by Jade Blue
images by Lilia Luján
TEACHERS AND EDUCATORS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN HELPING LEARNERS DEVELOP THE KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ATTITUDES THEY NEED TO FLOURISH AS CITIZENS OF THE WORLD, AND MANY OF THESE SKILLS RELATE TO SUSTAINABILITY. IN THIS ARTICLE, WE TAKE A DEEPER LOOK AT WHAT THE TRANSFORMATION AND INNOVATION DIMENSIONS OF THIS TOPIC INVOLVE AND HOW TO HELP LEARNERS DEVELOP THEIR SKILLS.
What do we mean by transformation?
Understanding agency
To address sustainability issues, we need to be able to take action and make choices about what action to take: we call this agency. By recognising our own agency, we can identify ways in which we can make positive changes on our own or as part of a group. Part of understanding agency is about recognising the relationship between agency and outcome.
Comparing the impacts and outcomes of both individual and collective actions can help us understand how working together can not only make positive change more possible, but also more effective. By understanding agency, we can also inspire agency in others.
Classroom Tips
Encourage learners to think about their own individual agency and collective agency, by asking questions such as:
- What can I do alone?
- What can we do together that I can’t do alone?
- How will the outcomes be different if we work together?
When learners make a statement or give an opinion on a sustainability issue, invite them to think about how they might say this to different audiences:
- someone who thinks the issue isn’t important
- someone who doesn’t know anything about the issue
Working together
Working together effectively increases the chances of making positive change happen. Appreciating cultural diversity by developing awareness of, respect for and sensitivity to different cultures, can help us build positive relationships and interact more effectively. Appreciating cultural diversity, encouraging fair, respectful and equitable interaction, and promoting social inclusion, lay the foundations for developing meaningful collaborative relationships to work towards positive and sustainable change.
Classroom tips
Promote a collaborative classroom by setting up tasks that require learners to work together in groups.
Integrate projects that culminate in a clear outcome that learners can see, such as posters, presentations or events.
After group work, reflect on how their individual contributions fit into the whole task and how the success of the task is the responsibility of the whole group.
Making positive change
Making positive change involves acting as a global citizen. This means recognising and exploring how identity transcends geographical borders, that we are part of a global community, and making sure our behaviours are in line with this. Connected to this is the idea of accountability —the fact of being responsible for our actions and being able to give a satisfactory reason for them.
We also need to promote a culture of peace and non-violence by encouraging constructive dialogue, developing empathy and compassion, and ensuring that everyone is valued and able to participate.
Classroom tips
Encourage learners to hold themselves to account by inviting them to give reasons for the decisions they make in classroom tasks and projects.
- Encourage learners to explore their global identity and recognise themselves as a global citizen by inviting them to identify their relationships and connections with different countries and cultures, and to consider how these connections contribute to their own identity.
- Promote a culture of peace and non-violence in your classroom by encouraging learners to deal with disagreement with kindness and respect. Invite learners to listen carefully and try to understand others’ viewpoints when they disagree about an issue.
- Carry out classroom projects that provide opportunities for learners to take practical and positive sustainability action, such as activities to help the environment, making informed consumer choices, or seeking out more sustainable product suppliers in the workplace.
What do we mean by innovation?
Exploring perspectives
Looking at the perspectives of different people and social groups helps us work towards sustainable solutions. Exploring perspectives includes critically evaluating sustainability claims, interpreting and drawing inferences from sustainability arguments and data and identifying any underlying bias or assumptions in arguments. We also need to consciously explore our own personal perspectives and actively research perspectives held by other individuals and organisations. Framing and reframing issues can help us to incorporate new information and explore an issue from different perspectives. Exploring and taking into account different perspectives on an issue is essential if we are to gain a deeper understanding of sustainability issues and start generating ideas for potential solutions.
Classroom tips
When learners work with topics related to sustainability issues, encourage them to think critically:
- Why is the information presented in this way?
- Is this fact, or someone’s opinion? How do you know?
- What does the author want the reader/viewer to think and feel about this?
Encourage them to explore different perspectives on sustainability issues:
- How might someone else in my community view this issue?
- How might someone in another part of the world view this issue?
- How can I find out what other perspectives people might have on this issue?
Generating ideas
Once we fully understand the challenges we want to address, we can start generating ideas for better solutions in our local and global communities. This involves imagining how the future might unfold and exploring ways in which we would like to see it unfold differently. When we can imagine an alternative and more positive future, we can recognise and explore where, when and how positive change might happen.
A lot of positive change is already happening, with groups and organisations around the world exploring, facilitating, and implementing ideas and solutions. Identifying these sustainable alternatives helps us to start innovating for sustainable development.
Classroom tips
Invite learners to imagine and describe how they would like the world to be different in the future.
- Encourage them to research and explore positive actions that are already being implemented.
- Encourage creativity by celebrating originality –encourage learners to think outside the box, be creative, and take inspiration from the world around.
Exploring solutions
Having considered diverse perspectives and generated ideas, we can then put this thinking into practice, by exploring solutions to help tackle sustainability issues and challenges. We need to actively promote equality, non-discrimination, and equity. When presenting ideas and solutions, we should be able to justify them in relation to their sustainability impact. Once sustainability solutions are implemented, we should then reflect on them to evaluate their effectiveness.
Classroom tips
When learners come up with possible solutions for sustainability, encourage them to think more deeply about their ideas:
- How might this solution work in practice?
- How might other people respond to this solution?
- Who might be affected by this solution?
- Is the solution fair for everyone?
Jade Blue is an English language teacher, trainer, researcher and materials developer. Her primary research interests focus on learner-generated visuals in ELT, learner autonomy, and integrating life skills into classroom practice.
