Imagining a South African Climate Change Adaptation-aligned school curriculum using Generative Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

This paper explores how Generative Artificial Intelligence tools, such as ChatGPT and Gemini, can be integrated into the development of a curriculum that aligns with South Africa's climate change adaptation agenda. It emphasises the pressing need to reform the current Geography Further Education and Training Phase curriculum to address education for climate change adaptation. Using Generative Artificial Intelligence, the paper presents potential content topics that could be incorporated into the curriculum as generated by ChatGPT and Gemini. By comparing these Artificial Intelligence-generated content topics to the current curriculum, the paper highlights the inadequacies in addressing climate change adaptation and proposes that generative artificial intelligence can play a crucial role in enhancing the curriculum development process. The study concludes by advocating for the integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence technologies to expedite curriculum reform in alignment with South Africa’s National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and the Sustainable Development Goals.