ASSESSING THE PERCEPTION OF CUBAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ON ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The incorporation of environmental education for sustainable development into the teaching-learning process is a necessity and a challenge for the educational systems of the 21st century. In this sense, explorations on environmental perceptions provide relevant data. The objective of this study is to explore the environmental perceptions of students at the Municipal University Center of Cumanayagua on the environment and sustainable development. A survey was applied to 65 students of Education and Agronomy Engineering using a Likert scale. Twenty variables grouped in four dimensions were considered: Vision of the environment and sustainable development, Environmental training, Environmental responsibility and Environmental awareness. It was determined that there are no significant differences between their perceptions and the General Perception Index is favorable. Environmental training and responsibility should be improved from the work of the center. The students consider that the main problems that constitute challenges for sustainability are the protection of the environment and the loss of biodiversity. The results obtained allow establishing actions in the teaching and extension process to contribute to the improvement of the preparation of students, teachers and other stakeholders in the locality to achieve performance in accordance with the demands of the present century.