How to teach "Global Challenges"? A Strictly Solution Oriented Approach

• In Event: Teaching, teacher training and teachers' as educators

Proposal

The 21st century´s global reality is to be characterized as an age of global challenges. Whether climate change or the loss of biodiversity, the degradation of soils or the world water issue, the global processes of migration or urbanization, the increasing poverty or hunger - global challenges do at least influence, mostly shape the living conditions of billions of people all around the globe. Graphically summarized in the model of “The Great Acceleration” we are becoming aware, that neither the political guidelines nor the private energy and resources driven way of consumption we practice and still advertise worldwide can lead to a good end. Hence a cross societal sustainable development is the only way to cope with the present as well as future global challenges and find a new resilient balance between a still growing world population and the limited resources of the earth system. Without doubt education plays a major role in this global effort as the “2030 Agenda” documents in general and SDG 4 “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all” in particular. But what does this mean for the daily teaching? How to teach global challenges? And what should be reached with all this?
Textbook analysis show that the most widespread way to teach global challenges is a problem oriented approach. Full page pictures of drought struck areas with dead bodies of cattle, flooded villages, four storeyed traffic junctions or massively crowded stations illustrate chapters, which are headlined “The future of the earth”. Not even a final question mark offers the opportunity for the students to find at least a piece of hope in that kind of headlines. The future seems to be clear – the global challenges will dominate life and future of today´s youth. Going into the future, the learners are informed about all details of various global problems. At least sometimes there is an additional page, talking about possible solutions, sustainable development and some projects to fight against the threat. The teaching reality however shows, that most of the lessons end with the problems and there is hardly any time left to discuss possible solutions. Which impact does this way of teaching have on the young learners? Usually not a motivating impact, but rather a depressing one. This is at the latest the moment to reflect on a better way to teach global challenges.
A strictly solution oriented conceptualization of the topic opens remarkable chances and changes. Analyzing by example a picture showing “Impulse 2”, the first solar driven aircraft, which surrounded the globe”, flying at night over Manhattan automatically leads to questions like: “How is this possible?” and initializes fascination with the learners. It is this fascinating moment, which we need to direct learning processes to a solution oriented way of thinking and learning. The impact on the learners is totally different compared to the above described. Discussing three, four intelligent, unusual and futuristic ideas or projects the students are fundamentally arranged in a solution oriented mode of thinking. Confronting them with the reality of global challenges therefore does not cause a depressive mood, but usually the search for further solutions to cope with the given global challenges and for some it even opens professional options.
A strictly solution oriented approach needs narrations, positive examples and convincing individuals, who´s activities proof, that a sustainable development is possible and that there are ways to cope with the global challenges. Based on that insight the 2018 published German Geography schoolbook for grade 11 and 12 “Globale Herausforderungen. Die Zukunft, die wir wollen” (Global Challenges. The Future We Want) is the first, which is strictly solution oriented arranged with roughly a hundred fascinating ideas to fight climate change, the lack of resources, the pollution of the oceans, the degradation of soils, the supply of nutrition and the global urbanization.
The input discusses the failure of problem oriented approaches, the concept of solution oriented didactization and experiences with learners, teachers and schoolbook authors and its contribution to a sustainable development process in the context of the “2030 Agenda”.

Author

• Thomas Hoffmann, Teacher Training Center Karlsruhe, Germany