The CHOICE Educational Paths are tailored to suit diverse learning approaches and foster climate change awareness and sustainable behaviours in primary and secondary school students.
Rome, 13th October 2023 – The CHOICE project, an Erasmus+ programme-funded initiative, designed a comprehensive set of 10 Educational Paths which contain learning units that teachers and educators – both inside and outside the Consortium – can freely access and tailor for their classrooms’ needs. In fact, by integrating theory, practice, and call to action, the resources provide different learning concepts to support European schools in effectively teaching Citizenship competences which would allow students to be actively part of the fight against Climate Change. Accessible via the project’s e-learning platform, the Educational Paths are highly advantageous due to their adaptability and inclusion of interactive and engaging teaching methodologies, and they cover a wide array of environmental topics, including sustainability, global warming, bioeconomy, and the implementation of several mitigation actions, catering to both primary and secondary school education.
Running from December 2021 to November 2023, the CHOICE project also seeks to enhance coordination and cooperation among educational institutions, in order to facilitate collaboration among teachers, students, and stakeholders across Europe.
Promoting sustainable behaviour through innovative teaching methods
The set of Citizenship Education Activities not only fosters competences useful to understand and limit anthropogenic sources of Climate Change, but also provides teachers and educators with innovative teaching methodologies and interactive tools, supporting teaching methods different from the classic frontal class. These materials engage students in understanding their daily impact on the environment, emphasising the importance of science and its methods, and introducing them to STEM education with integrated hands-on activities. By combining creativity with the traditional STEM subjects, students are encouraged to think beyond standard schemes and adopt a more flexible mindset. This holistic approach to education shifts away from a tutor-centred method and places emphasis on problem-solving, creative initiative, research, and practical activities. Students are set up for future success by developing their critical thinking skills, enhancing their ability to think effectively about problems, and enabling their creativity to address present and future environmental issues.
To ensure the effectiveness of the toolkits, CHOICE Consortium actively implemented feedback collection from teachers, school managers, and parents during the whole duration of the project. Their insights and experiences were crucial in refining the toolkit and ensuring their usability.
Strengthening collaboration to enhance environmental education across Europe
Led by the Italian SME Deep Blue, the CHOICE Consortium brings together eight partners from five European countries (Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania, and Turkey), who collaborated to design the Educational Paths. These activities are developed by implementing past and current EU initiatives centred around the environment protection and sustainability, as well as focusing on the expertise and successful projects previously implemented by partners’ schools.
By demonstrating its methods through a series of pilot programs in partner schools, the CHOICE Consortium actively contributes to the EU’s Green Transition, delivering essential components in Europe’s pursuit of sustainability across various strategic sectors, including education at different school grades.
Upcoming Events and results: an opportunity to share
This result lays the groundwork for the next and last series of events, designed not only to keep evaluating the effectiveness of the Educational Paths, but also to enhance greater engagement from families and local communities. By encouraging students to actively participate in these upcoming activities, the project aims to generate a wide impact on environmental awareness and sustainable practices. Each partner school will take a leading role in organising and hosting these engaging events, further strengthening the collaborative spirit of the CHOICE initiative.
The Consortium also developed “EcoChoice”, an innovative and engaging educational game in English designed specifically for students with the aim of fostering sustainable habits, environmental awareness, and sharing the information in the Choice Educational Platform in a fun and interactive way. The serious game will provide an interactive and immersive experience, engaging students in hands-on learning about environmental issues and empowering them to make informed choices.Through captivating visuals and a user-friendly interface, the game presents a variety of challenges and quizzes that will that reflect sustainable practices, players earn points, further motivating them to take action against Climate Change.
Stay tuned for updates on this innovative development within educational practices as the CHOICE project continues to push the boundaries of education and empower future generations to become change-makers in the fight against climate change.