The level of environmental culture among 9th grade students: an empirical study

The article presents the results of an empirical study on the level of ecological culture among ninthgrade secondary school students. The aim of the study was to examine the formation of various components of ecological culture in schoolchildren. The methods used were «Characteristics of Ecological Representations», «Self-Assessment of Attitude towards Nature», and the verbal associative method «Dominant Attitude towards Nature» by A. V. Gagarin. The analysis of the obtained data revealed a predominance of anthropocentric orientation and an insufficiently high level of development of an ecocentric worldview among the majority of respondents. Insufficient maturity of the ethical component of ecological consciousness and a significant proportion of pragmatic perception of nature were noted. The results obtained indicate the need for further development of environmental education aimed at the formation of a holistic ecological culture among students.