Amy Carlin UWS ITE ePDP

During your eight serial days, you should spend the equivalent of three days gathering this information, by observing, speaking to class teachers and other colleagues, interacting with learners, reading school policies, and any other appropriate activities. The tasks will be explained in greater detail in relevant sessions during the module.

• Mapping of school grounds/area.

The school is surrounded by flats, shops and main roads and is constantly surrounded by cars and traffic. The school grounds are not massive however; there is enough space for children to play during intervals. There is no greenery either in the school grounds or around it eg. No grass, trees or garden areas. Inside the school there are spacious classrooms, a small canteen which is also used as the gym hall and small offices for the head and depute head teacher, office staff, janitor and resource room.

• Evidence of existing engagement with sustainable education within the school such as garden area, recycling bins, litter picking ‘wardens’, bird boxes, and so on.

The school is an eco-school and has an eco committee in which many pupils participate in. The school also focuses on recycling. Furthermore, within the classroom pupils have different roles each day, such as the ‘light monitor’ – who’s responsibility it is to ensure all the lights and projectors are off when nobody is in the class. There are also litter picking wardens during break and lunchtime so the playground is kept tidy.

• Consideration of actual play space for children and its suitability.

The school grounds are sufficient for play and even have various fun and colourful designs painted on the playground for children. There are also benches around the playground.

• Discussion with children on these aspects of sustainable education.

After discussing with some of the pupils in my class, I have learned that they are extremely keen to look after their environment with a strong focus on recycling – the children feel strongly on this subject and are always asking questions relating to it such as asking the teacher to go and recycle their bottles etc. The children are also very aware of the importance on saving electricity – and like taking on the role of ‘light monitor’.

Despite actually missing this lecture and workshop, by engaging with the material on module regarding this topic such as the prezi presentation by Louise, I have a good understanding of what interdependence is. What is interdependence? – The way in which two or more living things depend on each other to grow and remain healthy.  There are three key ways in which we are interdependent: economic, social and environmental interdependence. There are also various key concepts that are related to interdependence such as food supply and security, plant and animal breeding, crop protection, animal welfare and biodiversity.

As part of the study task for this week we had to, in small groups, create an infographic which synthesised the information we found from various readings regarding interdependence. The infographic focused on aspects such as biodiversity, economy and industry, community impact and political elements.

Link to my infographic.

Key Learning:

During Andrew’s workshop we focused mainly on the science investigative skills in relation to natural disasters. This workshop was practical and engaging and successfully illustrated a wide range of different science experiments that you could easily use with children.

This video illustrates our baking soda and vinegar volcano experiment. This was a very simple and effect experiment to demonstrate how a volcano reacts.

Louise’s workshop highlighted the political factors, and also the economic factors, of disasters. We also discussed the impact/role that international agencies- such as World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO), have in disaster relief. We also touched upon the help from non-governmental organisations (NGO’S) for example the Red Cross and their influence when disasters strike. Furthermore i was made aware through this workshop that an event can only be categorised as a disaster when human society is impacted for example loss of life, social disruption or material damage. We then in small groups revised and presented our thoughts on what is required from the government in regards to local, national and international level before, during and after a disaster.

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

Prior to this input I was aware of disasters such as tsunamis, earthquakes and volcanoes are always occurring in the world but never been fully engaged in learning about how they actually occur, however this has changed as now after the workshops I am eager to further research into the different types of disasters and the impact of these disasters on countries/communities.

By participating in the micro-teaching task I now have a better understanding of how this type of topic can be taught in the classroom and what CFE outcomes and experiences can be met through this topic.

Tsunami Presentation

Areas of interest to explore further/develop:

• I will explore further reading with regards to my contribution within my groups presentation for the micro-teaching task, our focus on tsunamis.
• Revise the other presentations from the micro-teaching task, looking at different types of disasters.
• To try out the different teaching skills illustrated by other groups during the teaching task that I felt worked well.

Key Learning:

After this week’s lecture and workshops on climate change I have learned about:

• What climate change is, that climate is the average weather at a given point and time of year, over a long period (typically 30 years). We expect the weather to change a lot from day to day, but we expect the climate to remain relatively constant.
• Evidence of climate change is collected by: weather recordings , ice cores , rocks and fossils and analysis of pollen and trees.
• The impacts of climate change
• The Greenhouse effect
• Global Warming and weather
• Politics and Global Warming

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

Prior to this week’s input on Climate change I did not have a great deal of knowledge on the topic however after both lecture and workshops from Louise and Andrew, I now feel that I have expanded my knowledge and can see the benefits of teaching children the impacts of climate change.  Also before the inputs I believe that I had been quite ignorant to climate change and the effects it has on our planet.

I found the practical workshop with Andrew to be most effective as it allowed us to carry out a few different experiments with regards to climate change such as making a cloud in a jar and the weather front experiment. Both experiments were very easy to carry out, engaging and would be perfect in a classroom.

Furthermore, after calculating my carbon footprint – which was larger than expected – I have taken into account my own personal effects on our planet and have become more aware on how to reduce my carbon footprint.

Areas of interest to explore further/develop:

• I found that using the WWF website to calculate my carbon footprint effective and I believe that using it with children would be easy and also effective as it illustrates the areas which impact our carbon footprint such as food, home and travel.
• Explore further reading and research regarding this theme.

In 2009, the Scottish Parliament unanimously passed the Climate Change Act, which aimed to reduce emissions from 1990 levels by 42% by 2020 and by 80% by 2050. The Act hopes for the public body to act in the way best calculated to contribute to the delivery of the targets and also in a way that it considers is most sustainable. The Act is comprised of several parts:

• Part 1 of the Act, creates the statutory framework for greenhouse gas emissions reductions in Scotland eg. The 2050 target.
• Part 2 of the Act contains provisions which will allow the Scottish Ministers to establish a Scottish Committee on Climate Change or to designate an existing body to exercise advisory functions should it be decided that this is appropriate.
• Part 3 places duties on the Scottish Ministers requiring that they report regularly to the Scottish Parliament on Scotland’s emissions and on the progress being made towards meeting the emissions reduction targets set in the Act.
• Part 4 places climate change duties on Scottish public bodies.
• The Act includes other provisions on climate change in Part 5, including adaptation, forestry, energy efficiency and waste reduction. Public engagement is a significant feature of Part 6 of the Act, which also includes provision on carbon assessment.

The Act has impacted our lifestyle choices in many ways on of which being the carrier bag charges. Legislation was passed by Scottish Parliament, on 20th October 2014, that requires ALL retailers (food and non-food) to charge a minimum of 5p for each new single-use carrier bag .The aim being to encourage bag re-use. This new piece of legislation has had a positive impact as the number of plastic bags handed out in stores was slashed by 80% – the equivalent of 650 million carriers – in the first year of Scotland’s 5p charge – the net carbon saving is more than 2,500 tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually. Personally I have seen a great change in the way people use plastic bags now, most of my friends and family re-use bags everyday instead of buying a bag with each shop. Furthermore, now schools are making children more aware of their carbon footprint and also by taking actions eg. Eco committees , to reduce carbon footprint within the school environment.

After taking the WWF ‘How big is your environmental footprint?’ I was shocked with my carbon footprint result as it was much larger than I thought it would have been at 180%. The quiz asked a number of questions, some of which I was not aware even related/ influenced my carbon footprint such as clothes, beauty products and food.  The quiz also provides some useful tips after completing such as buy more seasonal foods and take up cycling or walk to work.

Sources;

http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Environment/climatechange/scotlands-action/climatechangeact

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-34575364

Key Learning:

• ‘What does ‘The Environment’ mean to you?’ was the leading question in this week’s lecture/workshops and this made me think not only about the environment in regards to nature but also the different types of environment which impact our lives such as community and people.
• The environment and sustainability, focusing on our impact on our environment.
• To consider our own urban environment.

Impact on my views/lifestyle/practice:

Both Andrew and Louise’s inputs have encouraged me to re-evaluate my thoughts on the environment and allowed me to successfully see how to introduce and engage this type of topic to children, as the workshops were both very practical – involving us to go out and explore the area surrounding the university campus completing different activities such as bark and leaf rubbings and identifying various insects.

Furthermore, the independent study task allocated this week enabled me to think more about my urban environment eg.the Industries/ work, transport, green spaces and community aspects within my town.

Areas of interest to explore further/develop:

• To consider the wide range of tasks/activities which could be used in order to teach children outdoors.
• To explore my own urban environment.

I live in a small town called Viewpark, which is often categorised under Uddingston, in North Lanarkshire. It is made up of many housing schemes, mainly council and has many small towns surrounding such as Bothwell and Bellshill.

I believe that there is a great sense of community in my town. There are many aspects which support and enhance the community such as the community centre which provides various leisure activities, the library, the health centre, the newly built care home, shops, restaurants and bars. There are also two primary school situated in the heart of my town and many other primary and secondary schools surrounding. In 2012, Viewpark saw the return of its Gala day for the first time since 1988 in which focuses on bringing everyone in the community together with many fun attractions such as a parade, funfair rides, bouncy castles, various stalls and entertainment. The focus youth project also provides a wide range of educational, recreational and outdoor learning programmes to the youth of my town.

In terms of transport there are various facilities, one being the well run bus services connecting the surrounding towns such as Bellshill, Motherwell and Hamilton. Despite Viewpark not actually having its own train station, there are two very popular stations extremely close which have trains running to both Glasgow and Edinburgh. Currently there are some developments being made to the motorways A8 and M74 surrounding my area, with many road closures and diversions which is causing a lot of traffic and confusion.

In my urban environment there are a few green spaces such as the glen, local parks and local football pitches. Viewpark Gardens is a horticultural centre that incorporates several types of gardens and glasshouse displays, among the features of the gardens are Japanese and Highland plants. This is a very popular venue for wedding photos also. However, North Lanarkshire Council recently launched an £250,000 garden allotments project, in Viewpark gardens, where people can grow their own fruit and veg.

Viewpark/Uddingston, as well as closely surrounding towns, provides a great deal of jobs from the local shops, restaurants/bars, doctors to factory work. Uddingston is home to the Tunnock’s factory, famous for its caramel wafers and teacakes. The family-run business was founded in 1890 and is still based in the town today offering hundreds of jobs to the community. Also there are two large industrial estates, Bellshill and Tannochside, which also employ a lot of the community.

North Lanarkshire has a population density of 719 people per square km.  (http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/HTMLDocs/dvc134_c/index.html )

My urban area has also got a low level of air pollution, I found this surprising considering it is quite industrial. (http://www.scottishairquality.co.uk/latest/?postcode=g71+5hf&postcode-submit.x=0&postcode-submit.y=0 )