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CLIMATE change will be taught as a “core part” of the school curriculum under a Labour government, Angela Rayner will announce today.
The next Labour government will teach children from a primary school level and upwards about the impact of climate change, the shadow education secretary will say.
The proposals form part of a review to ensure that young people are provided with knowledge and skills that are relevant to the 21st century, and will be examined by an expert panel of climate scientists.
The review is also set to include discussions about renewable energy and will offer young people skills for future employment in “green industries.”
The announcement comes as school students gear up for further school strikes across the country today.
Alongside the Extinction Rebellion direct action group, the school students are demanding that the national curriculum include information on the reality of climate change.
This was proposed by former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown, but rejected by Tory education secretary Michael Gove.
Ms Rayner will say: “Today, young people are taking to the streets to send a clear message to the government that climate change will be a fundamental and defining feature of their adult lives, and we must take the action needed to tackle it.
“We need to equip people with the knowledge to understand the enormous changes we face, and skills to work with the new green technologies that we must develop to deal with them.
“That must be part of a broad education and that prepares pupils for adult life. Climate change should be a core part of the school curriculum, and under a Labour government it will be.”
NEU joint general secretary Kevin Courtney welcomed the news, saying: “We welcome Angela Rayner’s announcement, and what it shows about Labour’s willingness to listen to students’ concerns.
“Labour is helping to move education policy away from a sterile emphasis on testing towards a focus on new questions, essential to present-day society.
“To address these questions effectively means not only curriculum change, but also an investment in resources and in teacher development.”
