Globally Organized: School System Types That Can Democratize Access to Global Citizenship Education

• In Event: 68.060 - Roundtable Session 29
  In Roundtable Session: 68.060-6 - School Organization and Effects: School Structure and Design

Abstract

Global citizenship education (GCE) enables people to live, learn, and work in an increasingly interdependent, complex world. Despite being an essential educational opportunity, GCE is rare; access to it privileges some based on school and student characteristics. Responding to Myers’ (2016) call to democratize GCE in U.S. public schools, we used Boulding’s (1956) nine system types to analyze focus group data from teachers and students in schools that offer International Baccalaureate, the world’s leading GCE provider. Our findings reveal open systems to be the most fertile ground for GCE implementation. Based on traits of various open system types, we offer research, policy, and practice recommendations to expand GCE opportunity access from select groups to all students.

Authors

• Michael Thier, International Baccalaureate

• Joanna R. Smith, University of Oregon