Abstract
Above: Me with one of my classes in Spain.
The origin of my inquiry grew organically out of my personal experiences, especially studying and working outside of the United States. Before beginning graduate school, I served as an English teacher in southern Spain for nine months. Through my interactions with Spanish teachers, administrators, and students, I observed a different model of public education and noted how the system compared with my work in American schools. The importance that Spanish educators placed on global learning in their classrooms made a strong impression on me. The teachers integrated international perspectives into their instruction, and the government even hired foreign educators, like me, to give students opportunities to interact first-hand with other cultures. After my experience teaching abroad, I knew that I would have to change my practices as an American teacher in order to provide for global learning in my classroom.
Throughout my time in the New Literacies and Global Learning Program, I worked to build my understanding of global citizenship and explored the possibilities for global learning in secondary social studies classrooms. The following question compelled my graduate studies: As a secondary social studies teacher, how can I help my students see themselves as citizens of the 21st century world? My coursework, international experiences, and teaching position shaped my inquiry and informed my perspective. As I approached graduation, I began to reflect on my experiences teaching and learning in order to articulate a formal response to my compelling question. I sifted through my research and began to see patterns in my work. First, I found that intercultural collaboration would be essential to citizenship education in the 21st century. I then realized that educators could use new media and technology to connect with international classrooms and allow students to collaborate in new ways. In addition, I concluded that global learning pedagogy would allow students to examine their own perspectives as a means of going beyond cultural tolerance toward a more inclusive cultural understanding. In order to reach this understanding, I decided that teachers should push students to construct their own knowledge of global citizenship through student-led inquiry. Finally, I understood that social studies educators could lead the way for a new citizenship education that emphasizes the global elements of 21st century citizenship. I know that these findings have transformed my knowledge and practice as an educator, and I hope that my work will contribute to the current discourse on global citizenship education.
Throughout my time in the New Literacies and Global Learning Program, I worked to build my understanding of global citizenship and explored the possibilities for global learning in secondary social studies classrooms. The following question compelled my graduate studies: As a secondary social studies teacher, how can I help my students see themselves as citizens of the 21st century world? My coursework, international experiences, and teaching position shaped my inquiry and informed my perspective. As I approached graduation, I began to reflect on my experiences teaching and learning in order to articulate a formal response to my compelling question. I sifted through my research and began to see patterns in my work. First, I found that intercultural collaboration would be essential to citizenship education in the 21st century. I then realized that educators could use new media and technology to connect with international classrooms and allow students to collaborate in new ways. In addition, I concluded that global learning pedagogy would allow students to examine their own perspectives as a means of going beyond cultural tolerance toward a more inclusive cultural understanding. In order to reach this understanding, I decided that teachers should push students to construct their own knowledge of global citizenship through student-led inquiry. Finally, I understood that social studies educators could lead the way for a new citizenship education that emphasizes the global elements of 21st century citizenship. I know that these findings have transformed my knowledge and practice as an educator, and I hope that my work will contribute to the current discourse on global citizenship education.