Who Needs Global Citizenship Education? A Review of the Literature on Teacher Education

Abstract

Given the seemingly ever-increasing scholarly production about the ideas and ideals of global citizenship education (GCE), it is not surprising those discussions started to gain influence in teacher education (TE) debates. In this study, we examine the discourses that tacitly shape the meanings of GCE within the contemporary academic literature on TE. After analyzing the peer-reviewed scholarship published from 2003 to 2018, we identified patterns in how GCE for TE was described and defended, beyond the differences in their conceptual frameworks. The dominant trend found is to frame GCE as a redemptive educational solution to global problems. This framing requires teachers to embrace a redemptive narrative following a model of rationality based on altruistic, hyperrationalized and overly romanticized ideals. Ultimately, TE literature contributes to the configuration of an excessively naïve discourse that tends to ignore the neoliberal context in which both GCE and TE take place today.

From Caterpillars to Butterflies: Exploring Pre-service Teachers’ Transformations While Navigating Global Citizenship Education

“…As noted by several authors (Goren and Yemini, 2017;Yemini et al, 2019;Estellés and Fischman, 2020), GCE is an emerging topic in teacher education literature. Researchers have examined pre-service and in-service teachers' beliefs and knowledge of GCE (Holden and Hicks, 2007;Rapoport, 2010); in-service teachers' practices and signature pedagogies in teaching for global citizenship (Tichnor-Wagner et al, 2016); and the impact of GCE-oriented professional development programs for PSTs (Appleyard and McLean, 2011;Guo, 2014;Patrick et al, 2014;Kopish, 2017;Andrade and Lourenço, 2019) and teacher educators (Blanks, 2013;Lourenço, 2018a,b).…”

“…Finally, it should not be forgotten that, although PSTs revealed a better understanding of GCE and showed signs of personal and professional development, that does not necessarily mean that they have become more engaged educators and global citizens, or that the optimism and motivation that the course apparently inspired will last long (Estellés and Fischman, 2020). Longstanding peer and leadership support, as well as continuing professional development on GCE, will be fundamental to ensure that they move forward in their pathways toward globally competent teaching.…”

Young people confronting the challenge of reading and interpreting a digital world

“…Research on global and digital citizenship has focused on the development of a population that crosses borders and national identities (e.g. Andreotti, 2006;Davies, 2006;Estellés & Fischman, 2020;González-Valencia et al, 2020;Oxley & Morris, 2013). However, the relations between citizenship education and digital environments has been understudied, and mainly form the prism of participation, activism and digital citizenship (Kahne et al, 2016;Shirky, 2011) while there has been little in-depth study of the influence of social and digital media on the construction of social representations and values in future citizens, as has been the case with critical digital literacy (Castellví et al, 2018;Castellví et al, 2019;Santisteban et al, 2020).…”

Secondary Science Teachers’ Views on Environmental Citizenship in The Netherlands

“…Many teachers use a strong focus on recycling and small, at-home behaviors in their explanation of sustainability, which leads to an oversimplified view on how to solve sustainability issues in the long run. For this, a broader approach that also includes governmental or other collective actions is pivotal [32]. Teachers who do not include public-sphere behavior and the global aspects of EC that are necessary to reach a sustainable future in their EC teaching is a common theme in literature [33].…”