Global Citizenship – Learning for Sustainability

Apply for Global Learning Partnerships 2017

GTC Scotland registered practitioners from Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeenshire Council, Highland Council and Stirling Council are invited to apply for Global Learning Partnerships 2017.

WHAT IS IT?

35 days of CLPL delivered over an 18 month period. Global Learning Partnerships (GLP) provides participants with the opportunity to spend four weeks, over the Scottish summer holidays, living in host communities in rural Rwanda and Western Uganda. During this time, participants will work alongside local educationalists and teachers, developing their teaching methodologies and improving the provision of education within host schools.
In addition to the four weeks in-country, participants will attend two pre-departure training weekends (March / June 2017) and a post placement debrief (October 2017)
GLP is accredited by GTC Scotland in Global Education within Learning for Sustainability.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

The programme costs on average £3,600 per person. Participants are asked to fundraise £1,250 towards this cost. The remainder of programme funding is met by The Wood Foundation and local authority partners.
Costs include: all pre-departure training (accommodation and sustenance), placement costs (flights, living allowance, accommodation overseas, in-country orientation, mid-phase review and in-country support costs), and debrief (training provision, accommodation and sustenance).

WHO DELIVERS THE PROGRAMME?

Developed by The Wood Foundation, GLP is currently delivered in Scotland in partnership with Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeenshire Council, Highland Council, and Stirling Council.
In Rwanda, the programme is developed and delivered alongside Inspire Empower Educate Rwanda and The Lotic Group. In Uganda, The Wood Foundation will work in partnership with Redearth Uganda.

HOW DO I APPLY?

Applications are open to permanent, GTC Scotland registered practitioners who work for one of our partner local authorities.
Application forms are available by contacting Kelly Work (Kelly.work@thewoodfoundation.org.uk), or by contacting your local authority champion (Fiona Saunders – Aberdeen City; Christine McLennan – Aberdeenshire; Christine Gordon – Highland; and Helen Winton – Stirling).
Applications will be accepted from now until 5pm on Friday 6th January 2017.

See flyer below:

download-the-global-learning-partnership-flyer

British Council: LfS Connecting Classrooms Course

Glasgow: 14 January – 18 March (Venue TBC)

Edinburgh: 21 January – 25 March 2017 Moray House School of Education, University of Edinburgh
Oban: 22 April – 25 June 2017 (bookings not yet open, please register interest)

This professional learning initiative by the University of Edinburgh in partnership with the British Council and Learning for Sustainability Scotland, is a timely opportunity for teachers to grapple with what Learning for Sustainability means, what existing and new skills and knowledge are required, and how this might all look in the your school context. Connecting directly with Curriculum for Excellence, involvement will enable you to effectively plan for and implement Learning for Sustainability approaches in your school.

This programme offers teachers the opportunity to engage and collaborate over a ten week period which includes two full day face to face sessions at the beginning and at the end of the period, supported by fortnightly inputs from online materials.

Teachers who successfully complete the programme will be eligible to apply for overseas study visits to partner schools in other countries. Learning can be used to strengthen international links at your school, enriching teaching and learning through partnerships and joint projects.

The professional learning is fully funded.

For more information on the Glasgow course, including what is involved and how to book please click HERE.

For more information on the Edinburgh course, including what is involved and how to book please click HERE.

If you would like to be included on the mailing list for future courses in other Scottish locations, please email Abi Cornwall.

Global citizenship bus is coming your way

The Global Citizenship Education Roadshow is coming to a venue near you during September.

There will be events for teachers, and a celebration of global citizenship at the Scottish Parliament. The Roadshow will also be visiting the Scottish Learning Festival at the SECC in Glasgow.

Attached below is a programme of the special events planned, please contact your local Global Learning Centre or email Fiona at GCevents@ideas-forum.org.uk for further details.

Please forward the attached flier onto your contacts and we hope to see you at one of the Roadshow events! Teachers can also find details of additional global citizenship professional development by visiting the global citizenship online calendar.

Download IDEAS GC Roadshow Flier

Volunteering for sustainability

Project Trust is now welcoming applications from those leaving school in 2017 who are interested in becoming Global Volunteers.

Project Trust’s aims are to “empower young people to be confident, creative and resilient through a challenging volunteering experience overseas. Acting as responsible citizens and effective contributors, volunteers make a positive difference to their overseas host communities and share their learning and understanding when they return home. ”

From the charity’s home on the Hebridean island of Coll, Project Trust selects around 300 young people from across the UK for 8 – 12 month teaching, social care and outward bound projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

“Project Trust gives young people the opportunity to explore the world whilst making a real contribution to the global community. … you don’t just see a place but become part of it.”

Lucy Hughes (Cambodia volunteer)

Global-Citizenship-Ambassadors
Working and living in challenging environments within communities around the world, offers volunteers an opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of various global issues. Through Project Trust’s Global Citizenship programme, returned volunteers also share their experiences and knowledge with schools across the UK. Volunteers can receive an accreditation of a Level 3 Foundation Year in Global Volunteering and Citizenship as formal recognition of their learning.

Volunteering overseas with Project Trust is open to all young people with the desire, motivation and aptitudes required to succeed. A bursary fund has recently been established to provide financial assistance to volunteers who may require extra support.

To find out more visit http://www.projecttrust.org.uk

To organise a visit from a Project Trust representative to talk to S5/6 pupils, contact Claire.Jennings@projecttrust.org.uk

Refugees facing winter freeze

A common refrain over the weekend of the clocks going back is that we can have “an extra hour in our bed.” As we prepare for the transition from autumn to winter, pictures emerging from Associated Press’ twitter feed show drone photography of a continuing stream of refugees heading through the Balkan countryside. For them, just one hour in their own bed in the face of dropping temperatures and increasingly complex arrangements for finding sanctuary, is a forlorn hope.

Meanwhile, the UNHCRC are warning of an increasing polarisation in the views of Europeans in their response to the refugee crisis. The head of the EU, Jean-Claude Juncker, has spoken out on the distinct possibility of refugees “freezing to death”.

Many educators will already have found ways of engaging pupils with the refugee crisis (See previous post on IDEAS network resources). For others, however there may not yet have been the time or opportunity.

This Thursday, SCOTDEC is offering a practical session aiming to provide ideas, methodologies and resources for teachers to explore the refugee crisis . This session will be co-delivered with the British Red Cross. You can sign up here.

Christian Aid have also produced an assembly resource with speaker notes and accompanying PowerPoint that may provide a helpful way in to discussing the issue as a whole class/ school. You can access the resources here.

Aiming for the Global Goals

A number of schools have started learning about the newly agreed Global Goals for Sustainable Development. Scotland was one of the first nations in the world to sign up to the Global Goals, building on the Scottish Government’s existing commitment to the learning for sustainability agenda.

One of the key commitments on education in Global goal 4.7 is that our children and young people are fully involved in building a more sustainable and equitable future. It states that by 2030 we must “ensure all learners acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including among others through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship, and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development.”

One school in West Dunbartonshire has stolen a march on the 2030 deadline and is already out tackling Global Goal #2 – No Hunger. You can read more about St Eunan’s Primary 7’s learning on food justice and food inequality in their class blog.

Well done to all involved and good luck with your ongoing activities at West Dunbartonshire Community Food Share. If any other classes are blogging about the Global Goals or any other LfS activities, please email Anthony.Hutcheson@educationscotland.gsi.gov.uk or let us know on Twitter @EdScotLfS .

Click here for a short animation, created by Sir Ken Robinson, on the 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development.

Apply for extra places on LfS practitioner network

Additional places available for practitioners and leaders with a passion for LfS

Are you passionate about learning for sustainability (LfS)? Do you have experience of leading on one or more aspects of LfS in your educational setting? Are you willing to share what has worked for you and be inspired by other committed practitioners across Scotland?

Additional places have become available on the LfS national practitioner network. Offers of places have already been made through the LfS local authority network. However, if you have not registered an interest through your local authority and would like to be considered for one of the additional places, please email Anthony.Hutcheson@educationscotland.gsi.gov.uk .

The network will be convened by Education Scotland in partnership with the Forestry Commission Scotland. The first meeting took place on Friday 30^th October 2015. The second meeting will take place on Friday 11th December 2015. The third meeting has been arranged for Thursday 4th February 2016. Venues tbc.

Aims

The purpose of the network is to create time and space for a cross-authority group to:

share practice and successes
work in a coordinated way to identify gaps in the system and co-create new resources and approaches
disseminate these resources immediately to all practitioners through Glow
work in partnership with national LfS providers to build capacity in the system
share successes and impact through a range of digital platforms.

Person specification

To contribute effectively to the national network we are looking for individuals with skills and expertise across the following areas:

passionate about learning for sustainability
excellent knowledge of CfE and a range of LfS themes and approaches. These may include some or all of the following areas: global citizenship, sustainable development education, international education, outdoor learning and children’s rights
experience of leading and/or contributing to effective change, development and improvement in LfS at school/local and/or national level
proven track record of planning and delivering high quality learning experiences
ability to take a flexible, creative and collaborative approach to working with a range of other practitioners and partners
excellent written communication and IT skills to explain the values of sustainability to a range of audiences, while consistently reflecting upon and modelling those same values
awareness of emerging research and policy developments and how they relate to LfS
ability to disseminate resources, approaches and understanding to peers across their authority.

Global Learning Programme Scotland Events

Did you know the Global Learning Programme Scotland (GLPS) has a dedicated events page? This online hub provides information and booking details for all upcoming professional learning programmes offered by the six regional Development Education Centres (DECs).

Forthcoming events include Learning for sustainability: developing global citizens 1st to 3rd level (WOSDEC, East Ayrshire) , Rights and Global Citizenship: a cross curriculum approach (SCOTDEC,West Lothian) and One Day Conference on National Qualifications and Learning for Sustainability (Conforti Institute, Coatbridge).

The IDEAS network has also provided information in response to the refugee crisis. Information on events, resources and support for teachers is available here.

LfS at the SLF

There is still time to register for seminars at the Scottish Learning Festival 2015.

The Scottish Learning Festival (SLF) is the key education event in Scotland welcoming thousands of education professionals.

SLF 2015 takes place on Wednesday 23 and Thursday 24 September in the SECC, Glasgow.

Below are some of the key seminars relating to learning for sustainability. Remember that even if the seminars are showing up as full when you register, it can be worth trying to attend on the day, as spaces often become available.

Staff will also be on hand at the Education Scotland stand to discuss learning for sustainability between 3:00 and 3:30pm on Wed 23rd and 12:30 and 1:00pm on Thu 24th.

Wednesday 23rd September

Learning for Sustainability: National Progress, Local Success

Ian Menzies, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE B1E

Participation – collaborating with children and young people to raise attainment and achievement

Paul McWatt, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE A1B

Scotland Lights Up Malawi

Alastair Davidson, Keep Scotland Beautiful, SEMINAR CODE K3A

If You Go Down to the Woods – Developing Forest Kindergartens

Marian Cairns, Forestry Commission Scotland, SEMINAR CODE B2C

‘Joined up Thinking’. Using the John Muir Award

Phil Thompson, Ardroy Outdoor Education Centre, SEMINAR CODE A2E

Social Studies Resource Launch

Lynne Robertson, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE C2E

The Unexpected Outcomes of Youth Achievement Awards

Aileen McGovern, West Lothian Council, SEMINAR CODE C1E

Establishing and developing a successful link with France

Thomas Chaurin, Institut Français d’Écosse, SEMINAR CODE K3C

How do the Scottish Teacher Education Standards and the GTCS Code of Professionalism & Conduct set parameters for teacher professionalism in Scotland?

Tom Hamilton and Lindsay Thomson, GTCS, SEMINAR CODE L2D

Better Eating, Better Learning – practical ideas to put the guidance into practice

Lorna Aitken, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE C1B

Thursday 24th September

Working in tandem – using bicycles in the curriculum

Sustrans Scotland and Harestanes Primary School

SEMINAR CODE A1F

Think about it! Philosophy with children and young people

Joe Walker, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE M1F

Making it into Higher Education

Martin Davidson, The Outward Bound Trust, SEMINAR CODE A1G

PAS promoting education for all in the planning process

Julia Frost, PAS, SEMINAR CODE D2H

World War One Whole School Context – a collaborative approach

Jenny Watson, Middleton Park School, SEMINAR CODE N1H

Collaboration, shared self-evaluation and partnership with the third sector

Alona Murray, Education Scotland, SEMINAR CODE D1I

Making Rights Real: A Framework for Rights Based Learning

South Lanarkshire Council, Curriculum Quality Improvement Service, SEM CODE L2I

Embedding international education in school: A whole school approach to raising attainment

Lucy Young, British Council Scotland, SEMINAR CODE D2I

Air Quality Learning and Teaching Package

Ben Jackson, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, SEMINAR CODE M1I

Global Citizenship News and Resources

Scottish teachers are able to benefit from a wide range of free resources produced by charities and NGOs to support global citizenship education and learning for sustainability. The online magazine Stride, produced by the IDEAS forum in Scotland, is a very helpful means of finding out about new projects and materials for education. The summer 2015 edition includes an article about a Literacy project linking Scotland and Rwanda , features such as ‘taking global learning outdoors locally’ , and class activity suggestions.

The IDEAS forum is also behind “Signposts for Global Citizenship“, a new searchable collection of resources which can support education practitioners.

One fresh example is a resource created by education staff at Oxfam, ‘Maths and Global Citizenship’, which describes how maths can be taught with a global citizenship approach. They argue that “Global Citizenship provides real-life contexts which engage learners’ curiosity and make them want to use maths to explore patterns and formulate ideas about the world. The motivation for mathematical learning often hinges on its application. Therefore using real-life statistics is a great way to demonstrate the purpose of maths to learners and to inspire them.

In early 2014, Oxfam found that the world’s 85 richest people owned the same wealth as the poorest half of the world’s population. By January 2015, this number had fallen to 80. What story about inequality do these statistics tell? Are the numbers reliable? How was the research carried out? Does everyone agree with these figures? Learners can develop their mathematical understanding both in making sense of such data and by investigating its context and validity. Through a Global Citizenship approach to maths, learners critically analyse the statistics they are exposed to in daily life; make connections between the local and the global and then share their understanding with others.”