Student teachers' interest in and conceptions about species and species identification

Humans are dependent on the service species and ecosystems provide. Being able to identify species is a key to understanding biodiversity. The purpose of this study was to clarify student teachers’ (N=426) interest in and conceptions of the importance of species identification and the relationship between biodiversity and sustainable development. The data was collected by the aid of using a semi-structured questionnaire with fixed and open questions. Student teachers explained their interest in plants and animals in a pragmatic, cognitive or emotional and aesthetic way. Pragmatic, cognitive and educational views where used to explain the importance of species identification today and in the future. Few students had a professional view. The relationships between species identification and sustainable development were described with cognitive, pragmatic, conservational and educational views, whereas the relationship between biodiversity and sustainable development were mostly categorised in the no, cognitive, ecological and conservational views. The student teachers´ conceptual framework related to biodiversity and the relationships between species identification and sustainable development were limited. The results are compared with related literature. This study increases and broadens researchers’ and teacher educators’, knowledge about the challenges of species identification in teacher education and at schools.