sensemaking also differed with only two instructors providing blended sensemaking opportunities. This result may explain why few students engage in the successful strategy of integrating mathematics and science resources when solving quantitative problems. Documentation of these instructional differences in types and organization of sensemaking provides guidance for future studies investigating the effect of instruction on student sensemaking.

In Extension, understanding trends has ramifications when working with external audiences, internal audiences, and even preparing future Extension professionals. This research sought to assess the applicability of several national trends to Florida so that the Florida Cooperative Extension Service (CES) could more accurately plan to meet the needs of Florida in the future. The Organizational Change model guided this discussion and provided a theory-driven strategy for addressing future challenges facing Extension. A basic qualitative study was used, and eight participants were interviewed. Participants were required to be Florida Extension personnel who were well regarded within the organization and had a working understanding of Extension's issues. Data analysis was performed using the constant comparative method with open coding and themes were consolidated which ultimately resulted in five themes and 10 sub-themes. Findings indicated that the transformational factors challenging Extension included the external environment and mission and strategy. Conversely, the challenging transactional factors were structure, systems (policies and procedures), and task requirements and individual skills. Transformational factors were identified as the primary catalyst for change and Extension may focus efforts towards the four sub-themes that emerged from the external environment: (a) urbanization, (b) education with online technology, (c) conflicting messages, and (d) diverse audiences. Additionally, three sub-themes emerged from mission and strategy: (a) science-based information, (b) building partnerships, and (c) engaging stakeholders. The Florida CES has adapted to many 21st century challenges, but the need for change remains if Extension intends to keep its reputation as a premier educational organization.

This paper introduces sigmoid or s-curve as a metaphor for describing the dynamics of change. We first encountered the s-curve as a description of a possible growth trajectory whereby populations become established, begin to flourish and the numbers increase rapidly until they reach some limit. At this point, the growth rate slows rapidly then stops and the size of the population is either maintained, something happens to stimulate a further upsurge in growth, or there is a dramatic decline. This basic biological metaphor has been picked up by social science researchers, particularly those who are interested in the complex dynamics of change and adaptation over time. The s-curve metaphor is now applied beyond population growth to describe change dynamics in social systems. We have noted this situation of rapid change followed by stability, further growth or subsequent decline in a number of projects we have worked on. The contributors to this special section discuss examples of this change pattern across a range of contexts.

The objective of the study is to draw an analogy with the criminological aspects of unemployed migrants' delinquency in Astana and Almaty, based on the example of the criminal US cities, to develop a solution on the basis of the information received and solutions to emerging conflicts. The article presents solutions in order to improve the efficiency of social and legal control over unemployment and migration flows. The article reviews the main causes of crime, and the comparative analysis between the level of crime and unemployment has been undertaken. There were given recommendations how to normalize those aspects and improve crime situation in the cities. The author raises the question of migratory flows, their importance for the economy and the urban crime. Recommendations for improving the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the migration service were given as well as ways of proper managing and administering migration flows. The paper provides the theoretical recommendations for combating unemployment and improving the lives of migratory flows in order to solve conflict situations and reduce the impact of crime on the basis of the received data about given cities of Kazakhstan.

The purpose of this study was to determine preservice science teachers' attitudes toward environment and to investigate whether their environmental attitudes differ in terms of gender and grade level. A total of 197 preservice science teachers participated in the study. Personal Information Form and the Environmental Attitudes Inventory (EAI) developed by Milfont and Duckitt (2006) were utilized as data collection tools in the study. The data were analyzed using the PASW Statistics 18 (SPSS Inc.). According to the results, preservice science teachers displayed moderately favorable attitudes toward environment. Furthermore, a significant gender difference favoring female preservice teachers was found in terms of total and environmental movement activism, environmental threat, and support for population growth policies dimensions of EAI. In addition, according to grade level, significant differences were found in favor of senior preservice teachers in total and human utilization of nature, and support for population growth policies dimensions of EAI. Results were discussed based on the findings obtained from the study.

This study aimed to discuss a better understanding of existing levels of Islamic environmental behavior in the perspective of eco-feminist environmental activism in Pakistan with the analysis of existing literature, media reports, NGOs' environmental movements, and the environmental activists' campaigns. Women, in the world generally and Pakistan particularly, have the most appropriate pro-environmental behavior concerning the cultural eco-feminist dimensions. This study will address the radical reasons for climate change as demographic changes, deforestation, pollution, and population growth along with their solutions from the Islamic perspective. Women as the ecofeminism activists must be the part of policy matters and their implementation structure as the first-hand companions of nature and social culture.

Educational scholars, particularly those working in comparative education, have largely failed to recognise, let alone discuss, the impending finite-ness of global resources. The field continues to operate on an assumption of infinite resources, an implicit cultural horizon in place since at least the Western Enlightenment. It has missed the epochal shift that is now upon us; unable to contribute to the deep transformation of research and practices that has now become urgent. Herein we discuss how such concerns might be addressed, suggesting an approach that centres ontological alterity through comparative method as means of making the turn towards a sustainable future.

With a fertility rate that nearly triples the national average and increased political power that accompanies demographic growth, Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Jews in Israel are becoming an increasingly important piece of the country's diverse national mosaic. This raises economic concerns: Haredi women earn low wages, while most Haredi men do not work. Meanwhile, like all Israeli citizens, Haredim receive expensive government services, including funding for ultra-Orthodox schools. Haredi schools focus on religious instruction at the expense of core subjects, and comprise a barrier to economic and social integration. Whether other Israelis should be responsible for financing an education that provides limited positive externalities is debatable. More importantly, Haredi population growth and attitudes towards work and education might jeopardise Israel's long-term economic outlook. Potential policy solutions include decentralisation of government services, including education or financial incentives for curricular modernisation.

Over the past decades, the development of knowledge-based and innovation-led economy has gained the attention of higher education (HE) institutions. The Quadruple Helix Model of the relations amongst universities, industries, government and society provides a general framework for systematically investigating the dynamics of innovation amongst these agents. However, knowledge about their influence on cross-boundary cities is limited. The ways in which HE institutions bridge different innovation systems also remain unknown. This study thus examines the innovation systems of two neighbouring cities along the border, namely, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and their multidirectional innovation cooperation. Research findings suggest that the two innovation systems differ in terms of the unequal role of the agents. The systems seem mutually complementary in terms of HE capacity and industrial composition, and cross-boundary cooperation in HE sectors currently occurs through various means. This study sheds light on the development of and cooperation between cross-border innovation systems.

The population of the world is growing and moving. The overwhelming majority of people are on the move inside their own country and mostly towards cities while a minority moves from non-Western areas to the West. In Finnish geography, history and social science school textbooks, this mobility tends to be depicted differently depending on whether the movers represent "us" or "them." Global population growth is most prevalent in the poorest regions of the world, even though Europe is clearly the most densely populated continent. Still, the talk of "overpopulation" does not usually concern Europe or the West. The article uses discourse theory analysis and a postcolonial framework to research the discourse of "us" and "them" with regard to population growth and migration as they are presented in Finnish textbooks. The results show that the hegemony of a superior West is alive and well in the books, which portray the non-Western populations as growing and moving in uncontrolled and threatening ways. Uncontrolled urbanization is seen as dangerous, and the implication is that there are too many people in non-Western areas. Metaphors such as natural disasters or floods are used to describe the moving population, while cities are described as "suffocating."

This study explored environmental knowledge and behavior of 350 Nigerian youth using data from a randomly administered test. Results indicated respondents had general environmental knowledge (68%), which they accessed mainly from electronic media sources. Significant differences in their environmental knowledge were in relation to subject background, and gender, but not type of school attended. Respondents showed low participation in environmental programs; while their environmental behavior was fair, it did not reflect their level of environmental knowledge. Environmental knowledge and positive behavior can be increased through appropriate media and the introduction of environmental education in schools.

More than 50 years ago biologist Garrett Hardin published his influential essay 'The Tragedy of the Commons'. In his essay, Hardin argued that in situations where people share resources, external intervention via governmental regulations or privatization of the resource is needed to avoid resource overexploitation. While the article is considered by many resource governance scholars as misleading and incomplete, it is one of the most assigned articles in environmental studies courses. Here, we present findings from a survey of instructors who teach undergraduate courses on sustainability within the USA on how Hardin's essay is used and what the understanding is of the instructors about the essay. The results from the survey demonstrate that there is a mixed understanding of the current state of knowledge about commons governance. In particular, instructors trained in the natural sciences have more misconceptions about commons governance than instructors trained in other disciplines.

Purpose: The aims of this study is to put on the agenda discussions concerning the approach of sustainable goals and indicators, in terms of how they relate to each other and how to list their importance within a network of contemporary city management. From the millennium objectives experience, UN has launched the continuity of the development program, through the sustainable development goals (SDG), which have the purpose of giving support to local and regional governments for the 2030 agenda in local sphere. In the city context, sustainable development has also been approached in regulations, like ISO 37120: 2017 "Sustainable development of communities: Indicators for city services and quality of life". These instruments have in common the concern of offering parameters of public services to citizens and promoting in a uniform manner both social and economic growth of the urban environment. Design/methodology/approach: The present study aims to compare these two sustainable development tools by means of a documentary analysis and to analyze the feasibility of the proposed indicators and their qualitative evaluation goals to improve citizens' quality of life. Findings: The results suggest that the main urban challenges are related to unplanned urban growth and poor-quality public services, which generate a lack of commitment to enforce laws and to achieve sustainable development goals. Originality/value: The study establishes bases for guiding the discussion to support managers and investors decisions to promote paradigm changes in the citizens' life and in the way cities are planned.

Taiwan has undergone radical innovation of its educational system in the wake of political liberalization and democratization, with a request for a change in the idea which diverts from "de-centralization" to "individualization." The reforms have led to two main features of pluralism and generalization of education in our current education system with a view to more equal and plural opportunities of education for students in Taiwan. Nevertheless, a number of reform tasks have been done in haste without discretion and have developed various problems with some deriving from the inherent educational system and some from the reform tasks themselves. The paper discusses three major educational reform concerns and the problems associated with these concerns including multilingual learning in elementary schools, overexpansion of higher education institutions and 12-year compulsory education.

The labor force is the number of people ages 16 or older who are either working or looking for work. It does not include active-duty military personnel or the institutionalized population, such as prison inmates. Determining the size of the labor force is a way of determining how big the economy can get. The size of the labor force depends on two factors. The first is the size of the population, which is determined by rates of birth, immigration, and death. The second is the labor force participation rate--the percent of the population that is working or actively seeking employment. Labor force participation rates vary significantly between men and women and among different age, racial, and ethnic groups. Population growth rates also vary from one group to another. These variations change the composition of the labor force over time. This paper presents charts that show how the labor force is projected to change among age groups, between men and women, among racial groups (Asians, blacks, whites, and others), and among ethnic groups (Hispanics and non-Hispanics of any race). The U.S. Census Bureau uses these categories to produce the demographic data on which BLS projections are based.