“The session was outstanding and incredibly thought-provoking. … I would definitely invite David back to deliver more sessions; he has a calm and inspiring delivery that makes you ‘hang on his every word’.” Mike Smith, Curriculum Director of Geography, Meridian Trust
Looking for inspiring CPD for your teachers? Or hopeful and hands-on sessions for your students?
Read on to find more about how I have worked with schools and trusts and how I might work with you.
I run sessions for students and teachers, highlighting how people have come together to overcome global challenges, and how your students might be emboldened to play their part in doing so in the future.
Testimonials
“A uniquely informative and thought-provoking initiative … A must for any school wanting to empower young people.” Houry Stewart, Assistant Principal, Fulneck School
“Unique and engaging… well-paced and interactive” Ross McOwen, Head of Year 13, Bradford Grammar School
“Hopeful Education provided us with some really eye-opening and thought-provoking Grounds for Hope sessions. The students were fully engaged and ready to take action after these very hopeful sessions.” Lisa Lott, English Teacher and Sustainability Co-ordinator, Hathershaw College, Oldham
“An excellent CPD session… a blend of theory and practical strategies on the art of being more hopeful… The feedback from all staff was highly positive.” Richard Hart, Assistant Principal (Research & Development), Dixons Academies Trust
“Pupils enjoyed a thought-provoking morning reflecting on how the world has in fact improved, even when the 24-7 news cycle seems to suggest things are getting much worse. Pupils came away from the morning feeling much more optimistic about the future – thank you!” Sam Haslam, Deputy Head (Academic and Staff Welfare), Portsmouth Grammar School
What is ‘hopeful education’?
Hopeful education first involves listening to students’ hopes and fears for the future of the world.
It then encourages them to evaluate where humanity has come from, to celebrate its achievements (e.g. protection of rights, increases in nutrition and life expectancy, reductions in infant mortality rates, deaths from war and hazards), and to believe in humanity’s potential to solve current challenges.
Finally, it encourages students to play their part in creating a sustainable future for people and the planet.
What do these sessions typically involve?
‘Grounds for Hope’ talks and sessions are tailored to each audience. They can last from assemblies to a full day session, and they can be delivered to students from across the secondary school age range. Prior to sessions, I issue a simple Microsoft Forms survey to participants where I gauge their hopes, fears, and awareness of global trends.
In a typical half-day session, I voice and recognise the students’ concerns from the survey, then attempt to contextualise them in the ‘big picture’ of global patterns and long-term trends. I also look at how psychology, the media, and education all play a role in influencing young people’s worldviews. I highlight past successes in overcoming challenges, such as smallpox and polio, malnutrition, extreme poverty, acid rain, and several types of discrimination.
I accentuate the role played by a range of stakeholders in the way these have been overcome (such as the UN, scientists, and pressure groups), and, with the use of hands-on techniques such as group-created future timelines (see above for an example) and ‘future headline’ writing, students are encouraged to play their part in envisioning and creating a better future for people and the planet. I sometimes work with other teachers to deliver these sessions.
What about my CPD sessions to teachers?
I also deliver CPD sessions to teachers (whole-school and geography-only), to investigate the issues of worldview formation and to discuss the role of education in fostering ‘hopefulness’.
These have been between 30 minutes and two hours, and have been in-person and online. Most value is gained by in-person sessions of at least an hour’s duration.
What is my conception of hope?
In these endeavours, I emphasise that hope is active, and that it can be the tough option compared to despair on one hand and optimism on the other. I also take care to acknowledge the seriousness of the local, regional, and global challenges facing our young people and the world they will inherit. Nevertheless, following Rebecca Solnit’s lead, I seek to highlight ‘Hope in the Dark’ and believes that there are several positive global trends which should indeed give our young people ‘grounds for hope’.
What is my background?
I teach Geography and in my twenty years in the profession, I have held roles as Head of Department, Head of Faculty, and Head of Outdoor Education, as well as Sixth Form and Teaching & Learning positions.
I have written on ‘hopeful education’ and ‘hopeful geography’ for the TES, Impact, Geography Review, Teaching Geography, and on these and other themes in the Yorkshire Post and on alcock.blog. I run ‘Grounds for Hope’ days at secondary schools, and I present and train teachers on these themes via CPD sessions and materials commissioned by the Geographical Association.
I am undertaking PhD research at the IoE on the themes of progress and the future in geography education, I assist in the delivery of the PGCE Geography course at Huddersfield University, and I engage with academic developments in the field of curriculum, pedagogy, and futures education.
Do you want to find out more?
Please contact me: alcock_david@hotmail.com
Follow me on X/Twitter: @DavidAlcock1 / @HopefulEd
Please find below the full text of testimonials received for both Grounds for Hope sessions and CPD sessions for teachers.
Grounds for Hope sessions
“A uniquely informative and thought-provoking initiative that helps young people recognise the hidden web of connection we have with nature’s systems and encourages them to think about the impact their choices can have on the future of humanity. A must for any school wanting to empower young people.”
Houry Stewart, Assistant Principal, Fulneck School, Leeds, October 2021
“For the past three years, David has led unique and engaging Hopeful Education enrichment and Personal Development days for our Year 10 and Sixth Form students. Always keen to ensure that he responds to the age-appropriate needs of our students at each key stage of their education, David has tailor-made Grounds for Hope sessions ranging from whole-school assemblies or year group focused sessions to smaller workshop carousels in both indoor and outdoor settings. David’s well-paced and interactive provision has addressed topics such as climate change and attentively responded to students’ hopes and fears about the future. I look forward to welcoming David to work with our students again soon.”
Ross McOwen – Head of Year 13 – Bradford Grammar School, June 2021
“Hopeful Education provided us with some really eye-opening and thought-provoking Grounds for Hope sessions. The students were fully engaged and ready to take action after these very hopeful sessions.”
Lisa Lott, English Teacher and Sustainability Co-ordinator, Hathershaw College, Oldham, May 2023
CPD sessions for Geography and other teachers
“David provided an excellent CPD session on Hopeful Geography and Active Hopefulness at our Dixons Conference in February 2022 to 30 geography participants from across all Dixons Academies in Yorkshire and the Northwest. The session was a blend of theory and practical strategies on the art of being more hopeful when teaching geography. The feedback from all staff was highly positive. The session has enabled us to review and refine our curriculum offer through small tweaks, but with impactful results on the narrative that we are communicating within geography.”
Richard Hart, Assistant Principal (Research & Development), Dixons Academies Trust, W Yorks, Feb 2022
“David delivered his session: “Grounds for Hope in Geography” to all of the Geography teachers in our multi-academy trust. The session was outstanding and incredibly thought-provoking. David provided excellent resources and practical examples of how the theory around being more ‘hopeful’ in a subject that often has to discuss ‘doom and gloom’, could be implemented with students, either as whole-school activities, or in a classroom setting. I was impressed with the amount of knowledge David was able to impart, whether than was knowing a variety of examples of ‘individual stories’, to the wider body of literature that has been written about this subject. It was also impressive that David was able to communicate the critiques of his research, articulating that he really has thought of alternative viewpoints. I would definitely invite David back to deliver more sessions; he has a calm and inspiring delivery that makes you ‘hang on his every word’. Thank you David.”
Mike Smith, Curriculum Director of Geography, Meridian Trust, Nov 2023
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