Our Climate Ready Classrooms training helps educate and empower secondary school pupils and teachers to understand complex global and local environmental issues - and learn how they can take action against climate change. After a group of pupils at George Heriot's School in Edinburgh successfully completed the course in 2020, and gave great feedback on it, a second group took part in the training this spring. Here's what they had to say about it.
Over six weeks in November and December 2020, a keen group of pupils took part in the Climate Ready Classrooms course online during one lunch break per week. The format worked so well that we were delighted to ask Josh back and he offered the online course again in March and April 2022, resulting in more of our pupils achieving Carbon Literacy certification.
It has been so encouraging and rewarding to see pupils opting to spend their free time exploring the causes, consequences and possible mitigation strategies of climate change, and see their enthusiasm for learning more about environmental issues, as well as their positivity for the future.
As a group we found the climate ready classrooms course very enlightening about the current climate crisis that we as a younger generation are facing and will continue to battle. The course was packed with eye opening facts about greenhouse gases and their negative impact on our planet, however it also gave us many hopeful strategies. Together we can hopefully contribute towards helping towards these as well as educate those around us about them.
Kirsten, Eleri & Eva
Making pledges empowered them to see that everyone can make a difference. Individual pledges included reducing the number of baths or time in the shower (heating water uses A LOT of energy), reducing food waste at home, walking and cycling more, and reducing the amount of red meat and dairy in their diets. Group pledges included educating others about fast fashion and carbon footprints, and working with their families to reduce food waste by planning meals and making creative use of leftovers, or eating more seasonally. I am looking forward to following these pledges up when they return from study leave, and next session.
Feedback from pupils was extremely positive.
Throughout the carbon literacy course, I became increasingly more aware of the environment we live in and how we as people can help protect and save it. I found the course beneficial as it made me more conscious of my impact on the environment and what not only I can do as an individual to help, but what my family and friends can also do to help. I liked the fact we did lots of group activities and discussed with each other ways we can reduce CO2 emissions and greenhouse gases.
Sidney
We all really enjoyed working with Josh, and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank him for his enthusiasm and flexibility, allowing us to offer this opportunity to our pupils during lunch breaks on a weekly basis. We hope he’ll agree to another course or two next session! Thanks, Josh!
It was enjoyable and it was finally the push that made me want to be more environmentally friendly.
Noa
Through our education programmes, we support children and young people to understand the role we all have to play in a transition to becoming a Net Zero Nation. In addition to Eco-Schools Scotland, we have delivered our bespoke accredited training course, Climate Ready Classrooms, to thousands of secondary school pupils and educators over the last three years.
Climate Ready Classrooms is a one-day accredited Carbon Literacy training course designed for young people aged 14–17 years. It uses interactive activities and examples to start a conversation about climate change. Upon completing the course, pupils receive Carbon Literacy accreditation.
Climate Ready Classrooms will help your school:
- Adopt a whole-school approach to climate action.
- Reduce your carbon footprint and use resource more efficiently.
- Connect to a network of carbon literate ambassadors.
- Support planning for choices and change through Curriculum for Excellence.
- Develop STEM skills and support the Developing the Young Workforce agenda.
- Receive an accredited certificate of Carbon Literacy.
- Develop evidence for your Eco-Schools Green Flag Award.
Register through our online form and get Climate Ready!
