[Alexine Greene]

I am living and working in a coastal area. Climate change is causing more waste and water problems in our community, like pollution and flooding.
I am currently teaching in and Autism class and would love to create awareness about our changing climate and our responsibility to the environment via a project in this area next year. I would teach it using the SESE curriculum- Environmental awareness and care: Aim: to foster a sense of responsibility for the long-term care of the environment
• Lesson ideas might include: General introduction: What is Climate Change
• Links to useful websites including NASA
• Assignment-Project on waste and water pollution
• Life Skills- litter picking in our school and locality
• Assessment-quiz
• Sharing our findings with the wider community – display at the entrance of the school. Awareness poster campaign.

[Alexine Greene]

To quote page 6 of this module, ‘Like during WW2, people are desperate for help. How will history remember our treatment of these people?’ I think this is a great discussion starter and reflective statement that I will use in my teaching on this topic.
I teach in North County Dublin within a largely populated, transient and multi cultural community. My school hosts pupils (or their families) from over 30 countries. I find these pupils to be very sensitive and empathetic on the topic of migration and refugees. There is a number of Ukranian refugees currently in the school and community that have been wonderfully welcomed and encouraged to join the local dance class, sports teams, yoga for parents and community initiatives such as Diwali celebrations. Cross Care have a local office that offers womens support and language clinics and citizenship services.

[Alexine Greene]

Great to read about the success of the ‘This Place’ project in your town Linda, a wonderful way to connect and better understand the stories of the people new to the community.

[Alexine Greene]

ESD is a lifelong learning process and an integral part of quality education. The key principals of ESD in Ireland aims to balance social, environmental and local efforts to global sustainability. I chose the ‘Climate Action’ goal. I am teaching in a Green School and we are striving to be more planet friendly through many projects as a school and also in the wider community. Some of the ongoing actions we have are:
School Garden: We have a poly tunnel and small garden space in the school grounds. Children have planted vegetables and trees. They are involved in the growing process and learn about nature and contribute to reducing carbon dioxide. We have parent volunteers that use our garden recreationally as a weekly social meet up and to help with planting, weeding etc.
Energy Conservation is important in the school. As teachers we teach children to save energy by turning off lights and electronic devices when not in use thus promoting awareness of energy consumption and its impact on the environment. We encourage pupils to bring reusable water bottles and fill up in the classrooms when needed.
Litter picking in the school grounds and also in the public space around the school is done on a class by class rota.
Many teachers create art or crafts from recycled materials also.

[Alexine Greene]

Thanks Alison, I teach in a non-deis school but am very aware that some children are coming to school hungry. We qualified for hot meals this year and it is successful thus far although I must say I struggle with the amount of waste sometimes. The soft start with toast in the morning is a great idea, I may borrow this!

[Alexine Greene]

As a teacher of infants, I have often noticed children falling into gender stereotypes during play, such as girls being told, “you’re the mummy, so you can make the dinner,” and boys always opting to be the builder or soldier. However, I have been teaching in Special Education for a number of years and a wonderful observation in an autism class was a boy dressing in a long dress each day so he could look as fancy as his girl peer who loved to dress up.
Development Education teaching can create a more inclusive environment that empowers all children to explore their interests and identities freely. It is so important that every child feels welcome, supported and valued in their classroom.

[Alexine Greene]

I can relate Orla. My first born is a girl and I was very careful in chosing toys for her. By the time my son came along there was a huge choice of neutral toys yet he still managed to find an ornamental car in his grandparents house and ‘vroom’ it along. He has always been drawn to vehicles and superheroes!

[Alexine Greene]

Development education is an educational approach that fosters critical awareness of global development issues, promoting understanding and action on topics like poverty, inequality, and sustainability. It aims to empower learners to contribute to a just and equitable world through informed perspectives and active citizenship.
Promoting development education in Ireland’s primary schools involves integrating global issues into the curriculum, fostering critical thinking, and encouraging active citizenship to nurture a just and sustainable world.
Ehigie suggests that Education can kick-start global citizenship by fostering awareness. I teach in an Educate Together school with an equality based ethos. We strive to ensure that no child is discriminated against on the basis of their social, cultural or religious background in either access to the school or within the classroom during the school day. We are part of the Green Schools initiative, celebrate Earth Day, encourage our pupils to embrace diversity and love and allow opportunities for active citizenship through activities like community clean-ups, recycling projects, fundraising for local causes, participating in the student council.
I found the Eric Ehigie’s artice insightful and agree that ‘promising developments have been made up to this point and this certainly provides hope for the future.’( THE ROLE OF GLOBAL CITIZENS IN TODAY’S WORLD, Eric Ehigie)

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