Weaving Sustainability into Family and Consumer Sciences Education

Abstract

This position paper suggests that FCS policymakers weave a sustainability perspective into the National Standards for Teachers of Family and Consumer Sciences in response to the increasing government, business, and academic emphasis on sustainable development. Sustainability is clarified and defined, and perspectives on sustainability are discussed. The author offers two alternatives for integrating the sustainability concept into the National Standards for Teachers of Family and Consumer Sciences. The first alternative is to incorporate sustainable terminology into each of the first four content area standards. The second alternative is to develop a separate sustainability national standard. Suggestions are offered for ways that university faculty involved in FCS teacher education programs can implement sustainable development in the curriculum.