Climate in Classrooms: Tools for All Teachers and Disciplines
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
A guide for high school teachers across locations and academic disciplines to incorporate accurate, meaningful climate education content into K-12 curricula.Course content is specifically applicable to history and social science, English and language arts, natural sciences, and math.
About this Course
Educators have a critical role to play in shaping how young learners think about, engage with, and prepare for climate change. Designed to help K-12 teachers incorporate climate content into their classroom curricula, this online course benefits educators hoping to meaningfully engage students and equip them with the skills to be informed leaders and citizens in a climate-changed world. As a real-world issue, climate is an excellent vehicle for educators to teach key skills and lead educational priorities like social and emotional learning, climate justice perspectives, and inter- and multi-disciplinary techniques. This course is unique in providing an interdisciplinary approach to climate education and offering knowledge and tools for educators of all disciplines while strengthening fundamental climate knowledge.
What You'll Learn
- Fundamentals of climate change science
- The disproportionate effects of climate change, and strategies for relatedly bringing justice into the classroom
- Relevant pedagogical principles, like place-based, inquiry-based, and experiential learning
- Skills, concepts, strategies in STEM and social science classrooms
- How to implement student-led climate impact projects
Prerequisites
- Learners will benefit from basic curriculum development knowledge and a background or experience in education.
Instructors
Christopher Knittel
Professor of Applied Economics
Antje Danielson
Director of Education at MIT’s Energy Initiative, Faculty Review Committee Member and Advisor to the MIT CATE Program, Member of Board of Directors of the Global Council for Science and the Environment