Living oceans: making decisions from Early Childhood Education. A proposal to work Environmental Education from a Justice perspective

Acquiring the ability to make decisions on scientific-technological and environmental problems from an early age has become one of the main objectives in science education. To do so, it is crucial to present problems close to students, changing the focus of science teaching, from the acquisition of knowledge to its application. However, the problems that arise in classrooms are usually global, such as climate change or deforestation, and the suggested solutions do not involve behavioural changes. In this paper, we discuss the design and implementation of a proposal for Early Childhood Education, focused on students' use of plastics and the consequences for the environment. The implementation is carried out in a 5-year-old classroom, collecting the written productions of the students. We consider students' ability to understand the process of plastic contamination and reflect on the impact of their excessive use. The results show that students come to identify the problem and recognize their role in it, considering, among others, the excess of plastic they use in their daily life, the route it takes from home to the ocean, and its consequences.