HOW TO TEACH SUSTAINABILITY TOGETHER
In this webpage you will find a guide about how to quickly start teaching sustainability in a shared classroom! Let's start right away!
PLATFORMS
We suggest using Google Drive, Dropbox and Whatsapp in order to help students and teachers to cooperate during the development of the tasks assigned within the Teaching Modules.
Apps like Whatsapp could also help students to get to know each other before the shared classroom. It is important to start with an ice-breaker before the start of the teaching module. It could be useful if the ice-breakers are about sustainability or SDGs, but it is not mandatory.
In the last 2 years a lot of new platforms for collaboration online have been created. These are some of the platforms that we suggest. For each platform you can find the link to the online guide.
Streaming platforms:
Here are some Platforms that can be used for shared classrooms, meetings and video calls:
Zoom Getting started guide for new users – Zoom Help Center
Teams Microsoft Teams video training
Webex Webex Meeting Guide
Google Meet Guide to Google Workspace
Sharing platforms:
Platforms to store and share documents. students can work simultaneously on the same documents or see what the other groups are working on.
Dropbox – store and share files, collaborate on projects. All files are backed up to the cloud and available online.
Google Drive – Share and organize files. You can share files or folders, so other people can view, edit, or comment on them.
Teams – business communication platform developed by Microsoft, offering workspace chat and videoconferencing, file storage, and application integration.
Genially – online tool for creating interactive and animated content.
Miro – online collaborative whiteboard platform
Twinspace – a safe online platform, only accessible to the teachers and students participating in a project to meet and collaborate. The TwinSpace allows you to organize your project by using collaborative tools, organizing online meetings and hosting all the outputs of your project.
Virtual Reality Platform:
Platform for virtual reality meetings (no webcam) or events.
AltSpace – platform for live, virtual events, empowering artists, brands, and businesses to easily design meaningful experiences that foster community and connection.
Ice-breaking platforms:
Platforms where there are small games or the possibility to create interactive quizzes to use for ice-breaking activities.
Games 4 sustainability – Teaching, Learning and Practicing Sustainability Through Serious Games
Slido – Engage your participants with live polls, Q&A, quizzes and word clouds
Mentimeter – Create interactive quizzes that are designed to be enjoyable and dynamic
Kahoot! – game-based learning platform that brings engagement and fun to 1+ billion players every year at school, at work, and at home.
WooClap – an interactive electronic platform used to create polls and questionnaire. The users answer questions anonymously through technology devices such as smart-phones or laptops
Guidelines for group discussions: guidelines for guiding the class.
When preparing a shared classroom you have to take into account several aspects, to ensure that it is implemented nicely:
Technical aspects:
Platforms:
- To allow a meaningful group discussion, the students should be taught about the different platforms to be used, in case they need it. It is also important to listen to student’s ideas or experiences with some other platforms.
- It is a good idea not to only focus on a single platform but to combine them. This makes the communication easier and more enjoyable. For instance, you can use Teams for the formal approach or big groups discussions, and Whatsapp for small group interactions.
Logistics:
To help you with the logistics you can make a checklist with all the essential items to take into account before the start of the session:
- Wifi connection – we suggest a minimum 7 Mb. Download-check your connection here https://fast.com/
- Computer availability (1 or 2 students per computer)
- Smartphones
- Tablets
- Digital screen/projector for big group discussions
- Audio devices
- Webcams
- Headphones
- It is important for each participant to have their own personal device. The use of one device per person could help the students to feel able to participate more
- Adequate classrooms or group-rooms to allow both small and big group discussions
Guidelines for a group discussion management:
How do you facilitate discussions in a shared classroom? We have collected a list of the most essential aspects to take into account for a meaningful shared classroom debate:
- Group size: It´s important to have a balance between the two different groups from both countries. Smaller groups are effective (up to 20 students from both countries).
- Group divisions taking into account the group size: To work in an effective and meaningful way, split the group into smaller working groups of 4 to 6 students from both countries. At the end of the project, share the groups’ different results for instance at a Teams meeting.
- Student´s age: The age of the students should not differ too much if they are young students. This is not relevant if the students are adults.
- Student’s educational level: If possible, the students should have similar educational levels.
- Minimum English level: If possible, a B1 level should be required.
- Soft skills: Open mind, positive attitude, motivation, flexibility, empathy, team-work oriented, etc. For both students and teachers.
- PBL methodology: Previous knowledge and experience on PBL is recommended.
- Others: specific issues to take into account in each particular case.
You can find more tips on how to conduct a group discussion here:
To find partners you can use many tools according to what makes you more comfortable, we will list some tools and how you can use them:
SCLASS Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/sclass.eu – use the forum to search for teachers who would like to teach sustainability together with you and your students – based on some of the Teaching Modules at this website.
E-Twinning / European School Education Platform
E-twinning was created specifically for teachers and other school workers that are looking to collaborate and develop European projects and is a part of the Erasmus+. Recently the eTwinning platform has become part of the overall platform called European School Education Platform.
In order to search for partners you have to create an EU-Login in order to enter the webpage: EU Login account.
Once you have signed up go to ‘Networking’: https://school-education.ec.europa.eu/en/networking and search for ‘Partner Finding’.
You can also go directly to the SCLASS presentation of the website via this link (you can only see it if you are logged in). In the ‘Comments’ you can search for partners and specify which teaching module you are interested in – or look through the chat to see if somebody wants to cooperate on some of the teaching modules.
Another option is to create a new project (look for the tab ‘Projects’ and ‘Create project’) with references to the SCLASS website and indication of the title of the teaching module that you would like to find a partner for. It could be for example: Education paves the way out of poverty – SCLASS collaborative project.
Remember to specify the age and study field of your students. If you are looking for teachers from a specific country, you also have to specify that.
Another option is to search among the projects already created to see if you can join some of them.
Social Media
Nowadays, social media is a powerful tool in our everyday life, we can use it for many reasons, and it has been found helpful in the search for partners for our projects and spread word about them.
To be effective you can use many mechanisms such as:
- The use of identifying hashtags;
- Joining groups that are looking for something on the same subject;
- Publish appealing material as a tool for dissemination to share in the many existing communities;
- Sharing experiences and materials (forum)
Forum
Sharing experiences and materials is something important so we can learn with each other.
In case of using forums and communities in the european commission websites they have a user’s guideline available for consultation in the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/education/knowledge-centre-interpretation/users-guide-communities-and-forums_en
In the case of using materials produced by others and shared in communities and forums, the analysis of that material is important before using it.
The didactic approach in SCLASS is problem based learning (PBL). PBL is student-centered learning that focuses on authentic real-life problems, which the students try to solve.
The core elements of PBL are:
- problem-oriented project work in groups,
- which integrates both theory and empirical data
- and is managed by the students themselves
- but in collaboration with a teacher
- who provides formative feedback.[i]
The contrast to PBL is curriculum-focused teaching in which the students are passive recipients of the teacher’s knowledge. The teacher asks the students questions, for which she already has all the answers.
In PBL the students are active participants in learning and they study authentic problems. This means that the problems studied require a thorough analysis because we do not know how to solve them prior to our investigation. The students are active participants in asking relevant questions to study and the students collaborate to find answers to these questions. The teacher motivates and guides the students and facilitates the learning-process.
The PBL-approach aims to motivate students to learn and to solve problems. The approach strengthens students’ collaborative and analytical competencies as well as their metacognition, which means that students learn how to learn.
PBL in SCLASS
In SCLASS we collaborate on bringing the SDGs into classrooms across European countries. Therefore, we use the SDGs as a framework for authentic real-life problems. In our shared classroom, we agree on one or multiple problems connected to the SDGs that we want to inquire into. Examples of such problem statements are:
- How can we significantly increase the share of renewable energies production in the local environment?
- Which are the challenges modern and sustainable cities face and how can individual power, ideas and participation contribute to this goal?
- What can the school and any citizen do to contribute to the reduction of inequalities and help assure access to quality food?
- How do poverty and inequality affect health and how can we fight poverty?
- How can education contribute to a world with less poverty?
As we can see in these examples, the problems can have both a global and a local dimension and they in often involve multiple SDGs. The aim is to form problem statements, which activate the student’s prior knowledge, are close to their lived lives, and at the same time give them the opportunity to expand their horizons. This should help to motivate the students and give a meaningful platform for cross-country collaboration and dissemination of results.
After having agreed upon one or multiple problem statements, the students inquire into the problems in small groups. This entails finding data to describe the problem and theories that can help explain the causes of the problem. At this stage, the exact approach depends on the research question and the methodology of the subjects involved in the project. However, dealing with authentic problems often requires an interdisciplinary approach.
When the students are able to describe the problem and have found some of the causes of the problem, they meet online to present, compare and contrast their findings with their peers in another European country. Based on the found causes and cross-country comparison, the students collaborate to find solutions to the problems – and perhaps they agree upon a course for action.
To engage students, for any study or working method it is important that they feel autonomously motivated. But for problem based learning (PBL), it is more than crucial. The success of the learning and the project are dependent on their motivation to succeed.
According to the self-determination theory or SDT, three basic psychological needs, namely, autonomy, competence, and relatedness, are to be satisfied in every individual to stimulate psychological growth, higher academic performances, and well-being.
Autonomy refers to having control over activities and the learning process. Competence refers to the feeling of being capable of successfully performing activities. Finally, relatedness refers to the need to feel warmth and support of others, such as teachers and fellow students. When the learning environment satisfies these three basic needs, students are more likely to become intrinsically motivated to learn.
How can we stimulate these three basic psychological needs through the use of problem based learning? We sum up some advice:
Autonomy:
- You, as a teacher take more of a guiding and facilitating role, instead of a traditional teaching role in PBL.
- Let students formulate learning statements and learning goals by themselves instead of receiving fixed learning statements from the teacher.
- Let students choose and select their own set of literature sources.
- Think about how you are going to guide students to handle their autonomy gradually. For example, first-year students receive more guidance (e.g., more tips in providing literature and active scaffolding by the tutor) than third-year students.
- Think about mandatory or free attendance.
- Let students choose their own team-mates, if possible.
- Make space for group discussions about the researched subject in large group meetings.
Competence
- Provide positive, informational feedback on how students function in tutorial group meetings (i.e. preparation for and participation in the reporting phase).
- Provide problems that are based on real-life situations that need to be explained or solved. These ‘authentic’, realistic tasks can help students to feel more competent and confident in handling situations that will encounter in real-life and later in their profession.
Relatedness:
- In a small, collaborative group setting (max of 10–12 students in real life, or as we have found in our online, international project a max 4 to 5 students), it is easier for students to build friendships/friendly relationships which is helpful to increase their feelings of relatedness.
- A tutor should be present during small-group meetings. Because the groups are small, the tutor is able to give more individual support when needed and show interest in all students, which can stimulate feelings of relatedness as well.
- Make sure that students feel that the tutor is approachable in PBL, hence they are more likely to ask questions or start a conversation with him/her
How do you help the students develop a critical analysis of their performance in order to improve it? The students can point out which of these statements have been achieved after the shared classroom. If you fulfill all of them that means that the expected goals have been reached.
- The contents discussed have provided me with new and meaningful information.
- After the shared classroom, I have been conscious/more aware of different realities and problems.
- I gave/was given the necessary tools to change my close environment (call to action).
- The developed final products were useful, meaningful and easy to use/apply in a real situation.
- The communication between partners has been rewarding and exhaustive.
- The working time has been employed in an optimal way.
- The shared classroom allowed me to develop new relations and to broaden my social and cultural experiences.
- The shared classroom has given me a better understanding of the SDGs and their importance and practical applicability.
- Others: add your own ones.