Pedagogical enactment of Education 5.0 and sustainability-oriented goal achievement in higher education: evidence from Malaysian public universities
Charanjit Kaur Swaran Singh, M. Monjurul Islam, Eng-Tek OngPurpose
Higher education policy increasingly positions universities as key actors in advancing sustainable development; however, limited empirical evidence explains how sustainability-oriented reform is operationalised within academic practice. This study aims to examine how the pedagogical enactment of Education 5.0 and immersive learning technologies (ILTs) are associated with lecturers’ perceptions of sustainability-oriented higher education goal achievement.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative survey was conducted with academic staff from Malaysian public universities (n = 278). Education 5.0 was conceptualised as a pedagogically enacted and technologically mediated reform framework encompassing pedagogical integration, institutional support and policy alignment, faculty competence and pedagogical readiness, immersive learning environments, and resource and infrastructure availability. Hierarchical regression analysis was employed to estimate the relative contribution of these dimensions to perceived achievement of higher education goals related to sustainability, graduate outcomes and institutional transformation.
Findings
The final model explains a substantial proportion of variance in perceived goal achievement (R² = 0.655). Pedagogical integration and institutional support emerge as the strongest explanatory dimensions, while faculty competence contributes modestly. Resource and infrastructure availability demonstrates comparatively limited explanatory influence, functioning primarily as an enabling rather than driving condition. The findings further suggest that ILTs contribute most meaningfully when integrated into coherent pedagogical and institutional ecosystems that support experiential, collaborative and sustainability-oriented learning practices.
Research limitations/implications
This study is limited by its cross-sectional design and reliance on lecturers’ self-reported perceptions, which restrict causal inference and may be subject to perceptual bias. The focus on Malaysian public universities may also limit generalisability to other governance and policy contexts. Despite these limitations, the findings offer important implications for sustainability-oriented higher education policy and planning. They highlight pedagogy and institutional alignment as critical levers for advancing sustainability agendas, suggesting that policy interventions should prioritise academic development and organisational coherence over technology-centred reform strategies.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that advancing sustainability agendas in higher education depends primarily on pedagogical integration and coherent institutional support rather than on technological provision alone. University leaders and policymakers should therefore prioritise academic development, curriculum design and teaching practices that explicitly embed sustainability and graduate competencies. Institutional strategies should align policy frameworks, professional learning opportunities and evaluation mechanisms to support lecturers’ pedagogical agency. Investment in infrastructure remains important but should be positioned as an enabling condition that complements, rather than substitutes for, sustained pedagogical and organisational capacity building.
Social implications
By foregrounding pedagogy as the primary mechanism through which sustainability agendas are realised, this study highlights the role of universities in shaping graduates’ ethical awareness, social responsibility and capacity to contribute to sustainable development. The findings suggest that sustainability-oriented higher education can strengthen societal outcomes when learning experiences cultivate critical thinking, collaboration and civic engagement. Emphasising pedagogical agency over technology-centred reform supports more inclusive and socially responsive educational practices, enabling universities to contribute meaningfully to societal well-being, environmental stewardship and long-term sustainable development goals.
Originality/value
By shifting analytical attention from sustainability rhetoric and technological provision towards pedagogically enacted and institutionally mediated reform processes, the study advances sustainability scholarship in higher education. The findings demonstrate that sustainability-oriented transformation is realised through the interaction of pedagogical practice, institutional alignment, faculty readiness and immersive learning environments, offering evidence-based insights for policy development and institutional planning within Education 5.0 reform contexts.