THE APPRECIATION OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION AND ECO-SPIRITUALITY AMONG LA SALLE UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Abstract

As a Catholic institution, La Salle University (LSU) includes four standard religious education (RE) courses across its undergraduate curricula. Anchored to its institutional outcomes, each course has at least one learning outcome related to experiencing, relating, and caring for creation (environment), thus fostering a sense of eco-spirituality among the students to produce graduates who can “contribute to the transformation of society” and “discern the causes and effects of social-environmental problems” (La Salle University, 2023).

The relationship between eco-spirituality and RE has been described in the literature (Skjoldager-Nielsen, 2021; Silveira & Silveira, 2019; Crowe, 2011; Smith, 2009). However, little is known about the relationship of the latter to the appreciation of religious education (APRE). Appreciation, as a construct, encompasses valuing, enjoyment, and satisfaction (Fagley, 2016). These components are indicators for learning (Lo, 2010) and are keys to curriculum evaluation and quality assurance in higher education (Lee, 2021; Razinkina et al., 2018). The present study will aim to correlate these two constructs.

A cross-sectional survey design will be used. A 32-item rating scale was developed and validated to measure the APRE. The Ecospirituality Scale (Suganthi, 2019) on the other hand will be used to quantify the self-perceived level of ecospirituality. Scores from the two scales will be analyzed using non-parametric statistics to determine the correlation between the variables. The results of the study shall serve as a quantitative external evaluation of the existing RE curriculum and may be used as a basis for improving the program in the future.