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''Now is the time to recommit to those efforts inspired by the Sustainable Development Goals. Changemakers everywhere are critical to translating the ambitious vision of the SDGs into reality. Global communities such as those sustained by the Global Schools Program are critical to building a better world"

– Professor of International Education, Harvard University

Professor FERNANDO M. REIMERS

Launch of the Country Reports

Global Schools is proud to present the launch of Global Schools’ Pilot Project Country Reports. These country reports are draft reports launched at the UNESCO World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) to solicit feedback from world-renowned experts on the pilot methodology and offer case studies to global leaders. The reports were launched at the session: “ESD localization in Morocco, Ghana, and Turkey: launch of the Global Schools Country Reports” on Monday, May 17th, from 16:30-17:00 CET.

 

Global Schools has worked with its partners, Hacettepe University in Turkey, the University of Education and the Millennium Promise Alliance Inc. in Ghana, the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection, and Al Akhawayn University in Morocco, in a 6-stage research pilot with the mission to align each country’s national curriculum with ESD and Global Citizenship Education (GCE) frameworks.

 

More than 60 researchers have analyzed national textbooks, curriculum, and policy to develop localized curriculum on sustainable development and global citizenship. This approach has brought together 80 in-country partners and stakeholders to propel a movement for sustainable development education across the three pilot countries. The final project outcomes and the findings are presented in the draft country reports and summary reports:

"Please note that all three country reports, as well as the evaluation paper, are first drafts and are not yet finalised. The draft reports have been launched at the UNESCO World Conference in order to solicit feedback from participants and experts before the final reports are published at a later date."

Country Director: Chief Nathaniel Ebo Nsarko

 

Ghana Report: This report was authored by Professor Andy Ofori-Birikorang, Ph.D., Professor Samuel Abeiku Hayford, Ph.D., Professor Dandy George Dampson, Ph.D., Professor Ernest Akwasi Amponsah, Ph.D., Christiana Hammond, Ph.D., Mavis Amo-Mensah, Ph.D., and Richardson Addai-Mununkum, Ph.D. The Global Schools Pilot project in Ghana was carried out in partnership with the Millennium Promise Alliance Inc. in Ghana and the University of Education, Winneba in Ghana. Seven Ghanaian educational policy documents together with twenty K-6 curriculum documents were analyzed to highlight gaps and explore linkages and synergies between the content of these documents and the Agenda 2030  learning outcomes. The report offers recommendations to review educational policies, incorporate SDGs in curriculum, and engage policymakers and key stakeholders in Ghana.

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Country Director: Dr. Mustafa Öztürk

Turkey Report: This report was authored and edited by the Research Director for the Global Schools Pilot in Turkey, Dr. Mustafa Öztürk, Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction and EFL Instructor at Hacettepe University, in partnership with Hacettepe University. It was additionally authored by Aylin Albayrak-Sarı, Ph.D., Hacettepe University, Turkey; Abdullah Bağcı, Ph.D., Hacettepe University, Turkey; Seçil Dayıoğlu-Öcal, Ph.D., Hacettepe University, Turkey; Burtay Hatice İnce, Ph.D., Gazi University, Turkey; Neşe Soysal, Ph.D., University College London, UK. This report presents the findings emerging from three main research activities conducted in Turkey: policy analysis, curriculum mapping, and a preliminary program evaluation on the Global Schools 60 lesson plans by ESD-trained teachers in Turkey. The report outlines further steps for ESD-localization in Turkey, including centering ESD pedagogy, linking personal and professional engagement with ESD, promoting cross-sectoral cooperation and an interdisciplinary approach, and disseminating ESD through community participation. 

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Country Director: Kenza Khallafi 

Morocco Report: This report was authored by the Research Director for the pilot in Morocco, Dr. Abdelkrim Marzouk, Ph.D.,  the Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and Associate Professor of Geography at Al Akhawayn University, and the Research Assistant of the pilot, Mrs. Meryem Khodari, the Project Manager for the Hassan II International Center for Environmental Training. The Global Schools Pilot Project was carried out in partnership with the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection and Al Akhawayn University in Morocco. This report reveals that the Moroccan national education curriculum does included material and language that furthers the Global Citizenship Education, 21st-century skills, and SDGs. 

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Summary Report: This summary evaluation report synthesizes all findings from the Global Schools Pilot Project. Lead writers are Amanda Abrom, Lian Sabella Castillo, Brenda García Millán, Mary-Margaret Gilliam, and Elizabeth Lerman, under the coordination of Amanda Abrom. The report details the methodology of the Global Schools Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) curriculum localization pilot projects in Ghana, Turkey, and Morocco. This report was written by expert Global Schools Program Project Officers with extensive experience and background working in education and sustainability. This report supplements three additional reports published under the country Research Directors: Dr. Mustafa Öztürk, Dr. Abdelkrim Marzouk, and Chief Nat Ebo Nsarko.

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Toolkit for ESD localization: we are currently developing a comprehensive toolkit to guide country-level research and localization, which includes frameworks and methodologies for policy analysis, curriculum audit, content adaptation, course development, lesson evaluation, and integration. This toolkit will serve as a flexible and adaptable guide for country research teams to develop ESD curriculum for K-12 schools in their respective countries. This toolkit is being developed and shaped by the outcomes of our current country-level research projects in Ghana, Turkey, and Morocco

 

Database of ESD resources: we are identifying, assessing, categorizing and developing ESD resources, including guides, lesson plans, books, comics, games, videos, documentaries, and activities that would be beneficial to educators and students. This includes the translation of certain content from English into other languages, based on demand. 

 

Impact of ESD on education outcomes: we are collecting evidence on the impact of ESD on core educational outcomes across a range of metrics, including standardized test scores, student attendance, student engagement, teacher satisfaction, student literacy and numeracy levels, etc. The evidence is being synthesized and categorized into a database of best-practices and case-studies to inform our country-level research and advocacy.

Developing Research Tools

Local Research

Applying the Tools

Global Schools is committed to the agency of local institutions and groups in leading country-level projects. We believe that national institutions are best placed to conduct the research and localization of the ESD, with Global Schools providing support where necessary. In 2019, Global Schools, with support from partners, set up research programs in Morocco, Ghana and Turkey, in order to conduct country-level research on ESD localization and implementation. In Morocco we partnered with Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection and Al Akhawayn University, in Ghana with Millennium Promise and the University of Education, and in Turkey with Hacettepe University. Over the past 12 months, the following efforts have been undertaken: 

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Curriculum analysis and design: More than 60 researchers have been recruited to lead this project, working inside the 3 pilot countries, across 4 separate languages (English, Turkish, Arabic, and French). The research teams are analyzing national education laws and policies, curriculum standards and textbooks across every subject and grade to collect thousands of data caches on the prevalence of ESD, or lack thereof, in each national education system. Using this information, the research teams design relevant curriculum content and lesson plans to be integrated into the national curriculum.
 

Stakeholder engagement: More than 80 partners from government, civil society, academia and business have been mobilized to offer feedback on the proposed curriculum content, and support the national ESD implementation efforts. These partners include representatives from the ministries of education, environment, energy, and foreign affairs, think-tanks, research institutes, universities, foundations, environmental NGOs, public and private schools, teachers’ associations, and technology companies. If the curriculum is officially adopted and implemented at scale across these countries, it would directly benefit millions of students and communities each year.
 

Outcomes and results: All outcomes, processes and results are monitored by the global research team, and complemented by a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation process, including surveys and interviews, as well as comparative analysis between the results across the different country research teams. The final results of the research, including the individual country reports and data will be published in the peer-reviewed journal, and all key findings and learnings integrated into the “Toolkit for ESD localization” to improve the methodologies for future country projects. 


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