A ‘World-Class’ Approach To Designing A Global Curriculum
By Leila Harris
By enhancing the curriculum with a global dimension, pupils are instilled with the values and attitudes to secure a more just, secure and sustainable world than the one they have inherited.
As an educational practitioner I have always been conscious that the curriculum we deliver should teach pupils to be open-minded and encourage them to be curious about their learning, as well as make links in their learning to the wider world.
The skills and knowledge taught at school form the foundation for pupils’ life-long learning and equip them for the future and a ‘world of supercomplexity’ (Ling, 2017). Children and young people are growing up in a globalised world as they have instant access to information and knowledge and social media provides them with opportunities to communicate with their peers elsewhere in the world (Bourn, 2016).
Research has also shown that students are concerned about global issues and a global dimension to the curriculum is well received by young people (Bourn and Brown (20110, Edge et al., (2009), Hunt (2012).
Adopting a global dimension to the curriculum may be described as a ‘transformative vision of education’ (Oxfam, 2015) as pupils are equipped for critical and active engagement with the challenges and opportunities of life in a fast-changing and interdependent world. A global dimension to the curriculum can support pupils, who may be considered as ‘agents of change’, as they develop life skills that are essential for our pupils to develop in order to for them to be considerate, tolerant and respectful citizens. By enhancing the curriculum with a global dimension, pupils are instilled with the values and attitudes to secure a more just, secure and sustainable world than the one they have inherited.
Through this article I aim to explore the purpose of a global curriculum and how to deliver a global curriculum, with reference to a whole school project linked to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
The Purpose of a Global Dimension in the Curriculum
A ‘global dimension’ was described by the Department for Education as promoting learning about living in an interdependent world with a focus on eight concepts: global citizenship, sustainable development, social justice, diversity, values and perceptions, interdependence, conflict resolution and human rights (DfES, 2000, 2005). There is a growing appreciation and recognition that including a global dimension within the curriculum is fundamental as we live in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world, in which the global is part of our everyday lives. In this way, pupils need a space in which they are able to discuss and explore complex and controversial global issues that they encounter through the media and in their own experiences. Providing an inclusive and accessible curriculum with which the children feel they can connect empowers them to see themselves as successful learners and enhances their self-efficacy. By developing a global dimension across the curriculum we can enrich the pupils’ educational experience within their school, local, national and international communities.
Implementing a Global Curriculum
Think Global (the umbrella body for global learning in England) emphasises global learning as education that puts learning in a global context, fostering: critical and creative thinking; self-awareness and open-mindedness towards difference; understanding of global issues and power relationships; and optimism and action for a better world (Think Global, 2015). In terms of delivering this in the classroom, practitioners can use a wide range of participatory teaching and learning methodologies, such as: discussion and debate, role play, ranking exercises, cause and consequence activities and engaging classes as communities of enquiry. These strategies may be used across the whole curriculum in a range of subjects, but when used in conjunction with a global perspective, they can advance global understanding while fostering skills such as critical thinking, questioning, communication and cooperation. These strategies also enable learners to explore, develop and express their own values and opinions, while listening respectfully to others’ viewpoints. This is an important step towards learners making informed choices about how they engage with global issues.
The delivery of a global curriculum may lead a teacher to potentially difficult discussions so staff may need to adapt their role to become a facilitator of discussions which are led by pupil’s knowledge and understanding, rather than ‘leader’ in which a clear outcome is predetermined by the teacher. In this way the lesson is directly tailored to the children’s needs but can be scary as one can not prepare in the same way for lessons as usual. In England, the Citizenship Curriculum states that: “teaching should equip pupils with the skills and knowledge to explore political and social issues critically, to weigh evidence, debate and make reasoned arguments. It should also prepare pupils to take their place in society as responsible citizens…”. Teaching potentially controversial issues can make a significant contribution to delivering Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural provision. For example, social development includes the opportunity to “develop and demonstrate skills and attitudes that will allow them to participate fully in and contribute positively to life in modern Britain”.
The greatest evidence of the impact of global learning within a school has been where global themes are recognised as part of the ethos of the school and are incorporated within as many aspects of school life as possible; from individual lessons, to assemblies, to extra-curricular activities and to the ways in which subjects are taught (Hunt and King,2015). Global links can be extrapolated across every subject area so it enriches all areas of the school curriculum, rather than just as an ‘add on’.
Our whole school took part in a themed week during which we used the text ‘Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth’ by Oliver Jeffers to support work around the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are the blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice. The seventeen goals are interconnected and all the countries who signed up have agreed to achieve them by 2030.
Pupils linked the SDGs with the themes and issues raised in the text and linked this with work across the curriculum. For example: in Guided Reading pupils were asked to define key terms (such as biodiversity, pollution, ecosystem etc)., consider the key message the author is trying to convey to the reader and how the text links with the SDGs. Pupils created art work inspired by this book and made ‘moving pictures’ as part of DT, wrote letters to special people (in English) shared special memories made with family members (PSHCE), learned about oceans and continents in Geography, learned about ecosystems and clean energy, considered the importance of water; the water cycle (as part of the science curriculum), measured volumes of rain water collected (as part of maths work) and considered how water may be conserved (in DT they designed water butts). Pupils also wrote pledges about how they will help to look after the earth and oceans on our planet.
Conclusion
I consider it to be critical to nurture a strong sense of society across the curriculum and by adding a global dimension we are able to address topical issues or reflect an approach to learning about international development. In doing so, we can recognise the importance of linking people’s lives throughout the world, and highlight the effect our individual actions have on a wider scale.
Incorporating a global dimension has enhanced the curriculum delivered to pupils and I argue is integral to our school’s educational culture and school ethos as well as a teaching pedagogy. Education for global citizenship through a whole school approach can support a wide range of school-improvement priorities and educational outcomes. That is because it involves a wealth of real-life contexts for learning, which can inspire learners and raise their engagement and motivation as well as developing skills in critical and creative thinking, reasoning and communication. These are life skills that may be considered as essential for pupils to develop in order to for them to be considerate, tolerant and respectful global citizens.
References
- Bourn, D. (2016) Global Learning and The School Curriculum
- Management in Education Volume 30, Issue 3, July 2016, Pages 121-125
- Bourn D and Brown K (2011)Young People and International Development, DERC Research Paper No.2. London: Institute of Education.
- DfES (2000, 2005)Developing the Global Dimension within the School Curriculum. London: DFES
- Edge K, Khamsi K and Bourn D (2009)Exploring the Global Dimension in Secondary Schools: Final Research Report. London: Institute of Education.
- Hunt F (2012)Global Learning in Primary Schools in England: Practices and Impacts. DERC Research Paper no. 9. London Institute of Education
- Hunt F and King RP (2015) Supporting Whole School Approaches to Global Learning: Focusing Learning and Mapping Impact. DERC Research Paper no. 13. London: UCL Institute of Education
- Ling, L. (2017) “Australian Teacher Education: Inside-out, Outside-in, Backwards and Forwards?”
- European Journal of Teacher Education40 (5): 561–571
- Oxfam (2015) Education for Global Citizenship: A Guide for Schools
- Think Global (2015) About global learning. Available at: http://think-global.org.uk/global-learning/theory-of-change/
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