The Urgency of Climate Change Teaching and Learning
If we care about kids than prepare them for a changing climate
Curriculum about global warming and climate change is vital for students to learn about because they will face its impact as it continues to grow as a science challenge. These critical issues need not contain ands, ifs or whats about it.
It’s real, and its effects may or may not be lessened. Day in and day out, someone somewhere is fighting floods, hurricanes, heat, and humidity.
The good news from Pew Foundation (source) research indicates two-thirds of Americans want to support prioritizing renewable energy.
The bad news is that Democrats and Republicans have become more split (78% to 23%, respectively) about the threat of climate change. Something’s gotta give here. Either Republicans need to support Democrats in advocating for action to reduce global warming, or Republican candidates must be more supportive of an effort to contain it.
The other day, I was talking to a friend (a Democrat) about an outdoor cafe in San Francisco. Since I’ve been writing consistently about climate change, I informed him how vital the issue is. No sooner did I utter about how I wrote about it; he interrupted me, letting me know that he didn’t care about climate change because he won’t be here on earth.
I was appalled and annoyed and wanted to slap them, saying, “Snap out of it,” as Cher did in Moonstruck. He is approaching 70. My internal reaction was, how can a person be so selfish?
My streams of thought whipped up: “What about younger members of our family with whom we are close, from biological children to grandchildren and nieces/nephews to their children and the children/grandchildren of friends who we’ve known all their lives?”
I didn’t say a word…I just took a deep breath and moved to discuss his options of things to do in retirement. Here, he didn’t have a clue. “I’ll help you find stuff,” I said.
Afterward, I was alarmed at how ignorant he was and how lame I was in offering a counterargument without calling him names. Instead, I took the nice route.
As an adult who is the same age, I deeply care about the effects of global warming. My conversation with this guy had me think of Jane Fonda, an older person who does care about climate change. I include a link below to her efforts to change attitudes about climate change.
Now to the focus of my message. According to Pew Research, “members of Generation Z, as well as Millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996), are more open than older Americans to some of the farther-reaching policy proposals related to climate change” (source).
The point it didn’t make was the need for the youngest generations to learn about the effects of a changing climate. Since I’ve been an educator for decades, I am responsible for making people aware of climate change, as it is for every educator.
Climate Change Teaching and Learning Options for Kids
The best resource for kids is to find out if the weather is getting hotter by asking grandparents or any of their friends. If the grandparents have lived somewhere else for much of their life, have direct students to ask them about the climate where they used to live (for example, Mexico).
Adults can implement ChatGPT the following to get an idea about what students can ask their older generations of extended families. For example, not only grandparents but great uncles and aunts, etc...
Simple type the following ChatGP: Interview questions for students to ask grandparents and great-grandparents about global warming where they live. Next, research national databases to
Additionally, adults can review The Center for Environmental Policy at Bard College before launching a roadmap for Making Climate a Class—a one-hour discussion—in every subject: philosophy, political science, art, engineering, biology, business, music, literature, economics, and more.
Takeaway
Kids will experience life in a changed climate with a much more severe impact than we see today.
Prioritizing climate change in education is the key to a clean, cooler climate.
Resources:
A Powerful, Simple Way to Fight Climate Change: #MakeClimateAClass
References
Park, Y. S., & Park, J. H. (2020). Exploring the Explicit Teaching Strategies in STEAM Program of Climate Change. Asia-Pacific Science Education, 6(1), 116–151. https://doi.org/10.1163/23641177-bja00002