Assessing Barriers and Opportunities for Integrating Climate Change Education in Marine Science Content Among Secondary School Teacher Training Programs

Abstract

Despite Namibia's dependence on the resources harvested off the Benguela Current ecosystems, climate change education in Namibia primarily focuses on land with minimal integration of marine content. This chapter examines barriers and opportunities for integrating climate change education in marine science content among secondary school teacher training programmes in Namibia. The research employs a qualitative, interpretivist approach involving document analysis, interviews, and case studies of existing climate education initiatives. The findings reveal significant gaps in teachers' ocean climate literacy, a lack of resources and limited understanding of the ocean's role in climate regulation. There is an opportunity to introduce context-specific marine learning activities into the secondary school curriculum due to policy frameworks and institutional structures supporting climate change education in Namibia. There is a strong policy and institutional support and growing interest in marine and environmental studies. The Namibia's Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) strategy for 2030 is actively working on a template to integrate climate awareness into formal and non-formal education, including teacher education. The chapter suggests teacher development strategies that can enhance climate teaching and promote marine ecological connections following transformative learning pedagogies. The recommendations focus on curriculum reform, improving teacher competence, and utilising Namibia's unique maritime and coastal settings as starting points for teaching about climate change.