Governing Waste Culture in Elementary School: Training Students for Responsible Citizenship

Document Type : Quantitative Research Paper

Authors

1 Assistant Professor of Educational Management, Department of Educational Governance and Human Capital, Faculty of Islamic Education, Islamic Azad University, South Tehran Branch

2 Assistant Professor, Faculty of Governance, University of Tehran

10.22034/jsa.2026.145250.2637

Abstract

Objective: Waste management, as one of the major environmental challenges, requires the development of responsibility and lawfulness among citizens from childhood and adolescence. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of Waste Culture Management Training (WCMT) on the responsibility and legality of adolescent citizens.

Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental research with a pre-test-post-test design and a control group. The statistical population consisted of all 6th-grade male students in Tehran's District 11 during the academic year 2023-2024. From this population, 30 students were selected via convenience sampling and were randomly assigned into two 15-person groups: experimental and control. The instruments used included the Responsibility and Lawfulness Scale (Alipour and Jalali Farahani, 2006) and the Waste Culture Management Protocol. The experimental group underwent eight 60-minute sessions of Waste Culture Management Training, after which a post-test was administered to both groups. Data analysis was performed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA).

Findings: The results of the multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) showed that the difference in the mean scores of responsibility and lawfulness after the Waste Culture Management Training, compared to the control group, was significant (P<0.01). The training led to an increase in responsibility and legality (P<0.01).

Conclusion: The findings of this research confirm the effectiveness of Waste Culture Management Training in strengthening the mechanisms of responsibility and lawfulness among citizens. Based on the obtained evidence, Waste Culture Management Training can be used as an efficient interventional method in the educational, pedagogical, and environmental domains.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

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History

  • Receive Date: 28 April 2026
  • Revise Date: 02 June 2026
  • Accept Date: 19 June 2026

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