Climate Justice Education Project

 

In this course, educators will collaborate to learn ways they can teach the topic of climate change through student inquiry projects that connect to issues of racial justice, climate solutions, and civic action. All live sessions and asynchronous activities focus on educators learning to engage students in climate change for all content and grade levels. Participants will learn strategies to develop and facilitate inquiry projects that lead students to research the impacts of climate change to create civic action by students toward the goal of mitigating climate change. Participants will develop their own climate justice lesson plan. This offering addresses the CPS Framework for Teaching Components: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 3a, and 3c.

In this course, participants will learn how to:

• Engage students on climate change at many grade levels in a way that fosters student empowerment, hope, and advocacy.
• Adapt and integrate climate change curriculum with other subjects.
• Connect climate justice education to racial justice and their students’ personal experiences.
• Facilitate inquiry projects that lead students to research the impacts of climate change and the local actions schools and communities can take.
• Coordinate meaningful civic action by students toward the goal of mitigating climate change.

Instructor: Ayesha Qazi-Lampert, Erin Lynch

Click here for the complete lesson plans.

The CTUF Quest Center and the CTU Climate Justice Committee have developed the Climate Justice Education Project (CJEP). The overarching goal is to provide educators with educational materials, climate justice-related pedagogy, curriculum, and ongoing support to bring coherent, accessible, culturally responsive, and student-centered climate justice education to public schools across Chicago to empower young people and their school communities to advocate and win green policy transformations that truly address the imperatives of the climate crisis.

OBJECTIVES

1. Provide targeted funding for classroom supplies to teach climate justice in 20 Chicago Public Schools.
2. Support educators with professional development where they learn to design and implement climate justice education into their curriculum and instruction.
3. Share the climate justice lessons and student impact through storytelling, investigations, and public advocacy of school and community-based climate solutions.

Educators who join the CJEP 2023 Cohort will participate in innovative professional development sessions on environmental justice that culminate with impactful student action for Earth Day 2023. 

The Climate Justice Education Project offers educators a unique professional learning experience to earn 30 ISBE PD Hours, 2 CPS Lane Placement Credits, funding for classroom supplies, and a lesson design stipend.

During the informational meeting, we will review the goals for the Climate Justice Education Project and learn about the professional development scope and sequence that will guide you in developing a climate justice lesson that will be implemented in April 2023. Most of all, your contribution makes an impactful mark on climate justice education in Chicago.

Please contact Michael P. Moriarty, NBCT, Career Pathways Coordinator, for any inquiries about the Climate Justice Education Project at michaelmoriarty@ctuf.org.

The Oppenheimer Family Foundation graciously funds the Climate Justice Education Project.