Written answers

Tuesday, 18 May 2021

Department of Education and Skills

School Curriculum

Photo of Eoin Ó BroinEoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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503. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if consideration is being given to adding climate change as a subject to the curriculum for primary and secondary school students. [26324/21]

Photo of Norma FoleyNorma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I can advise the Deputy that under the National Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development  (ESD) 2014 – 2020, significant work has been done integrating sustainable development themes and principles across the curriculum, into the inspection and assessment processes and into Initial Teacher Education and CPD for Teachers.

ESD aims to ensure that “education contributes to sustainable development by equipping learners with the relevant knowledge (the ‘what’), the key dispositions and skills (the ‘how’) and the values (the ‘why’) that will motivate and empower them throughout their lives to become informed active citizens who take action for a more sustainable future”.  This is in alignment with the target set out by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 4.7. 

ESD is both a target in itself but also a key enabler for delivery of all 17 SDGs.  The Department of Education is committed to contributing to the national effort to implement the SDGs and in particular to SDG 4 – Quality Education “to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” as outlined in the SDG National Implementation Plan.The Department is represented on the SDG National Implementation Plan Senior Officials Group and Interdepartmental Working Group.

An of the curriculum for opportunities and linkages with ESD, published by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment in 2018 shows climate change (SDG 13) integrated across a range of subjects including:Primary History, Geography, Science and SPHE, Junior Cycle Business Studies, Home Economics, Science, History and CSPE and Senior Cycle Agricultural Science, Geography and Politics & Society.Further opportunities exist across most curricular subjects for engagement with issues of sustainable development and climate change (e.g. Languages – essay on topic) 

A wide range of ESD resources and programmes are available to schools and these are available through a central portal hosted on Scoilnet.  Some examples of these resources include the Green Schools programme which engages with 94% of schools, ECO UNESCO and the Irish Aid programme – WorldWise Global Schools.

As part of it’s awareness raising campaign, the Department has recently launched a quarterly ESD Newsletter  which is circulated to all schools and interested parties and includes information, ideas and suggestions aimed at promoting ESD in teaching and learning.

On Earth Day (22ndApril), the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science Simon Harris and I launched a public consultation for a new joint National Strategy on ESD to 2030.  ESD to 2030 will build on the work already done in this area.ESD to 2030 will be aligned to UNESCOs Framework for ESD for 2030 which sets out the five priority areas as

- Advancing Policy and Policy Coherence,

- Education and Training:  Transforming Learning Environments,

- Capacity Building for Educators and Trainers,

- Empowering and mobilising Youth and

- Accelerating sustainable solutions at local level and engaging with the wider community.

The public consultation will remain open until the 30thJune and both Departments will continue to engage with key stakeholders including the school community into the early autumn with a view to publishing a new strategy for ESD to 2030 in early 2022.

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