– #UKEdChat explored the different aspects and opportunities of Global Education, hosted by Angela Goodman, who explained…
“A growing number of resources and opportunities are being presented to schools in recent years to develop a global element to education. Students are being encouraged to reflect on their place in the world and how their actions can impact on a global community. At Moorside Primary School we have embedded this attitude into our school ethos, and as such have been able to offer many global experiences to our students. This week we will be discussing the benefits and pitfalls of global education, and how it can be built into an already full curriculum successfully.”
The questions released during the session included:
- How is it possible for educators to provide access to global education and experiences?
- What do you see as the main benefits for including a global element in education?
- Do you see any down sides to global education? How can we overcome these?
- How can different subjects use global links to enhance learning?
- How is global education represented in your setting?
- Do you have any suggestions to support people looking to develop global education in their setting?
Through the course of this discussion it was clear that many educators place Global Education high on their agenda. Building a global element into the curriculum was discussed as important way to develop tolerance and understanding, as well as helping our students to understand their place and impact on the wider world. Some felt so strongly, in fact, that they felt that global education should be a discreet subject. Pitfalls were mainly concerned with logistics, such as funding, time differences etc.
Whilst these are inconvenient, solutions were highlighted by different contributors. Several contributors referred to their own experiences as a starting point, as well as the benefits of social media such as Twitter to make connections with educators globally. We discussed the challenge of ensuring that all staff are on board with global education in an already full curriculum. Solutions for this were considered, such as allowing for planning and discussion time, and enabling as many staff as possible to benefit from global experiences.
It was felt by many that global education has more impact if it is a shared staff ethos. Contributors shared a variety of ways in which global education can be addressed within the school setting, including specific projects and links. I hope that people were able to identify supportive tweets which will have an impact on their setting. It was interesting to read about the range of ways in which global education is represented in different settings.
Contributors were from a variety of Key Stages, and a number of countries, giving our discussion a global outlook. Many thanks to all who contributed this evening.
Tweet of the Week…
Technology means that the world has opened up at the end of our fingertips, making it avail to students is our duty as educators#ukedchat
— Michelle Batey (@michellebatey22) November 27, 2014
Other Notable Tweets from the Session: See Slide numbers: 6, 7, 10, 14, 15, 22, 27, 30, 33, 38, 39, 42, 46, 49, 54, 59, 63, 72, 80, 85, 86, 88, 96, 106, 112, 116, 119, 131, 135, 139, 144, 146, 152, 157, 170, 172, 176, 187, 192, 205, 208
About your host:
Angela Goodman, Year 3 teacher in Tameside, Manchester. I have had an interest in Global Education since teaching in Zambia early in my career. Since my return to the UK I have coordinated international work in the two primary schools I have worked at, and have gained access to a range of British Council funding for the benefit of staff and pupils. This has led to my current school winning the 2014 best UK primary school in the British Council/HSBC Link2Learn competition recently.