Maximise your impact: Sustainable Development Goals-Focussed content in communication intervention and teaching

Figures & data

Table I. Proposed relationship between World of Words (WOW) thematic units and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

SDG	WOW thematic units
2. Zero hunger	Healthy foods, human body
3. Good health and well-being	Exercise, healthy foods, human body, motion
5. Gender equality	Human body
6. Clean water and sanitation	Water conservation
7. Affordable and clean energy	Simple machines
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure	Simple machines
12. Responsible consumption and production	Healthy foods, water conservation
13. Climate action	Deserts, seasons, ecology, extreme weather, water, water conservation, universe and stars, animal adaptations
14. Life below water	Marine animals, oceans, habitats, ocean zones, water
15. Life on land	Pets, plants, deserts, rainforests, habitats, water, animal adaptations, landforms, underground ecosystems

Note. Information on the thematic units of WOW can be found at www.worldofwordswow.com

Table II. Example problem-based action-projects and areas of focus based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

SDG	Identified problem	Action project	Communication focus for Client/Student
1. No poverty	Lack of access to transport is a major barrier to gaining work in poor areas of the city	Bicycle donation drive in support of a local charity that provides free bicycles to needy children and adults in their city to reduce transport inequality	Adolescent with developmental language disorder (DLD): Understand identified written and spoken texts Identify and understand key vocabulary in texts Generate texts describing the project suitable for different audiences and situations (e.g. written request to school principal, letters to parents, posters advertising the bicycle drive for students).
2. Zero hunger   (Target 2.3: double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers … including through secure and equal access to land etc.)	Black farmers have historically and systemically been marginalised and discriminated against	The student will collaborate with a community organisation to organise a farm visit for their group to learn about marginalised farmers and small-scale food producers.	Deaf college student with literacy difficulties: Identify key information in texts Make concept maps describing key vocabulary relevant to this topic Present summarised information from written text using sign language Use new vocabulary in written texts related to project (e.g. essays, emails, presentations). Use of inflexional morphemes in written texts.
8. Decent work and economic growth	Domestic financial institutions need to encourage and expand access to banking for all (SDG 8.10)	Petition local bank for better access for people with communication difficulties	Adults with aphasia group: Identify communication breakdowns that occur in different interactions with the bank (e.g. understanding written information, making phone calls, face-to-face interactions). Identify strategies for resolving communication breakdown and improving access Advocate for communication needs.
10. Reduced inequalities    (Target 10.2: …     inclusion of all)	Children are frustrated when it is not their turn for show and tell and disrupt the class	Make class rules and schedule for show and tell	Pre-school class including children who have autism Understand roles, responsibilities, and rules Make choices involving cause and effect (e.g. consequences for different behaviours). Engage with social stories related to different behaviour choices Make visual planner for class show and tell schedule and rules.

Table III. Examples of embedding Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into university language education curriculum for language learners at B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

SDG	Subject	Topics/Tasks	CEFR competences and descriptors^a
6. Clean water and sanitation	Self-directed study	Choose an SDG goal or subgoal and complete the following tasks in relation to that topic. In this example SDG target 6.6 (protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes) was chosen by the student. •Write a review of a film or documentary related to the chosen SDG. •Write a short persuasive text to convince an audience of your point of view about the chosen SDG. •Write a diary entry describing what you have learnt about the language and the chosen SDG during this semester.	Oral comprehension •“Can follow extended discourse and complex lines of argument, provided the topic is reasonably familiar, and the direction of the argument is signposted by explicit markers”. Reading comprehension •“Can read with a large degree of independence, adapting style and speed of reading to different texts and purposes, and using appropriate reference sources selectively.” Oral production •“Can give clear, detailed descriptions and presentations on a wide range of subjects related to their field of interest, expanding and supporting ideas with subsidiary points and relevant examples”. Written production •“Can produce clear, detailed texts on a variety of subjects related to their field of interest, synthesising and evaluating information and arguments from a number of sources”. Oral interaction •“Can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction, and sustained relationships with users of the target language”. Phonological control •“Can generally use appropriate intonation, place stress correctly and articulate individual sounds clearly; accent tends to be influenced by the other language(s) they speak, but has little or no effect on intelligibility”.
9. Industry, innovation, and infrastructure	Communication, history and society	•Research changes in a local industry over time. Give a short oral presentation on one industry sector. •Understand the local political parties’ policies on industry and infrastructure. Give a short oral presentation on two policies of your chosen parties. Write a comparison of the policies of two parties. •Write an analysis of a news article describing a new innovation.
6. Peace, justice, and strong institutions		•Describe the structure of the local government and compare it to government structures in other countries. •Examine how the local political system includes the ideas of inclusiveness, participation and representation in decision-making at all levels •Examine themes of equality, civil rights, and social justice within a country.
12. Responsible consumption and production	Effective language learning	Select an SDG target (e.g. target 12.3 reducing food waste). •Create a written script for 5-10 minute video presentation on your topic •Submit a 5-10 minute video recording of a presentation on your topic •Participate in discussion of other students’ presentations •Write an 8-page text about your SDG. •Submit a bibliography demonstrating you have read 100 pages related to your SDG.

^aCouncil of Europe (2022a).

Table IV. Examples of intelligibility enhancement texts and targets for three Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

SDG	Student/client	Intelligibility goals	Example text
4. Quality education	University teacher	Produce vowels clearly Slow speech down for concept and words that are possibly new to the listener Put emphasis on concepts/words that may be new to the listener	The higher education we want: Youth voices on the futures of higher education (UNESCO International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America & the Caribbean, 2022)
11. Sustainable cities and communities	High school student passionate about climate justice	Be aware of cues from the audience about whether they understand Self-monitor intelligibility and implement strategies to increase intelligiblity as appropriate (e.g. slowing pace)	Sacrifice zones 101 (The Climate Reality Project, n.d.)
17. Partnerships for the goals	Business person working for a non-government organisation (NGO)	Use stress correctly within words Speak with an appropriate pace and maintain this through the conversation	The SDG partnership guidebook: A practical guide to building high impact multi-stakeholder partnerships for the Sustainable Development Goals (Stibbe & Prescott, 2020)

Council of Europe. (2022a). CEFR descriptors. https://www.coe.int/en/web/common-european-framework-reference-languages/cefr-descriptors

 Google Scholar

UNESCO International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean. (2022). The higher education we want: Youth voices on the futures of higher education. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000382995

 Google Scholar

The Climate Reality Project. (n.d.). Sacrifice zones 101. https://www.climaterealityproject.org/sacrifice-zones

 Google Scholar

Stibbe, D., Prescott, D. (2020). The SDG partnership guidebook: A practical guide to building high impact multi-stakeholder partnerships for the Sustainable Development Goals. United Nations and The Partnering Initiative. https://sdgs.un.org/sites/default/files/2022-02/SDG%20Partnership%20Guidebook%201.11.pdf

 Google Scholar