Negotiating Learner Differences MOOC’s Updates

Global Learning : Bringing the World Into the Classroom

The process of learning in a global context involves all members of the school community in supporting and inspiring students to make sense of their place in the world and their relationship to others both locally and globally. As an educator,
it is our job to find ways to engage students with the wider world through a virtual exchange that connects classrooms across the globe as partners in learning activities that prepare students to be productive, engaged citizens of the world.

As education has evolved through the year's educators have learned to integrate global topics and perspectives across content areas. Globally competent teaching does not require a separate course or unit of study. Instead, teachers infuse global content into the required curriculum, regardless of subject- area. For example, math teachers use real-world global challenges as contents for introducing new concepts (e.g., using word problems on population growth as a way to teach the rules of exponents) and language arts teacher used texts to represent diverse cultural perspectives and that take place in settings wound the world to teach literature and informational texts. This could also be a great way to teach the differences and similarities of various cultures, which will teach students that we are all connected leading to increased awareness and understanding of others.

Providing opportunities for authentic engagement with global issues. Teachers provide real-world audiences for students to engage with that center around a global issue. This could take a variety of forms, one, in particular, took the form of a pen pal and Skype exchange with schools in other countries. Service-learning projects emphasizing issues of global concern (e.g., access to clean water), or working in teams to devise and debate solutions to real-world problems, such as climate change, and sharing those solutions with government leaders.

Connecting the global experience of students and teachers to the classroom. Teachers adapt culturally responsive teaching practices that incorporate the cultures, languages, perspectives, and experiences of diverse students into curriculum and instruction. Teachers will also incorporate their cross-cultural experiences into the classroom through conversation, discussions around works of art, photos, music, and lesson plans that incorporated knowledge gained and relationships built through their global experiences.

With the strategies outlined above and teacher engaging themselves and their students with the world. What's important that students learn that no matter their zip code or their culture, race, or economic status, we are are in some way influenced by the world. And, that they have the potential to shape that world. Their, our, and the future of the world depends on it.

References:

Meli, P. (2017, October 15). Hoe teaching developed in Local and Global Contexts enriches student Communication Skills: Simplifying Approaches to Teaching & Learning Series. Retrieved from https://blog.100mentors.com/how-teaching-developed-in-local-and-global-contexts-enriches-student-communication-skills/

  • Linda Rivera