Global Citizenship

June 11th, 2012

Anti-Sectarian education

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags: Tags: sectarianism
 : Categories citizenship, expressive arts, languages, learner voice, religious and moral education, social studies, technologies

North Lanarkshire Council secondary schools have been involved in a video-making project about the hatred and bigotry associated with sectarian behaviour in Scottish society. Students from Bellshill Academy and Cardinal Newman High School worked together to make a video about this form of prejudice and hate-crime, to deliver an anti-sectarian message to young people in the same age group. A NLC news release provides background and details.

BBC Scotland reported on the launch of this video which encourages tolerance of diversity and the eradication of sectarian actions and beliefs.

Glasgow’s ‘Sense over Sectarianism‘ programme continues to work in partnership with schools and community groups to improve the lives of local citizens.

May 18th, 2012

Global Citizenship and Storylines - update

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags: Tags: storylines
 : Categories africa, expressive arts, international, languages, social studies, sustainable development

Storytelling is part of human existence around the world in every culture, and encouraging children to develop and tell stories is a frequently-used form of education. The Storylines methodology is well-established in Scottish schools, and involves children creating their own fictional communities in which their stories will be set. In the hands of imaginative teachers, this approach lends itself to some very thoughtful learning about global citizenship.

WOSDEC has worked with Glasgow City Council and Strathclyde University to develop a Global Storylines project, which has been trialled in Glasgow primary schools. It used Storylines in conjunction with drama to enable learners to explore challenging global issues such as peace and conflict, interdependence, land ownership, farming and food security.

A delegation from Glasgow will participate in the international conference ‘Storyline in Iceland 2012′ this summer, sharing their experience of using this approach in Scotland and also learning from the experience of teachers in other nations. And a recent dissemination event at Strathclyde University helped spread the message among teachers from a number of Scottish local authorities.

For teachers who want to know more, there’s also an article about the Global Storylines project in the Summer 2012 edition of the excellent ‘Stride‘ magazine, available for free download from the IDEAS network website.

For teachers who might consider how to use Storyline to support Language teaching, the Creative Dialogues website might prove useful.

May 15th, 2012

Euroquiz success

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags: Tags: euroquiz
 : Categories europe, international, languages, modern languages, primary schools, social studies

Yesterday the national finals of the Euroquiz 2012 competition were held in the Scottish Parliament Debating Chamber in Edinburgh. Congratulations to St Mary’s Primary School, Duntocher, West Dunbartonshire, whose team won this year’s event; and well done to all the teams of Primary 6 pupils from around Scotland who took part in the regional heats and in the finals. The knowledge displayed by the students, and their skills in information retrieval, were very impressive for all of us who saw them in action at the various stages of the competition.

The event was recorded by Scottish Parliament TV, and the archive video footage is now available for viewers on their website.

The Euroquiz competition has been organised annually by the Scottish European Educational Trust for some years, and continues to attract mass participation and enhance learning about aspects of the European Union.

May 4th, 2012

Global Citizenship and Film

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags:  : Categories africa, games and sport, health and wellbeing, international, languages

A few very different opportunities for teachers to reflect on how to use film viewings and film-making as a tool for supporting global citizenship education:

With a good fit to current work in schools around Games Legacy and the Olympics, the Edinburgh Filmhouse has a schools-only showing of the African film ‘Town of Runners’ on Monday 28th May. This showing has been organised by Take One Action film festival, a charity which promotes the different perspectives offered by films from developing countries. The film tells the story of two Ethiopian girls struggling to become athletes in a town which has a history of producing great distance runners, and is reviewed in the Guardian.

Take One Action is also seeking secondary schools to participate in its Young Heroes action project between June and December 2012. It’s a residential and follow-on screening project for young people aged 15-21 and their educators or youth workers, and builds their capacity to consider global issues and use film to encourage wider debate.

Thirdly, the Northern Lights project aims to create Scotland’s first ever mass participation documentary, an innovative way to build a movie about contemporary Scotland. Basically it will be composed, and edited into a final feature-length film, from videos made by people all over the country and contributed to a common pool of rich material. Read this blog post for more detail and weblinks.

April 26th, 2012

Global storylines - CPD opportunity

imenzies

Comments: none Tags: Tags: CPD, events
 : Categories africa, citizenship, creativity, curriculum areas, expressive arts, languages, primary schools, sharing practice, social studies, sustainable development

Global storylines is an exciting, innovative three year project in which storyline and drama are used to embed an exploration of global issues into the learning experiences of pupils in Glasgow.

Now in its second year, teachers from 17 Glasgow primary schools are exploring challenging global issues with their pupils, within the safe fictional community that storyline offers. Each global storyline uniquely combines global citizenship methodologies with both the pedagogies of “Storyline” and the associated pedagogies of process drama.

Learners are supported to think creatively, make connections, solve problems, and examine values and attitudes.

The event will be introduced by Steve Bell, Co-creator of Storyline, followed by a presentation by the Global Storylines Team on the scope of the project, the methodology, learning contexts and research findings.

Displays and videos of children’s work, and presentations from the project teachers, help to give a flavour of the project.

Venue & Registration:

Thursday 3rd May 2012, 2.30-5.00pm

University of Strathclyde, McCance Building

If you would like to attend this event, please register at:

http://ewds.strath.ac.uk/engage/Events/GlasgowGlobalStorylinesProject.aspx

April 19th, 2012

School Open day - Stockbridge Primary School, City of Edinburgh

imenzies

Comments: none Tags: Tags: community, CPD, europe, school improvement
 : Categories CPD, citizenship, curriculum areas, expressive arts, health and wellbeing, international, languages, mathematics, primary schools, religious and moral education, sciences, sharing practice, social studies, technologies

School Open Day – Stockbridge Primary School, City of Edinburgh Council

Main focus: developing a strong pupil voice & partnership working with the local and international community

Thursday, 17 May 2012, 9.15 am – 3 pm (tbc)

The highly successful programme of Developing Global Citizens study visits to schools around the country continues with Stockbridge Primary School.

Stockbridge Primary School has worked hard to embed global citizenship themes at the heart of the curriculum. This work has involved the establishment of systems which promote pupil voice and meaningful partnerships with pupils, parents, the local community and international partners.

A focus of the event will be to identify and share the practical lessons and ideas that have helped the school move forward in its journey, and also to reflect on the challenges encountered along the way. Time will also be set aside for some professional dialogue and exchange of ideas.

To book, please email: [email protected] or Phone 0141 282 5172. Places are limited so please book early to avoid disappointment. This is a free event!

April 19th, 2012

School Open Day - Kinnaird Primary School, Falkirk Council

imenzies

Comments: none Tags: Tags: CPD, democracy, enterprise, europe, events, Fairtrade, learner voice, school improvement
 : Categories CPD, citizenship, curriculum areas, europe, expressive arts, health and wellbeing, international, languages, leadership, learner voice, mathematics, primary schools, religious and moral education, sciences, sharing practice, social studies, sustainable development, technologies

School open day - Wed 23rd May 2012

Since opening in August 2007, Kinnaird Primary School has demonstrated a strong commitment to Global Citizenship. It was the first school in Falkirk to achieve Fairtrade status, has achieved two ECO Schools green flags, Falkirk Council’s International Education Awards (Stage 2) and the British Council Intermediate Level Developing Internationalism Award, in addition to Falkirk Council’s Platinum Level Enterprise Education Award.

Download programme for open day>>

Programme

9.30 Registration and Coffee

9.45 Welcome and introduction by Pamela Adamson, Headteacher

10.00 Tour of school

Participants given tour of school by pupils/staff in small groups, including visits to classes

11.00 Coffee break

11.30 Presentation about the school’s journey (Pamela Adamson and pupils)

12.00 Informal question and answer session

12.30 Lunch

13.15 Presentation by Megan Farr, Policy Officer, outlining the work Falkirk Council Education Services do to support and promote Global Citizenship in schools

13.30 Reflection and professional dialogue

Participants exchange ideas and reflect on personal experience in the light of the visit

14.45 Close

If you wish to register for this Open Day, please contact Megan Farr on 01324 506671 or [email protected]

March 22nd, 2012

School Open Day at Bo’ness Academy

imenzies

Comments: none Tags: Tags: CPD, europe, events, modern languages, school improvement
 : Categories CPD, china, commonwealth, curriculum areas, europe, expressive arts, health and wellbeing, international, languages, mathematics, religious and moral education, sciences, secondary schools, sharing practice, social studies, technologies

School open day - using international education to develop a whole school approach to global citizenship

Venue: Bo’ness Academy, Falkirk

9:30am – 3.00pm

Thursday 17th May 2012

Note: this event was due to place at an earlier date in the year but has now been rescheduled for the date above.

Theme: International Education

This CPD event offers practitioners and school leaders an exciting opportunity to visit Bo’ness Academy and attend Falkirk Council’s Global Citizenship Showcase Event.

Bo’ness Academy is an inspiring example of a school that has used international education as a vehicle to engage the whole school in global citizenship activities. Through the Comenius Programme and other well established links the school has developed a rich international programme connecting it to countries across the world including: The Gambia, The Netherlands, China, France, Germany and The Czech Republic.

A focus of the event will be to identify and share the practical lessons and ideas that have helped the school move forward on its journey including:

• Making global citizenship a key priority in the school and a focus for the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence
• Using international links to explore important issues in a global context and to create engaging, meaningful and challenging learning experiences
• Developing strong international partnerships which can be sustained and which have made an impact on every learner.

Participants will have the opportunity to meet and talk with the Head Teacher, International Coordinator, staff and learners and also tour the classrooms and school. Time will also be set aside for participants to reflect and share their own experiences.

Download Programme for Bo’ness Academy Open Day 17May12

How to book

To book, please contact Megan Farr, Policy Officer, Falkirk Council. Email: [email protected] or Tel. 01324 506671.

Places for the open day section of the event are limited so please book early to avoid disappointment. This is a free event!

March 22nd, 2012

Students model the UN

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags: Tags: united nations
 : Categories international, languages, learner voice, secondary schools, sharing practice, social studies

This March weekend the Model United Nations programme takes place in Edinburgh, organised and hosted by George Watson’s College. This annual event brings together hundreds of senior pupils and teachers, not just from Scotland and the UK but also groups from Germany, Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Norway.

The students take on the role of delegations to the United Nations, and work through a series of debates and deliberations to address key issues faced by the international community. It is a great example of global citizenship education in practice, encouraging consideration of global issues, democratic participation, and intercultural exchange. Students research, present and discuss topical subjects, demonstrating their abilities as effective communicators.

Afterwards: a news piece about MUN appeared in the Edinburgh Napier News. Congratulations to all the participants and the organising team at George Watson’s.

March 1st, 2012

World Book Day 2012

nickmorgan

Comments: none Tags:  : Categories international, languages

World Book Day is an opportunity for global citizenship education, as pupils and the public around the world join in a shared celebration of the joy of reading books and writing stories. Teachers can introduce learners to the work of foreign authors, and explore the different perspectives offered by ‘voices’ from another country or background. Readers can also be encouraged to reflect on the similarities and differences between countries and why these exist.

There will be author events, book festivals, readings from selected works, activities in public libraries, and much more. For example, BBC Scotland and the Scottish Book Trust collaborated to run online Author sessions with children’s author Francesca Simon (an American), webcast through the Glow network to schools.

A BBC news story, ‘Boys now reading as well as girls, study suggests’, reports on new research which indicates that the reading ability of boys and girls has become much closer over the last few years. Literacy education and reading programmes have contributed to this trend.