Global Schools, the K-12 initiative of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), will join World Logic Day as a key partner. To date, Global Schools has carried out 9,300+ school-wide projects and activities across 92 – involving 102,000+ students, 22,000+ educators and admins, and 30,000+ community members and parents – that promote sustainability, global citizenship, and 21st-century skills.
Logic.Wiki will highlight this initiative at the World Logic Day 2023 in Austin, TX on January 12th at the Long Center for the Performing Arts. Global Schools staff will also serve on the World Logic Day Awards Selection Committee.
Educational quality can have profound effects on students’ life-long outcomes, their future job prospects, their ability to manage complex situations, and their participation in civic and community life. Research shows that Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), and its core pedagogical features, can be a highly effective tool for enhancing educational outcomes, while also supporting social and environmental objectives. ESD fosters socio-emotional skills by engaging students in critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving. Moreover, studies show improved communication and math skills, increased student attendance, and increased performance on exams. However, a UNESCO survey of 58,000 teachers found that over 80% of teachers were interested in applying ESD (UNESCO, 2021) in the classroom, but over half of the respondents faced challenges because they were not familiar with key topics and training was unavailable.
Global Schools is an initiative of the UNSustainable Development Solutions Network ( SDSN). Global Schools works directly with schools and educators to provide professional training, tools, and resources consisting of courses, lesson plans, online seminars, and workshops, to help reorient school visions and support teachers and students in developing innovative sustainability solutions. Global School’s flagship initiative is the Advocates Program, an evidence-based online teacher training program that began in 2020. Global Schools effectively leverages technology to reach teachers across 92 countries, focusing on under-resourced settings.
Our mission is to support educators and schools in the following ways:
In the upcoming year, Global Schools will continue to run its teacher training program: the Global Schools Advocates Program. In the 2023-2024 school year, with the appropriate funding and sponsorships, our goal is to train at least 800 teachers who will in turn reach 16,000 additional administrators and colleagues, and at least 160,000 students. In our most recent cohort, 98% of teachers believed the program increased students’ awareness of social and environmental issues; 99% believed the program has positively impacted students’ learning; 98% would recommend the program to their colleagues. Help us provide the resources, training, and professional development to teachers all over the world, free of cost! In our case-study report, you will find detailed stories of how our training programs have transformed learning environments, achieving tangible change within schools and the wider community.
In 2023, Global Schools will launch a comprehensive toolkit that will support policymakers, curriculum designers, and Ministries of Education in analyzing curricula for sustainable development and global citizenship themes. Global Schools will partner with three universities in the developing world to carry out innovative research projects on transforming education curricula, in partnership with local schools and governments. This methodology was developed based on the results of an intensive 18-month pilot program in Morocco, Ghana, and Turkey, where a team of 50+ researchers in 3 universities worked closely with ministries of education and/or other institutions to analyze national education priorities, curricula, frameworks, and textbooks. The program was led by Global Schools and advised by leading education experts from Monash, Harvard, and Columbia universities.
SDSN has 50 country networks around the world! If you are interested in a specific research pilot in a specific country, take action and stay in touch to find out more about supporting our research projects! Read More.
