Sustainability Education: Plastic Waste

What Children Are Learning tudents through the learningmilies stic to use in their lunch boxesour family. ernatives to plastic, and we would really apprec This term students in Year 6 will be studying a sustainability unit centred around a short film produced by artist Chris Jordan. This film introduces students to the effects of waste plastics in the Midway Atoll, located in the North Pacific Ocean. The small group of islands is surrounded by an ocean that has become known as a soup of litter. The litter is washing up on the shores and having a devastating effect on the marine species of this area. Students will be empowered as active and informed citizens through problem solving a series of structured inquiry driven learning phases to: Understand the effects of plastic as a waste product. Investigate how and why waste is a global issue. Identify issues surrounding waste in their school environment. Introduce and promote the ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’ philosophy to their school community. Implement zero waste alternatives, strategies, and challenges within the school environment. Why Are They Learning Multiple learning disciplines from of the Australian Curriculum will be embedded in this thematic unit, with an emphasis on the Cross Curriculum Priority of Sustainability. The following Humanities and Social Sciences Curriculum outcome for year 6 will drive the learning in this unit: The obligations citizens may consider they have beyond their own national borders as active and informed global citizens (ACHASSK148) The global interdependent nature of our modern world must assume that everybody’s actions or inactions have consequences that span the globe, generations and protrude into the future. This unit aims to foster this belief by exploring the issue of waste and pollution from a global citizenship perspective. The learning in this unit aims to align with the Australian Curriculum assertion that “through the priority of sustainability, students develop the knowledge, skills, values and world views necessary to contribute to more sustainable patterns of living”. How Are They Learning The planned unit recognises and adopts the international ‘Education for Sustainable Development’ approach to education for sustainability. The unit aims to not only educate about the environment but to promote futuristic and transformative thinking in regards to sustainable choices. Students through critical and systems thinking processes will envision a better future for themselves, their school, and their world. Students will develop partnerships and actively participate in influencing change in regards to plastic waste in their school community. How Parents/Carers Can Support Their Child’s Learning We all want a better world for our children, I invite you to be a part of this exciting learning journey, so together we can make a difference.  Be informed, talk, and come up with solutions about how you can make more sustainable choices for your family and household. Students in this unit will create their own alternatives to plastic to use in their lunch boxes, we would really appreciate your support by trying these suggestions out and seeing if they work for your family. Below are some links to interesting websites about sustainability. The Story of Stuff website http://storyofstuff.org Clean Up Australia website - http://www.cleanup.org.au/au/Factsheets/recycling-waste.html WWF- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle website http://www.wwf.org.au/get-involved/change-the-way-you-live/reduce-reuse-recycle

References Australian Curriculum and Reporting Association, (2015). Cross curriculum priorities: sustainability. Retrieved from: http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/crosscurriculumpriorities/sustainability/in-the-learning-areas Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, (2016). Australian curriculum: Humanities and social sciences. Retrieved from:http://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/humanities-and-social-sciences/hass/curriculum/f-10?layout=1 Australian Research Institute for Environment and Sustainability, [ARIES], (2004-2016). Education for sustainability. Retrieved from: http://aries.mq.edu.au/about/education_for_sustainability_processes/index.php Killen, (2013). Chapter 10: using problem solving as a teaching strategy. Retrieved from: https://mylo.utas.edu.au/content/enforced/178687-AW_EED_16S5_12888_1_0_0_1_1/Ch%2010%20Killen%20(2013)_Prob%20Solve.pdf?_&d2lSessionVal=LmIO1tdalGMlgII2hrG70nPv6&ou=178687 Killen, (2013). Chapter 11: using inquiry as a teaching strategy. Retrieved from: https://mylo.utas.edu.au/content/enforced/178687-AW_EED_16S5_12888_1_0_0_1_1/Ch%2011%20Killen%20(2013)_inquiry.pdf?_&d2lSessionVal=LmIO1tdalGMlgII2hrG70nPv6&ou=178687 Thiele, L. (2013). Introduction: sustainability. Retrieved from: https://mylo.utas.edu.au/content/enforced/178687-AW_EED_16S5_12888_1_0_0_1_1/Thiele%202013%20introduction.pdf?_&d2lSessionVal=LmIO1tdalGMlgII2hrG70nPv6&ou=178687