What spawned the Green Educator Course in Green School Bali?
Green School has been educating for sustainability since 2008. Along the way, it has attracted hundreds of educators from around the world to learn the Green School Way.
“We receive many inquiries every single day from educators around the world who want to learn more about our school,” said Sanne van Oort, Green Educator Course manager. “We hear from the US to Latin America, from Europe to Asia, from South Africa to Australia. So, we decided we need to initiate a program that allows us to share our journey in integrating sustainability into our learning program and how we develop our own holistic and child-centred curriculum. Hence, the Green Educator Course, a professional development program for educators was born in 2013.”
Five years running now, Green School has hosted 19 Green Educator Courses with 536 participants from 51 countries. It has built a global network of inspired and like-minded educators.
Now, we run the course six times a year, which comprises five international courses and one course in Bahasa Indonesia specifically designed for Indonesian teachers.
What have Green Educator Course Alumni said about the program?
“Most stimulating, heartening, and purifying experience, one that echoes with Balinese culture. The Green Educator Course was conducted with heartfelt care and gentleness, down to every single detail. The staff was full of humility, openness, and passion for life. In those five days, I lived the secret of Green School.”
Annie (Green Educator Course Alumna from Hong Kong)
“In Feb 2018, I had the pleasure of joining a group of passionate educators from around the world in Green School’s Green Educator Course. Not only did I get the chance to spend a week on the Green School campus and learn about the amazing approach to holistic education for sustainability, but I also had an amazing opportunity to meet with people from all around the world, including South Africa, Madagascar, Dubai, Canada, USA, Brazil, Chile, Korea, Taiwan, Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia and, of course, Indonesia. This experience has opened my mind to a range of new challenges and possibilities which I hadn’t fully considered before, though to be honest, I’m still processing the experience. Thank you, Green School.
Robert Hewat, Green Educator Course Alumnus from Australia
“It’s nearly a year since I joined the Green Educator Course and I missed Green School every day. I have applied 90% of the course takeaways into Alam Riang Library, a library project that provided alternative literature for children in Jombang, East Java. Now, I am onto the next step to expand the library through a national competition. I wish I could come back and join the Green Educator Course again to obtain even more knowledge and inspirations. Thank you Green School Bali.”
Wiwik, Green Educator Course Alumna from Indonesia
How is the Green Educator Course different from other teacher training?
The five-day professional development programme is unlike any other teacher training.
It equips participants with a new toolbox of innovative teaching strategies and resources.
It shares multiple views of education from the involved participants.
It engages with a global and local network of educators who are committed to student-centred, holistic Education for Sustainability.
It networks teachers and community members for sustained support and idea-sharing.
It creates an inspiring environment to collaborate on unique projects, programmes, teaching strategies, and resources.
In 2017 and 2018, the Green Educator Course was named one of 100 education innovations across the world by global education non-profit HundrED.
What is the focus of the Green Educator Course?
The Green Educator Course focuses on various aspects of learning. It has a holistic approach that incorporates Green School’s iRESPECT (Integrity, Responsibility, Empathy, Sustainability, Peace, Equity, Community, Trust) values. The pedagogy focuses not only on ‘what students learn’ but also on ‘how they learn’. Green School learning is thematic, for example, a waste thematic may include setting up a recycling centre and strategizing how to get schools to use it. The program also provides strategies to map individual eco-footprints and expand awareness of own behaviours.
Green School is a Project-Based Learning school, where student-centred pedagogy allows students to learn through experience. Education for Sustainability will replace Ecophobia (fear of ecological problems) with Ecophilia (love for nature).
Ultimately, the program will encourage educators to learn about the sustainability compass and its four elements: Nature, Economy, Society and Wellness and how to integrate them into the learning process.
Learn more about the Green Educator Course and join our global network of green educators today!