New Delhi: Minister of State for Education, Annapurna Devi, on Wednesday said that the government is taking proactive steps on climate education and the concept of it has already been incorporated into the curriculum developed by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
The Minister was speaking during the written reply in the Rajya Sabha.
“The concept of climate change has already been incorporated into the curriculum/textbooks developed by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) for Social Sciences/Geography for classes VII and XI,” she said.
The Minister added that the topics on climate change have also been incorporated into the NCERT’s Science Textbooks for classes VIII and IX and the Biology Textbook for class XII.
She said the capacity building programme among the teachers is underway. She said NCERT has been organising in-service teachers’ capacity building programmes in geography as well as in social sciences where teachers are sensitised over the issues related to climate change.
Besides, live interactive sessions have also been conducted on Swayam Prabha and PM eVidya Channel on climate change. The National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) learning modules for the elementary stage also include Environmental Science (EVS) concerns related to environmental protection in the module on EVS, “she said in the house.
“Approximately 42 lakh teachers have already completed NISHTHA learning modules through offline and online mode,” the minister said.
According to the Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report by UNESCO, climate change is not yet sufficiently integrated into the education framework, and only 50 per cent of countries emphasise the subject in their national-level laws, policies, or teaching plans.
Around the world, only 75 percent of countries cover climate change subjects in their national curriculum framework, while only 40 percent of them have education laws that cover climate change.
At least 45 per cent of countries include the subject in their education sector plans and strategies, according to the report.
In 2020, climate change education will become mandatory across Italian schools as part of civics education.
Indonesia updated its National Curriculum Framework in 2013, which includes climate as a core competence as part of the attitudes, skills, and knowledge that students should achieve.
Climate education is critical for climate action, yet new UNESCO data from 100 countries shows that only half of the world’s national education curricula make any reference to climate change.
For the first time during the COP26 summit, Ministers of Education and Environment came together and took the pledge to integrate climate change and sustainable development into learning in an event co-organized by the UK Presidency, the Government of Italy, UNESCO and youth partners MockCOP and Youth4Climate.
In India, environmental education is mandated by the Supreme Court of India and overseen by the National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT).
The National Curriculum Framework, developed by NCERT, includes a “Protection of the Environment” component.
Educators may engage in EE professional development through distance learning, in-service teacher training, conferences, nature camps, and environmental courses.
They may also engage with national and regional environmental education associations, including the Centre for Environment Education, India (CCE) and the South Asia Co-Operative Environment Programme (SACEP).
