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Trading Textiles

Middle

Description

Trading textiles is a lesson plan built for students to reflect on the impact of the textile industry and the affects on our environment and options they could implement in order to diverting textile waste from landfills.

In small groups students will choose a piece of clothing to trace back to its country of origin. Once they identified the country, they will be asked to do research following a geography detective worksheet.  

The main activity in this lesson is to hold a Clothing Swap and Eco-Fashion Show in the school. This will help students realize that someone’s trash can easily become someone else’s treasure and there are alternative ways to dispose of our waste.  

The lesson includes a post activity, where learners use infographics to demonstrate their understanding of how to divert textile waste from landfills.

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • describing the types of environmental problems associated with the production of different types of clothing
  • analyze their own clothing purchases and identifying action goals when looking at alternative ways to dispose of waste.  
  • explore what their clothing is made of and where it comes from

General Assessment

Strengths

  • The resource is easy to use, the activities are age appropriate
  • Students will be engaged as this lesson is relevant to their life
  • The resource is easy to download and provides a variety of activities.

Weaknesses

There is mention of a video to support the lesson, but that video is no longer available. Although other videos on the site mentioned could easily be used.

Recommendation of how and where to use it

Learners will implement age appropriate actions that demonstrate responsibility as global citizens when looking at the sustainability goals like the 3 R’s. This resource also supports Science learning units that are exploring topics related to sustainability and environmental issues.  The unit could also provide a discussion topic for Social Studies outcomes related to child labour and poverty, depending on their findings during the research piece.

Relevant Curriculum Units

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Themes Addressed

Citizenship (2)

  • Ecological Footprint
  • Sustainable Consumption

Waste Management (1)

  • Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Sustainability Education Principles

Principle Rating Explanation
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives Good

The resource promotes a particular message about clothing and helps students understand who makes our clothes, where they are made and how as well as what happens to our clothes once we no long want them. Students have a choice to try and change their consumption in order to help our planet.

Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
  • Satisfactory: absence of bias towards any one point of view
  • Good: students consider different points of view regarding issues, problems discussed
  • Very good: based on the consideration of different views, students form opinions and  take an informed position
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions Good

The resource encourages students to consider the problems and possible solutions to landfills and the affects this has on our environment. This has a reference to:

  • their responsibilities as citizens/consumers in taking action to bring about positive change
  • the global and environmental impact of products consumed
  • the social/economic conditions of many of those who work in the production industry
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions:

Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.

  • Satisfactory: resource supports the examination of  these dimensions
  • Good:  resource explicitly examines the interplay of these dimensions
  • Very Good:  a systems-thinking approach is encouraged to examine these three dimensions
Respects Complexity Good
Respects Complexity:

The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected.

Acting on Learning Very Good

The resource includes three activities designed to help students make positive changes in their consumption and waste management. Students will be actively participating in the clothing swap and have the opportunity to continue this in their future and share the movement with the community.

Acting on Learning:

Learning moves from understanding  issues  to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community,  or for the planet

  • Satisfactory: action opportunities are included as extensions 
  • Good: action opportunities are core components of the resource
  • Very Good: action opportunities for students are well supported and intended to result in observable, positive change
Values Education Good

Since the students are major consumers in the clothing industry, ethical issues related to that industry have a direct link to their lives. The resource helps students realize that the choices they make have real consequences for others and the environment this will also ask them to examine their values. 

Values Education:

Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values.

Empathy & Respect for Humans Satisfactory

There is some aim of the lesson plan that is created to reflect and have empathy for people living in other countries.

Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.).
Personal Affinity with Earth Good

The focus of the lesson plans is to reduce waste and find alternative ways to dispose of clothing.

Personal Affinity with Earth:

Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.  

  • Satisfactory: connection is made to the natural world
  • Good: fosters appreciation/concern for the natural world
  • Very Good: fosters stewardship though practical and respectful experiences out-of-doors 
Locally-Focused Learning Good
Locally-Focused Learning:

Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community. 

  • Satisfactory: learning is made relevant to the lives of the learners
  • Good: learning is made relevant and has a local focus
  • Very Good: learning is made relevant, local and takes place ‘outside’ , in the community 
Past, Present & Future Good
Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future.

Pedagogical Approaches

Principle Rating Explanation
Open-Ended Instruction Good

The resource combines elements of directed learning (examination of clothing labels) that then includes a guided research piece. Students still have some open-ended instruction when looking at what they choose to research and how they will present their findings to the group. 

Open-Ended Instruction :

Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer.

Integrated Learning Good

The resource has relevance for a number of curriculum areas

  • Citizenship - understanding the world as a global community and taking action to bring about positive change
  • Social Studies - development issues; globalization and interdependence; quality of life and sustainability

Studies/Ethics - social justice; "fairness"

Integrated Learning:

Learning brings together content and skills  from more than one  subject area

  • Satisfactory: content from a number of different  subject areas is readily identifiable
  • Good:  resource is appropriate for use in more than one subject area
  • Very Good:  the lines between subjects are blurred 
Inquiry Learning Satisfactory
Inquiry Learning:

Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.   

  • Satisfactory: Students are provided with questions/problems to solve and some direction on how to arrive at solutions.
  • Good: students, assisted by the teacher clarify the question(s) to ask and the process to follow to arrive at solutions.  Sometimes referred to as Guided Inquiry
  • Very Good:  students generate the questions and assume much of the responsibility for how to solve them.  . Sometimes referred to as self-directed learning.

 

Differentiated Instruction Good
Differentiated Instruction:

Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.

  • Satisfactory:  includes a variety of instructional approaches
  • Good: addresses  the needs of visual, auditory &  kinesthetic learners
  • Very Good: also includes strategies for learners with difficulties
Experiential Learning Good

The students participate in authentic learning because clothing is central to their lives. Their participation in the cloth swap and fashion show activity that will help them truly live the experience and change they are implementing in their every day lives.  

Experiential Learning:

Authentic learning experiences are provided

  • Satisfactory: learning takes place through ‘hands-on’ experience or simulation
  • Good: learning involves direct experience in a ‘real world context’
  • Very good: learning involves ‘real world experiences’ taking place’ beyond the school walls.
Cooperative Learning Good

A number of the introductory activities have students working in groups. 

Cooperative Learning:

Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.

  • Satisfactory:  students work in groups
  • Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught and practiced
  • Very Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught, practiced and assessed
Assessment & Evaluation Satisfactory

An evaluation idea is mentioned, but no grid is presented. 

Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc.
Peer Teaching Satisfactory

Students have an opportunity to learn from others as they participate and engage in the brainstorming and reflection activities. 

Peer Teaching:

Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.

  • Satisfactory: incidental teaching that arises from cooperative learning, presentations, etc.
  • Good or Very Good: an opportunity is intentionally created to empower students to teach other students/community members. The audience is somehow reliant on the students' teaching (students are not simply ‘presenting')
Case Studies Poor/Not considered
Case Studies:

Relevant case studies are included.  Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore  concepts in an authentic context.

Locus of Control Good

The resource strikes a balance between teacher-directed learning and student discovery learning 

Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue.