Mandated School Responsibilities in ATST

Acting Today, Shaping Tomorrow

Link to http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/curriculumcouncil/action.html

Mandated School Responsibilities in Acting Today, Shaping Tomorrow.

Goal #1
By the end of Grade 12, students will acquire knowledge, skills, and perspectives that foster understanding of their fundamental connections to each other, to the world around them, and to all living things.

STRATEGY 1.1
Increase student knowledge and develop skills and perspectives that foster environmental stewardship Schools will:

• provide opportunities for students to acquire knowledge and skills related to environmental education in all subject areas, and encourage them to apply their knowledge and skills to environmental issues (e.g., loss of biodiversity, climate change, waste reduction, energy conservation) through action-based projects;
• challenge students to develop skills in systems thinking and futures thinking that they will need to become discerning, active citizens.

STRATEGY 1.2
Model and teach environmental education through an integrated approach that promotes collaboration in the development of resources and activities. Schools will:

• develop learning opportunities that will help students understand the underlying causes, the multiple dimensions, and the dynamic nature of environmental issues;
• develop professional learning communities to share effective practices about pedagogical strategies that support learning and teaching about the environment.

Goal #2
Increase student engagement by fostering active participation in environmental projects and building links between schools and communities.

STRATEGY 2.1
Build student capacity to take action on environmental issues. Schools will:

• engage student leaders in the design and delivery of environmental education at the school level;
• encourage students to enrich their learning by using information technology to access resources, connect with others, and create e-communities that focus on environmental issues;
• encourage action research that promotes partnerships and the innovative implementation of environmental education concepts and principles;
• create opportunities for students to address environmental issues in their homes, in their local communities, or at the global level;
• work with their school councils in promoting environmental education;
• encourage students to plan environmental education activities for all students;
• encourage all students to participate in environmental education activities on school grounds.

STRATEGY 2.2
Provide leadership support to enhance student engagement and community involvement. Schools will:

• work with parents, the school council, community groups, and other education stakeholders to promote environmental awareness and foster appropriate environmentally responsible practices;
• enrich and complement students’ classroom learning by organizing out-of-classroom experiences and activities (such as the naturalization of the school yard),as appropriate;
• encourage students to consider ways of completing their community service requirements that involve addressing environmental issues in their communities, in a manner consistent with school board policy.

Goal #3
Increase the capacity of system leaders to implement evidence-based environmental education programming, practices, and operations.

STRATEGY 3.1
Increase the extent to which environmental education is integrated into school board policies, procedures, and strategic plans. Schools will:

• create or revise an implementation plan that aligns with the school board environmental education policy;
• adopt environmentally responsible management practices that are consistent with board policy and consider the advice of members of the school community on these matters;
• encourage staff to develop knowledge and skills related to environmental education and responsible environmental practices and encourage mentoring opportunities;
• facilitate sharing of staff expertise and knowledge through existing networks.

STRATEGY 3.2
Enhance the integration of environmentally responsible practices into the management of resources, operations, and facilities. Schools will:

• encourage staff to participate inschool or school board sessions on environmental sustainability and the role of staff in preparing and implementing the school and/or school board’s action plan;
• plan an environmentally responsible approach to managing resources and operations.

Measuring the School’s Progress

Acting Today, Shaping Tomorrow provides a rubric to measure school board’s and school’s success at implementing this initiative. There are status indicators, facilitative indicators, and effect indicators.

Status indicators tell you where you are at the beginning of the process. They provide the baseline information against which future progress can be measured.

Ministry	School Board	School
Number of school boards that have environmental education policies in place Type of professional learning provided Nature of environmental	Availability of community partnerships for environmental education purposes Availability of environmental	Types of environmentally responsible management practices currently in place Type and number of environmental education resources in school library
education opportunities and expectations provided in the revised curriculum Type of teaching resources available	education training Availability of teaching resources	and classrooms

Facilitative indicators tell you about the supportive context and processes already in place that can facilitate implementation. They can be divided into context indicators, which describe the general supportive context, and process indicators, which describe the level of engagement of the ministry, the school board, the school, and other stakeholders in the process.

	Ministry	School Board	School
Context Indicators		Availability of resources from other ministries Availability of training Support dedicated to school resources for environmental education or greening of practices/facilities	Type of community groups that could support implementation at the school level
Process Indicators	Extent of participation by stakeholders Extent of training already offered Existence of interbranch and interministry mechanisms of cooperation	Extent of participation by stakeholders and broader community Existence of board-wide environmental education committees Existence of activities and programs that use environmental education as an integrating theme	Existence of environmental education committees in schools Existence of student projects related to environmental education Level of engagement of youth organizations

 

Effect indicators measure short-term, mid-term, and long-term results and are
usually known as output, outcome, and impact indicators, respectively

	Ministry	School Board	School
Output Indicators	Environmental education integrated into curriculum review process Environmental education integrated into other frameworks and guides	Policy for environmental education established School board staff participating in professional development related to environmental education Board-wide committee established to coordinate implementation within the board	Environmental education plan developed Schools consider purchases of resources and materials through the lens of environmental education and environmentally responsible management
Outcome Indicators	Shared inventory of school board practices created	Implementation plan in place that is renewed, revised, and communicated annually	School council provides advice on implementation Community partners involved as resources for school planning Number of student focused, action-oriented environmental education projects increasing
Impact Indicators	Student leadership and engagement improved Alignment between initiatives improved, leading to better outcomes for all students	Opportunities for student leadership in environmental education increased Environmentally responsible practices are included in board activities and operations	Environmentally responsible practices included in school activities and operations Students are more involved and engaged in environmental education Environmental education used as an integrating theme for planning purposes at the