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Colin has some fabulous ideas that he has shared in the forum. I love the idea of the children recording the weather on a daily basis and discussing its affects on the people and wildlife. Colin’s idea of the pupils having a voice is a lovely idea as they then become more active and engaged.
Some fantastic practical activities suggested by Alison also in the forum that we could use in our school, as we are very close to the local beach.
Climate change is having a huge impact on my local area. In recent years, I have noticed more frequent extreme weather, including storms like Eowyn, flooding, heavy rainfall and there was even a funnel cloud seen in the sky above County Galway, two weeks ago. Changes in weather patterns impacct biodiversity, agriculture and the everyday lives of people in our community. These experiences make climate change a relevant issue for children.
As a teacher, I feel it is important to help children understand that climate change is not only a global issue but one that affects their lives too. I would encourage children to ecplore climate change through active, inquiry based learning. Children could examine local weather patterns, the effects of flooding or storm damage in the area and compare their experiences with children in other countries who maybe facing different climate change experiences such as drought and sea levels rising. This will help develop empathy and critical thinking.
Three actions I would try to make the world a better place is:
Reduce waste by recycling
Reduce the amount of energy I use
Promote biodiversity
I would look at these and I would create a lesson where the children can understand the connection between local and global issues. It would encorage them to think about how their choices affect the environment and how they can take action to protect it.
The Development Education module in this course can support SSE by helping schools promote equality and active citzenship. It helps teachers and children to think about important global issues and how to connect that with our own lives. As part of the SSE, schools can look at ways to include these topics across the curriculum and help children to become more active and aware of the world around them.
It’s lovely to read some of the responses here in the forum and to see that there are so many schools with so many practices in place already to welcome refugees. It must be so daunting to leave your home country and perhaps some of your family and to try and settle into a new country with different traditions, language etc. After researching organisations in the local community, it has opened my eyes as to how many organistions that are out there to provide support and it makes me want to volunteer. It was particualrly interesting reading Deborah Haughian’s response and to see the great work her school is doing to make refugees and newcomers feel so welcome. I love the idea of them ensuring that the newcomer feels safe and secure by sitting them beside someone that speaks their language or introducing them to someone in the school that speaks the same language to make the transition easier for them.
The welcome cards with warm greetings written in the child’s home language is such a fabulous idea as it really lets them know they are valued and that they belong. It sounds like Deborah’s school is doing a fantastic job!
In Galway city there are a number of organisations that support refugees, people seeking asylum and people with international protection status. Galway City Council- Local Authority Integration Team is one of the key sevices in supporting refugees, people with temporary protection including many Ukrainians. This service provides integration support, English language information, employment and training, education and healthcare guidance and community integration activities.
Our school can take meaningful action by partnering with these groups to set up “Language and Culture Exchange.” Students can volunteer as conversational patners, helping young refugees practice English while building friendships. We could organise donation drives for school supplies and winter clothing.
For our SSE integrating a migration module or introduce it into SPHE would be a great idea. The SSE should evaluate the social impact of certain programs and information could be gathered from local refugee centres to ensure our actions meet real community needs.
I agree with Mark Waters about Sustainable Development Goal 12- Responsible Consumption and Production, being a very relevant in the primary school setting.
Hot meals were introduced to our school this year. At first it was a novilty but after a few weeks the novilty wore off. A lot of the children in the class didn’t even open the hot food that they ordered not to mention eating their food. The food was thrown away if no one else wanted it. It also created a huge amount of waste with the cartons and forks. I feel this is a huge issue. I understand that it provides lunch for families who cannot afford it but it also creates a huge waste issue. Children are affected by this issue both locally and globally. Like Mark said “Globally, it contributes to pollution, climate change, and the depletion of natural resources, affecting the lives of millions of children through poorer health, food insecurity, and environmental damage.”
I really liked Mark’s ideas of carrying out a classroom waste audit, investigating where our rubbish goes, the projects and discussing simple ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
One of the Sustainable Development Goals that really is close to my heart is SDG 4 Quality Education. Every child deserves the right to be treated fairly and to be valued however this is not always the case. Children with additional needs face barriers such as limited access to appropriate supports, challenges in particpating fully in school activities, difficulties with accessibility or social exclusion. Even though progress has been made over time, I personally feel we still have a long way to go eg waiting list timeframes for assessments and access to resources are still poor in Ireland.
On a global level these challenges can even be more significant. Children with disabilities are amongst the most marginalised groups in society. These children might be denied access to healthcare or excluded from their community for being different.
In line with the ESD to 2030 Priority Action Area 5, it is important to create a sense of inclusion in the class. I always explain to the children that we are all different and that its okay to be different. That is the mentality that needs to be seen throughout the school and should be part of the ethos. We can encourage this through discussion, inquiry based learning, role play and projects. It’s teaching children the basic life skills of being kind, sharing, helping others when they need help and to be inclusive that ae really important to shape them for the future.
The Global Inequality module can make a significant contribution to the SSE process, particualry areas relating to inclusion wellbeing and equality. it encorages schools to reflect on whether all children have the opportunity to participate, learn and succeed. The school can then gather evidence from parents, pupils and staff to assess current practices in the school.
I agree with Ciara Davis about a global awareness week and also choosing a different focus country each year. Its a great way of getting all the students in the school involved.
I can really relate to what some of the teachers have said in their response to gender stereotypes. I totally agree with you Niamh Flynn, I have noticed some of the same things in my Junior Infant classroom, where the boys will choose the building blocks and the girls will play with the dolls. Sometimes I find that the children don’t even realise they gravitate towards these toys but I find that there will always be someone to make a comment about it in the class at the start of the yea “No, boys don’t play with dolls”. That’s why it is so important for us as teachers to explain to the children that it’s ok to play with whatever toys you like. I find as the year progresses that this then is not an issue and the children gravitiate towards whatever toy takes their liking.
I love Louise Hallahan’s idea about having a classroom displays and books in the library that do not reinforce gender stereotypes. I will definitely be using these ideas in my own classroom, as it will help the children to think more critically and open the children’s minds.
Gender sterotypes can have a significant impact on kids from a young age. They can influence kids on how they see themselves, their interests, subjects, careers and what they believe they are able to achieve. Boys might feel they have to take on a very physical career and feel the need to be less emotionally expressive whereas girls may feel they need to be in a caring profession or a creative role. These sterotypes can limit children’s confidence, opportunities and may contribute to inequality later in life. I often see it in my Junior Infant classroom that the children have this idea that the boys are not allowed to play with the baby dolls and the girls shouldn’t like Marvel toys. They seem to have a certain assumption about colours too that ‘blue is for boys’ and ‘pink is for girls’. These gender stereotypes even translate into sports and cartoons that they watch.
Development Education methodologies can help challenge these stereotypes by encouraging children to think critically about assumptions and biases. Children can explore different perspectives and question traditional ideas through discussion, storytelling, role-play and inquiry based activities. This promotes values of equality, inclusion and respect. If these values are taught throughout the school by teachers then it would help to reduce these gender stereotypes.
I really enjoyed reading the points raised here about Development Education being embedded throughout school life rather than viewed as an additional subject. I agree that it plays a vital role in helping children develop empathy, critical thinking and an understanding of their place in the world. Like some people stated in the above responses, doing project work, integrating it in discussions and using literature and inquiry based learning shows how easily it can be integrated naturally across the curriculum.
I think its very important to get the whole school involved. Initiatives such as Green Schools and pupil led activities help children see that their actions can make a positive difference both in the local community and globally.
Collaborating with colleagues, sharing resources and highlighting links to existing curriculum areas can make Development Education more managable.
I have really understood the importance of development education from reading The role of global citizens in today’s world. It helps children to become informed about the wider world around us and helps them develop critical thinking skills. The start to think about inequalities, human rights, climate changw and social justice. This encourages respect and empathy for diversity and other cultures.
I would include development education in my teaching across the curriculum instead of treating it as a seperate subject. In SPHE I could discuss fairness, inclusion and responsibilities. In Geography, I coud explore the lives of others in different countries and compare them to the lives of the children here. I could luse stdories in Literacy eg Handa’s Surprise, to show different cultures. Project work for Culture Week based on different countries. Children from different countries in the school could do something to represent and celebrate their own culture- dance, sing, poetry etc. The whole school could be involved and this would encourage other colleagues and the school community to be involved.