Geography plus

Geography, citizenship and education for sustainable development (ESD)

Bright ideas for geography, citizenship and ESD in key stage 3 are currently being collected. If you have any bright ideas, submit them for possible inclusion.

		More developed ideas Climate change explorer This information sheet introduces an environmental arts education project for year 9 pupils that explores the artistic potential of scientific data to raise awareness and facilitate learning and actions on climate change. The information sheet is an outline of what the project intends to do. The Climate change explorer website (www.ecn.ac.uk/cce) contains further information. Material produced by pupils can be downloaded from the project website [Lucy Milton, The UK Environmental Change Network (ECN)] PDF 28Kb | RTF 22Kb | Help The sugar plantation game - context Year 9 high-level achievers originally carried out this activity. The activity is an adaptation of Christian Aid’s ‘Trading game’ that enables pupils to understand how a commercial farm operates and to recognise the different components of the operation and the disparity between the plantation owners and the sugar-cane cutters. Before the game show pupils watch the BBC Brazil 2000 programme Farming Big and Small, about sugar plantations and the impact that mechanisation is likely to have on sugar cane cutters in São Paulo state. Follow the game with a plenary to evaluate what happened. Pupils can fill in the plenary sheet to record their ideas and thoughts. [Jon Little, Meridian School, Royston, Hertfordshire] PDF 9Kb | RTF 30Kb | Help Why isn’t Antonio happy with his new computer? This mystery activity combines thinking and literacy skills in the context of sustainable development in Mozambique. The activity formed part of a year 9 unit on development and followed a lesson on types of aid and the problem of debt in less economically developed countries. The activity encourages pupils to look critically at aid projects and to consider what could make them more sustainable. [Ros Allen, Royal Docks Community College, Newham] PDF 32Kb | RTF 66Kb | Help Ecotourism in Brazil A series of activities forming part of a year 9 scheme of work unit on Brazil. Pupils take on the role as consultants for a travel company, Astra Travel, and decide on and justify a suitable location for an ecotourism development in Brazil. [Phil Wood, The Deepings School, Peterborough] PDF 295Kb | RTF 7,867Kb | Help The campaign challenge An activity in which pupils investigate a campaign related to a development issue. [Adapted from an idea by Sarah Hide, Haverstock School, Camden] PDF 31Kb | RTF 30Kb | Help An asylum seeker mystery This key stage 3 mystery activity explores issues of migration and asylum at both a local and global scale as part of a unit on ‘exploring England’. The activity may require some modification for pupils whose reading level is not high. [Daniel Ford, Edenham High School, Croydon] PDF 24Kb | RTF 44Kb | Help India – BBC Asia News An activity in which year 9 pupils take on the role of news reporters to explore stereotypes and topical issues in India. This activity is suitable for higher attaining pupils.. [Justin Sharpe, Beal High School, Redbridge] PDF 35Kb | RTF 1024Kb | Help Understanding migration An activity for year 8 pupils designed to: challenge racism, especially the stereotyping of asylum seekers; emphasise how migration is a common feature of life in Britain; promote understanding of the variety of reasons why people have moved to Britain, both in the past and at present; and develop a respect for cultural differences. A question of geography A simple template to encourage pupils to think about future impacts. The 'question of geography' idea can be used in a wide range of geographic contexts [Mike Lythgoe, KS3 Strategy Foundation subjectsconsultant, Blackburn with Darwen] PDF 51Kb | RTF 1885Kb | Help

Other information

The Royal Geographical Society’s Ecological and carbon footprints website (www.esd.rgs.org) introduces teachers to two sets of tools: ecological footprints and carbon footprints. The site contains lots of material including teaching advice and guidance. The emphasis of the information is on the environmental dimension of sustainable development rather than the economic or social.

The QCA Education for sustainable development (ESD) website has plenty of practical examples of how geography can contribute to ESD, as well as providing more general support and guidance on ESD.

Links between the geography and citizenship programmes of study are mapped in Citizenship through geography at key stage 3 in the QCA/DfES Scheme of Work for Citizenship.
PDF 63.5Kb | Word file 47.5Kb

The QCA Respect for All website exemplifies good practice in multicultural and anti-racist education in geography.

The Think Leadership website provides an environmental audit for schools.

The Geographical Association website provides ideas for teaching and learning about global citizenship in geography as part of the Global Dimension project. The Teaching geography online area of the website also provides a downloadable copy of a paper by David Lambert about the contribution of subjects, particularly geography, to education for sustainable development.

The Geography trainers’ induction programme on the Geographical Association website provides a ‘think piece’ on citizenship. The website also offers activity suggestions on population, culture and religion.

Global footprints allows pupils to explore the social and environmental impacts of lifestyle choices, and how to take steps towards a more sustainable future.

Ollie Recycles is a first in a series of interactive websites that deal with issues of sustainable waste management. Ollie’s World is the Australian-based umbrella site with ideas to ‘reduce, re-use, recycle and re-think’ what to do with waste, water energy, air and biodiversity.

The EcoSchools website provides ideas for action and class activities on litter, waste, energy, water, transport and the school grounds. The site includes a ‘kids’ zone’ page with games.

The Globe Programme is an international environmental education project involving 90 countries. Data is collected from schools and collated in the USA. The teachers’ page has suggestions for activities and downloadable worksheets.

Water Aid’s website has an interactive game where children help villagers in Ethiopia, Ghana or Nepal to build a water supply, as well as stories of children of different ages and how water affects their lives.

www.waterinschools.com is a site sponsored by Thames Water with pages that focus on global water issues, on-line games and practical ideas for saving water.

Use www.unicef.org/crc/crc.htm to find out the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Which rights are denied to children living in favelas or working/living on the streets? What should be done about it?

Channel Four’s Citizen Power website at www.channel4.com/learning/microsites/C/citizenpower/index2.htm gives pupils the chance to consider ethical choices as a consumer in a supermarket and explore issues in the way we treat wildlife in the 'animals and us' edition.

The Active Citizens website at www.activecitizens.org.uk/activecitizens.html provides examples of pupil-led activities in various schools, and tips on how they were put into practice.

Global Eye (www.globaleye.org.uk) offers interactive learning activities on global issues on each page, and a wide range of downloadable images. Each edition features an issue and a country, and back issues are all accessible.

Jus Biz (www.jusbiz.org) has downloadable simulations on global issues, including ‘timber’, ‘the debt game’ and ‘the tourism game’. Different versions of the simulations are available for different age groups. The site also has user-friendly resources on trade issues, particularly related to the global fashion industry.

www.maketradefair.com is the official website of Oxfam’s ‘Make Trade Fair’ campaign. As well as containing numerous contemporary case studies on the theme of international trade, the site encourages users to take part in their on-line ‘Big Noise’ petition.

ActionAid’s site, (www.actionzone.cc) gives details of how to join their campaigns for people’s rights to food and the fight against HIV and AIDS. ActionAid has another interactive site, (www.shiftyfifty.com) that examines the plight of poor farmers, unfair trade and what can be done about it.

Christian Aid’s website (www.christianaid.org.uk/learn/schools/secondry/freeitem/caw02/acts.htm) has a range of activities to help students make links between the concepts of rules, justice and trade, including activities that examine the working conditions in mines in the Philippines.

www.bananalink.org.uk to investigate trade and interdependence issues, including a photo gallery, on bananas.

Global Express deals with contemporary, controversial global issues in the news at key stage 3. Visit www.dep.org.uk/globalexpress/ for downloadable activities, and details of how to subscribe to the print version (four times a year).

On the Young Transnet site (www.youngtransnet.org.uk/) young people can have their say on transport, carry out a travel to school survey on line, analyse results on line, vote in referendums on line, play the treasure hunt and check out links to other sites.

Brit Kid (www.britkid.org/index.html) addresses issues from multiple perspectives to raise awareness of cultural diversity in the UK and tackle racism. Pupils can explore different features of a settlement through the eyes of young people from different backgrounds. The site includes sections on issues such as crime and refugees.

Windows on the World (http://www.wotw.org.uk/) is a free, easy-to-use site for schools seeking international links. The site includes existing links between schools and how you can set up your own. A partner site focuses specifically on links between schools in the UK and schools in the developing world (www.wotw.org.uk/northsouth/).