Dear list member,

You may be aware that the Third Annual Report of the Sustainable
Development Education Panel, Department of the Environment, Transport
and the Regions, UK has been on the DETR website since 29 March:

http://www.environment.detr.gov.uk/sustainable/educpanel/2000ar/index.htm

As an example of its recommendations for the schools sector:

          Recommendations for Government

               Both DfEE and DETR should create more support and
guidance for ESD, on a similar
               scale to that provided for other initiatives like Healthy
Schools and Citizenship;

               Ministers should consider how the professional needs of
teachers and schools in this
               area can best be met;

               Ministers should establish a requirement that all schools
to have a policy on sustainable
               development, covering both pupils’ learning – through the
school curriculum and extra
               curricular activities – and the sustainability of the
school as an institution;

               DfEE should issue a circular on schools as sustainable
institutions.

          Recommendations for Others

               QCA should be asked to propose (a) how the support and
development needs of teachers
               can be met; and (b) how schools can be encouraged to
become sustainable institutions.

               The Teacher Training Agency, the General Teaching Council
and Ofsted should make
               ESD a more significant element in initial and continuing
teacher training and the schools
               monitoring framework. We also envisage important
contributions by such agencies as
               Countryside and the Environment Agencies, English Nature,
and English Heritage.

               Ofsted should carry out a focused investigation of ESD in
schools as one of its regular
               sequence of investigations, assessing to what extent
schools are implementing the new
               requirements and identifying good practice;

               Local authorities should work in partnership with schools
on Best Value and Community
               Strategies, thereby supporting schools further in
becoming sustainable institutions, for
               example by provision of appropriate governor training;

               The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority should
incorporate ESD, as appropriate, in
               the criteria governing all qualifications in the National
Qualifications Framework.

Contact details for comments on these points or any other part of the
report are contained within the report. I've also attached the text from
a CEE circular based on a DETR press release detailing a revised
membership to the group, which might also be of interest, particularly
for those who like to play spot the changes.

Best wishes,

Alan Reid

******

The following is an extract from the DETR press release of 22 March 2001
announcing the new composition of the government’s SDE panel

New appointments

Mrs Jennifer Adshead
Director of Education and Training, National Federation of Women's
Institutes and Denman College
Mr John Baumber
Head Teacher, Rivington & Blackrod High School, former member of
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's Environmental Education Panel,
author of five books including Global Economy
Mr Ken Davies
Director of Learning Through Landscapes, Member of Executive Committee
of Council for Environmental Education, former National Programmes
Director for Groundwork, former Director English Environment Fund
Mrs Claire Foster
Board for Social Responsibility of the Church of England (responsible
for science, technology, medicine and environmental issues), Member of
the Society and Science Committee of the Royal Society, Member of the
Ethics Advisory Committee of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child
Health
Ms Annie Hall
Head of Education at Environment Agency, Member of Executive Committee
of Council for Environmental Education
Dr Gordon McGlone
Director of Lantra, Chief Executive of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust
Prof. Audrey Osler
Director of the Centre for Citizenship Studies at the University of
Leicester
Mr Gareth Richards
Education Department of the Transport & General Workers Union

These appointments bring the Panel membership to 22, of whom nine are
women, and three from ethnic minorities. The appointment process was the
subject of independent scrutiny in accordance with the Commissioner for
Public Appointments guidance. The Panel's Chair is Sir Geoffrey Holland
KCB, Vice Chancellor of Exeter University. Its other members are:
- Mr Roy Atkinson, Independent Consultant
- Ms Heather Barrett-Mold, Vice Principal and Chief Executive, Southgate
College
- Mr Douglas Bourn, Director, Development Education Association
- Dr Neil Chalmers, Director, Natural History Museum
- Ms Donna Clarke, Group Environmental Manager, London Electricity
- Ms Rosemary Gray, Principal and Chief Executive, Walsall College of
Arts and Technology
- Ms Libby Grundy, Director, Council for Environmental Education
- Mr Michael Knapp, Independent Consultant
- Mr Bill Lucas, Chief Executive, Campaign for Learning
- Mr Peter Martin, Head of Education, WWF UK
- Ms Jyoti Munsiff, Company Secretary, Shell Transport Trading Company
- Mr John Westaway, Principal Subject Officer for Geography,
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
- Mr Tom Wylie, Chief Executive, National Youth Agency

--
Department of Education, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK
tel: 01225 826294, fax: 01225 826113 e-mail: [log in to unmask]