Walking out of classrooms for School Strike 4 Climate a smart fit for Australian Curriculum

Australian school students will again leave classrooms to demand action on climate change this week' and CQUniversity Education researchers say the picket line is a smart fit for the Australian Curriculum.

In a new article for the Australian Journal of Environmental Education' CQUniversity academics Dr Karena Menzie-Ballantyne and Dr Miriam Ham explore curriculum priorities for global citizenship and sustainable development' and Australian student experiences in the School Strike 4 Climate.

The article features in the new special issue of the Australian Journal of Environmental Education' which focuses on the global student action.

"The School Strike 4 Climate rallies exemplified students' integration of knowledge' skills' values and attitudes from a variety of disciplines and broader learning experiences embedded within the Australian Curriculum… particularly sustainability' and general capabilities'" Dr Menzie-Ballantyne and Dr Ham write.

The Australian action is scheduled for Friday 25 March' with events across all Australian states and territories' and follows an Australian Federal Court ruling last week that the Federal Environment Minister does not have a duty of care to protect young people from the climate crisis when assessing fossil fuel developments.

The first global students strike in March 2019 saw more than a million protesters gather across 125 countries' and regular strikes since then have attracted millions more.

And while Australian action attracted criticism from political leaders and parts of the mainstream media' Dr Menzie-Ballantyne said the events prove the effectiveness of global citizenship and sustainability education in the Australian Curriculum.

"The School Strike 4 Climate rallies highlighted that the current generation of students are not only capable' but willing to embrace the transdisciplinary thinking and approaches needed to consider and take action on real-world issues'" she said.

"This is reflective of broader citizenship research that indicates the current generation are not only interested in local and global issues but' disillusioned with not having their voices heard through traditional social and political channels' are actively engaging with them at grassroots level."

Read the full article here and register to attend the virtual launch on Tuesday 22 March here.