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Welcome back! Last week on the BuzzGlobal, we took an in depth look into the word 'globalization'. We defined it, we outlined some major pros and cons, and we began to think about how schools and teachers are adapting to these new global perspectives.

Today, we delve further into the idea of educating students about collaboration and solving big issues around the world. We have included a list of necessary skills along with a step-by-step guide that students can follow. 

Part 2: The 21st Century Student

"For knowledge is worth more than anything there is in the world; it's what makes great men and good men."–Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Education systems around the world are slowly starting to catch up with the times. Most teachers, however, have known for a long time that things are changing; they have started integrating technology into the classroom and have begun emphasizing the skills that students will need to navigate the murky waters of globalization.

Dana Mortenson is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of World Savvy, which is a national education nonprofit that works with schools and teachers to help develop curriculums based on teaching global competence. In her article, A Look Inside the Classroom of the Future, she provides a list of skills that she believes students must acquire in order to solve complex problems in a diverse, globalized environment[1]:

• An appreciation for cultural differences

• An ability to understand and consider multiple perspectives

• Critical and comparative thinking skills

• Problem-solving abilities

• Comfort with ambiguity and change

• An understanding of globally significant issues

The National Education Association of America (NEA) has its own list of crucial skills, which they identify in their journal, Preparing 21st Century Students for a Global Society. The NEA's 'Four C's' are critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity[2]. In their journal, they describe the significance of these skills and give advice for cultivating and promoting them in the classroom.

"Global warming, immigration reform, pandemic diseases, and financial meltdowns are just a few of the issues today's students will be called upon to address. Today's students must be prepared to solve these challenges." –Dennis Van Roekal, Preparing 21st Century Students for a Global Society[3]

The ultimate goal of these initiatives is to develop a better strategy for optimizing collaboration between people from different cultures in order to achieve innovative and globally responsible results.

How do you start improving these skills today?

Now that you understand globalization and why it's important, let's take a look at how you can start learning like a global citizen today.

1. Collaboration: Familiarize yourself with different cultures

If you've studied or done business abroad, then you probably know the importance of cultural competence. Social circumstances, like people's backgrounds and beliefs, affect the way people think and how they form their opinions. Educating yourself about these cultural differences will help you develop a deeper empathy for others thereby enabling you to collaborate with more people in a meaningful way. A great website for learning more about business cultures and social etiquettes around the world is:

Use this website as a starting point and be curious! It's important to do your research before interacting with people from other countries because it creates a foundation of understanding to build upon. You will be able to get more work done when you understand where people are coming from. 

2. Critical Thinking: Make acquiring information a routine

We are living in the Information Age. The amount of information available at your fingertips can be both exciting and overwhelming. To deal with this influx of facts and figures we need a good strategy. As part of Harvard Graduate School of Education's Project Zero, they created an online resource called Visible Thinking. Among other things, VT provides simple activities that help students develop a useful routine for acquiring and verifying information. One of their 'core' thinking routines is called: Think, Puzzle, Explore. Ask yourself three simple questions[4]:

"What do you think you know about this topic?"

"What questions or puzzles do you have?"

"How can you explore this topic?"

Think, Puzzle, Explore is a simple mantra that will help you seek out and process information effectively. Once you have a starting point it becomes easier to separate the relevant information from the noise.

3. Creativity: Start thinking on a larger scale

Solutions come in all shapes and sizes so it is important to keep the big picture in mind when tackling problems. Issues become more complex when you think about the local as well as the global impact. There's no avoiding the complexity but you can make yourself better equipped to deal with it. Think about a problem that is affecting your community. Through a bit of research you may find that a similar problem has been addressed in another part of the world. What solutions did they use? Can you apply those same methods locally? Think about global issues. Can you start a program in your community that could help issues on a larger scale? Thinking creatively means finding new ways to look at a problem. Brainstorming is a very effective technique for generating a lot of ideas in a short time. 

Let your mind wander! When you've already spent a good amount of time researching and working on solving a problem, daydreaming can actually help you think more creatively. It gives your brain the rest it needs to come up with fresh, new ideas.[5]  

4. Communication: Use technology to your benefit

The last item on our list is too vast to cover in one short paragraph so we decided to dedicate a whole article to it. Next week, we will explore technologies that make accessing the global community easy and educational. In the meantime, Think, Puzzle, Explore:

(1) What do you think you know about educational and communication technology?

(2) What questions or puzzles do you have about it?

(3) How can you explore available technologies?

Sources:

[1] Edutopia is nonpartisan organization that is dedicated to showcasing 'what works in education'. Dana Mortenson's contribution, A Look Inside the Classroom of the Future, is just one of the informative and inspiring articles that can be found on Edutopia.org.

Mortenson, Dana. "A Look Inside the Classroom of the Future." Edutopia. 22 Dec. 2014. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. https://www.globalization101.org/what-is-globalization/

[2] The American National Education Association's guide for educators about preparing their students for the 21st century provides excellent ideas for teachers to start integrating these skills into classrooms across America.

Van Roekel, Dennis. Preparing 21St Century Students For A Global Society: An Educator's Guide To The "Four Cs". 1st ed. National Education Association, 2015. Print.

[3] Dennis VanRoekel's quote can be found on Page 5 of the journal report, Preparing 21st Century Students for a Global Society: An Educator's Guide to the "Four Cs"

Download the PDF here: https://www.nea.org/tools/52217.htm

[4] Harvard's Project Zero was started in 1967 by the philosopher Nelson Goodman to study and improve education in the arts. Visible Thinking is one of the projects that have been launched since Goodman started Project Zero. The goal of Visible Thinking is to deepen students' thinking skills and broaden their understanding of content.

"VisibleThinking." Visible Thinking. Harvard Project Zero. Web. 28 Sept. 2015.

https://www.visiblethinkingpz.org/VisibleThinking_html_files/03_ThinkingRoutines/03d_UnderstandingRoutines/ThinkPuzzleExplore/ThinkPuzzleExplore_Routine.html 

[5] For more great ideas to engage your creative brain, check out the article, How to Encourage More Creative Thinking, written by Gregory Ciotti, a content strategist for the software developing firm, Help Scout.

Ciotti, Gregory. "How to Encourage More CreativeThinking." Sparring Mind RSS. 12 Mar. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2015.

https://www.sparringmind.com/creative-thinking/

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Author: Marlie; Editor: Natalie

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