Teacher educators and the SDGs: self-reported practices and cross-country insights

Abstract

This study examines how teacher educators in South Africa and Austria engage with sustainability-related practices aligned with the United Nations' Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Using data from the Teacher Educator Sustainability Survey within the Teach4Reach 2.0 project, a cross-sectional quantitative design explored self-reported practices, perceptions, and levels of professional engagement. Factor analysis revealed different factor structures in each country, highlighting how contextual conditions shape sustainability integration. Across both contexts, most factors showed mean or median values above the Likert-scale midpoint, indicating generally positive orientations towards sustainability. Although the findings are not generalisable beyond the two samples, they provide valuable insight into how local realities influence teacher educators' sustainability-related behaviours and professional commitments. The study concludes by emphasising the need for longitudinal and expanded cross-national research to deepen understanding and strengthen professional development initiatives that support more robust and context-sensitive approaches to sustainability in teacher education.