Co-Creation of the Climate Education Contextual Curriculum at Pahariapara Agamir School

[Md. Shadman Islam]

We have been working on developing a Climate Education Contextual Curriculum for the last 4 months. The journey has been truly inspiring. In the first phase, we co-created the curriculum with our head office staff and school facilitators. More importantly, we have completed the second phase of our co-creation with community members and students. This has become a space where stories, practices, and dreams merged into a collective effort for developing a Climate Education Contextual Curriculum.

Co-creation with Community Members

When we first invited the community members, only the male members joined the space. We were very surprised to see that and started to find out the reason behind that instance. After talking with some female community members and teachers, we realized that it is a norm there for women not to attend such community gatherings. Then we arranged another co-creation space with community members, with emphasis on the participation of female community members. We visited the homes to meet the women among community members along with inviting male community members. Our effort resulted in the presence of 37 female community members in the co-creation space this time.

The discussion was an enriching one where we started with a SALT conversation. During the conversation we shared our proud contributions to our children’s learning and appreciated each other. The guiding questions prompted reflection on what makes them proud, what sustains them, and what they envision for their children. They highlighted the fresh air, the green surroundings, and their spirit of unity as unique strengths of their community. Their memories of celebrating together during festivals or working hand in hand during natural calamities spoke to the depth of solidarity that is part of daily life here. Also, they care about their children’s education a lot and have a deep connection with the school since it was something that they dreamed of. This sense of belonging contributed to the interaction during the discussion.

The community also described positive environmental practices as part of their lives—tree planting, maintaining household cleanliness, and avoiding waste in shared spaces. These habits gave them pride, as they saw them benefiting both family and environment. Yet, alongside these strengths, they pointed out a few gaps. They found that systematic waste management was still missing, with plastic often left unattended. Water conservation practices were rarely discussed, and awareness of the long-term effects of deforestation had not been very clear. By recognizing what they were not yet doing, participants opened the door for the curriculum to address these missing areas in structured ways.

When we discussed on how they can contribute in their children by being facilitator, One mother stated, “আমাদের বাচ্চাদের যদি আমরাই বিভিন্ন জিনিস শিখতে সাহায্য করতে পারি, সেটা তো আমাদের জন্য অনেক খুশির ব্যাপার (Translated: It will be a matter of happiness if we can help our children to learn something)”

When speaking of their aspirations, the community voiced a strong desire for a pollution-free, greener future for children. They agreed that the proposed learning outcomes perfectly matched their values and reflected their lived reality. However, they also suggested a few important changes. For example, they wanted more emphasis on practical action days such as “community clean-up days” and tree care sessions, not just tree planting. They also requested that local elders’ knowledge of herbs, farming, and weather patterns be included, so that children grow up valuing intergenerational wisdom. They also shared that they want the students to go to their home or fields so that they can facilitate the learning through hands-on experience considering their convenience.

Co-creation with Students

The students’ discussions were equally enlightening. They proudly recalled moments of joy in their school - games, and affection from the teachers that gave them a sense of belonging. They also spoke of their unique natural environment—the rivers, fields, and forests—as treasures that defined their identity. But when asked what they do daily for the environment, their answers revealed some strengths as well as a few areas of improvement. They kept the schoolyard clean and planted trees occasionally, but plastic reduction, energy saving, and creative reuse of materials were not yet part of their practices. These gaps became opportunities for embedding new habits into classroom learning.

Students were particularly excited at the thought of having village stories, river songs, and local games woven into lessons. They agreed that these would make their learning more joyful. Some students prefer more outdoor learning instead of sitting inside classrooms all the time. Others proposed some actions like making a dustbin with eco-friendly materials  for environment protection, where they could share responsibilities and hold each other accountable. Their suggestions pointed to the need for the curriculum to nurture leadership and give students ownership of environmental action.

When we discussed on how we can keep our environments clean, one student stated, “আমরা কাঠ/বাঁশ দিয়ে ডাস্টবিন বানাতে পারি এবং সেখানে ময়লা ফেলে স্কুলের পরিবেশ পরিষ্কার রাখতে পারি (Translated: We can make a dustbin with wood/bamboo so that we can keep the trash in the bin and keep our environment clean)”

When imagining visitors coming to their mud school, students dreamed of showing green gardens and clean surroundings. This imagination revealed both pride and aspiration. They admitted, however, that their school still lacked a systematic garden space and waste management system. These gaps became central considerations for curriculum planning, ensuring that students don’t just imagine such outcomes but actively work toward creating them.

From both community and student voices, common themes stood out—pride in local identity, sustainable practices already in place, aspirations for greener futures, and the desire for collective responsibility. At the same time, the missing practices—waste management, water conservation, reducing plastic, organized gardening, and outdoor environmental learning will shape the curriculum design in meaningful ways. By acknowledging both strengths and gaps, the co-creation process ensured that the curriculum will be a realistic, locally relevant, and action-driven one.

In conclusion, the co-creation at Pahariapara Agamir School showed that climate education is most powerful when it grows out of lived experiences. The community and students recognized themselves in the curriculum, agreed that the learning outcomes reflected their reality, and even helped refine it with practical suggestions. The process was not only about designing lessons, but about deepening a partnership between the school and the community that generates ownership of the learning process inside their hearts. The resulting curriculum is both a mirror of who they are and a roadmap to who they aspire to become—responsible custodians of their land, culture, and environment.

If you want to read my blog on the first phase of the climate co-creation please read the blog from the following link:

https://aidscompetence.ning.com/profiles/blogs/a-journey-of-co-creation-from-knowledge-to-repeated-action-in 

[Shahrukh Atpade]

this blog shows how community voices and student ideas shaped a climate curriculum rooted in local culture, values, and real action.