Academic Essay

‘We need a new environmental consciousness on a global basis. To do this, we need to

educate people.’ Mikhail Gorbachev

The most original definition of sustainable development is accredited to the Brundtland

Commission (1987) which defines it as “development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (World
Commission on Environment and Development, 1987). This definition recognises the
importance of growth and the long term impact on future generations.

People around the world recognise that current economic development trends are not
sustainable and that public awareness, education, and training are essential in moving
society toward sustainability. The world’s population is currently estimated at almost
seven billion people (U.S Census Bureau, 2011). By the year 2050, it is predicted that
there will be between 7.5 and 10.5 billion more people on earth than there is today.
Therefore the importance of sustainable development and living sustainably cannot be
ignored. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the concept of sustainable development
through an analysis of the report ‘Educating for a Sustainable Future’. The report will
then outline the use of the Development Compass Rose and the effectiveness of two
strategies in educating children on sustainable development.

The report, ‘Educating for a Sustainable Future’, discusses the key interlinking concepts
of education and sustainability (UNESCO, 1997). It emphasises how essential education
is to achieving sustainability in the future. Sustainability requires countries to come
together and work collectively to achieve it. The report acknowledges that education can
be both formal and informal integrating all areas of life. This is important especially in
poor societies where formal education cannot be afforded. A significant emphasis should
be placed on educating the youth as they will be the most influential teachers in the
future. Part III of the report highlights the importance of lifelong learning and advocates
that priority should be given to providing basic education in the developing world.

The importance of communication is also extensively addressed in the report.

Communication of messages in relation to sustainable development can often be difficult
for the average person to comprehend with people frequently people requiring scientific
proof. It is suggested that the most effective communication strategy for building
awareness and understanding is to focus on problems which the public experience in their
everyday life ones which they can relate to more easily.

The report highlights the importance of a curriculum that focuses on local issues rather
than using generic textbooks which often do not take into account local issues. The report
advocates that at national level a broad framework of documents outlining broad content
themes should be defined. These could then be tailored by teachers at local level. This
recommendation has been adopted and is evident in the Irish curriculum. A significant
focus is placed on the child as an in individual in their locality thus allowing them to
explore and relate to sustainability in their local environment. According to Mayer
(2005), teachers have moved away from solely transmitting knowledge to asking
legitimate questions about key sustainability issues with the students actively creating
their own meaning.

Where reform of the curriculum is required, it is important that governments also

consider how such reform can be achieved. The case study of the Toronto (Canada)
Board of Education, described in the report, advocates that well educated teachers are
essential in such delivering such reform. The Toronto (Canada) Board of Education
provided both informal and formal training and academic courses to upgrade their
teacher’s qualifications. Such rigour highlights the importance of adequately trained
teachers for new curriculum delivery.

The development compass rose, developed by the Birmingham Development Education

Centre in 1995, enables children to explore the interrelationship between environmental,

2
social, economic and political issues (Tide, 2011). It provides (Figure 1) a framework
which encourages pupils to explore development issues from a variety of different angles.
It encourages children to open their minds and question broader sustainability issues, how
these relate with each other and how they can be sustainable for the future. The
development compass rose is constructed like a compass however instead of north, south,
east and west, the four main points of the compass represent: natural/environmental
questions, social questions, economic questions and who questions – such as who makes
choices?

Figure 1: The Development Compass Rose

The diagonal points on the compass illustrate the relationship between the four main
points. For example, NE directs children to question how economic factors impact on the
natural environment; SE raises the relationship between economic factors and how such
factors affect people socially (Ubuntu Network, 2007). The development compass role is
used by schools to pose a range of questions for discussion about a locality, photograph
or artefact representing that locality.

In order to make the children aware of what sustainability means in the school and home
environments, the author would use the strategies of active participation, talk and
discussion and environment-based learning. The author would enable the children to
ascertain for themselves what sustainability means through a guided discovery approach.
The children will explore the impact they have on the environment and how they can live
sustainably for the future. The author would divide the class into groups of six and
request each group to compile a ‘sustainable living sourcebook’ (Oxfam). Collaborative
learning instils confidence in pupils who find whole class participation overwhelming

3
and secondly it supports pupils with learning needs (PPDS, 2010a). Collaborative
interpretation also produces greater understanding than a solo effort alone. The
sourcebook could identify ways of saving resources, reducing waste, recycling and
reducing transport pollution by appraising the local environment.

Information could be collected by the pupils through a number of different sources

including interviewing parents, the local library, newspapers and magazines. Studies have
confirmed that environment-based learning is far more engaging and stimulating for the
children than study conducted solely through textbooks (NCCA, 2005). Pupils could also
research the Internet for ideas and print off pictures to include in their projects. The use
of Information and Communications Technology can complement the delivery of a
lesson and is a key tool in supporting active learning (Ireland, Department of Education
and Science, 1999).

A visitor from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland would then be invited into the
classroom to talk to the children about sustainable living. In advance of the visit, the
author would ensure that the visitor is fully briefed on what the children have been
learning and what the visitor should cover as part of the visit. It is important that visit is
conducted in line with school policy and in line with the curriculum objectives
(Curriculum Online, 2005). The children could compile a list of questions that they
would like to ask the visitor again promoting active learning.

The completed projects could be displayed in the school reception. Displaying work
encourages participation and is a form of recognition and reward for the pupil’s efforts
(Curriculum Online, 2005a). To highlight the importance of the topic, an article could be
included in the local newspaper or weekly parish newsletter. Such recognition would
serve to emphasise the value of the project and the importance of living sustainably to
people in the wider community. Subsequent lessons on sustainability should focus on the
more specific issues including climate change, waste management, recycling and fair
trade.

4
The author’s second strategy aims to develop children’s understanding of fair trade
through active participating and the use of questioning. The author divides the class into
groups of six and assigns a role to each child in the group of Farmer, Cocoa Buyer
Importer, Chocolate Company, Shop and Government. The author then instructs the
group to consider how the cost of a chocolate bar retailing at €1 is divided among each
member of the group using their estimation and reasoning skills. The author advises the
children that when they are making their decisions they should also consider the
contribution each party makes throughout the lifecycle of the chocolate bar. Questioning
would form a significant part of this activity to direct the learning and enable the children
to clarify and explore ideas (PPDSb, 2010). The use of lower order questioning prompts
the pupils to use what they already know while the inclusion of higher order questions
extends the pupils learning. Questions, such as those proposed by Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Questioning (Dalton and Smith, 1986), could be prepared in advance.

When the children have completed their estimations, the author will then show them the
actual amounts that each party receives. According to Smith and Mac Gregor (1992),
collaborative learning is effective as it focuses on students’ investigation and application
of the subject material to enhance learning. Through talk and discussion, the author will
encourage the children to discuss the differences in the amounts and question the issue of
fair trade.

To conclude it is clear that in order for sustainable development to be actively embraced,

education and people awareness are essential in achieving this. From the report,
Educating for a Sustainable Future, the importance of teaching sustainability through
focusing on local issues and real life examples was emphasised. The classroom strategies
described in the essay also support this. On a grand scale in order to make an impact,
sustainable development needs to be managed and implemented by countries collectively
working together on a global scale and mutually agreeing targets of achievement. Finally
policies that are agreed also need be implemented and it is important that such initiatives
are continually assessed to identify if they are actually making an impact. At a classroom
level, sustainability should be incorporated into all lessons and practices where

5
appropriate so that sustainable living becomes a way of living rather than a subject to
learn.

6
Bibliography

Curriculum Online (2005) Methodologies for SPHE

http://www.curriculumonline.ie/en/PostPrimary_Curriculum/Junior_Cycle_Curriculum/J
unior_Certificate_Subjects/Social,_Personal_and_Health_Education/SPHE_Guidelines/
Methodologies_for_SPHE/

Curriculum Online 2005a Classroom organisation

http://www.curriculumonline.ie/en/Primary_School_Curriculum/Arts_Education/Visual_
Arts/Visual_Arts_Teacher_Guidelines/Classroom_planning_for_the_visual_arts/Classroo
m_organisation/

Dalton, J. and Smith, D. (1986) Applying Bloom’s Taxonomy. [Online]. Available at:
http://www.anwsu.org/ACS/constructed%20response/blooms_001.pdf (Accessed on
December 1 2010)

Ireland. Department of Education and Science (2004) Information and Communications

Technology in the Primary School Curriculum. [Online]. Available at:
http://www.ncca.ie/uploadedfiles/ECPE/ICTEnglish.pdf (Accessed on 1 December 2010)

McKeown, R. (2002) Education for Sustainable Development Toolkit

http://www.esdtoolkit.org/esd_toolkit_v2.pdf

Oxfam http://www.oxfam.org.uk/education/

PPDS (2010a) The English Curriculum – The fours strands of the curriculum – Oral
Language. [Online]. Available on www.ppds.ie/pcsparchive/english/OHs%20Oral
%20Language.ppt (Accessed on: 1 December 2010)

PPDS (2010b) Oral Language and Story. Available at:

http://www.ppds.ie/pcsparchive/english/Oral%20Language%20and%20Story.pdf
(Accessed: 24 November 2010)

7
Mayer, M. (2005) What can we do in school for ESD?
http://www.schule.at/dl/5760/img/DoInSchoolMayer1.pdf

NCCA (2005) Insights from the Curriculum Implementation Evaluation and the Primary
Curriculum Review Ahttp://www.ncca.ie/uploadedfiles/primary/PCRinsights.pdf

Tide (2011) The Development Compass Rose - a framework for raising questions
http://www.tidec.org/GL%20toolkit/Secondary%20handbook/2c.50%20Compass
%20rose.pdf

Ubuntu Network (2007) Teacher Education for Sustainable Development

www.ubuntu.ie/publications/Active%20Learning%20Draft1.1.pdf

UNESCO (1997) Educating for a Sustainable Future. [Online]. Available at

http://www.unesco.org/education/tls...t05s01.htm (Accessed: date).

U.S Census Bureau (2011) http://www.census.gov/

World Commission on Environment and Development (1987) Our Common Future.

Oxford: Oxford University Press.