"As we do not yet know what we shall need to learn in relation to sustainable development, it is perhaps hard to be definitive about what needs to be taught, except, perhaps that we need to be taught how to learn and how to be critical in order to build our collective capacity to live both sustainably and well."

Sustainable Development and Learning, Framing the Issues; William Scott and Stephen Gough, Routledge, 2003

Sustainability Indicators

Purpose
To try and develop a set of indicators to assess whether as an institution the school is helping to make their community more or less sustainable

Preparation
Resources:
Staff, especially Senior Management, time and commitment! (Ideally do this exercise as part of a whole school INSET and linked to a School Council session, but it is possible to do it with a core group representing a range of the school community).

Teacher time:
Look at a range of sustainability indicators (see Section Two: 3 or contact your Local Agenda 21 officer) as well as the Values, Aims and Purposes of the National Curriculum.

Procedure
Brainstorm what values and skills the pupil of the 21st century should get out of their schooling.
>> Draw up a key list from these.

Decide a set of indicators for these (e.g. if Literacy is one of them, will it be SAT or GCSE attainment or number of books read per month? If ICT skills, awareness of power as consumer, energy use etc. how will you measure these?) that are practical and measurable - you may like to include some of the Baseline Tools above.

Agree who is going to measure and collate these indicators, how and how often. Will an annual audit do? Will it be published - in the Governor’s Annual Report? Will you publicise this and get Local Authority support? Can the School Council adapt indicators into a school charter?

Advantages of this methodology:

• Whole school, inclusive approach
• School specific, but global relevance
• Gives a picture of the contribution of the school to the whole child and the community
• Links in with leading practice in business and government (local, regional and national)
• Gives a wider assessment than academic achievement (in England, OFSTED inspection or League tables)

Disadvantages of this methodology
• Requires time and commitment to set up
• Ongoing commitment to monitoring a range of indicators
• Not yet part of current mainstream agenda.