Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
Hi Caitriona, I like the idea of partnering with local organisations to learn about biodiversity along the shore. Am thinking it would also be good to tie it in with a whole school beach clean too?
I live on the coast and our local beach is being swept away by changing tides. The dunes are being swept away and some houses are in danger of falling in to the sea. Tides and currents change over time and what is happening locally may not directly be related to climate change I think it is a useful entry point to the power of the sea and how difficult it is to stop rising sea levels – especially on a small island at the edge of an ocean. The children can see first-hand the destructional power of the sea and it will help them to relate to places around the world that also experience coastal erosion. The local council has put in half measures to try to prevent this from happening. By half measures I mean that they have put in half the amount of “Seabees” that are needed across half the area and they have punt them in with huge spaces inbetween – so the ones they have installed are of little use. Children can be encouraged to write to local councillors and TDs to highlight the issue. Parents can be engaged as well to make it an issue to protect the natural resource we have on our doorstep.
Actions
The school has recycling /compost bins but it would be good if their use was monitored in the classroom.
The school could collect plastic bottles to raise money for the school and ensure that any plastic bottles are recycled (most children have reusable bottles anyway).
We can also look into the grant for solar panels – they can generate electricity for the school and help reduce the bills – particularly in the summer when there is no one using electricity in the buildings.
In terms of the school self-evaluation I think that this whole topic of development education is something that would tie in very well to the very strong Eco Schools programme which runs in the school. Many of the topics are similar and the additional units on Gender and Migration would be a welcome addition to the programme.
The Crosscare Migrant project also helps Irish people returning to Ireland after living abroad. A reminder that migrants of all types need help and support to integrate or “reintegrate”
From a google search and from what I have seen as a local (in the area I live and the one in which I work) few groups providing support to migrants or refugees in the local area. In the community centre there are twice weekly English classes hosted by Fáilte Isteach. In the local secondary school there is a Schools of Sanctuary group which meets to help the wider school community to understand what it means to be a refugee and to extend a welcome to everyone regardless of their immigration status. This is something that I think my school could take part in. The school is a very small school and a few years ago the population of the school rose by 10% due to the arrival of a diverse group into the guest house at the end of the road. The children did very well to join the school just before the Easter holidays and they integrated well. But they had to integrate into our school and little was done to ensure that the school celebrated, respected and were interested in the cultures of the countries/communities that the children and their parents had come from. Becoming a School of Sanctuary would ensure that we are committed to creating a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment that benefits everybody, including anyone in its community who is seeking sanctuary. It would help students, staff, parents and the wider community to understand what it means to be seeking sanctuary, and to extend a welcome to everyone regardless of their status.
Hi Claire, love the idea of contacting local businesses – this will really make the Goal relevant to children at a local level.
I also like that there is a focus on excess but I feel that we also need to focus on changing habits. Shien and Temu exist because we feel we need a new outfit for every occasion – we need to focus on rewear and share too.
There was a new building built at school a few years ago and occasionally the water from the taps comes out orange. Its not very nice and needs to be fixed but using this as a hook we can link this into Goal 6 -Clean water and sanitation. The children can learn that we are very fortunate in our school and in Ireland to be able to call someone to come and fix it. We can bring water from home. We don’t have to worry about safe drinking water. Many children around the world do not have access to clean safe drinking water. This could be a launching point to get children to campaign to the local council to sort out the problem in the pipes in the street to prevent it from happening again. We could also encourage the council to provide more bottle filling stations in the town and one close to the school.
I would like do this with a link to what is happening in our school so that children don’t think that these things just happen in countries far away – this is something that happens at home too.
Harriet, I think it will be a really interesting time for your pupils – and in particular the older boys who are used to hearing comments like ‘man up’ or ‘boys don’t cry’ – these comments are ones they have heard from adults. Boys are regularly complimented on their physical skills and strength – it will interesting to notice the way that adults speak to the girls – are they praised for being pretty, tidy, organised? or scolded for being bossy? Will there be a change in the language that adults speak to all children?
Colour has become gendered and can cause problems in the classroom. Children start out so early with pink toys for girls and black and blue colours being used in boys toys. In the classroom boys will not choose pink or purple as a team colour and girls will rarely choose black. If these colours are options in background papers or team colours or table names this can cause meltdowns if someone is on a team with the wrong gendered colour.
In thinking about how we can teach children how this doesn’t matter and that colours don’t have a gender, I have found that children are quite good at saying that colours are for everyone and anyone can wear/play/choose any colour but in reality it is rare to see boys in pink and purple (and have no one make a comment about it) and if a girl chooses to wear black/navy/brown regularly then comments are made about her being less cheerful than the regular pink wearing girls. These comments usually come from adults. We need to live the values that we want to see the children demonstrate.
In reflecting on the “role of global citizens in today’s world”, I think that it is vital to help children to realise that THEY are global citizens, that they are part of the process – both part of the problem and part of the solution. Eric Ehigie talks about mental fatigue and defeatism– ‘what is the point of doing my little bit when everyone else is doing the opposite’ and I think that as primary teachers we are perfectly placed to help children realise that every person, no matter how small, can make a worthwhile contribution. That the contribution we make in our little community in our little town/village/city IS a contribution to the global solution.
Eric talks about leading by example -being the change we want to see – and this is what we as teachers/educators/schools can do. We can build our schools into places where global citizens can thrive.
