On June 18, 2024, a Council of Europe working group convened in Strasbourg to discuss ‘Environmental Education through History Teaching’, as part of an “Education for Sustainable Development” (ESD) initiative set up in 2023 by the Education Department of the Council of Europe.
Mrs Verity Dove, teacher at The Cotswold School, was honoured to be invited to be part of the panel and participated in the working group, with the aim of developing a guidance document to apply the “Council of Europe Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture” (RFCDC) to Education for Sustainable Development. The document is targeted towards education policymakers, teachers at primary and secondary school levels, and non-formal educators working with learners of all ages.
A half-day thematic pre-session, designed to foster collaboration and engagement, set the stage for the event which included the “Environmental Education through History Teaching” panel. During the session, Mrs Dove shared her experiences as a classroom teacher and doctoral researcher in relation to teaching environmental histories. Mrs Dove’s talk will be further published in a Georgian journal and in Department for Education (DfE) guidance and will also be included as a case study to be shared with all Council of Europe member states.
Alongside Mrs Dove, panellists included Raul Cârstocea, Vice-Chair of the Scientific Advisory Council of the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe (OHTE), and Assistant Professor in Twentieth-Century European History at Maynooth University, Ireland; Alison Kitson, Associate Professor of Education, Programme Director, Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education (CCCSE); and Lone Le Floch-Andersen, Program Manager & Curator, Digital Museum of Learning, Jacobs Foundation.
The Cotswold School is delighted that Mrs Dove was invited to participate to this initiative and look forward to the publication of her valuable contribution.
