“… the world is now completely off track” (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2018). There is something narrowing and daunting about that quote from the IPCC from the recent article published by the BBC. I feel climate change is something that we whole-heartedly take for granted. Civilisation in the 21stCentury just ‘expect’ it to go on as normal. People all over the world, in particular well-developed countries such as the United States of America and the United Kingdom, do not realise that the actions they take every day affect the entire world. Learning about climate change and seeing how much we could do and change was an eye-opener for me as I didn’t realise the impact my own life had on the planet. The IPCC have recently declared a global state of emergency in relation to global warming and it resonated with me that change must start now. In relation to teaching within a primary school in a few years’ time, it will not be good enough to start change then. We must change our lifestyle today and maintain and teach the future generation tomorrow.
I admit to being one of the naive individuals who did not quite understand or appreciate climate change and the world that I live in. I was brought up in a country where we have access to free health care and free education and from a very supportive family that carried me and provided for me throughout my childhood and adolescence. Reflecting on this, I have almost created expectations for life for example it will snow in Winter and the sun will shine in Summer. I expect the world to just always be here and thriving no matter what, however with climate change and rising temperatures around the world this will not be the case. I personally have not realised how taking the car instead of walking or recycling affects the planet and how I, along with many others, are personally responsible for global warming.
I have learned a vast amount of knowledge in this topic and it has probably been the most beneficial due to the very recent state of global emergency. Most importantly I learned what climate change is and how it differs from the weather in a particular area. An example of this would be the United Kingdom having a temperate climate all year round however we could also have gale force winds and thunderstorms. The climate is the average weather over a long period of time, usually over thirty years, and the weather is what changes day to day. I gained knowledge on what governments and agencies around the world do in order to try and control climate change. The political side of climate change is probably the well-known aspect that the general public relate with as it affects how they live their daily lives. This involves the preservation of natural resources or areas for example the Great British Natural Parks and educating the general public about actions they can take at a local or individual level for example recycling different materials. In my opinion, recycling affects us the most as many councils are issuing penalties to individual households if they do not follow the strict recycling rules. The government and agencies around the world are only one component of global warming prevention. Kemp (2004) states that in order to be successful in controlling climate change we must bring together science that aids education which is backed by funding and political will. The knowledge that I have gained throughout the climate change topic has already made me change my own life choices. I now know what recycling takes place within my block of flats therefore I can recycle properly which will not save the world, however, it is a step forward.
I have also gained an immense amount of classroom experiences and skills that I can recreate in the future within my own classroom. Within our science workshop we were discussing weather patterns and potential natural disasters that occur around the world. An activity that I found very beneficial was creating a tornado within a glass jar. I as an adult was completely blown away with how a recycled glass jar was able to create a mini-tornado therefore I can imagine how a child would feel if I, the teacher, presented them with this task. Within the science input, we learned about air temperatures and how hot air rises and cold air drops. This was presented to us visually using food colouring which really allowed for us to graphically see the change and difference between temperatures. Within the resources list, there are pictures and videos of both tasks to support. Teachers must be able to accommodate differing levels of skill and different learners within the one classroom setting. An effective teacher will be able to teach through the use of many mediums for example visual, theoretical and practical. In this topic I have learned how to use these to my own benefit for example beginning with some basic background knowledge of a topic then following that with a visual aid for example a video. For this topic, we watched ‘Antarctica on Edge’ which was a short documentary that highlighted the severity and effect global warming has on the Antarctica. I then developed this knowledge through practical work which was the hot and cold air task previously mentioned. By using different mediums, teachers are complying to the GTCS Standard for Initial Teacher Education. Element of the Standard 2.1.3 states that teachers must “employ a range of teaching strategies and justify their approach” (GTCS, Standard for Initial Teacher Education, 2006). By using different approaches, we are allowing children to get the most out of their education and are moving away from the notion of textbook work every day to a more ranged approach to education. Element of the Standard 1.1.2 states that teachers must “acquire the knowledge and understanding to fulfil their responsibilities in respect of cross-curricular themes including citizenship, creativity…”. Cross-curricular activities are extremely beneficial to children as it allows them to process in their own way how the world is connected, independently and interdependently. Climate change could be taught as an inter-disciplinary topic or IDL within a classroom, but it also links to areas such as health and wellbeing, creativity, citizenship and personal and social education. By pulling knowledge from all these different areas of the curriculum, children are making links as to what they can do to prevent climate change and global warming from the skills and knowledge they already have.
On a more personal level, I have developed skills that have impacted my own life for example being more culturally aware of what is going on around the world. This again highlights how my decisions do not just affect me but the entire world. Global warming results in rising sea levels which heightens the chance of flooding and frequency of tsunamis. These catastrophes, every year, affect communities around the world as they deal with their whole life being literally washed away as well as coping with loss of family and friends. Another skill that I have developed is how I can influence a generation. Primary teachers have so much opportunity to influence their pupils as they are young and naive but also, they look up to them as role models which affects how they will live their lives. These skills are important because it has allowed me to become a better individual but more importantly, a better educator of children.
Climate change is very real, now more than ever. Dr Amjad Abdulla, an IPCC author stated that “it’s about morality – it’s about humanity” (BBC, 2018). If civilisation does not change their habits and think of the wider picture which is the world we live in, then temperatures will continue to rise and global warming will be more severe than it ever was.
Resources & Evidence
This is a picture and slow-motion video of the mini-tornado created within a recycled glass jar. This was a very simply experiment that only required four components (jar, water, food colouring for effect and washing up liquid) therefore can be replicated within a classroom setting.
This is the hot and cold air practical experiment that visually allows children to see the hot or red colour rise and blue cold colour fall to the bottom of the basin. This allows both visual and practical learners to gain the most out of their lessons.
References
Al Jazeera English. (2017) Antarctica on the Edge – Earthrise.[Online]. 27 June 2017. Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTPY8Q0raU4. [Accessed: 5 October 2018].
Kemp, D. (2004) Exploring Environmental Issues: An Integrated Approach. London: Routledge.
McGrath, M. (2018) Final call to save the world from ‘climate catastrophe’. BBC News.[Online] 8 October. Available: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-45775309. [Accessed: 9 October 2018].
Sustainable Development (2018) Politics and Global Warming.[Module Resource] Available: Climate Change module on Moodle. [Accessed: 8 October 2018].
Sustainable Development (2018) Climate Change.[Module Resource] Available: Climate Change Introduction module on Moodle. [Accessed: 8 October 2018].
