Ecojustice in science education: leaving the classroom

Eduardo Dopico and Eva Garcia-Vázquez’s article enriched the ecojustice literature with an interesting metaphor of leaving the classroom, which I argue for here. Glasson and Boggs help to highlight the challenges and fortitude of working ecojustice perspectives in science education and the ways that a dialogical conversation addresses the world at large rather than focusing narrowly and exclusively on science education. Considering the metaphor of ‘leaving the classroom’ I want to explore the tensions that can be experienced by science educators who do research focused on ecosocial justice. While it is not a new idea to suggest that there are gatekeepers in science education who try to maintain what counts in terms of impact in the classroom and what counts or not for the purposes of doing good work in science education, I anticipate highlighting the tensions that ecojustice educators may experience and why they can and should persevere with the incisive work that they are doing to conserve the prospects of future generations. Ecojustice no longer belongs constrained under the confines of environmental sciences or environmental education in science education. It is a separate and distinct field of study that should be generally accepted for the ways it brings clarity and conversation to ideas, curriculum studies, and thick descriptions of how people engage in eco-justice and ethics.