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Climate change is having a massive impact on our country. Increased flooding and higher temperatures are affecting every community around the country and around the world. Climate change has affected my local community in many ways also. Due to difficult weather conditions in Autumn 2023 and persistent rain during the Spring this year, Tipperary farmers had significant difficulty with Spring plantings. In addition, livestock turnout has decreased. If climate change continues to disrupt agriculture, food supplies will decrease. As a response to this consistent issue, I would implement the following activities in my classroom:
1.It would be advantageous to organise an agricultural tour on local farms for the students so that they can see the importance of agriculture in the community and our society.
2. Create a school garden where the children will participate in the planting of trees and crops.
3. Children can monitor the progress of the garden throughout the year and care for the plants accordingly in response to the various weather patterns.
The topic of climate change can be easily prioritised in the SSE. It incorporates Geography, Science and SPHE. Evaluation of the childrens learning can be done throughout the year to inform the SSE on this topic.In my community , I have found out that there is a Refugee Resettlement Group in the locality. This group also has links with the Irish Red Cross. The local Refugee Resettlement Group works to support refugee in the local community by providing essential resources, guidance and advocacy. In terms of how the school can support the refugee population in the school community, a variety of cultural events could be initiated. These events could include activities such as traditional music and dance performances, food tasting and traditional leisure activities. This would be an ideal environment for refugees to share their culture and experiences with the school community and maybe the wider community. These kind of cultural events would create an inclusive environment for the students and their families. It also provides great opportunities for the students to create friendships and understanding with each other. Another way for students to take an active role in the inclusivity of refugees would be to engage with a tour around the school and offer advice and information about the daily running of the classroom and the yard.
I agree with the idea of adopting a buddy system in the school. It would be beneficial for both the new students and the local students. It would develop friendships and develop social skills at the same time
I think that organising partnerships with schools abroad to exchange ideas and experiences would be a fantastic initiative to adopt in schools. We have lots of school based activties and initiatives that promtote awareness and action among our students so a partnership with schools abroad would be a very welcome development
With reference to SDG 1 – No Poverty – I think poverty is one of the major structural inequalities in the world today. As stated, over 700 million people are living in poverty. As a result , children living in these circumstances will be adversely affected in many facets of their lives. Locally and globally, poverty usually lends its itself to a multitude of other social challenges. For example, children from impoverished backgrounds live in poor or inadequate housing conditions. This in turn leads to other social difficulties and a lack of education. I would encourage my students to take action by facilitating activities around the school and the local community to raise awareness about poverty. Children could volunteer at local organisations aimed at alleviating poverty. Students could work collaboratively and organize fund raising activities in the school community. It would be very beneficial for the students to participate in a poverty simulation activity in the classroom as a starting point to their learning.
Gender stereotypes is a complex and long established ideology throughout the world. In recent years, it is being addressed and challenged more deliberately and immensely. This is a positive and helpful development but it is an issue that still exists in our daily lives. Children have grown up with gender stereotypes from birth. Boys and girls are usually dressed in clothes with assigned colours – blue or pink. Different toys are assigned to them based on their perceived interests – cars/trucks for boys and dolls for girls. Children begin school with these stereotypes ingrained in them and this can be harmful to children that do not identify with the stereotypes assigned to them. This can hinder their mindset and sense of belonging. As a teacher at the senior end of the school, gender stereotypes are hugely prevalent. I have noticed that the girls like to engage in classroom duties such as cleaning and tidying and the boys usually want to engage with jobs such as lifting and carrying boxes and gardening.
Development education is important because it provides students with knowledge and awareness of global issues and their innerconnectedness. Development Education can encompass the study of human rights, inequality, migration, poverty, pollution, climate change. The importance of these issues is multifaceted. Children need to be aware of what is goig on in the world in which they are living, both locally and globally. With this awareness, empathy can be fostered within the students. This can then lead to action. As stated in the paper ‘The Role of Global Citizens in Today’s World’; ‘o be a global citizen, is to care. It is to empathise.’ In order for society to develop positively and productively, people must have empathy. This is what inspires people to take action and be an active global citizen. As a teacher, I like to incorporate Development Education into Geography and History lessons in particular. Making the children aware of currect societal issues can be done by exposing them to current news broadcasts and documentaries. There is a very active and succesful Green Schools programme in our school where the children are active paticipants in addressing climate change and pollution.