Broadening horizons
‘Our vision is to empower every student to master the challenges of today and shape the world of tomorrow.’
But how do we do that? How do we turn the promise into reality? There is clearly no more important time to enable young people to understand they are ‘global’ citizens and the answers to the big problems cannot be solved by local and even national decisions. The pandemic has surely taught us that we must tackle some things together and what happens in the world will affect us all and does every day. There are so many forces out there now that encourage learners to form a simplistic populist approach to problems and a ‘me first’ view.
But how do you enable a student who has probably not really been out of their local area to appreciate the complexity of life halfway round the world with different cultures and systems. Of course, there are many students who either with their family or through school get to visit amazing places and experience all this, but actually the very places where a populist view is most entrenched is where there is least exposure to more exotic experiences.
Let me start with a very different place. John Baumber, Director of Education for Kunskapsskolan UK described own journey experiences to Africa that shaped a passion for global thinking in schools.
Discovering a deep moral purpose through a global perspective “. So, it is November 2008. I sit in paradise, albeit the manufactured paradise of the Breezes Beach Club on Zanzibar. Inevitably I am by the pool under some palms. Every part of this day will be managed, every part of my body will be pampered!