WHAT IS GLOBAL EDUCATION?
This introductory video my colleagues and I created during our Teachers for Global Classrooms fellowship provides a brief introduction to Global Education and its importance.
GLBOAL ED IN MATH AND SCIENCE
What does Global Education look like in Math & Science? I explore this question in the following work-in-progress presentation. Once finalized and formally presented, I will replace this video with a recording of my presentation. The first scheduled presentation will be at the 2017 MassCUE Conference in October.
TEACHING RESOURCES FOR GLOBAL EDUCATION
I've collected a range of resources useful for integrating global education into classroom practice. Please let me know if you find them useful or if you have any suggestions! (Visit the About Greg page to get in touch with me.)
As part of the coursework for my Teachers for Global Classrooms Fellowship, I designed a unit for my Physics class that addresses both global competencies and Massachusetts DESE Physics Standards. In the month-long unit, students investigate the concept of energy through the lens of the energy needs (and challenges) of a country of their choice. This link will take you to a PDF of my unit plan, organized using a template adapted from Wiggin's & McTighe's Understanding by Design framework. Please feel free to reach out to me (visit the About Greg page) with any questions!
Part of the coursework I completed for my Teachers for Global Classrooms fellowship, this PDF explains how two different Massachusetts State Physics Standards can address global competencies. Two sample projects/assignments are described (one for each standard), along with a discussion of assessment of each standard.
This free, 136-page, free book from The Asia Society, linked here as a PDF, has been the single most valuable reference resource to me as I've taken this deep dive into Global Education. All of the work that I have done with Global Ed has drawn from this work. Think of it as the Global Ed Bible.
This short but useful website from Asia Society clearly breaks down the questions a mathematics teacher should ask him/herself and the key understandings students and teachers need to explore the role of mathematics in the world.
This website, similar to the mathematics resource listed above, provides science teachers with a quick introduction to incorporating global education into their practice. A link to download free sample resources is provided within. I also found this article and its associated links useful as well, also from Asia Society.
From the appendix of the Boix Mansilla and Jackson book, this pair of matrices is a must-have when designing science or mathematics curricula with global education in mind. Linked here as a PDF.
​
​
SCROLL DOWN TO FIND ADDITIONAL GLOBAL ED RESOURCES
EDTECH INVENTORY
The annotated "thinglink" image below contains a bevy of information, links, and resources related to the Westwood Public Schools' educational technology program. My colleagues at WPS can use this as a launch point for exploring the edtech resources and professional development available in the district, or can reach out to your building's instructional technology coaches (for some of you, that's me!)
EDTECH TOOLS FOR GLOBAL ED
Below are some of my favorite EdTech tools, presented here with at least one way you might use the tool to support Global Education in your classroom. Every one of them is COMPLETELY FREE (or provides a quality free version within a freemium model.) Please let me know if you find them useful, if you need more information, or if you have any suggestions! (Visit the About Greg page to get in touch with me.)
Adobe Spark Pages lets students create stylish, professional-looking single page websites. Perfect for "travel brochure" or simple website projects, or as an alternative to Powerpoint. Here is an example of a travel guide project, and another of a telescope research project.
Adobe Spark Videos lies somewhere between a video editor and a presentation tool (i.e. Powerpoint/Google Presentations.) Students are able to efficiently create a slideshow backed with a soundtrack and their own voiceover. The lack of advanced features is actually a plus--students don't go down the rabbit hole of editing the perfect video, they just present the relevant information in an easy-to-digest format. One of my favorite technologies for supporting the student-centered practices that are key to effective providing meaningful Global Education.
A cloud-based drawing/illustration program. Students can create sketches representing their cultures or anything else they'd like. Teachers could create common accounts allowing students from around the world to collaborate on artwork.
Similar to Sketch.io, this is a cloud based image creation and editing tool. Pixlr is, essentially, a free Photoshop clone. Use it to get students creating!
Ever have a bunch of students/colleagues share thoughts by brainstorming on Post-It notes and sticking them to a common wall for everyone to see? Padlet is the digital equivalent of this. A great, flexible way for students separated by distance and time to share with each other.
Quickly make professional-looking infographics with Easel.ly. Challenge your students to make an infographic of their culture? Or of key information of another country?
Tiki-Toki provides students with a means of creating detailed, tightly-organized, and good-looking timelines. Packed full of features you never realized a timeline tool would need, the only drawback is the platforms inability to allow multiple users to collaborate on a single timeline.
It is a bit silly to include a product that everyone already knows, uses, and relies on. But collaboration is a huge part of Global Education, and Google Drive (and its associated products) is the single most powerful collaboration tool to come along since email itself.
Get your students talking with others around the world! Both of these platforms provide easy videoconferencing that you can use to connect your students to the world. Watch this video or this video to see the power of simple, yet global, conversations between students.
Again, everyone is already completely familiar with YouTube, so it is a little silly to include it here. However, aside from Google Drive/Docs, no other single tool has changed how I teach and learn over my 13+ years teaching more than YouTube has. When videoconferencing isn't an option, due to time zone differences or bandwidth issues, connect your students asynchronously by having them record and share videos with other students around the world. Simple, one-off connections can make projects suddenly have an audience and/or authentic purpose.
LOCAL GLOBAL EDUCATION RESOURCES
Global Education starts in OUR COMMUNITY! The Greater Boston area is home to a number of high-quality and nationally-recognized organizations whose mission is to support global education and foster the growth and development of global citizens. Some selected local resources are below:
From Project Zero of the Harvard Graduate School of Education comes "a professional development program for high school and community college educators that will merge the content expertise of the Global Studies Outreach Committee (GSOC) and the Harvard Area Research Centers (HARC, regional and internationally-focused centers and programs at Harvard) with Project Zero’s educational expertise, focusing on the Global Competence framework and drawing on practices and approaches from Making Learning Visible, Teaching for Understanding, and Visible Thinking." Sounds interesting. The site links to a number of useful resources.
WorldBoston invites "high school students [and others] to engage with expert speakers and network with like-minded global citizens. Through programs of the World Affairs Councils of America, of which WorldBoston is a member, as well as other initiatives, WorldBoston offers many ways to learn about emerging trends in global affairs and important geopolitical developments." Both the "chat and chowder" speaker series and Academic WorldQuest competition appear to be great opportunities for students looking to engage with global education.
The Framingham State University Center for Global Education "supports educators in Massachusetts in enhancing global and multicultural perspectives in the K-12 curriculum." The center provides a number of PDP/credit bearing seminars covering a range of global education topics.
From their website: The mission of the Northeast Global Education Center at Salem State is to help educators bring a global perspective to schools within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The center provides programs, projects, workshops, pre-service and in-service training, resources, and consultation to administrators, teachers, librarians, and counselors as a means of promoting competence in international issues, cross-cultural awareness and content strands of the preK to 12 curriculum.
Primary Source is a Watertown-based nonprofit whose mission is to advance global and cultural learning in schools. Primary Source offers a number of free online seminars and podcasts surrounding global education, along with reasonably priced courses and trips. Some districts (like Westwood) provide free access to Primary Source for their faculty.
EF Tours is a Boston-based for-profit student travel company. Watch this video (featuring my colleague Andrew Miller) to learn about their Glocal Challenge, a philanthropic program designed to help innovative students make a positive impact on the world.
Middlesex Community College provides some advice and exemplars to educators who seek to globalize their course/curriculum. Though geared towards higher-ed, much of the material is applicable to the high school level as well.
The outstanding New England Aquarium provides an extensive array of resources for teachers. Resources include professional development opportunities, conservation and climate change curriculum, and a physical teacher resource center that includes 6000+ loan materials. Unrelated fact: My wife and I got married at the New England Aquarium.
The BPS Department of Global Education "seeks to increase the quality and number of international experiences for all BPS students. To that end, the department takes a comprehensive approach to promoting global citizenship through eight key program areas" that are outlined at the link above. The department has a limited internet presence without publicly accessible resources, however they may be a good resource to reach out to with specific questions regarding global education.
ADDITIONAL GLOBAL EDUCATION RESOURCES
I've collected a number of additional Global Education-related resources below. I hope you find them useful as you take a deeper dive into incorporating Global Education into your practice.
In 2015 the United Nations adopted a set of goals "to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all as part of a new sustainable development agenda." These accessible and clearly articulated goals are a great starting point for class projects or lesson plans.
This PDF rubric, from the Association of American Colleges and Universities, provides educators with a framework for assessing student achievement in six areas of global learning. These are: Global Self-Awareness, Perspective Taking, Cultural Diversity, Personal and Social Responsibility, Understanding Global Systems, and Applying Knowledge to Contemporary Global Contexts.
Oxfam provides a number of global education resources to educators, including this PDF guide for schools and this PDF guide on "Science and Global Citizenship."
The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is an international science and education program that provides students and the public worldwide with the opportunity to participate in data collection and the scientific process, and contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the Earth system and global environment.
This program combines physical activity, wearable technology (the UNICEF Kid Power Band) modular "mission" lesson plans to get students "active and inspired while they learn about different cultures and UNICEF's work to help children everywhere survive and thrive."
Global Education leader Veronica Boix Mansilla shares a number of routines that teachers can utilize to support global competencies in their classrooms. From the December 2016/January 2017 issue of Educational Leadership.
This EdWeek blog post by Betty Soppelsa and Jennifer Manise delivers, succinctly, what it promises in the title.
The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development shares their continuum of teacher dispositions, knowledge, and skills here. Adapted from the work of Cain, Glazier, Parkhouse, and Tichnor-Wagner.
This national education nonprofit "works with educators, schools, and districts to integrate the highest quality of global competence teaching and learning into K-12 classrooms, so all young people can be prepared to engage, succeed, and meet the challenges of 21st century citizenship." Watch their promo video here.
The Longview Foundation for World Affairs and International Understanding supports education surrounding world regions and global issues. The foundation provides grants for "State Networks on International Education, Internationalizing Teacher Preparation, and Innovations in International Education."
The NAFSA Association of International Educators is "the world's largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education and exchange, working to advance policies and practices that ensure a more interconnected, peaceful world today and for generations to come." Fun Fact: NAFSA stands for National Association of Foreign Student Advisers, you can read about the name change and acronym retention here.
Project-Based Learning (PBL) is a great method for teaching global competencies and incorporating Global Education into your practice. If PBL is new to you, this introduction from Jennifer Gonzalez at CultOfPedagogy.com is a good primer.
TEACH
GLOBAL
EDUCATION
GUIDE
The Teach section of my Global Education Guide includes an introduction to Global Education, information regarding Global Ed's place in science and math education, numerous teaching resources and lesson plans, and links to a variety of educational technology tools that can serve Global Ed.