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Education for sustainable development
A key action under the LSC strategy for sustainable development is to promote and encourage acceptance and delivery within learning programmes of the Sustainable Development Education Panel’s key concepts for education for sustainable development.
An outline of the Sustainable Education Panel’s approach is given below. This illustrates how an integrated approach to ensuring sustainable development runs through all curriculum subjects can be developed within your organisation. This is only one example, and there are many others that you can use such as the Five Capitals model which is discussed in more detail in Leadership and Management.
The Sustainable Development Education Panel approach
In 1998 a Government Sustainable Development Education Panel was established to consider issues on education for sustainable development in its broadest sense:
Another key aim was to make practical recommendations for action in England. The Panel reported at the end of its five-year term in 2003 and its work has been taken forward in documents like the Government’s Sustainable Development Action Plan for the education sector and work on sustainable schools initiative 19 The general idea is that sustainable development education should be a seamless process which begins in the nursery and is systematically progressed throughout the formal education process and reinforced in society. The Sustainable Development Education Panel set out its key aims for the further and higher education sectors (FHE) in its first Annual Report. It called for all FHE institutions, by the year 2010 to:
These recommendations embody a view that:
They also embody a recognition that the FHE sector needs to define acceptable sustainability standards in terms of its core business (i.e. education and research). The Education Panel suggests that sustainable development concerns a wide range of interrelated issues which may be approached through the following seven concepts:
Their approach stresses that education for sustainable development is a function of the whole curriculum and thus requires engagement of all subjects. It also assumes an impact on whole institution development, including whole institution ethos, curriculum, pedagogy, organisation and community links, emphasising participation, coherence and consistency within and between these aspects.
You can use the seven concepts to help shape teaching, learning materials and curriculum for sustainable development. One guide to help embed these principles into education for sustainable development into teaching and learning practices for the 16-19 learning phase is presented below:
It is anticipated that at the end of the 16-19 phase, learners should be able to:
Whilst there are no practical case studies of where the Seven Concepts have been applied at the FE level in the public domain, this Ofsted report at the primary and secondary level can be used to illustrate how this can be applied under each concept.
An outline of the Sustainable Education Panel’s approach is given below. This illustrates how an integrated approach to ensuring sustainable development runs through all curriculum subjects can be developed within your organisation. This is only one example, and there are many others that you can use such as the Five Capitals model which is discussed in more detail in Leadership and Management.
The Sustainable Development Education Panel approach
In 1998 a Government Sustainable Development Education Panel was established to consider issues on education for sustainable development in its broadest sense:
- in schools,
- further and higher education,
- at work,
- during recreation; and
- at home;
Another key aim was to make practical recommendations for action in England. The Panel reported at the end of its five-year term in 2003 and its work has been taken forward in documents like the Government’s Sustainable Development Action Plan for the education sector and work on sustainable schools initiative 19 The general idea is that sustainable development education should be a seamless process which begins in the nursery and is systematically progressed throughout the formal education process and reinforced in society. The Sustainable Development Education Panel set out its key aims for the further and higher education sectors (FHE) in its first Annual Report. It called for all FHE institutions, by the year 2010 to:
- be accredited to an internationally or nationally recognised sustainable development management systems standard; and
- have staff fully trained and competent in sustainable development; and be providing all learners with relevant sustainability learning opportunities.
These recommendations embody a view that:
- learners learn from their learning programmes and from the learning environment;
- that institutions should practice what they teach; and
- that the principles of sustainable development should be consistently reinforced through all learning settings and learning programmes.
They also embody a recognition that the FHE sector needs to define acceptable sustainability standards in terms of its core business (i.e. education and research). The Education Panel suggests that sustainable development concerns a wide range of interrelated issues which may be approached through the following seven concepts:
- Interdependence of society, economy and the natural environment, from local to global
- Citizenship and stewardship rights and responsibilities, participation, and cooperation
- Needs and rights of future generations
- Diversity cultural, social, economic and biological
- Quality of life, equity and justice
- Sustainable change – economic development within the Earth’s ability to support it
- Uncertainty, and precaution in action
Their approach stresses that education for sustainable development is a function of the whole curriculum and thus requires engagement of all subjects. It also assumes an impact on whole institution development, including whole institution ethos, curriculum, pedagogy, organisation and community links, emphasising participation, coherence and consistency within and between these aspects.
You can use the seven concepts to help shape teaching, learning materials and curriculum for sustainable development. One guide to help embed these principles into education for sustainable development into teaching and learning practices for the 16-19 learning phase is presented below:
It is anticipated that at the end of the 16-19 phase, learners should be able to:
1. Interdependence
understand the extent to which the globalization of trade and finance is contributing to the wealth gap; be able to critically evaluate the role of science and technology in the resolution of environmental and sustainable development issues; have compassion for humanity and all life forms; understand the systemic and dynamic nature of the interrelationship between sustainable development issues, thematically (between issues), spatially, (local-global) and temporally (past, present, future);2 Citizenship and stewardship
understand the variety of ways in which individuals and groups can actively participate in the promotion of sustainable development, and the implications this has for the social and economic operation of communities; understand basic ethical positions and tensions regarding extending rights to nature and to future generations; be able to justify their own views and positions on ethical issues related to sustainable development; have an understanding of the principles and techniques of institutional and business greening and appreciate the social, economic, and political problems involved at this level in implementing a full greening policy; be familiar with the meaning and methods of capacity building and regeneration at community level through case study;3 Needs and rights of future generations
appreciate how and why different cultural groups and different income groups do not necessarily value the rights of future generations in the same way; understand that it is not possible to predict future needs with precision, but that it is necessary and important to be aware of their implications for present action; have a critical and informed understanding of the tools and techniques available to assist sustainable consumption including eco-labelling, sustainability indicators, and green consumer guides;4 Diversity
understand the range of causal factors involved in reduction of global biodiversity and recognise the principles underlying good practice in biodiversity maintenance or creation; be able to critically review the various techniques for quantitative and qualitative analysis of biodiversity and their implications on the biodiversity debate; be familiar with arguments for and trends in globalization and localisation in economic activity in relation to the need for a sustainable economy;5 Quality of life, equity and justice
understand the difference between measures of standard of living such as GNP and emerging measures of quality of life such as the indicator of sustainable economic welfare (ISEW); understand the concept of social capital and how this relates to equity, sustainability and the cohesion of communities and society; appreciate that not all people and cultures value quality of life, equity and justice in the same way and the issues this raises for realising a more sustainable society; be familiar with emerging initiatives to promote equity and justice such as fair trading and ethical investment, and the role of pressure groups in promoting social and economic change;6 Sustainable change
be able to envision and critically assess alternative scientific, technological, economic, political and social futures in the light of their relative sustainability; understand the difference between a linear economy based on non-renewable resources and a cyclical economy based on renewables, and be familiar with trends, problems and progress in this regard; be familiar with the basic principles of sustainable design of physical and living systems and their application, such as transport systems, farming, or housing; understand a number of routes towards sustainability including regulation, incentives, adjustments to market prices to include social and environmental costs such as eco-taxation, and technological and resource efficiency;7 Uncertainty and precaution in action
be able to apply critical thinking to sustainable development issues, including examination of assumptions, power and vested interests, and exploring alternatives; be able to apply systems and creative thinking to sustainable development issues and problems, including discerning complexity, pattern, context, relationship and feedback between factors; understand the concept of cultural change in the shift from the certainties of the modern age to the uncertainties of the post-modern age, and what opportunities this may afford for realising a more sustainable society; be aware of the implications of sustainable development for all areas of their future lives, and as appropriate, their chosen area of academic, vocational or professional interest.Whilst there are no practical case studies of where the Seven Concepts have been applied at the FE level in the public domain, this Ofsted report at the primary and secondary level can be used to illustrate how this can be applied under each concept.
