Category: Learning for Sustainability

Countdown to COP26 – One Month to go

The United Nations COP26 Climate Summit starts on 01 Nov 2021. That means there is just over one month to go to one of the biggest events ever hosted in Scotland. The aim for the 200 world leaders in attendance will be to reach agreement on tackling the global climate emergency by limiting greenhouse gas emissions to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels.

Education Scotland has been working closely with key partner organisations to provide support and resources to help education settings and learners engage in the five key climate education themes of the COP26 Conference: nature, clean transport, energy transition, finance, adaptation and resilience.

Resources and support can be accessed via the Countdown to COP page on Education Scotland’s National Improvement Hub. https://education.gov.scot/improvement/learning-resources/countdown-to-cop26/

This includes access to the following elements:

  • A COP26 Wakelet collection – bringing together some of the best COP26 resources from partners around the world
  • Early Years – See Dug’s Discovery Den ThingLink resource and eBook of Dug’s visit to Arran
  • Primary – A ThingLink resource for learners covering all five COP26 themes and accompanied by a practical guide for teachers
  • BGE Secondary – Countdown to COP resource for learners in S1 to S3.
  • New! – We’ve also now added COP26 challenges to encourage learners to develop creative and innovative solutions to climate change.

You can also join our Countdown to COP Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) Live sessions being run by Education Scotland in partnership with Founders for Schools and e-Sgoil. These live and recorded sessions provide an insight into a wide variety of green jobs linked to COP themes: https://www.e-sgoil.com/countdown-to-cop26/ . Live sessions are running Fridays at 11:00am through to the start of COP26.

Scotland’s Assemblies – these live and recorded assemblies are a great way to introduce learners at First and Second Level to COP themes: https://e-sgoil.com/p2-7/ . Join us for our next COP assembly at 09:45am on Friday 1 October.

Learning for Sustainability Practitioner Network – connect, network and share ideas with over 300 other like-minded practitioners on MS Teams in Glow. Joining code: o4sj08j

Twitter – Follow us @EdScotLfS and visit our LfS blog for the latest updates

Don’t forget! The work doesn’t stop at the end of COP! Education Scotland is asking every school and setting to build a lasting legacy for the COP26 conference by ensuring that all learners in Scotland receive their entitlement to Learning for Sustainability, an entitlement that is embedded within Scotland’s curriculum. Find out about the wide range of resources and professional learning support available through the following pages:

SScotCHEM CLIMATE CHANGE CHALLENGE: Scientists, Schools & Sustainability

Chemistry Week (1-12 November) is an annual celebration of the chemical sciences. This year, to coincide with the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow on 1-12 November 2021, Chemistry Week will last for the full 12 days of the Conference.

The ScotCHEM CLIMATE CHANGE CHALLENGE: Scientists, Schools & Sustainability will align with the activities of COP26 and Chemistry Week 2021 – with a theme of sustainability.

ScotCHEM represents chemistry research in Scotland – across universities
and connecting with industry, government and, most importantly, education.

ScotCHEM invite entries for a challenge to prepare public engagement material aimed at primary school pupils in Scotland.  Centred around the issue of sustainability and climate change, this material should promote the role of chemistry in driving solutions to climate change as well as promote chemistry as a science and as a career for primary school aged children.

The outcome of the challenge is to provide a sound scientific basis to better understand climate change and advances towards sustainability, for primary school pupils.

Creating a link to COP26 will provide opportunities for engagement with this major event being hosted in Scotland.

The project will also provide on-going curriculum-linked resources that can be used well beyond the duration of the challenge itself, thereby creating a longer-lasting legacy and extending the reach of the activity.

Through the national remit of ScotCHEM and by working closely with Education Scotland, we hope to increase the number of chemists actively participating in meaningful school engagement across Scotland.

The challenge is open to researchers within ScotCHEM member departments, at any career level (PhD to Professor).

The following topics/questions have been identified as being of particular interest and relevance to primary school pupils regarding climate change.

• What is climate change – busting the myths?
• What am I, as a researcher, doing to tackle climate change?
• What can you, as a young person, do to help tackle climate change?

Submissions should be either a short (3-5 minute) video or short PowerPoint presentation that answers one or more of these questions, keeping the overall theme of sustainability in mind.

Submissions should also align with the Scottish curriculum.

Winning entries will be showcased throughout Scotland, via Education Scotland and ScotCHEM channels, to primary schools and to the public during Chemistry Week 2021.

The winners will also receive a £1000 prize (one per theme) which can be used for the following:
• Further public engagement activities related to chemistry and climate change
• Developing new research under the theme of sustainability
• Improving the sustainability of their research

In addition, any engagement resources judged to be excellent by our panel will be brought together to create a resource for Scottish schools to access when talking about sustainability and climate change. These resources will be made available through Education Scotland’s online platform as well as ScotCHEM’s YouTube channel.

The challenge is open to all postgraduate researchers and staff within ScotCHEM member departments, at any career stage.

Deadline for Challenge submissions 5pm Friday 15th October 2021.
Review of challenge entries by schools 21st – 28th October
Challenge winners announced 29th October
Showcasing of winners during Chemistry
Week 2021 1st – 12th November

Entry forms should be submitted by email to scotchem@st-andrews.ac.uk
Entries must be received by 1700 Friday 15th October.
Enquiries to Dr Alan Wiles (Director of Operations ScotCHEM)
scotchem@st-andrews.ac.uk

COP26 Drop in session LfS Practitioner network in Glow

Join us for the COP26 Drop in session in the LfS Practitioner network in Glow on 9th September.

Participants need to be members of the LfS Practitioner network to take part.

The link for the session is posted below  (Glow log in needed).

The session begins at 5 pm.

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer or mobile app

Click here to join the meeting

Learn more | Meeting options

Communities Stories Fund – Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022

The Communities Stories Fund has opened for applications, as part of Scotland’s Year of Stories 2022 (YS22).

The fund is directed at providing an opportunity for communities across Scotland to put on events that tell the stories that are unique or important to them.

With £300,000 available for awards of between £500 and £5,000, the fund will provide an opportunity for new, creative events, activities and programming. Applicants are invited to respond to any of the five, cross cutting Year of Stories 2022 programme strands:

  1. Iconic Stories & Storytellers
  2. New Stories
  3. Scotland’s People and Places
  4. Local Tales and Legends
  5. Inspired by Nature.

The deadline for applications for this round of funding is 1st October 2021. A further round of funding will open on 24 January 2022.

Full details of the criteria and how to apply can be found here: https://www.museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk/funding/year-of-stories-2022-community-stories-fund/

Applications must be made through the Museums Galleries Scotland website, and applicants must first register online to create an account before making an application. If applicants have any questions in relation to their application they should get in touch with the MGS team by contacting grants@museumsgalleriesscotland.org.uk

Earth Day 2021

 

22 April has been designated by the United Nations as International Mother Earth Day. This is a global day of action on climate change and biodiversity. Education Scotland is committing to doing even more to embed Learning for Sustainability into its plans and we’re inviting education settings across Scotland to do the same. This will help us prepare and make the most of the UN COP26 Summit which is being held in Scotland in November this year.

Check out the Earth Day video message from Gayle Gorman, Chief Executive of Education Scotland and Chief Inspector of Education: https://youtu.be/TS0IGUhC6SY 

Share your Earth Day plans with @EdScotLfS using the hashtag #EarthDay2021 #ThisisLfS

Further support, resources and ideas:

Happy Earth Day!

Image by David Mark from Pixabay 

Getting Started with Learning for Sustainability and Global Citizenship

Part 1: 23rd November 2020, 16:15 – 17:45

Part 2: 30th November 2020, 16:15 – 17:45

Part 3: 16th February 2021, 16:15 – 17:45

This free Professional Learning course is aimed at Primary and Secondary teachers, and consists of two online training sessions with an online sharing and reflection session later in the year. We will bring together strands of Learning for Sustainability (LfS) with a deeper exploration of Global Citizenship, providing practical methodologies and resources for teaching across the curriculum. Over the two sessions we will:

  • develop a shared understanding of Learning for Sustainability and Global Citizenship;
  • explore active methodologies that develop critical thinking;
  • examine themes and topics with strong Global Citizenship elements.

Click here to register and receive joining instructions.

The Lost Words: helping unearth nature for new audiences

 

Ways in which this publishing phenomenon is being used to connect with diverse groups and learning settings are highlighted by Rob Bushby.

Read how educators, youth workers, countryside rangers and others are using The Lost Words to help inspire and engage people from all backgrounds to re-discover words – and find and interpret their own learning and meaning through creative connections with nature.

Free resources including 5 spell-poem downloads and an Explorer’s Guide are hosted by the John Muir Trust.

The Lost Words Examples April 19

Collaboration in Global Education CLPL

Collaboration in Global Education CLPL – The Wood Foundation
Join a network of empowered, excited practitioners for a day of collaboration, shared learning, inspiration and interactive conversations to better mould your role in delivering Learning for Sustainability and global education.
Suitable for: All education practitioners (from early years to secondary, probationer to headteachers)
Saturday, 2 March 2019 Dewars Centre, Perth
11am to 4pm Cost: Free
 

 

 

Policy briefings – Learning for sustainability and outdoor learning

Moray House Institute of Education and Learning for Sustainability Scotland have produced a series of policy briefings on outdoor learning and learning for sustainability (LfS) within the Scottish context.

The policy briefings provide a concise background and overview of different aspects of LfS and outdoor learning and their impact on education and outcomes for learners. Themes covered include the impact of outdoor learning and LfS on attainment and behaviour and effective LfS also pedagogies.

Holyrood Briefing – Outdoor Learning in Scotland – 29-03-16

Holyrood Briefing – Learning for Sustainability – 29-03-16

Learning for Sustainability and Attainment – LfS Research Briefings – No.1

Impact of Outdoor Learning on LfS in schools – LfS Research Briefings – No. 2

Impact of Outdoor Learning, attainment and behaviour in schools – LfS Research Briefings – No 3

Learning for Sustainability – effective pedagogies – LfS Research Briefings – No.4

UN Decade of ESD and beyond in Scotland’s Schools – A retrospective review – LfS Research Briefings – No.5

 

Improving outcomes through learning for sustainability

Recent Scottish studies and other international research has identified that well-structured outdoor

Learning helps to raise attainment and:

  • facilitates children’s development in school grounds, local areas and on residential courses,
  • supports learning in all aspects of the school curriculum from 3 to 18,
  • provides opportunities for pupils to guide their own learning and develop critical thinking skills in ways elusive in the classroom,
  • raises children’s awareness of environmental and sustainability issues, resulting in understanding and promoting an ethic of care for our planet (directly linked with the concept of ‘learning for sustainability’)
  • has direct health and wellbeing benefits. This leads to high rates of ‘enhancement of challenge, enjoyment, personalisation, relevance, breadth and progression’ of learning.

Similarly, the ‘Conversations about Learning for Sustainability’ study conducted by Education Scotland in 2014 identified that Learning for Sustainability resulted in:

  • Enhanced learning and motivation and readiness to learn.
  • Increases in development of skills for life, learning and work.
  • Increases in confidence.
  • Improved reputation and standing of the establishments in their communities.
  • Improved staff morale, wellbeing and motivation.
  • Enriched ethos of school and improvements to the community spirit.

The links between education for sustainable development and quality education were further supported by an international Study conducted by UNESCO in 2015.

These briefings and reports, together with others, have been brought together here to support dialogue and interventions to raise attainment and improve outcomes for learners aligned to the Scottish Attainment Challenge, pupil equity fund and other priorities in education.

IDOX Briefing OL and Attainment

Conversations about LfS Report

UNESCO ESD and Quality Education Report

PEF and Outdoor Learning Research List

Impact of Outdoor Learning, attainment and behaviour in schools – LfS Research Briefings – No 3

Learning for Sustainability – effective pedagogies – LfS Research Briefings – No.4

Learning for Sustainability and Attainment – LfS Research Briefings – No.1

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