Title: Social Studies Teacher, Grades 9-12

School: Middleton High School - Middleton, WI

The Why: Oftentimes, it is challenging for students to understand the weight and power of local actions to address these large and distant threats. A classroom that emphasizes a "glocal perspective" where students embrace the mindset of "thinking globally and acting locally" provides students with both an understanding of how interconnected their local environment and committees are to the larger globalized world around them. They are able to find connections between tangible, achievable actions and objectives that they can take in their daily lives to address regional, national, or global issues that often seem overwhelming, impossible to combat, or out of their control. 

The imaginative and creative problem solves skills in our students are already there. A "glocal classroom" seeks to further develop and apply those skills to create a global awareness in students and take action to address humanities challenges at a local scale. 

The How: Democratic Classroom

Creating democratic educational spaces can be challenging for many teachers. It was challenging for me when I was first introduced to the concept over a decade ago. Since then I have embraced the pedagogy and practice. It has transformed the way I design curriculum and teach in all that I contribute within and without my educational communities.  

What is a "democratic classroom"? It is an educational space where instructors share power with students. Where students are at the center of what is being conducted and have the ability to take control of their own learning and the learning of their peers. Teachers facilitate, create, and implement curriculum (based in their discipline) that develops students' skills of leadership, critical thought, discussion, and communication. This enables students to take control of learning in ways that foster intrinsic motivation towards academic and social emotional success. 

What does this look like? Students facilitating classroom spaces, leading instruction, and controlling their own learning. The project outlined throughout this page allows teachers to implement principals of the democratic classroom with little to no experience. This project is designed to guide students to identify a challenge related the UN Sustainable Development Goals at a local level. Once identified, students will use their agency and advocacy to implement awareness and change in their community. This is what the democratic classroom is all about. 

Step 2 SOLUTIONS: Students Identify SOLUTIONS to Humanities' Challenges At Global and Local Scales of Analysis

Now that students have identified, described, and applied the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at global and local scales of analysis it is time for them to research, assess, and apply potential solutions towards the achievement of the UN SDGs at global and local scales. 

Students will select and use the resources provided in each box to create a “TIC-TAC-TOE”. All students must use the center box resource. (I would recommend viewing the documentary as a class and breaking it down together) 

1. For each box of resources students will read, view, digest the contents and then complete the analysis and connections table included in the assignment. The objective here is to connect real world solutions to the UN SDGs and then hypothesize how those could be implemented or transferred to a local scale in their own communities. They will then Identify a minimum of FIVE different solutions that address FIVE different SDGs. (There may be more than one goal linked to an example!)

2. Next, students will partner and share their findings with another peer. They will take the solutions that they have collectively discovered and then CLASSIFY and RANK them from MOST achievable to LEAST achievable. They will cite a reason for each of classification and ranking based on personal experience and conversations between the partnership. The objective here is to begin the process for identifying a UN SDG target to take action at a local level towards change. 

3. The final part of this process is for the PARTNERSHIP to SELECT, SUMMARIZE, and PRESENT an “Action Pitch” to their peers using the template linked here and graphic organizer provided. Their “Action Pitch” should be a minimum of 1 minute and no longer than 3 minutes in length. The objective is to "recruit and expand" their partnership to a 3-4 member team based on their persuasive pitch to the class. This provides two positives: 1) students who are passionate about a particular SDG or action to be taken are rewarded by "getting" that topic for the final portion of this process. And, 2) It ensures that students guide the content, actions to be taken, and the conversations and topics to be discussed by the class.  

Step 3 TAKE ACTION: Students Identify and TAKE ACTION Towards Addressing a Global Challenge at Local Scale. 

In this portion of the project the newly formed Action Teams of students will select an issue, problem, or other related topic that they have engaged with during the previous two step process of investigation and analysis of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

BUT first, they will form some team norms, roles, and complete the "Action Team Formation Guide". This will ensure that the team has some meeting roles and norms to be as successful as possible in taking their actions to address the UN SDGs. 

This goal, target, or challenge should be one in which the team feels a passion to advocate for change and take action to make progress toward this change in policy, social attitudes, law, or awareness. 

Each team will use the template provided to plan, organize, document, and implement their actions. They will present their findings to their peers upon completion. 

The UN SDGs - Take ACTION Website is a great place to have students start their journey. However, local community groups, organizations, government agencies are also phenomenal resources to check out and recommend to students for consultation and idea generation as they are literally at the local level where students are attempting to take action to address one or more of the UN SDGs.