Teaching and Globalization

Abstract

Globalization is typically understood as an economic, political and cultural process that is reshaping the role of many nation-states in relation to global markets, agreements, and traditions. Recently it has become frequently analyzed in the context of education. However, there is surprisingly little work done on the pedagogical implications of globalization on teaching and learning other than shifting the emphasis from traditional subjects to information and communication technology and English as a foreign language. This article argues that globalization is having an effect on teaching and learning in three ways: educational development is often based on a global unified agenda, standardized teaching and learning are being used as vehicles to improvement of quality, and emphasis on competition is increasingly evident among individuals and schools. The article concludes that recent development of standardization and competition-based education will become increasingly counter-productive to preparing students for meaningful lives for and beyond knowledge economy. Furthermore, as a response to globalization, educators need to rethink the ways teaching and learning are organized in schools, promote appropriate flexibility at school level, creativity in classrooms and risk-taking among students and teachers as part of their daily work in school. Education Systems in the Global Context Globalization has typically been interpreted using economic, political and cultural terms. Depending on the perspective, it has been seen as a transition from a Fordist workplace orientation to internationalized trade and consumption. Globalization is also leading to a diminishing role of nation-states, loss of their sovereignty, and the emergence of global hegemony of transnational media and entertainment corporations. As a consequence, standardization in economies, policies and culture has become a new norm for competitive corporations, ideas, and media. As Burbules and Torres (2000) write, changes in global culture

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