Considering places in terms of their interconnections
Young people can find it difficult to think of themselves as global citizens. They see 'global' in terms of scale, that is, as something distant and remote from themselves. Highlighting pupils' existing links to distant places can provide a starting point for pupils to think about 'global' in terms of interconnections rather than distances. Using pupils' prior experiences as a starting point for developing the global dimension also provides a meaningful context for their learning and supports the principle of inclusive learning.
The global dimension is not about somebody else, somewhere else; it is about right here, right now. It is about people in different countries or places experiencing different realities and our places and our realities being directly connected to theirs. Reflect on the two quotes below and what you think Massey means.
What we want to emphasise is a notion of place as one of the arenas where people (of all ages) learn to negotiate with others - to learn to form this thing called society.
(Massey, 2002)
No longer do we think of place - or region, or nation - as simply bounded territories with 'external' 'essential' characteristics which somehow grow out of the soil. Rather we (or many of us) now lay stress on understanding the identity of place as the product also of its relations with elsewhere.
(Massey, 2002)
Notice how Massey is challenging us to move forward towards thinking of places in terms of their interconnections - their links - with other places. We are also connected to other places by our rights and responsibilities as global citizens.
The activity on the right can be used to explore global rights and responsibilities with your pupils. Try it yourself first.
Activity Resources:
- Images
- Interactive
- Sound
- Text
- Video
Activity
- Go to the 'Learn zone' area of the WaterAid website. Select 'What we do', and then from 'Case studies' choose a country. WaterAid
- Click on the Text icon and use the 'Rights and responsibilities' table to analyse the country you have chosen and to consider how we are connected to this place by our responsibilities. Use your table as an example for your pupils, and ask them to carry out a similar activity. The results could be displayed on the school's intranet and used as a research resource for an in-depth writing activity about global interconnections, rights and responsibilities.
