This month I’ve been thrilled to participate in the “Workshops for International Teachers and Host Schools” being hosted by the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange Program.
They currently have about 40 international teachers placed with American host schools across the U.S. and this event brought those participants together to support them and give them a chance to network as a group.
My role was to facilitate a 90-minute workshop on Teaching Toward Global Competence.
I framed the workshop around three essential questions:
- What is global competence?
- Why should we be teaching towards global competence?
- How can we help students develop global competence?
We started with the 2nd question, WHY. I highlighted two of my favorite ways to look at this question 1) using the Global Citizen Journey video (below; based on American Citizen, Global Citizen by Mark Gerzon) and 2) looking at how “the global is part of our everyday local lives” (from Oxfam’s Education for Global Citizenship: A Guide for Schools).
Next we explored the WHAT, unpacking the definition:
Global competence is the capacity and disposition to understand and act on issues of global significance.
and considering how the four domains of global competence play out across the curriculum:
- Investigating the World
- Recognizing Perspectives
- Communicating Ideas
- Taking Action
Looking at this student-created video, we identified evidence of the student demonstrating proficiency in each of the four domains.
Finally, we examined the HOW. Each small group focused on one of four domains and charted what it looks like and sounds like for students to be engaged in that kind of learning activity.
I also shared the S.A.G.E. framework:
- Student choice
- Authentic work
- Global significance
- Exhibition to a real-world audience
And we saw how this example of Project-Based Learning in an Elementary Science Classroom address each of those key characteristics.
We closed with 3 recommended ways to learn more:
- Participate in the Global Education Conference, November 12-17, 2012
- Read Educating for Global Competence: Preparing Our Youth to Engage the World
- Check out Asia Society Education and our Global Learning for Educators webinars
Honor Moorman 