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sustainable development and social responsibility - making it professional

sustainable development and social responsibility - making it professional. Neil Gordon Department of Computer Science University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX England n.a.gordon@hull.ac.uk http://www.hull.ac.uk/php/cssnag/ Talk at the 2009 HEA ICS Annual Conference August 2009.

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sustainable development and social responsibility - making it professional

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  1. sustainable development and social responsibility - making it professional Neil Gordon Department of Computer Science University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX England n.a.gordon@hull.ac.uk http://www.hull.ac.uk/php/cssnag/ Talk at the 2009 HEA ICS Annual Conference August 2009.

  2. Brief plan of the session • We will consider some of the aspects around teaching Sustainable Development (S.D.) within the computing curriculum • In particular, the views of students to this type of material • We will also consider how we can use SD to motivate the teaching of ethical and social aspects alongside the issues of professional and career development

  3. Introduction To start with we consider a couple of key questions: • What is sustainable development; • What is Education For Sustainable Development; • How does this relate to professional, career and personal development.

  4. Write down what you believe Sustainable Development is • In pairs, discuss and summarise your own ideas of what Sustainable Development (S.D.) encompasses; • Decide on a word which reflects your consensus on what S.D. is about; • Report back the word(s) have you found?

  5. What is Sustainable Development • What is isn’t: it isn’t just about the environment (but that is a large part of it); • Sustainable Development covers a wide range of topics; • The obvious ones: the environment and the green issues, as well as some which are perhaps less obvious, but reflect the idea that society should be long lasting; • Sustainability is being promulgated through a number of channels.

  6. Some principles for Sustainable Development • Meeting the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs; • The U.K. government has identified four priority areas: • “Sustainable Consumption and Production; • Climate Change and Energy; • Natural Resource Protection and Environmental Enhancement; • Sustainable Communities”.

  7. Computing and SD • Computing has links and applications in many of these areas • Particularly to • Consumption • Energy use • communities

  8. What are the professional aspects of SD? • Initially write down your own ideas of what these may be; • Next compare with a neighbour; • Report back the main professional theme(s) (if any).

  9. Professional development and practice • The environmental impact of computing is become of increasing concern. • Within the U.K., government bodies are beginning to recognise this and DEFRA has been implementing a green I.T. strategy • professional bodies such as the British Computer Society (BCS) are also recognising this. • In terms of industry, employers are beginning to consider the awareness of sustainable development of potential employees

  10. Professional conduct related to SD • the BCS includes professional practice and ethics in its code of conduct and accreditation guidance • EU Code of Conduct for Data Centres • the Green I.T. Foundation award • Practitioner Certificate for data centre operators

  11. Ethics and social responsibility • Within I.T. teaching for example, good examples of the environmental impact can be found • the huge costs of continuous upgrading of hardware. • Software costs – • the potential need to upgrade or replace machinery in order to run the latest version of operating systems or applications, • actual running costs of the software (processor intensive programs increase power usage). • The financial and social costs to individuals, institutions and nations of these examples provides an opening for teachers to explore numerous topics, and to develop awareness

  12. Embedding Sustainable Development within the curriculum • SD provides a focus for developing ethical issues; • It can provide a case studies and examples; • It can expand the context of discipline based; teaching – in particular opening up cross curricula and International aspects; • Many external bodies expect/require it; • It links with Personal Development Planning.

  13. Example learning activity • Modelling power usage of a typical set of devices (computer, hi-fi, cooker, tv,…..) • Compare off vs stand-by vs on costs • Calculate electricity usage, financial cost, carbon footprint • Potential for links with web services etc.

  14. Case Study • A traditional level 4 (first year) core module for computer science; • Module in question covers IT and professional skills; • Embedding SD allowed the previously disparate ethics and IT to be integrated; • Considering Ethics and social impact of computing is a requirement of the accreditation of our degrees; • SD content embedded through some lectures and workshops. Approx 140 students

  15. Students’ views and perceptions of sustainable development Chart indicates number of each category who answered positively

  16. Initial Student views on SD Some quotes from students: • “planting trees where ever they get cut down”; • “I’m not sure”; • “A way of having and maintaining a continuous supply of energy”; • “development which leaves the environment unharmed”.

  17. Views following the learning of SD material in situ • Students seem positive about SD; • Some felt that undergraduates, especially those that have gone on to university straight from school are less aware and less concerned; • They felt that mature students had more life experience – and are more aware of the impact that humanity is having on the environment etc.; • felt SD to be important and should be included • A lack of awareness that SD had been taught.

  18. SD and it’s relevance to career development and professional practice • Employers are beginning to take account of SD; • Public bodies in particular – such as the civil service and education; • Individual students are influenced in their choice of industry sector and individual employers; • The last point can also link SD with Personal Development Plans as students consider their long term plans.

  19. Conclusions • Sustainable Development is on the agenda of many of our stake holders: the government, HEFCE, the HEA as well as industry and students themselves; • For some students SD may be a good way to engage with them – and also play a part in encouraging them to consider SD; • Given the professional dimension, embedding it within our teaching can provide a way to engage with employability and professional development aspects for students across disciplines.

  20. Thanks • This work was carried out with colleagues Dr Lindsey Atkinson, Mr Tony Taylor and Dr Steve Hanson at the University of Hull. Thanks to them for their efforts and contributions; • The work was supported by a Higher Education Academy Mini-grant – thanks to the HEA for supporting this work.

  21. Resources • Higher Education Academy, Sustainability pages http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/ourwork/learning/sustainability • Roberts, C and Roberts, J, 2007, Greener by Degrees: Exploring Sustainability through Higher Education Curriculahttp://www.glos.ac.uk/ceal/resources/greenerbydegrees/index.cfm • Stern Report:http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/stern_review_economics_climate_change/sternreview_index.cfm • United Nations Sustainable Development Page: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/index.html

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