What are the main reasons for educating for global competence
Educating for global competence
Stewart (2012) makes a strong argument that students need to be prepared to compete and cooperate not only at the national level, but also at the global level. Hence, understanding the requirements of global competence will influence the curriculum and the focus of education.
In four to five paragraphs, reflect on the following questions:
What is your definition of global competence?
What are the main reasons for educating for global competence?
What do you see as the barriers such an educational initiative might confront? How might these barriers be overcome?
Support your statements with evidence from the Required Studies and your research. Cite and reference
Sahlberg, 2016) [Closed captioned]
The goal of improving education is not a new concept. Today, however, this idea enjoys prodigious importance among policymakers and other stakeholders in education systems worldwide. The great transformation that is taking place around the world, and the need for the United States to become more internationally competitive, has prompted many roundtable conversations. The bottom line—there is not a perfect education system and globalization is a challenge for everyone worldwide. What is being discovered, however, is that some countries are demonstrating large-scale educational advancements resulting in high-performing education systems that are not accidental. This begs the question: What lessons can these successful educational systems hold for the United States?
In 1983, A Nation At Risk (Gardner & NCEE, 1983) was released to the American people, reporting on 18 months’ worth of research on the then current state of the American education system. Over the course of the next three decades, each President and his Secretary of Education have designed, implemented, reviewed, assessed, revamped, dismantled, reconfigured, lambasted, praised, supported, and attacked a myriad of initiatives in their attempt to mitigate the risks facing American students. However, in the 30 plus years since the drafting of this call to reform American education, one could argue that the American student is no better off today than when the ink was still wet on the original document.
During an interview in April 2013, discussing the impact of the A Nation At Risk (Gardner & NCEE, 1983) report, William Bennett, President Reagan’s second-term Secretary of Education, responded to a question comparing the U.S. education system with those of other nations. He stated, “If you look at those numbers, you get the story for 30 years…we’re spending twice as much on education as we did in ’83 and the results haven’t changed that much” (Elliot, 2013, para. 15). If there has been a charge to reform the American education system for over 30 years, with a doubling of monetary resources directed to accomplish this goal, why are American students still at risk?
As educators look for answers beyond the United States within a global marketplace of educational ideas, will we allow our collective egos to blur our vision? What innovative ideas could global competitors offer the American education system? How will the answers discovered through these observations translate into classrooms? Zhao (2013) regrets the strong emphasis on test-driven accountability and standardization as a factor in the reduction of the creative class. Hersh (2009) complements this perspective by insisting that content knowledge, as well as creative and critical problem solving skills should be married to one another rather than taught as perpendicular entities. In order to nurture innovation, Reimers (2009) seeks to move America from the ‘factory’ education model and from linear processes in education by shifting the collective mind-set to a more interactive and collaborative approach.
What do you see in your educational settings that proves or disproves these theories? What does international competitiveness mean to educators?
References
Elliott, P. (2013, April 25). 30 years after report, schools remain at risk. The Boston Globe. Retrieved from https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2013/04/24…
Gardner, D. P. & National Commission on Excellence in Education (NCEE). (1983). A nation at risk: The imperative for educational reform. An open letter to the American people. A report to the nation and the Secretary of Education. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED226006.pdf
Hersh, R. H. (2009). A well-rounded education for a flat world. Educational Leadership, 67(1), 50-53.
Reimers, F. (2009). Global competency is imperative for global success. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/Global-Competency-Is/…
Sahlberg, P. [TVCHOSUN]. (2016, November 16). {Global leaders forum 2016] Session 3 – Pasi Sahlberg [Video file]. Retrieved from
WEEKLY OBJECTIVES
Through participation in the following activities, the candidate will:
Define the philosophical, theoretical, historical context, and application of different educational systems worldwide.
Educating for Global Competence
Examine the education system worldwide and identify how resources and roadblocks affect school systems in different countries.
Globalization and Education
HEADS UP
Throughout this course, you will be exploring various education systems around the world. Although you may not be employed in K-12 education or higher education, this content is relevant to all occupational sectors as educators, politicians, and society continue to redesign and think of ways to prepare students to participate in the global economy. You are encouraged to share perspectives from your particular field in the context of the materials explored.
In Week 3, you will select one of the following books as noted in the syllabus to read and discuss in a book study group:
Tucker, M. (2011). Surpassing Shanghai: An agenda for American education built on the world’s leading systems. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Publishing Group.
OR
Sahlberg, P. (2015). Finnish lessons: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Teacher’s College, Columbia University.
In Week 8, you will be required to write a reflection based on what you have learned in this course. You will also need to describe how you will apply what you have learned to your dissertation topic.
REQUIRED STUDIES
The following materials are required studies for this week. Complete these studies at the beginning of the week and save these weekly materials for future use.
The Global Fourth Way (Hargreaves & Shirley, 2012)
Chapter 1: The Crisis of Educational Change
A World-Class Education (Stewart, 2012)
Introduction
Chapter 1: Globalization and Education
View
Linda Darling-Hammond on Becoming Internationally Competitive (Edutopia, 2010) [Video] [Closed captioned]
Dennis Shirley – Transforming Education (Shirley, 2015) [Video] [Closed captioned] [Transcript]
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