TV and Radio journalist and presenter Philip Boucher-Hayes was in Galway to launch a new book for primary and post primary teachers. Edited by Galway based academic Associate Professor Anne Dolan, Teaching the Sustainable Development Goals to Young Citizens (10-16 years ) A Focus on Teaching Hope, Respect, Empathy and Advocacy in Schools is a key resource for teachers at a time of war, environmental crisis, migration and human rights abuses.
Associate Professor Anne Dolan is a lecturer in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick and the director of the recently launched M.Ed. in Education for Sustainability and Global Citizenship. She is the author/editor of Teaching Climate Change in Primary Schools: An Interdisciplinary Approach (published by Routledge in 2022 ), Powerful Primary Geography: A Toolkit for 21st Century Learning (published by Routledge in 2020 ) and You, Me and Diversity: Picturebooks for Teaching Development and Intercultural Education (published by Trentham Books/IOE Press in 2014 ).
With the current climate and economic crises, education for sustainability and global citizenship has never been more critical. Devastating flooding in Valencia once again highlights the human cost of climate change. Shocking war crimes and atrocities have been committed in the Middle East. Thousands of innocent civilians, including women, children, journalists, and aid workers have been killed. Two thirds of Gaza’s buildings have been destroyed. While the efforts to obtain a ceasefire are minimal to say the least.
Teaching about such issues can be challenging for teachers. This timely and essential book encourages readers to rethink current values systems and to interrogate common assumptions about our world. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs ), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. Each chapter in this book focuses on a specific Sustainable Development Goal.
According to Anne Dolan, this book equips teachers with the skills and competences to deal with the complex socio-political and environmental challenges facing our world day in an accessible manner for students.
With its strong focus on hope and student agency, the book is designed to empower teachers and students to focus on solutions and project based actions.’ Anne is passionate about the transformative power of education.
All proceedings from the sale of this book will be donated to Galway Hospice and Cancer Care West.
