Global skills essential for a global economy
¾ of businesses think we are in danger of being left behind by emerging countries unless young people learn to think more globally
That was one of the main findings of The Global Skills Gap, a report by the British Council and Think global in December last year. The report also found that 93% of businesses think it is important for schools to help young people develop the ability to think globally.
Practical Action’s education work supports that need for students to be more globally aware and able to identify with global issues. Our activities promote awareness and understanding of issues such as climate change , the importance of energy access, and technology justice (Where technology is used for the benefit of all, ensuring poor people have simple, affordable and sustainable technology to improve their lives)
Students whose education has included a good global perspective have already been shown to go onto lead more sustainable lifestyles and are more likely to be supportive of the work we and likeminded organisations do. The fact that this report shows they are also potentially more employable adds weight to the value of our work to the students themselves and to society as a whole.
‘’what global companies look for are people who we think can take a global perspective. Students are well placed to do this if they have opportunities to widen their cultural perspective’’
Sonja Stockton, Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers
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STEM everywhere at the ASE conference
Arriving at the ASE conference last week, with my umbrella turned inside out by the blustery weather, I expected to meet a lot of great teachers, and I wasn’t disappointed. What I perhaps didn’t expect was to meet so many other interesting, passionate people in the education sector. Anyone else notice that there has been a huge increase in the number of people with STEM in their title recently?! STEM ambassadors, STEMNET, STEM centres, and teachers with responsibility for STEM clubs.
What was great from our point of view was how the ‘STEM’ people were so impressed with our resources. It is great to meet new people who haven’t heard of you before and see their interest fire up as you talk about your ‘squashed tomato challenge’ or the ‘Small Is…challenge’. Equally though it is inspiring to hear others tell you how they have used your material with their students and how they are keen to find out what’s new from Practical Action this year.
Two of our new resources we were telling people about are the global CREST challenges and our STEM careers material, which includes a free poster. The CREST challenges have been produced to give students a starting point for projects in international development as part of the British Science Association’s CREST awards and have been really welcomed by science teachers.
Conferences are very tiring, and by the end we were dead on our feet , but it was really worth it as it confirmed to us that the education work at Practical Action is hugely valued by teachers and others who inspire the next generation. I am confident that working with others we are having a significant impact on developing global awareness, encouraging engagement with global issues and organisations like ours, and changing the behaviour of students.
No Comments » | Add your commentPutting the global into science
We are attending two great science conferences early next year
The ASE conference is an annual must for all science teachers interested in finding out what the latest science resources available are for keeping up to date on current policy and practice. On 5-7th January we will be there to show teachers the great resources we produce and how they can enhance their science teaching. If you are attending do please come and see us, we’d love to find out what you like about our work and what else you’d like us to produce, go to http://www.ase.org.uk/conferences/annual-conference/
Then on 25th February if’s off to the ‘What is science for? ’ conference in Widnes , which will focus on the importance of global issues in science teaching. Sessions will include:
- Andrew Hunt – Making sense of our global interdependence through science
- Prof Malcolm Dando – Bioethics and biological weapons
- Eric Fewster – Science and engineering for relief and development
- Prof Justin Dillon – “Doing” science versus “Being” a scientist: Making sense of young people’s aspirations and attitudes to science
- Prof Justin Dillon (Workshop) – Climate change education within the new National Curriculum: threats and opportunities for teachers and students.
To book for this conference please go to www.whatissciencefor.eventbrite.com
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Design and Technology Show 2011
No Comments » | Add your commentCREST awards go global with Practical Action
At the British Science Association’s festival on Tuesday we launched our brand new Global CREST Challenges as new project ideas for students taking part in the CREST award scheme.
In her introductory speech at the STEM in Education evening Katherine Mathieson , Head of Education at the British Science Association introduced Practical Action as one of their key new partners. She said our CREST awards added a new dimension to the CREST award scheme that she was confident would be popular with schools throughout the UK.
CREST awards are given to students who do in depth project work with the support of a mentor on an area they are interested in. Our resources give them ideas for projects relating to science and technology in the developing world. Project areas are divided into five themes
• Water
• Food
• Energy
• Transport
• Shelter
Projects can involve up to 70 hours of work so this is a really high level of engagement for students. To support them we are pointing them towards Practical Answers’ technical briefs, technical information provided by Practical Action to real engineers working in developing countries around the world. Representatives of other organsiations were also impressed with our new resources.
”Part of what we are about is developing partnerships between research scientists and people in developing countries. I really like the idea of work of this nature being developed at a schools level”
David Dickinson, Director SciDev.Net
Please do take a look at our awards and promote to any schools you may have links with.
Loop the loop with Ellen Macarthur
The Ellen Macarthur foundation has been set up with one goal in mind – to inspire a generation to re-think, re-design and build a positive future.
They propose the idea of a circular economy where products and processes are designed to work in a way that mimics natural biological processes. Nothing is wasted. A system where products we no longer need such as old washing machines are collected and components recycled. And they haven’t’ forgotten about energy consumption, far from it, they advocate the use of renewable energy systems.
Please watch their latest video and see what you think. Go to our design and technology page on the schools website for a range of activities to help you integrate sustainability into your teaching.
No Comments » | Add your commentPractical Action selects winners for Leaders Awards…
We’re delighted to announce the primary and secondary winners for Practical Action’s Primary Engineer Special Award 2011.
The final award is given to students who demonstrate a high level of interest and skill in interviewing professionals who work in the field of Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics related to sustainability.
This year’s winners are Robert Marshall from Osbaldwick Primary School and Josh Catley from Hornsea School and Language College. Read more.. Congratulations to them both! Your solar powered MP4 players are on their way to you!
Christine Borrett the class teacher from Robert’s class found it good too!
‘The Leaders Award enabled my class to develop their communication skills through interviewing adults from a range of professions related to STEM. The interviews proved to be informative and inspirational, giving the children an insight into the world of work, enabling them to begin to consider their personal career options. This was a worthwhile opportunity which we plan to repeat this year.’
For details of next year’s award
No Comments » | Add your commentFrom energy generating shoes…
to water saving showers, we’ve had lots of fabulous designs submitted from students who’ve entered our Small Is…Challenge. The final winning designs, along with others that were shortlisted from primary and secondary schools throughout the UK can be seen on our site.
Sensor shower - saving water and energy
The design challenge was launched to celebrate the centenary year of Practical Action’s founder Fritz Schumacher.
No Comments » | Add your commentShould climate change remain in the school curriculum?
Absolutely. Like many other educators I was quite shocked to read that Tim Oates, a government advisor reviewing the national curriculum, is suggesting climate change is dropped in the new curriculum.
Climate change will affect all of us, including those in the developing world. Students should be made aware that people in developing countries are currently hardest hit by climate change and of it impacts on global poverty, by making floods in Bangladesh even worse for example. In addition they also need to be aware of how it could affect them directly if we do not act soon. Practical Action recently produced a tube map to show which areas would be underwater by 2100. Images like this help students understand the effect climate change could have on their future lives, and the lives of their children as well as those in their global community.
It is vital that our future scientists and engineers have an understanding of how climate change will affect all of our lives. Chris Hume, the energy secretary recently stated the need for green skills in our future economy, and understanding the link between sustainability and climate change is vital for this. Teaching children about climate change shows them how science relates to the real world and about connections between subjects. Linking scientific concepts to topical, global issues also makes science more interesting for students. In our response to the national curriculum we stated how important it was that students learn about the nature of science, how scientific knowledge is constantly evolving and the importance of discourse. The ‘story’ of climate change is a really interesting demonstration of that, which helps get students engaged and interested in science.
In addition to nuturing new scientists and engineers is is also important that our science education develops a scientifically literate population. An understanding of climate change is going to be vital to this. The next generation need to understand what climate change is and what we can do to meet the challenges it poses.
If you feel as strongly as I do that climate change should stay in the curriculum please go to http://peopleandplanet.org/navid12439 and sign the email petition.
2 Comments » | Add your comment100 Small things to make a difference
Our founder Fritz Schumacher believed that even small things could make a big difference to people’s lives. We think so too, so to celebrate his centenary year we have designed a poster to get school students thinking about what small things they could do to make a difference, to their community, their environment and to people in the developing world.
Ideas include
- taking toys to a charity shop so they can be loved all over again
- growing your own vegetables and buying locally sourced food
- refusing to use products that use lots of packaging
- volunteering to help in your local community
- repairing your bike when it brakes; and
- join Practical Action’s energy campaign
There are 90 ‘things’ on the poster and space left for students to add 10 of their own. Divided into the 6Rs of Reduce, Refuse, Recycle, Rethink, Repair, Reuse this FREE large A1 poster is sure to be popular with teachers and students.
Please do take a closer look at the poster and if you would like to request your own copy just email use at schools@practicalaction.org.uk
Why not try some of our small ideas yourself ?
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Practical Action uses technology to challenge poverty, working with poor women and men around the world.
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Practical Action,The Schumacher Centre,
Bourton on Dunsmore,
Rugby, CV23 9QZ, UK
Reg Charity No 247257
+44 (0)1926 634400 practicalaction@practicalaction.org.uk
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