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Young People at a Crossroads

Written by Guest | Posted on the 19th May 2023

Image credit: Artwork - Maisy Summer, Layout - Kit Marie Rackley

Young People at a Crossroads.

In the May 2023 guest blog, award-winning freelance sci-communicator, author, podcaster and educator Kit Marie Rackley  shows how projects like ‘Young People at a Crossroads’ can use student-centred stories, lived experiences and inter-generational knowledge to bring climate change education and migration directly into our classrooms. Her guest blog highlights the outcomes of the project and the various ideas and resources that teachers can use.

 

Stories. That’s how for most of human history knowledge has been passed on and lessons have been taught. Parable and prose, sometimes totally factually based on verifiable information, sometimes fantastical based on hearsay or legend. Stories inspire, they motivate, but most importantly, they bring context and connection. Arguably, contributing to the ‘slow boiling frog’ syndrome that is the human race’s reaction to climate change, is the lack of context and connection. Yes, the science is robust, and the news of the impacts from far off places is unequivocal. But they speak to the mind rather than the heart or soul. And it’s not just climate change, it’s also a whole host of issues from foreign wars to migration.

This is where projects like ‘Young People at a Crossroads’ come in. It’s aim: to use student-centred stories, lived experiences and inter-generational knowledge to bring climate change education and migration directly into our classrooms. Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and completed in February 2023, researchers worked alongside 14 to 18-year-olds with family migration backgrounds to find out what they think about climate change and how this fits in with their families’ experiences of adapting to environmental uncertainty in the UK, Australia and worldwide.

The stories, or ‘reflections’ gathered from the young people were loosely organised into three themes: climate change education; action; and adaptation. This video summarises the project and gives one example from each of those categories.

Outcomes from the research provided tangible resources that can be used by teachers in classrooms. The project book is a delightfully illustrated resource which is available to download for free (and physical copies can also be requested). The book guides you through the research project, then presents a series of summaries for each of the three themes. These summaries are followed by reflections from young researchers that dive deeper into the issues raised. The book ends with a note about sensitive ways to have conversations about climate change and some helpful resources.

 

 

 

A spread from the project book where Young Researcher Paula interviews her father about his experiences with attitudes to the environment between Venezuela and Australia.

 

 

 

Page 8 of the book outlines ten key messages from the research, referencing which young persons’ reflections allowing you to dive into the real stories behind them. They are:

  1. Climate change education should be a priority
  2. Teaching and learning should be action-oriented
  3. Issues of wellbeing such as climate anxiety should be taken seriously
  4. We should recognise contextual differences and inequalities
  5. There is a desire to hear and tell on-the-ground stories
  6. Intergenerational sharing of knowledge and practices is important
  7. We need to reduce guilt and assign responsibility appropriately
  8. Leaders need to step up
  9. Focus on climate justice education, not climate change education
  10. Support young people amidst their competing priorities

Teachers have enough expertise and skill to come up with ways the stories and messages from ‘Young People at a Crossroads’ can be embedded in their curriculum. However, the project book also comes with two accompanying resources that will help support and kick-start this process.

The first resource is the ‘educators guide’ which demonstrates how a whole school approach to climate change is both necessary and possible. It suggests ways of initiating a whole school, cross-curricular approach by getting school leadership and colleagues on board, so that educators working across subjects can teach on climate change effectively and confidently. It presents ‘spark ideas’ and activities for working with the YPAC creative book. Whilst the guide is written with secondary schools in mind, it is easy to adapt to a primary school setting.

 

 

 

'Spark ideas’ for subject-based and cross-curricular learning regarding taking action and responsibility for dealing with climate change.

 

 

 

The second resource is the ‘moving beyond the crossroads’ practical guide. Towards the close of the project, young researchers and others from their schools and colleges to were invited to join with adults in Manchester, UK and Melbourne, Australia to have intergenerational conversations about responding to climate change. The guide presents visual and textual snapshots from these conversations, ending with tips on moving beyond the climate crossroads based on participants’ responses.

Word-clouds generated from conversations at both the Manchester and Melbourne in-person events. The conversations focused on three themes: community (left), home (centre) and school (right).

 

You can interact with these word clouds using these links.

It is highly recommended that you check out the project’s website for these wonderful free resources. In addition, there are free resources on how to conduct your own in-school interviews with students to gain their insights into climate change, and workshop materials that address climate anxiety.

 

 

Project materials

 

 

 

Resources/links:

 

About the author:

Kit Marie Rackley (they/she) contributed to the ‘Young People at a Crossroads’ project as an educational consultant. Kit Marie is an award-winning freelance sci-communicator, author, podcaster and educator with a portfolio working with the likes of National Geographic Kids, the Met Office and the National Atmospheric & Oceanic Administration (NOAA). Kit Marie has extensive experience teaching high-school Geography and is a consultant to the Geographical Association and the National Association of School-Based Teacher Trainers (NASBTT). Their work can be found here

 

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