A third of students want to learn more about climate change, with girls significantly more likely to worry about the issue than boys, a survey suggests.
Nearly a third (31 per cent) of female school students aged between 15 and 18 say they are “very worried” about climate change, compared with 17 per cent of boys, according to polling for the International Baccalaureate (IB).
Girls are also 12 per cent more inclined to call for more climate change education and 11 per cent more likely to urge for greater discussion of climate change in school.
A third (33 per cent) of students overall want to be taught more about climate change, rising to 36 per cent of girls.
Climate change anxiety
The findings come amid reports of growing “climate anxiety” among students, alongside a rise in general anxiety and mental health problems among children.
A controversial MP proposed a bill to tackle students’ fears of climate change in 2020.
The findings also come after the Department for Education dropped plans to directly provide climate training to all schools last year, despite pledging to roll it out by 2025.
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said that although climate change “is taught in the existing curriculum, including in science and geography”, there is a need for “an independent curriculum review to identify and balance priorities”.
“Young people - and adults for that matter - need to be confident that world leaders have a viable plan to tackle this emergency,” he warned.
IB commissioned consultancy Public First to ask more than 2,000 teenage IB students in the UK their thoughts on climate change, most of which were at state schools.
Almost two-thirds (60 per cent) of both male and female students are very worried or worried about climate change, the survey reveals.
Young women are more pessimistic than young men about the possibility of averting the crisis, with just under a third (31 per cent) of female students confident that humans could avert the worst consequences of climate change, compared with 42 per cent of young men.
The IB polling further shows that 72 per cent of young women, compared with 58 per cent of young men, think their voices are not heard on climate change.
Young people as climate leaders
Katrina Brown, principal of Chester International School, said: “While it is unfortunate that the data shows young female students seem to be feeling the stress of climate change more, this provides an opportunity to engage young people, to equip them with the tools to bring about change and be the climate leaders of tomorrow that we so desperately need.
“We need to encourage all of our students to explore these global issues and empower them to be agents of change.”
School leaders have previously warned about increased anxiety levels in pupils, which they fear could be contributing to high absence levels.
Sarah Hannafin, head of policy at the NAHT school leaders’ union, said that the IB’s polling ”reinforces the importance of the voices of all children being heard when it comes to climate change, because they will play a vital role in pioneering solutions to the crisis”.
Ms Hannafin called on the government to “invest far more in tackling climate change, including to support staff leading climate education in schools to help ensure the proposals in its climate change strategy for education are properly implemented”.
“Schools must be given the financial flexibility to make green choices and develop ambitious plans that allow the education estate to move towards becoming carbon neutral,” she added.
Sustainability strategy
The government’s sustainability and climate change strategy for education, launched in 2022, set out long-term actions for how the education sector can respond to climate change.
This includes the goal for all schools to have nominated a sustainability lead and put in place a climate action plan by 2025.
The DfE itself has come under fire for “insufficient plans for decarbonising the school estate”, in a National Audit Office report last year.
The DfE: Environmental Sustainability Overview report also highlights a lack of a national overview in government about the sustainability of the school estate and the potential risks posed by climate change.
A DfE spokesperson said: “We have made significant progress on our Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy and remain committed to creating a sustainable future through education.
“With initiatives including extra support for teaching about nature and climate change, a National Education Nature Park, climate ambassadors and a new Sustainability Support for Education digital hub, the strategy is designed to enable the sector to educate and implement changes to support a greener world.”
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