Since 2020, the Secretariat for UNESCO ASPnet in Japan has organised online discussion sessions one to two times each month. These sessions are held in accordance with the needs and interests expressed by members schools of the UNESCO Associated Schools Network in questionnaires sent out by the secretariat.
The discussion sessions aim to perform two key roles. The first is to serve as a platform for participants, including teachers and students from UNESCO Associated Schools, to engage in meaningful dialogue. The second is to allow faculty affiliated to universities in the Interuniversity Network Supporting the UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network (ASPUnivNet) to share their advice and comments from the perspective of professional experts. These small-scale discussions provide participants with a relaxing and unrestrictive environment to freely exchange ideas and information with one another. Such discussions have led to the development of spontaneous and proactive interactions between individuals of various regions and school types.
Examples of themes that were taken up at past online discussions include:
- Hints for implementing Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in classrooms
- ICT and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
- University students’ initiatives on marine education and cross-cultural understanding to achieve SDGs
- Mock lesson: learning facilitation skills using Japanese popular manga
- Discussion on learning during the COVID-19 pandemic with high school students
- Sustainable societies and schools and the COVID-19 pandemic
- International Day-themed classes (International Day of Peace, International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, etc.)
- Collaboration between schools and the community