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Hi Alison, your like myself living on the coast and can see coastal erosion on a large scale. Children could learn about coastal erosion through beach walks in their local area, where they can observe changes to the coastline and identify signs of erosion. They could take photographs, compare old and new maps, record their observations, and discuss how climate change may be affecting their environment.
Climate change is already having visible effects on the local environment here in Donegal where I live. Coastal areas such as Bundoran, Rossnowlagh, and parts of Inishowen are experiencing increased coastal erosion and are at a greater risk of flooding due to rising sea levels and stronger storms. Farmers are facing challenges from changing rainfall patterns, with wetter winters and occasional summer droughts affecting crops and livestock.
To engage pupils in exploring climate change in Donegal, I would use practical, place-based learning activities. Pupils could investigate local weather records and compare current patterns with historical data. They could visit a nearby beach, river, or woodland to observe environmental changes and discuss how climate change might be affecting these areas. Classroom projects such as creating posters, conducting surveys on sustainable habits, or participating in citizen science initiatives would help pupils connect global climate issues to their own community. I would also encourage classroom discussion around these activities to increase their awareness of it.
Three actions we could do to help slow down climate change include:
- Reduce energy consumption by turning off lights and electronics when not in use, improving home insulation, and choosing energy-efficient appliances.
- Using sustainable transport by walking, cycling, carpooling, or using public transport whenever possible instead of relying on private car journeys.
- Reduce waste by recycling, reusing items and avoiding single-use plastics
The Development Education modules in this course have highlighted the importance of helping pupils develop a deeper understanding of global issues such as climate change, sustainability, equality, human rights, and global citizenship. These themes can make a valuable contribution to the School Self-Evaluation (SSE) process by supporting whole-school improvement in teaching, learning, and pupil engagement.
In my opinion, schools should work closely with local sporting organisations to help welcome refugees into the community. In my own area, the local GAA and soccer clubs organised sports camps during the Easter holidays and provided free passes to families who had recently moved to the area. Initiatives such as these offer valuable opportunities for children and families to become involved in their new community and build social connection. As a school, we held a Multicultural Day in April. The senior classes were divided into groups and each group was assigned a country to research. They explored various aspects of their chosen country, including its food, clothing, traditions, and culture, and presented their findings on display tables for the whole school to view. The event was a great success and is certainly something we would like to organise again in the future.
This initiative is closely linked to School Self-Evaluation (SSE) as it promotes inclusion and integration among all pupils. It helps to foster a sense of belonging within the school community and reinforces the message that every child is valued and respected, regardless of their background.Your sustainable goal of Zero Hunger is very relevant to today’s society especially when you see the food wastage, particularly in the schools now with the hot meals scheme. Children are turning their noses up at food meals daily and need to be educated on the places in the world that have famines and severe shortages of food.
One of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that is particularly important to explore and educate pupils about is climate action. This topic can be examined at both national and global levels, helping children to understand the far-reaching impacts of climate change on communities around the world.
In Ireland, Storm Éowyn provided a recent and powerful example of the effects of extreme weather events. The severity of the storm and the destruction it caused brought the realities of climate change much closer to home for many people. There has often been a perception that climate-related disasters primarily affect distant countries and do not pose a significant threat to Ireland. However, experiences such as Storm Éowyn challenge this assumption and demonstrate that the impacts of climate change are increasingly being felt locally.
On a personal level, my brother has lived in the United States since 1995, and hearing his accounts of the various natural disasters they have experienced, and how these events appear to be occurring more frequently, reinforces the urgency of addressing climate change.
Climate action lends itself well to a cross-curricular approach and can be integrated into subjects such as Geography, History, and Science. Pupils could work alongside the Green Schools Committee to identify practical ways of reducing the school’s carbon footprint and promoting sustainable practices within the school community. Opportunities could also be created to collaborate with schools in other countries, allowing pupils to learn about the different measures being taken internationally to address environmental challenges.I have noticed from my experience of teaching how those choices of certain colours, as in pink for girls and blue for boys can still be visible in today’s schools. I think it is up to us as adults to educate them in not being these typical stereotypes as they get older.
Gender stereotypes remain evident in classrooms and in everyday life. In junior classes, it is common to observe boys gravitating towards toy tractors and cars in the sandpit, while girls are often more inclined to play with dolls. I have also noticed that during PE lessons, boys frequently prefer playing football, whereas girls tend to be more open to participating in a wider variety of activities, such as basketball and rounders.
Gender stereotypes can also be seen in how behaviour is perceived and addressed. In the school playground, incidents involving girls are often viewed more negatively, while similar behaviour among boys may be dismissed as “rough play.” Beyond the school environment, these stereotypes continue to influence attitudes and decisions. For example, last Christmas, a relative wished to buy a toy kitchen for her son, but her partner discouraged the purchase on the grounds that it was considered “too girly.”
These experiences highlight how gender stereotypes can shape children’s choices, interests, and opportunities from an early age. I believe that education has an important role to play in challenging these assumptions. By promoting discussions around gender equality and exposing children to a broad range of activities, resources, and role models, schools can help pupils develop a more inclusive understanding of gender roles and encourage them to pursue their interests without being limited by stereotypes.
I think it is important that pupils are made aware how much the classroom environment has changed over the last number of years and how much diversity and multi-culture now exists. Educating them in this will go a long way to them grasping the topic of Developing Education.
I think developing education in the classroom nowadays is of huge importance to upskill our pupils into understanding the many global issues that we encompass in our society. Key issues such as poverty, climate change and human rights come to mind when I think of this. We have the opportunity, as teachers to make pupils aware that prejudice and injustice should not be tolerated in society and that every individual should be treated the same no matter what race or colour you are.
We can teach this in our classrooms through many different subjects including geography (climate change, migration); history (colonisation, resistance movements), languages (read stories from various cultures).
We can look at case studies of current events happening such as the war in Gaza. Debates and role plays could be used to develop their critical thinking.
Climate change is a becoming a huge problem, not just in far off lands but also in our own country. In my own county which is on the west coast, we are already seeing the impact of coastal erosion which is having a detrimental effect on homes built on or near the coast. Some of these homes are at huge risk of collapsing into the ocean because of the erosion of the cliff edges. The local beach near me is suffering greatly when high tides come in. The road is being completely washed away meaning that the county council are having to repair the road in to the beach car park on an annual basis. Six years ago, my own local area was left devastated when heavy rains fell one Sunday evening in the month of May. The impact was so severe that homeowners have not been able to move back into their homes due to the flooding incurred from the local river. The town park was completely destroyed, though fortunately that involved a huge rebuilding effort which came to fruition two years ago.
Some of the actions that our pupils could take is to get them to educate their parents to reduce the amount of waste used in the homes; encourage parents to allow their children to walk and cycle to school daily; arrange for car-pooling for parents that live that little bit further from school; ensure that all families are aware that green, blue and brown bins are availed of to make sure everyone buys into it; encourage parents to use charity for both disposing of and buying items of clothing.
In our school, regarding SSE, we must continue (as staff) to promote the initiatives that we already do and add on more. We definitely could encourage more parents to walk their children to school. We recently bought a poly tunnel with the idea of growing our own vegetables and fruit. Another idea I have in mind is ‘rewilding’ some of our grass areas.
Hi Alison, you guys have some great initiatives in your school to help with sustainability. We also use the Green Schools to do our recycling of the class and staff room bins. It has gotten easier in the past year or two but pupils and staff need to be given constant reminders!!
In my opinion, schools should work closely with sporting organisations in the locality to welcome refugees into the area. I know in my own area, the local GAA and soccer clubs organised sports camps during the easter holidays and they gave out free passes to the families who has recently moved into the area.
We, as a school held a multi-cultural day in the school in April. The senior classes were split into groups and given a country to do a project on. They had to research this country and have a display table on the day with everything from food, clothing, traditions etc for the whole school to view. It was a great success and definitely one we will look at again.
This is linked to SSE in the school as it promotes integration among all pupils and gives a sense of belonging to the school for everyone no matter what your background.
What an uplifting story that is Orla. I’ve actually done the novel with my class called ‘Parvana’ which tells the story of the war in Afghanistan and the persecution they’ve had to suffer. It just shows you how much emphasis they put on their education in countries like this when it is not a given that they are granted the opportunity to avail of it.
One of the SDG that is definitely worth looking at and educating the class on is the topic of climate change. This can be looked at, at both global and national levels. Storm Eowyn was a prime example in recent times about how climate change has affected us in Ireland. I think the severity of that storm and how much destruction it brought to our own doorstep resonates very much with the Irish public. I think there was always this attitude in certain quarters that if climate disasters were happening in far off lands, it didn’t really endanger us. My own brother has lived in the USA since 1995 and listening to the stories he tells me of the various natural disasters they’ve had to contend with, and how they are becoming more frequent, is a huge wake up call.
Climate action can be cross-curricular and used through geography, history and science. The class could work in conjunction with the Green Schools Committee and identify ways in which we could reduce our carbon footprint. I would also try and link up with other schools abroad to see how they are reducing their carbon footprint.
Highlighting this through the use of powerpoint presentations would help get their point across to other classes.