Teaching and Learning-ES480
From ClimateNetworkWiki
Why is environmental education important?
It is a teacher’s responsibility to equip his or her students with the skills and awareness necessary to make responsible and informed decisions. It is important that a student’s educational experience be aligned with sustainable principles as education plays a profound role in the eventual reality of a sustainable future. Learning contexts need to be adjusted to reflect human/environment interdependence and ethics as central to all disciplines. Students need to understand that they are an integral part of nature; that ecological services are critical for human existence and should be assessed in an effort to minimize the ecological footprint of human activity. Students would benefit from active, experiential, and collaborative learning in real-world problems. The majority of the Canadian population passes through the public education system, making it not unlike a filter wherein teachers can have profound impact on the lives of children and their families. Collaboration with the teacher education program at UVic could help to integrate sustainability and “beyond climate neutral” information and solutions into classroom subjects from kindergarten to grade 12. A new generation of teachers could be conditioned, from day one of their careers, to include environmental issues and solutions in the educational curriculum. The collegial connection between supportive environmental education initiatives and the Faculty of Education could serve to be invaluable. Such collaboration will help the UVic Teacher Education Program to prepare new teachers to make a difference in the lives of their students, colleagues, and communities.
How can we promote environmental education?
Collaborative planning is essential in creating effective climate strategies. This process helps to ensure that solutions provide benefits to multiple stakeholders, thus generating the support needed for strategies to become reality. UVic, as the largest and most influential post-secondary institution in the Vancouver Island region, has a unique opportunity to train future leaders while facilitating collaboration for the purpose of creating a climate-neutral society in and beyond the region. UVic’s education and research strengths, particularly with the addition of the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS), can facilitate capacity-building and collaborative processes in our community. Common Energy has proposed the establishment of a Network, which would connect UVic’s research and education strengths with community partners and similar projects in other communities working on climate and sustainability issues. This Network could be a component of PICS, staffed with paid employees and student research assistants. Students from all disciplines would focus on serving the region through participating in problem-based and service-learning courses, thus enriching their educational experience while building local capacity. The Network would also be dedicated to facilitating collaboration, and bringing together stakeholders in the community and province. Since all sectors of society play a role in climate solutions, all citizens would be invited to participate in helping create local solutions for a climate-neutral region.
Overview
Effective Educational Initiatives
Post education institutions are viewed as societal leaders; collaboration with other influential large universities would be an obvious strategy to gaining clout with the provincial and federal governments, and with society at large. York University, based in Ontario, is an example of an influential institution that is advancing progressive and sustainable initiatives. It is also important that collaboration occur with educational institutions at the regional and community level. Malaspina University-College and Royal Roads University are examples of such post-secondary institutions on Vancouver Island. Lester B. Pearson College, a pre-university school for gifted young people, is another important example of an educational institution in Greater Victoria. Solid networks between higher education facilities and Common Energy could potentially establish collaborative relationships in different communities on Vancouver Island and abroad. Collaboration and networking are essential to orienting UVic towards being a leader in sustainable practices and teachings in our region, province, and country.
Government and University Support for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
British Columbians are known to value the environment and to be inspired by their region’s natural beauty. British Columbia is the birthplace of NGO’s like Greenpeace, and boasts some of the most progressive environmental policies in North America. This statement is not meant to cover up the province’s track record of environmental exploitation, but to capitalize on the potential of five key documents that may help lead the way to a sustainable future. The first among these documents is the Report to UNECE and UNESCO on Indicators of Education for Sustainable Development from the Council of Ministers of Education Canada, second the premier’s 2008 Throne Speech, third the Ministry of Education’s Environmental Learning And Experience: An Interdisciplinary Guide for Teachers document. A fourth document is the Ministry of Education’s Shared Learnings: Integrating B.C. Aboriginal Content K-10 document and the fifth is the University and College Presidents' Climate Challenge Statement of Action for Canada. These documents represent solid support from the Federal and B.C. provincial government, the B.C. ministry of education, and the heads of major universities. Those who are attempting to integrate ESD into education in BC would benefit by being familiar with all these documents. These documents come from influential people who are interested in ESD, and so provide an opportunity to contact, network, and collaborate, with ESD experts. Creating working relationships with the authors of these documents will greatly increase the capacity of any educational institution.
Questions to get your mind moving
1) Is there political and public awareness of existing resources?
2) Is there a sense of being overwhelmed by the scope and challenges of climate change, which leads to inactivity on an individual basis?
3) Is it hard to make sustainability a key component of curriculum as there are already many competing priorities?
4) Does pre-service training for potential teachers lack sustainability as a topic in their formal education?
5) Is resistance to activists teaching in schools?
6) Does there needs to be a greater inclusion of Indigenous perspectives?
7) How can we develop connections between students, staff, businesses, non-profits, and governments in our region?
8) How can we get the above collaboration to deliver climate solutions through research and problem-based learning?
9) How can the "gap" between existing resources and educators be closed?
10) How can we connect UVic with community partners?
11) What does collaborative planning look like and how can UVic facilitate that in our local community?
12) What do you think constitutes high quality education for sustainability?
13) What do you think about the role of critical thinking, inter-disciplinary collaboration, problem solving and solution based research, applied experiential learning?
14) What aspects of our current form of education do you think needs to be preserved, and what aspects need to be eliminated?
15) Do you think our current course (ES 480) is a prime example of education for sustainability? What are the prose and cons?
16) What do you think are the major barriers and assets in implementing education for sustainability at UVic?
17) How can one motivate and inspire student staff and administrators to implement education for sustainability?
References
Opportunities in TILMA: The opportunity to adopt a sustainability prerequisite.
BC College of Teachers. 2008. Information on New Certification Requirements and Labour Mobility.
http://www.bcct.ca/documents/FormsandPublications/BecomeTeacher/MiscForms/TILMA_QA-teachers.pdf>. Accessed 2008 March 12.
BC College of Teachers. 2007. Teachers in B.C. and Alberta Agree to Labour Mobility. <http://www2.news.gov.bc.ca/news_releases_2005-2009/2007ECD0048-001632- Attachment1.htm>. Accessed 20088 March 14.
Eco Dollars to the Rescue: Potential funding sources
CEGN. 2003. About Environmental Grantmaking in Canada. Canada Environmental Grantmakers’ Network. <http://www.cegn.org/grantmaking/dbintro.html>. Accessed 2008 March 15.
Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions. 2008. The University of Victoria. <http://www.pics.uvic.ca/index.php>. Accessed 2008 March 17.
York University. A National Role Model: Integrating substantiality into teacher education
Hopkins Charles. 2008. Teaching and Learning for a Sustainable Future: UNESCO Chair in Reorienting Teacher Education Towards Sustainability. York University. http://www.yorku.ca/irisinfo/wp/?page_id=88. Accessed 2008 April 19.
Hopkins Charles. 1999. Unique UNESCO Chair a coup for York. York University Gazette Online. <http://www.yorku.ca/ycom/gazette/past/archive/101399/current.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 22.
Trades and Academia Merge at Malaspina: An inter-disciplinary and service-learning partnership between Science and Trades
Mainly Malaspina. 2008. Malaspina Students Get Green Training. Malaspina University- College. <http://www.mala.ca/mainly/page.asp?Story=&ID=1374>. Accessed 2008 March 11.
Greening Education at Royal Roads: Applied problem-solving research and innovative partnerships with communities, businesses, and the public sector
Royal Roads Programs. 2008. Royal Roads University. <http://www.royalroads.ca/programs/faculties-schools-centres/faculty-social- applied-sciences/environment-sustainability/envscnc-bsc/default.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 13.
Youth Lead the Way at Pearson College: Students engaging in collaboration with government and NGOs to undertake significant environmental initiatives
Hawley Nico. 2008. Other Sustainability Initiatives at Pearson. Lester B. Pearson College. <http://www.pearsoncollege.ca/oikos/History.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 16.
Oikos Project. 2008. About the Oikos Project. Lester B. Pearson College. <http://www.pearsoncollege.ca/oikos/Home.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 16.
Sustainability Inspires Unity: NGOs, the private sector, and government networking
LifeCycles. 2000. LifeCycles: Cultivating Communities. <http://www.lifecyclesproject.ca/>. Accessed 2008 March 12.
LSF. 2000. Provincial Working Group: Walking the Talk. <http://www.lsf- lst.ca/en/pwg/bc.php>. Accessed 2008 March 11.
LSF. 1991. Welcome to Learning for a Sustainable Future. <http://www.lsf-lst.ca/en/home/>. Accessed 2008 March 11.
Sierra Club BC. 2007. Sustainable High Schools (SHS) Project. Environmental Education School Programs. <http://www.sierraclub.bc.ca/education/ed_schools/middle- secondary>. Accessed 2008 March 20.
Green Initiatives Flourish in the Ivory Tower: Achieving faculty participation through interdisciplinary support
The Peidmont Project. 2006. Emory University. <http://www2.nau.edu/~ponder-p/>. Accessed 2008 March 15.
The Ponderosa Project. 1998. Northern Arizona University. <http://www2.nau.edu/~ponder-p/ >. Accessed 2008 March 12.
Second Nature. 2002. Education for Sustainability: SN Initiatives. <http://www.secondnature.org/index.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 14.
ESD is Official: Canada’s Commitment to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development
Education for Sustainable Development. 2005. UN Decade for Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014). <http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php- URL_ID=23279&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html>. Accessed 2008 March 10.
Environment Canada 2007. Report to UNECE and UNESCO on Indicators of Education for Sustainable Development. Council of Ministers of Education Canada. <http://www.cmec.ca/international/unesco/canada-report-esd-2007-10.en.pdf>. Accessed 2008 March 10.
Throne Speech: B.C.’s commitment to sustainable initiatives
Steeves Dale 2008. Throne Speech Lays Groundwork For Next Generations. Office of the BC Premier. <http://www2.news.gov.bc.ca/news_releases_2005- 2009/2008OTP0031-000196.htm>. Accessed 2008 March 16.
A Must Read For Teachers: A ministry document outlining the implementation of environmental education in B.C. schools
BC Ministry of Education. 2007. Environmental Learning and Experience: An Interdisciplinary Guide for Teachers. Accessed 2008 March 10.
Green Teacher. 2008. Education for Planet Earth. <http://www.greenteacher.com/>. Accessed 2008 March 14.
Indigenous Knowledge: A ministry document outlining the integration of Aboriginal knowledge into B.C. schools
Shared Learnings. 2006. Integrating BC Aboriginal Content K-10. BC Ministry of Education. <http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/abed/shared.pdf>. Accessed 2008 March 22.
The Presidential Climate Forecast: The University and College Presidents' Climate Challenge Statement of Action for Canada
The University Presidents' Council of B.C. 2008. The University of British Columbia. <http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/media/releases/2008/mr-08-031.html>. Accessed 2008 March 30.
