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The topic I have chosen to explore with my students is Climate Action (SDG 13). Climate action is something that affects their lives at local and global levels. We have already seen the effects of climate change through extreme weather conditions around the world e.g. excessive heat, wildfires, flooding, melting of the polar ice caps and the list goes on. My school is a green flag school and we have been working hard on doing our own bit to help the environment. We have established a green schools committee who ensure that light and water usage is kept to a minimum. They check that recyclable objects are in the correct bins be it plastic, cardboard/paper, rubbish and compost. We have our own school gardens which the children love being responsible for and we try to keep food waste to a minimum. This links to school self evaluation where we want to focus on teaching the children about sustainability and active citizenship.
I love your idea of the green week at school. This would get every student involved and interested in the topic of climate change.
I agree that gender stereotypes are still evident and affect students at a young age. There is still views that certain toys, hobbies, colours and clothes are specific to boys or girls. Children categorize specific jobs as being jobs for boys or girls. A gender stereotype that I see all the time is that girls cant play football at break time because it is ‘a boys game’. Gender stereotypes can shape children’s beliefs about what roles or behaviours they think they should have based on their gender.
Development Education plays a very important role in giving the children space to explore and confront stereotypes. It also promotes critical thinking and empathy and encourages students to recognise inequality. Through Development Education children will begin to understand that they should follow their hearts and their passion whether its believed to be a boys job or hobby or a girls if its something they enjoy doing they should pursue it and stand by their convictions. It is important that children see themselves in characters from stories maybe in non traditional roles to help broaden their perspectives. By including Development Education in our school self evaluation plans it will help foster an environment of respect, equality and empathy.I like your idea of storybooks portraying characters in non traditional roles and I agree with you that this is a great way to get the child to look at it from a different perspective.
After reviewing the paper ‘The Role of Citizens in Today’s World, I think we as teachers have a very important role in shaping the minds of our students to show empathy and kindness towards others. In schools today we have children from many different religions, cultures and backgrounds and in my opinion this is an example of why development education is crucial. Development education will help children understand a range of global issues like inequality and climate change and it will encourage them to take action and to respect the different cultures around the world.
In my classroom I would encourage each child to try to make a difference even if that is on a small scale basis. I aim to integrate Development Education into my teaching across all curricular areas. My class take part in a Fairtrade Christmas card competition every year so I would really make the children aware of the importance of Fairtrade and equality around the world and encourage my colleagues to do the same.
Including Development Education in our school self evaluation will provide a clear framework for integration and assessment and it will encourage all staff members to help make our students aware of the inequalities and injustice going on in the world and help develop them into active and compassionate global citizens.Hi Colm
Connecting with schools abroad is a great idea to really get the students involved and interested.
In my locality sustainability is being promoted in many ways. First and foremost we have the tidy towns committee who ensure our area is looking clean and tidy with no visible rubbish. They also help support biodiversity through tree planting in the local park. We have bottle banks, clothing banks as well as tinned food areas.
Renewable energy plays a big part in my locality as we have two windfarms close by. This provides work in our rural locality as well as promoting sustainability. We have a recycling center in a nearby town where we take all recyclable packaging as well as household waste to be disposed of in the correct manner. There is also a furniture revamp center where instead of disposing of old furniture you can get it revamped to look like new!
I would be promoting sustainability in the classroom in a big way. Our school is a green school and we have a green school committee compromising of 2 students from each class as well as some teachers who meet regularly to see is our school hitting our green targets and brainstorming more ways we can be more sustainable. The children take this very seriously and spot checks are often taken out in classrooms to make sure all recycling and compost are in the correct bins as well as monitoring our usage of lights and water.Hi Niall
I love your idea of the green pledges to encourage the children to take ownership of sustainable actions. When they are so involved they will be more likely to really commit and give it 100%.
Michaela, I really like your idea of having food tasting or cooking lessons to educate the children about seafood. When they are involved in a hands on activity like that they will have much more interest in the topic.
Our nutrition is an essential part of human health and development, and so a balanced diet is key to improved learning and longevity of life. Seafood is a very important part of the food pyramid and along with meat, poultry, eggs, beans and nuts we should be having 2 servings daily. Protein is one of the essential macronutrients humans need. Fish and shellfish are protein rich foods. Healthy fats are important in allowing our skin to insulate our bodies, but also for organ protection and these fats can be found in fish like salmon. Mussels and other shellfish such as oysters, contain high iron levels comparable to red meat traditionally known to have high iron levels. Vitamin D and Calcium are essential for healthy bones and teeth and these can be found in salmon along with other fatty fish such as halibut and mackarel. Omega 3 fatty acids are found in every kind of fish but are especially high in fish like salmon. These acids reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in adults and promote healthy vision and brain development in infants. I think this information really reinforces the point that seafood is very nutritious and good for us. To apply this information and knowledge in the classroom I would make students aware of the food pyramid and the different foods in each section and how they impact our health. I would make the children aware of the different types of fish and how they would benefit them and also I would teach them the importance of buying seafood which is fresh, locally grown and sustainable.
The ARC’s online lessons and resources are an excellent tool for bringing STEM learning to life in the classroom. Using these lessons would support thematic, integrated learning right across the curriculum. ARC encourages a hands on approach. It promotes inquiry based learning involving the students in real world issues. The use of real data and mapping tasks would engage the students and reinforce community links. The lessons help develop the key skills of STEM such as critical thinking, collaboration, communication and problem solving as well as teaching the children about the importance of Aquaculture in our coastal communities. The children can investigate how fish farms operate and how they contribute to the local community and beyond.
By making STEM an SSE focus, you’re building capacity across teachers, deepening student engagement and fostering evidence led innovation school wide. The ARC lessons would help improve the quality of teaching and learning of STEM in our school.I like your thoughts on bringing the curriculum alive and relatable to the children. I agree that by visiting the local seashore it would provide an important link with the community. It makes the whole topic real to the children and arouses their interest in it.
Aquaculture farms are located primarily on the western, Atlantic coastline in bays, inlets and on the shoreline. These areas provide sufficient shelter from the full force of the Atlantic Ocean. Mountainous land in these regions make aquaculture the most popular type of farming.
These farms contribute socio-economically to coastal communities in many ways.
They offer more job opportunities especially in these coastal regions where they would not be as many sources of employment, they will add to the prosperity of a region with consumers buying their product and also money made from exporting their products. This in turn provides more employment e.g. transport drivers,technicians, plant workers needed for packaging produce and day to day operations of the plant. The presence of Aquaculture in an area means that people are more likely to stay in the area if there is employment which in turn benefits shops, schools and other businesses.I agree with your comment that the aquaculture farms breathe life into Ireland’s coastal communities. This is so important for areas like this to sustain themselves especially in the winter months.
I think going forward it is very important to teach the children about Aquaculture. It encourages their understanding and awakens their curiosity of ocean conservation and the effect humans have on the natural world around us. These topics bring relevance to lessons with the help of interactive tools like interactive maps, videos and data visualizations. These interactive experiences offers the students ways to explore how aquaculture works and the various ways it impacts the environment. Discussing Social Licence promotes empathy and responsibility as students discover how local communities can be affected by marine industries.It also enables them to be responsible citizens and contribute to the future and to the growth of the aquamarine industry.
