The Highland Council

Tackling Big Issues

SALT, Nov 5th 2011

Developing Global Citizenship through Languages

Thea Searle, ML Subject Supporter - Highland

Global citizenship“Global Citizenship is about understanding

the need to tackle injustice and inequality, and having the desire and ability to work actively to do so. It is about valuing the Earth as precious and unique, and safeguarding the future for those coming after us. Global Citizenship is a way of thinking and behaving. It is an outlook on life, a belief that we can make a difference.” (Oxfam website)

Knowledge & Understanding

• Social justice & equity• Diversity• Globalisation & interdependence• Sustainable Development• Peace and conflict

What topics could you look at to address these issues in your Languages classroom?

Skills

• Critical thinking• Ability to argue effectively• Ability to challenge injustice &

inequalities• Respect for people & beings• Cooperation & conflict resolution

What types of activities could you do to develop such skills?

Values & attitudes• Sense of identity & self esteem• Empathy• Commitment to social justice & equity• Value & respect for diversity• Concern for the environment &

commitment to sustainable development• Belief that people can make a difference

What language phrases / structures could you use to develop the above?

Conflict

Modern Studies

SCIAF

Podcast

Francophone country

Free time

Conflict – Critical thinking

• Man versus nature – mining• Man versus society - dictatorship• Man versus man – civil war• Man versus self – ethical & moral

dilemma

Francophone country - RDC• Map of African countries & languages• Background information in English &

quiz

Podcast – Social justice

• Raise awareness of conflict in RDC

• Look at the work of SCIAF

• Develop language skills

Pupil feedback

• Good fun• Learnt their lives are different but we

have a lot of things in common• We enjoyed not using text books• Our vocabulary has got bigger.• We found out Africa had French

speaking people• It was new.

Conflict unit of work

• GGS French Blog – http://www.mfle.typepad.com/ggs_french/• You can find the Conflict work on the

blog, along with all the example radio shows and pupil evaluations.

Social justice

• Topic: Human rights• Resource: Human Rights in French• Context: Kroo Bay – a website by

Save the Children• Language: On doit / il faut & si phrases• Skills: Reading – Unfamiliar language eg. AidWriting – Factfile & Day in LifeSpeaking – Presentation

Pupil feedback• The writing activities were 'exciting' as

made me think about life over there. They made me use more complicated French.

• Really enjoyed it was completely different & interesting.

• Very good as see where people live and the situation they live in.

• Improved my French because required to use French in challenging and interesting situations

Human rights unit of work

• GGS French Blog – http://www.mfle.typepad.com/

ggs_french/• You can find the Kroo bay work on the

blog, along with some examples of work.

• The work is in the archives section in June 2008 and called Sierra Leone work.

Human rights• Context - What countries/events/issues

could you focus on?• Language - What language

structures/grammar could you develop?• Skills - What activities could do in your

Languages classroom? What language skills / global citizenship skills would you develop?

• Values – What is the point of the activity?

Conservation

Description•Adjectives•Dictionary•Miming

Personal details•Basic Q & A•Survey

Actions•Verbs•Whiteboards

Animal vocab•Genders•Pelmanism

HWP Visit•Quiz•Observation•Discussion

Conservation•Reading texts

Animal profiles•Writing

Ils veulent sauver leur zoo(Les cles juniors website)

Le zoo de Vincennes, souffle ses 70 bougies toutes portes fermées. En effet, le personnel ne veut plus y travailler car il le trouve en trop mauvais état et donc dangereux.Le zoo de Vincennes, à Paris, a été fondé en 1934. Mondialement connu, il a attiré l’an dernier 750 000 visiteurs. Pourtant de nombreuses zones sont interdites au public : les rhinocéros ne reçoivent plus de visites depuis 2 ans, les lions et les tigres ont déménagé vers d’autres parcs et les ours vont bientôt les suivre. En effet, le zoo ne pouvait plus accueillir les visiteurs en toute sécurité. Les énormes faux rochers qui constituent son originalité s’effritent et menacent de s’écrouler. Les soigneurs et les gardiens ont alors jugé que la situation devenait trop dangereuse pour eux. C’est pour cette raison qu’ils ont décidé d’arrêter de travailler. Ils veulent également attirer l’attention des Français sur l’état du zoo. Ce dernier appartient au Muséum d’histoire naturelle qui affirme que plusieurs projets de travaux sont à l’étude.

Une loutre

Les loutres vivent dans et autour des rivières. Elles sont carnivores. Elles mangent les poissons, les oiseaux et les petits mammifères. Elles ont un territoire de à propos d’onze miles de longue. Elles vivent dans la rivière Spey. Elles sont petites, marron avec un fourrure impermeable. Elles ont de longues moustaches. Elles adore la chasse et jouer.

Conservation

• How could you look at conservation in a French / German speaking country?

• How could you structure a debate about zoos in the foreign language?

• What language structures could you develop?

Next steps - Climate change• Info about life in Central America –

SCIAF • Age of stupid film trailer• Fernand on climate change in the Alps

(film clip within Age of Stupid)

Environment

Workshop

• Choose 1 context to bring a global dimension into your classroom.

• Consider what global citizenship knowledge, skills, values are key.

• Think about the linguistic side – vocabulary, grammar, .language patterns or phrases

• Choose particular language skills as focus areas. eg. reading, writing etc

Resources (see sheet)

• RDC: Les citoyens du monde – SCIAF• Human rights in the classroom: French &

Spanish - Amnesty International• Allons-y en Haiti – published by

Actionaid. (out of print)• Namibia: gestern, heute, abend – MUNDI• Locococo - Humanities Education Centre

• Audit your course for opportunities for global citizenship – what do you already do? What could you do? How might you need to adapt it?

• Borrow / buy a resource from your local DEC

• Use a website as stimulus – SCIAF• Join up with other departments to look

at a topic eg. Fairtrade, disasters - Haiti

Next Steps….Start small…

What will you do when you go back to your school?

• Decide on 1 action to take forward global citizenship in your ML classroom. Note it here……

Questions?

You can contact me at:tsearle216@highlandschools.org.uk

Thanks & Good luck!