Course Description

Modern times, the effects of climate change are being felt in every nation on every continent. It has an impact on the quality of our lives, and it will continue to do so unless we make an effort to educate both ourselves and our children on how to make adjustments in our daily routines that will have a smaller negative effect on the surrounding environment.

Eco-Schools is an international program that aims to create a more sustainable future by promoting environmental awareness and sustainable practices in schools. The program encourages schools to take an interdisciplinary approach to sustainability and covers a wide range of topics including energy, water, waste, transportation, and school grounds. Eco-Schools is not only about protecting the environment, but also about creating a sustainable future for all. It’s about empowering young people to take action and make a difference in their communities.

This course is designed for educators and other members of the educational staff who are interested in developing their skills in the fields of environmental education, management, and sustainable development. This is a training course that is intended for management employees and educational staff, as well as teachers at pre-schools, primary schools, and secondary schools. Throughout the duration of this course, you will develop a heightened awareness of the environmental challenges that our planet as a whole as well as your region are currently confronted with, as well as the ways in which this impacts our lives and our society. In addition to this, you will become acquainted with the fundamentals as well as the methodologies of the education for sustainable development.

On the one hand, the participants will be focusing on how to include sustainable goals into the school curriculum and how to adapt materials to their context of teaching in order to maximize their effectiveness. The administrative team will conduct an evaluation of their organization with the help of the grid of indicators of a sustainable school to generate suggestions for potential actions and initiatives that will make their schools more environmentally friendly. The participants will also receive suggestions on how to get active in promoting sustainable development goals both on a local and international level to further their own communities.

Learning Outcomes

The course will help the participants to understand how to:

• Successful graduates of the course will have the knowledge and skills to do the following:
• Learn why environmentally conscious Eco-Schools have become so popular
• Utilizing a problem-based and task-based teaching style, theater, and outdoor learning activities, construct ecological teachings
• Enhance teaching strategies to be more holistic, student- and environment-centered
• Discover techniques for developing ecological lessons
• To promote sustainable education, a sustainable environment, and a sustainable economy, provide ideas and examples of best practices to support Eco-School through less pollution, less consumption, and an eco-friendly attitude
• Increase synergies between students, education, the environment, and interventional innovations
• Enhance your knowledge about the significance of holistic education and how to implement it in your own classroom
• To Improve the ecological footprint and the sustainability performance of the school
• Support ongoing professional development, update and enhance core competencies, and foster self-assurance in promoting active pedagogies that are adaptable to many types of education models

Course Details

 
TARGET GROUP

Professionals in the education sector (e.g., teachers, guidance counselors, principals, and administrators at elementary, middle, higher education, vocational institutions, kindergartens and pre-primary schools) and non-governmental organization (NGO) staff.

METHODOLOGY

This training course is designed to provide educators with the knowledge and skills necessary to implement sustainable practices in their schools and become an Eco-School. Through interactive workshops, hands-on activities, and discussions, participants will learn about the Eco-Schools program, sustainable development goals, and how to create and implement an action plan for their school. The methodological techniques also include teambuilding sessions, goalsetting sessions, questionnaires, case studies and examples of good practices. By the end of the course, educators will have the knowledge and skills necessary to create a more sustainable learning environment for their students.

Course Objectives

• To Promote situational, real-life and outdoor learning, to spur sustainable practices in and outside school
• To Encourage young people to play a proactive role in the society
• To Propose an inclusive method that brings the school community together around a common purpose
• To Improve the ecological footprint and the sustainability performance of the school

Tentative Schedule

Day 1 – ARRIVAL DAY

• Welcome Activities
• Ice-Breaker Activities
• Introduction to the course
• Active citizenship
• Climate change and environmental issues: climate change, waste management, responsible consumption, ecological footprint, sound space ecology, noise pollution

Day 2 – ACTION PLAN

• Principles and techniques and activities
• Focus on Energy
• Awareness
• Artificial nests
• Planting
• Create micro-ecosystems
• Case study

Day 3 – SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

• Sustainable development as an interdisciplinary approach
• How to integrate sustainable development goals in your action plan
• Focus on Water
• Monitor and evaluate
• To find out whether or not you are successfully achieving the targets set out in

Day 4 – TEACHING ECOLOGY

•  Teaching ecology through STEM and Project-based teaching
•  Teaching ecology through drama and outdoor learning activities
•  Teaching ecology through problem-based and task-based teaching approach

Day 5 – INDICATORS FOR A SUSTAINABLE SCHOOL

• Management of an eco-friendly school
• Produce an Eco Code
• Practices around the world of Eco-schooling
• European and global challenges
• Take a glimpse of global projects and ideas
• Understanding the self-evaluation grid

Day 6 – WORKSHOPS AND CULTURAL/SIGHTSEEING ACTIVITIES

• Working with institutions outside your community
• Feedback & Project workshop
• Eco-School labelled schools visit
• Cultural excursion in local area

 Day 7 – DEPARTURE DAY

• Design your own Eco-School
• Evaluation of the course
• Awarding certificates

*The schedule describes likely activities but may differ significantly based on the requests of the participants, and the trainer delivering the specific session. Course modifications are subject to the trainer’s discretion. If you would like to discuss a specific topic, please indicate it at least 4 weeks in advance.

Our courses usually include two cultural activities. Further information is available on the webpage of each course.