I've been reading what the admirable Shakira Martin, President of NUS, has been saying about sustainability education. You'll find it here, adapted from a speech she delivered at a Labour Party Conference fringe event. There's much to agree with in what Shakira says, and some things to contest. This passage struck me:
"So, what does this education look like? Fundamentally, it is not about simply teaching about sustainability but rather learning for sustainability. It is not nearly enough for our learners to be able to recite facts about climate change – they need to have the skills and understanding to make a difference. This must be the aim of any “green” education system.
- We need our young people to be empathetic and caring individuals who can put themselves in someone else’s shoes.
- We need them to be cooperative team-workers, ready to work across disciplines, cultures, classes, and borders.
- We need them to be strong communicators with the confidence to share their ideas and the humility to learn from others’ who may not share the same views.
- We need them to be critical thinkers and systems thinkers who can understand the complexity of the world they face and ask good questions.
- We need them to be resilient and compassionate. And, importantly, we need them to be lifelong learners and leaders.
These are not skills that can really be taught but rather “caught” through the educational experiences our students have, in both formal and informal education.
... . We need to recognise that this learning takes place not only in lecture halls and classrooms, but also across the campus, in students’ communities, and through active involvement in clubs, societies, and volunteering. Our students’ unions play a critical role in shaping the lives of students, and it is vital going forward that we start to think holistically about education. Together, we can ensure that the next generation of leaders has the knowledge, skills, attributes, and values needed to create a more just and sustainable future for all."
It's surely cannot be the case that none of the bulleted points can be taught and learned. For example, you can certainly have a good go at teaching communication, critical thinking, and systems thinking skills, as well as ideas around complexity. You don't have to rely on students having experiences to hope they might catch any of these like a passing virus. Indeed, universities already have such classes. Perhaps it's time for some Batesonian critical thinking about critical thinking about critical thinking.
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