Chapter 23 Food, Sustainability, and Science Literacy in One Package? Opportunities and Challenges in Using Aquaponics Among Young People at School, a Danish Perspective
23.4 Findings and Discussion
From the first study, the findings showed that visions of a new way of teaching with inclusion of the modern technology could be perceived as an advantage in influencing transformational processes at school. Nevertheless, this process requires some critical, practical, and theoretical considerations for implementation of the system to make it successful and sustainable in the long term. Some of the positive issues from the users’ perspectives included a wide range of application in the subjects of biology, mathematics, science, and more.
· Aquaponics Food Production Systems23.3 Methods
In the context of this chapter, three data sources were used including (a) an exploratory study on the educational opportunities at school (Bosire et al. 2016), (b) a feasibility study carried out among teachers (Bosire and Sikora 2017), and (c) the eGBG study (Toth and Mikkelsen 2018). The first study (a) was carried out as an exploration of the opportunities and challenges of using aquaponics as an educational tool. The study aimed at investigating to what extent it makes sense to use aquaponics in school teaching.
· Aquaponics Food Production Systems23.2 Conceptual Foundation
Supporting Sustainable Development (SD) of the food system through educational efforts can be expected to be a good investment, as school children are the future policy makers and producers. According to Shephard (2008), educators and particularly higher educators have traditionally focused on the cognitive domain of learning with no much emphasis being put on primary education. We hold the view that using appropriate learning tools at primary school level can be an essential pillar to bringing about long-term positive change in societies.
· Aquaponics Food Production Systems23.1 Introduction
Sustainable food production and consumption are important societal challenges. Growing populations, scarcity of arable land, and urbanization are all important factors in this area, leading to a growing interest in new sustainable food production technologies, which are not necessarily confined to maritime or rural settings. Aquaponics is one of these technologies that has received increased attention, in particular, since it can easily be applied also in urban environments. These new technologies, including aquaponics, also offer new opportunities as learning tools for people of all ages, but it is particularly appealing for young people at school.
· Aquaponics Food Production Systems