SteveWallace
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 04:46 PM |
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Climate Change and the National Curriculum
I know that I might be taking a risk posting this on a forum dedicated to petrol heads, but here goes anyway...
Apparently our wonderful government is planning on dropping climate change from the National Curriculum for children under 14. Climate change is one
of the biggest issues facing society today and if it were not for the fact that the impacts are mostly going to effect the less well off, people who
live in poor countries and subsequent generations rather than ours, governments across the world would be taking it more seriously. However, because
its all going to happen outside of the political election cycle and is not an immediate vote winner its keeps getting put off.
I cannot see how it is remotely justified to drop such an important subject from the curriculum. Anyway, there is an on-line petition at the link
below so please sign it.
climate change petition
Cue posts about it all being a conspiracy and climate change not being real because it's snowing today
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ali f27
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 05:10 PM |
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As long as they replace the lessons with reading and writing people will be able to read about these things lots of children seem to leave school less
well educated than older generations very sad we fail our kids like this
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 05:44 PM |
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I'm delighted that they have dropped a subject which is influenced as much by politics as it is science, and which is still chock full of loose
theories and what-ifs.
Had there been a petition for dropping it I would have signed it in a second. I also agree with Ali, subjects like this MUST take a back seat to the
staple subjects of a school education whose standards appear to be slipping.
[Edited on 22/3/13 by MikeRJ]
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AndyW
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 06:00 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeRJ
I'm delighted that they have dropped a subject which is influenced as much by politics as it is science, and which is still chock full of loose
theories and what-ifs.
Had there been a petition for dropping it I would have signed it in a second. I also agree with Ali, subjects like this MUST take a back seat to the
staple subjects of a school education whose standards appear to be slipping.
[Edited on 22/3/13 by MikeRJ]
Could not agree more. As for the OP expecting posts moking climate change, I agree that climate change can happen, just look at history. There was an
ice age, then global warming ended it. I suppose it was those damn wooley mammoths in their gas guzzling cars....
[Edited on 22/3/13 by AndyW]
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SteveWallace
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 06:08 PM |
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By following that logic, why bother teaching physics, chemistry, biology, history, geography (or most of maths other than counting for that matter)
etc etc.
We used to have an economy based on good engineering and science - where are the new scientists and engineers going to come from if we just teach the
basics?
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twybrow
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 06:42 PM |
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I think it should continued to be taught as part of a wider syllabus. It is not like they are going to do a dedicated 'climate change
class' - it surely must have been taught as part of other subjects. I think it is important to teach our kids about climate change, so they know
what to call it when they blame us for the consequences in 50 years time....
It is real, and it is happening, and it is our fault - FACT!
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whitestu
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 07:14 PM |
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Would seem sensible for it to be studied as part of the Geography syllabus, but given everything else that has to be crammed in it would be a small
part.
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teegray19
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 07:20 PM |
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Look at the effect of one volcano going off.... We aren't helping but the earths climate is so far out of our hands it's unbelievable.
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theconrodkid
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 07:38 PM |
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some 20 years ago scientists were predicting an ice age,then about 10 years ago we would all boil in a heat wave,now it,s the climate is
changing.....just like it has since the earth was formed.
as someone else pointed out,vulcano,s cause a lot more polution in one day than man.
roll on summer is all i say 
who cares who wins
pass the pork pies
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Confused but excited.
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 08:06 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeRJ
I'm delighted that they have dropped a subject which is influenced as much by politics as it is science, and which is still chock full of loose
theories and what-ifs.
[Edited on 22/3/13 by MikeRJ]
Have you had a look outside? It's supposed to be Spring!
Tell them about the bent treacle edges!
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Strontium Dog
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 08:08 PM |
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Signed on behalf of my kids!
http://s187.photobucket.com/albums/x319/zephyr2000/General%20forum%20uploads/?action=view¤t=3DEngine.mp4
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teegray19
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 08:09 PM |
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We are a couple of thousand years overdue for an ice age.
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Simon
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 08:12 PM |
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Anthropogenic climate change - being changes in the climate as a result of man's activities and the reason we have some really stupid taxes is
utter bollocks.
ATB
Simon
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JoelP
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 08:30 PM |
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Amazing how this subject polarises opinion. Fwiw, volcanos have no effect on climate change in the long run because it is a natural effect balanced by
the carbon being trapped in rocks continually.
I personally can't understand how people could possibly think that we have no effect on climate, given the huge scale of everything that man
does. We've released millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide in the last century.
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twybrow
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 09:16 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Confused but excited.
quote:
Originally posted by MikeRJ
I'm delighted that they have dropped a subject which is influenced as much by politics as it is science, and which is still chock full of loose
theories and what-ifs.
[Edited on 22/3/13 by MikeRJ]
Have you had a look outside? It's supposed to be Spring!
Exactly - welcome to climate change! More extreme weather events (not just a general warming).
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twybrow
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 09:17 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by JoelP
Amazing how this subject polarises opinion. Fwiw, volcanos have no effect on climate change in the long run because it is a natural effect balanced by
the carbon being trapped in rocks continually.
I personally can't understand how people could possibly think that we have no effect on climate, given the huge scale of everything that man
does. We've released millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide in the last century.
Here here - but then for a lot of people ignorance is bliss.
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teegray19
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 09:33 PM |
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Ignornece is bliss cause its not going to stop me booting the F27 on a sunny day. Lets all blame china.
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cliftyhanger
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 09:44 PM |
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More important is that teachers teach not just the NC but a much wider set of ideas and values. I know I ramble on in front of classes about all sorts
of stuff, and getting kids to THINK and QUESTION is about the most important thing I can do. So chaps, stop the head burying, and hope the kids at
school now are going to help solve a few of the problems we have caused the planet. Bear in mind the exponential rate at which we are burning fossil
fuels and have been for the past 70?? years.
So far the solutions have not got any closer, and we are all getting more demanding.
Will I sign the petition? that one no. Make it one to expand the breadth things taught and stop teaching to exams, then yes
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SteveWallace
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 10:07 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by teegray19
Look at the effect of one volcano going off.... We aren't helping but the earths climate is so far out of our hands it's unbelievable.
This is the reason why we should teach climate change/ global warming science. The fact is that anthropogenic emissions dwarf emissions from
volcanoes. Data from the US Geological survey estimates that, globally, volcanoes emit about 250 million tonnes greenhouse gas per annum. For
comparison, the UK's annual emissions alone last year were about 560 million tonnes (and that's not including the emissions that we cause
in places like China as a result of us buying all of our stuff of them these days). Taken globally, about 3 days worth of anthropogenic CO2 roughly
equals annual global volcanic emissions.
By the way, I completely agree that we should be teaching kids to question, challenge and think rather than just practice to pass an exam
[Edited on 22/3/13 by SteveWallace]
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ali f27
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 10:51 PM |
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Well kids cannot read and write spell etc, when they leave school nowadays so we must be getting it right chaps
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skodaman
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 11:03 PM |
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Can't see any evidence of global warming from where I'm sitting. Quite the opposite in fact. There's too much political
opportunism involved in even debating it and Britain is too insignificant to make any difference anyway.
Skodaman
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Peteff
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| posted on 22/3/13 at 11:27 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by teegray19
Look at the effect of one volcano going off.... We aren't helping but the earths climate is so far out of our hands it's unbelievable.
Yes and what was Iceland thinking letting that thing off ? Spring started on Thursday, I mowed the lawn a fortnight ago and now I can't see it.
Anything we do here will not make a bit of difference while China, America and India keep chucking their waste into the atmosphere and turning a blind
eye.
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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britishtrident
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| posted on 23/3/13 at 07:51 AM |
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The man made contribution to any shift in global weather patterns isn't big in comparisons to other factors, it worries me that any
scientist who questions anything to do with the fashionable view on climate change gets accused of either practising bad science or being the
spawn of the devil.
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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Norfolkluegojnr
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| posted on 23/3/13 at 08:16 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by teegray19
Lets all blame china.
Problem solved!
Which argument turns the sun up?
I don't feel we'll enough informed to comment, and I bet most people know nothing other than the propaganda from tabloid rags, and bob
dole.
On the face of it I'm all for protecting our environment, but this one stinks of profiteering through scaremongering - a standard political
stance these days.
Someone give me hard evidence either way and I'll gladly get behind you.
Or let's just blame china.
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swanny
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| posted on 23/3/13 at 09:28 AM |
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On the education side of things it bothers me that we are moving away from wanting kids to think towards wanting them to parrot facts. However I can
see how this is attractive to our ruling classes . A population that either lacks the critical ability to think and challenge or is so indebted as a
result of their education costs that they dare not cause a fuss is pretty attractive if you are running the country.
The move back toward the need to parrot
facts also somehow fails to take account of the explosion of readily available mobile information. Do I need to have memorised the capital of
Botswana? I'd argue not when I can whip my phone out and google it. Survival for wealthy countries like ours will more likely be down to us
creating bright, creative, collaborative, inventive people, rather than people who can just recite a poem or do their times tables.
[Edited on 23/3/13 by swanny]
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