• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.18 no.2 s.27
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• pp.31-43
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• 2005

In this study, after establishing assessment framework and reviewing the conceptual evolution and component of EL(Environmental Literacy) through literature review, through middle school students as population, the level of EL and relationship of its related variables were examined. The investigation was consisted of second and third grades of urban and rural middle schools in Choongbook. The used measurement methods were objective evaluation and Likert-type scale. The questionnaire instrument variables were consisted of 80 items on environmental literacy variables and six items on student gender, area of residence, environmental lesson, degree of environmental concern, environmental information, environmental activity as background variables. The major findings of this study were as follows: 1. Although the broad and obscure concept of EL has been evolved until 1992, it has been developed more systematic and precise after 1992. But there is not still an agreed concept. 2. The subordinate components of EL were consisted of cognitive, affective, and behavioral aspects. Both ecological knowledge(KEOC) and environmental skill(SKILL) were determined to serve as two powerful predictors of EL. 3. The level of EL of middle school student was showed statistically significant difference to some variables by student gender, residential area, environmental lesson, environmental concern, environmental information, and environmental activity variables. And the most influential variables of EL in middle school student were environmental skill(SKILL), and locus of control (LOC). Based on the findings of this study, the following suggestions are drawn: It should be established a precise concept on EL as the ultimate aim of environmental education both interdisciplinary cooperation and experts of environmental education and also performed further longitudinal study which assessed multidimensional variables which are able to exactly measure the EL of middle school student.

• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.19 no.2 s.30
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• pp.147-158
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• 2006

The purpose of this study is to closely examine the changes of food and drink waste amounts, and student's environmental literacy. By using creative methods, discretional activity classes, and programs to dispose of food and drink waste from students schoolmeals, and at the same time conduct and teach environmental education classes. To achieve this, students were given ten class lessons in creative discretional activities. Students were given flowerpots containing earthworms and were instructed to raise them, using food and drink waste from school meals. Four classes who were participating in project were examined for changes from March to July 2005. As a result the environmental education classes through creative discretional activities didn't have any significant influence on the students environmental literacy. However it did make a difference to the student's in-terms of their ecological knowledge. The project using earthworms to dispose of food and waste drink showed a decrease of 15% of the amount of waste food and drink from school meals. Moreover student's environmental literacy had been significantly influenced about environmental sensibility, value and causes. Through this study I found that the project using earthworms to dispose of waste food and drink, and creative discretional activities as a lesson decreased the amount of food and drink waste at the school, and the changes to students concerns and understanding about environmental sensibility, value and the various causes of waste food and drink.

• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.70-81
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• 2010

The present study aimed to understand high school students' environmental literacy for water and their attitudes toward environment. This study was conducted during the spring of the 2010 academic year with the participation of 123 students from a public international high school located in Seoul. The Environmental Science Literacy for Water test and the Revised New Ecological Paradigm scale were administered, and the data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and content analysis. The high school students in this study put strong emphasis on encouraging others to conserve water resources. This belief, however, was not aligned with self-recognition of their own roles in water supply shortages and other problematic water-use behavior. They also had difficulties in understanding the invisible part of matter transformations in water systems. Nevertheless, they showed favorable attitudes toward environmental conservation. In conclusion, the researchers suggest recognizing our own water problems and narrowing the gap between environmental and scientific knowledge of water and actual attitudes about the environment through curricular incorporation of interdisciplinary environmental science literacy into school science.

• The Korean Journal of Community Living Science
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.331-341
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• 2009

The purpose of this study is to develop a nature friendly education program that would support ecological literacy of preschool children and to examine the effects of the program on their ecological knowledge and positive attitudes toward nature. The subjects of the study were 59 children from two child-care centers located at Gyeonggi Province. 30 preschoolers from one center were allocated into an experimental group, while 29 preschoolers from the other center were regarded as the control group. The program was composed of 24 sessions, performed three times a week for 20-30 minutes from May to June 2009. The instrument included the knowledge and attitudes toward the environmental scale for preschool children. The following results were obtained. First, the experimental group was found to attain higher level of ecological knowledge and more positive attitudes about nature as a result of the program. Second, after the program was administrated, the experimental group showed higher level of the knowledge and more positive attitudes about nature than the control group. These results suggest a program which conducts within a integrated teaching frame of meeting and getting familiar with nature and taking care of animals and plants, can become an effective early childhood education tool which fosters positive attitudes and knowledge concerning the environment.

• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.65-74
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• 2000

Environmentally literated students and adults should be able to use and apply the basic ecological concepts when considering environmental problems and issues. Because ecology forms the foundation of environmental education, a review of the literatures on the degree of students' understanding for ecological concepts can provide useful insights for environmental educators. The purposes of this study were as follows: first, to analyse the parts connected with ecological knowledge of two environmental education books, ‘environments’(middle school) and ‘environmental science’(high school), second, to investigate the level of understanding on ecological concepts by the use of new developed instrument. The 20 most important ecological concepts from Cherrett(1989) and the important ecological concepts' lists from Hungerford and Volk(1990), Ramsey, Hungerford and Volk(1992), Volk(1993) would be recognized and endorsed by most environmental educators as concepts essential to environmental literacy, We referenced these informations and sequenced ecological knowledge as four main categories(communities, populations, ecosystem, man as a component of the nature systems). We have used it as a criterion in the analysis of teaching materials and the development of a new test instrument($\alpha$=0.81). According to the analysed results, the understanding levels for scales and relationships of communities, populations, ecosystem were high but those for individual concepts and differences were low. By the analysis of Korean High School EE book, ‘environmental science’, learning for some concepts(succession, material cycling, niche etc.) has pointed out as one of problems. Environmental educators must pay a careful attention to the concepts that showed high rates of incorrect answer and this work will contribute toward consolidating the basis of EE and help the accomplishment of the ultimate goals in EE.

• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.35-49
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to investigate satisfaction of student, adult and forest interpreters about facilities and program of children's garden, which was constructed as edutainment space within Korea National Arboretum on May 2011. The results are as follows. First, an information about construction of children's garden should be provided actively, because 70.8% student and 68.6% adult of respondent did not know existence of children's garden. Second, it has been analysed that a fundamental conception of GREEN-I be reflected in construction children's garden, especially, reflecting conception of Enjoy and Edutainment was comparatively high. Third, It was found that ecological experiencing activities program of children's garden was positively to develop environmental literacy for student. Fourth, It was found that satisfaction of uncommon planting area was very low among planting area and satisfaction of forest interpreters was very low about place of ecological experience learning using five senses. Finally, for effective operation of children's garden, children's garden should be provided planting for environmental education connected with the school curriculum and ecological experiencing activities program to enjoy time with the family. Therefore, these results will be applied to improve children's garden and could be applied to construct other children's garden in botanical gardens.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.495-508
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• 2023

Objectives: This study aimed to develop a campus-based intervention program to enhance food literacy (FL) among university students. Methods: In the initial phase, we conducted a literature review of FL intervention studies and held in-depth interviews with university students to identify facilitators and barriers to improving and practicing FL. Expert counseling sessions were conducted with nutrition education, marketing, and service design professionals. The results of this phase led to the creation of an initial curriculum draft. In the second phase, a follow-up survey was conducted with young adults to assess the acceptability of the developed curriculum. After the follow-up survey, additional meetings were conducted with the aforementioned experts, and the curriculum was further refined based on their input. Results: An 11-week FL intervention program was devised using constructs from the Social Cognitive Theory. The weekly curriculum consisted of 90-min theory-based and 90-min hands-on experience sessions. Three primary aspects of FL were covered: nutrition and food safety, cultural and relational dimensions, and socio-ecological aspects. Program highlights included cooking sessions for crafting traditional Korean desserts, lectures on animal welfare, insights into zero-waste practices, and communal eating experiences. Based on the study team's previous research, the program also addressed mindful eating, helping participants understand the relationship with their eating habits, and providing strategies to manage negative emotions without resorting to food. Yoga sessions and local farm visits were incorporated into the curriculum to promote holistic well-being. Conclusions: This study elucidated the comprehensive process of creating a campus-based curriculum to enhance FL among university students, a group particularly susceptible to problematic eating behaviors and low FL levels. The developed program can serve as a blueprint for adaptation to other campuses seeking to bolster students' FL.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.945-958
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• 2023

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Food literacy (FL) is a crucial skill for selecting sustainable and healthy food options, necessitating the identification of vulnerable groups in the community using valid measurement tools. Identifying weak domains in FL is essential for enhancing the overall FL. This study examined the FL levels of Seoul citizens based on their sociodemographic characteristics and assessed the relationship between FL, food intake, and weight status. SUBJECTS/METHODS: This study utilized the data from the Seoul Food Survey, a cross-sectional study employing representative samples of Seoul citizens. Data collection occurred from September to October 2021, with 4,039 citizens aged 18 yrs and above participating in face-to-face surveys. Thirty-three FL items were assessed, comprising 14 items in the nutrition and safety (NS) domain, eight items in the cultural and relational (CR) domain, and 11 items in the socio-ecological (SE) domain. In addition, data on food intake sufficiency and obesity status were collected. The descriptive statistics, t-tests, analysis of variance, and logistic regression analysis were used for analysis. RESULTS: Men, students, young adults, older citizens, and people experiencing food insecurity had the lowest scores for all the FL domains. The highest quartile group of NS scores had a higher probability of consuming adequate servings of vegetables and fruits, with significant linear trends observed (P for trend < 0.05). In all three FL domains, the odds ratio for obesity was significantly lower in the groups with high FL scores (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: A close relationship was observed between low FL, obesity, and food intake, even after controlling for other covariates. Vulnerable groups with low FL were also identified. Therefore, it is essential to develop programs to improve FL and the health and well-being of these groups.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.1155-1169
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• 2023

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Unhealthy food choices among young adults are common globally, and the incidence of chronic diseases, such as obesity, is rising. Food literacy (FL) is important for improving and maintaining individual health in a rapidly changing food environment and can form the basis for following a sustainable diet. Therefore, it is essential to improve FL among young adults, particularly college students, who are in the formative years of their lifelong food habits. This study examined the facilitators and barriers of FL and related dietary behavior among college students in South Korea. SUBJECTS/METHODS: This study recruited 25 college students with different residence types using convenience and snowball sampling. In-person, telephone, and video interviews were conducted from March to November 2021. The interview data were analyzed using framework analysis based on the socio-ecological model. RESULTS: At the individual level, prior good experiences with food were the most frequently mentioned facilitator. In contrast, the major barriers were a lack of knowledge, financial hardship, irregular schedules, and academic stress. At the interpersonal level, the influences of family and peers, such as early exposure to healthy eating habits and opportunities to have easy accessibility to farms and farming, are major facilitators, but the lack of a sense of community was the major barrier. At the environmental level, the major barriers were unfavorable food environments at home and in neighborhoods, such as the absence of kitchens in housing and large packaging of produce at markets. CONCLUSIONS: Many factors affected the students' FL and related healthy eating practices. These findings suggest that a campus-based FL program should be developed by reflecting on these facilitators and barriers.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.119-131
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• 2024

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Happiness is an important factor in life, and food literacy (FL) has been emphasized as a core concept for a happy and healthy life. This study examined the level of happiness of Seoul citizens according to their sociodemographic factors and their association with FL. SUBJECTS/METHODS: This study used the data from the Seoul Food Survey, a cross-sectional study conducted on 4,039 Seoul citizens from September to October 2021. FL was measured using a validated questionnaire consisting of 33 items from 3 sub-domains: 14 items in the nutrition and safety domain, 8 items in the cultural and relational domain, and 11 items in the socio-ecological domain. Statistical analysis involved descriptive statistics and multivariate regression analysis. RESULTS: Various sociodemographic factors, such as household income, subjective health status, and food insecurity, were found to be associated with the level of happiness. The level of FL was also associated with the happiness scores. After adjusting for variables associated with happiness, the participants with the highest quartile FL scores were 7.32 times more likely to respond that they were happy than those with the lowest FL score. Three FL domains and total FL showed linear increases in overall happiness after controlling for subjective health status and sociodemographic factors (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: After adjusting for the related covariates, higher levels of FL were associated with higher scores in happiness. Based on this study, it would be meaningful to evaluate ways to intervene in FL to improve the level of happiness among the general population.