Sustainability and Learning:

What role for the curriculum?

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Education for sustainable development …

… can usefully be seen as the inter-play between academic and citizenly understanding, knowledge, values, and skills.

… a responsive social learning process – both a part of, and a preparation for, informed, active, open-minded, social engagement with the key socio-political issues of the day.

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Tony Blair …

Sustainable development will not just be a subject in the

classroom: it will be in its bricks and mortar and the way the

school uses and even generates its own power. Our

students won't just be told about sustainable development,

they will see and work within a school that is a living,

learning place in which to explore what a sustainable

lifestyle means.

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

The 8 Doorways

Food and drink Energy and water

Travel and traffic Purchasing and waste

Buildings and grounds Inclusion and participation

Local well-being The global dimension

How do these link to sustainable development?

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Webster & Johnson’s 4 Stages …

1. Initial exploration

2. Some assimilation

3. More strategy

4. Towards restorative

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

A sustainable school is one that …

• minimise its depletion of natural capital resources• has buildings and equipment which are fit for purpose and

as efficient as possible

And teaches about and through the inter-relationship of 1 to 4.

• maximises human capital by educating people, developing capacity for social action and further learning

• maximises social capital by adding to social cohesion, well-being and mutual understanding, both locally and globally

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Higher Education

HEFCE The Higher Education Academy

People & Planet EAUC

Revolving Green Fund Green Gown Awards

Capital Investment Framework CELTs

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

HEA draft statement of core academic value

“A commitment to the sustainability of higher education and

the concept of global citizenship”.

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Further Education

Learning & Skills Council Skills Funding Agency

Learning & Skills Improvement Service

Association of Colleges Leaders of the Future

Skills for Sustainable Growth Reaching Forward Index

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Vision statement

LSIS …

“A learning and skills sector which maximizes and

mainstreams environmental, economic and social

sustainability”.

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

Vision statement

McDonald’s … “Our vision for a sustainable supply chain links responsibility

for ethical, environmental and economic outcomes”.

Sustainability and Learning: What role for the curriculum?

[ ESD2 ] facilitating change in our ability to deal with …

an uncertain and unknown future by building students’ capacity to think critically about [and beyond] what is known now and what experts say, and to test out sustainable development ideas.

[ ESD1 ] facilitating change in our ability to deal with …

the problems of the present, and how we live now, by promoting particular behaviours and ways of thinking, where the need for this has been clearly identified and agreed.

Sustainability and Learning:

What role for the curriculum?