What is the global dimension?
We all have global connections in our lives. The young people now in our schools will be the citizens of the future and are growing up in an increasingly globalised world. Citizenship can only really be understood and put into practice if it is seen in that wider context of globalisation - the economic, cultural, technological and political systems that link us with other places.
Globalisation has the potential to be an opportunity or a threat. As teachers, we have the responsibility to develop open minds and positive attitudes towards being a global citizen. We need to help pupils build on their skills to make a difference to the future of our world. To allow pupils to remain unaware of global perspectives would be to leave them uninformed about the nature of their own lives and the position and role they hold in relation to the world in which they live.
During their primary education, pupils begin to develop a curiosity about their own lives and the lives of others, and about their local environment and environments further afield. Building on this is a vital part of education. It enables pupils to appreciate the similarities and differences that exist between people in different parts of the world. Pupils can begin to understand that their own actions not only affect the future in their local area, but also have an impact on a much wider global scale.
Terminology
Various terms are used in different documents to refer to the global dimension. These terms have been used interchangeably and this can be confusing. It will be helpful for your management of teaching the global dimension across the curriculum if you and your colleagues are clear about the terminology used. The activity on the right should be carried out by you to begin with and then with colleagues.
Activity Resources:
- Images
- Interactive
- Sound
- Text
- Video
Activity
This activity is suitable to use with groups during INSET.
- Click on the Text icon and print out enough copies of 'Clarifying "global" terminology' (Hicks, 2002) as necessary for each group.
- Before giving a table to each group, cut it up into individual definitions and terms.
- Ask each group to:
- identify any terms that are new;
- match terms with definitions.
- As a whole group, discuss and draw up a terminology chart or 'crib sheet' that will be useful in school when managing the teaching of the global dimension across the primary curriculum.
