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Training for a Global Society

© Sithong Phongvichith / UNESCO / ASPnetTo prepare students for a more integrated world, newer, non-traditional subjects—like health, multicultural, character, citizenship, and development education—are gradually being taught in different schools in different countries, but the teaching of such subjects is by no means universal. As a new trend, service learning is a unique form of experiential education that is meant to teach civic values and strengthen communities, and which is gaining in popularity. Such programs encourage students to research problems in their own communities, implement service projects, and then evaluate the results. Besides building leadership and communication skills, one of the key aims is to empower youth to affect social change.

A study of several such programs in the Balkans highlighted projects including Aureola in the southwestern Macedonian town of Struga, which brings interethnic high school youth together to work in teams on socio-economic problems like violence against women. The New Horizons Foundation in Romania offers community development clubs for youth. Meeting twice weekly for trainings and planning sessions, the youth design “meaningful service projects with visible impact.” A program called Roots & Shoots, founded by Dr. Jane Goodall and with offices worldwide, organizes groups of young people to plan and implement service projects—particularly those that protect the environment and animals.

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On the theme of the environment, the international community has been paying more attention to the need, as UNESCO explains, “to foster—through education and training—the values, behavior, and lifestyles required for a sustainable future. Education for sustainable development, especially at the secondary level, has come to be seen as a process of learning how to make decisions that consider the long-term stability of the economy, ecology, and equity of all communities.”

What that means in practice is developing the teaching tools and curricula to help students learn how to live in, care for, and adapt to a changing planet. The Facing the Future curriculum is one such resource. The Sustainability Education Handbook, Oxfam’s Cool Planet for Teachers, OneWorld’s own Tiki the Penguin,

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and the UK-based Globe Program are others. These are just some examples of the many new programs meant to train today’s students to live in, and contribute to, an increasingly global village.

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