Keita Placide Proposal Resubmitted REV DRL 010511

IMPLEMENTING GLOBAL AWARENESS CURRICULUM IN HIGH SCHOOLS: THE USEOF INTERNATIONAL TEACHING METHODS TO IMPROVE AWARENESS AND COMPREHENSION OF World ISSUES Except where reference is made t

IMPLEMENTING GLOBAL AWARENESS CURRICULUM IN HIGH SCHOOLS: THE USE

OF INTERNATIONAL TEACHING METHODS TO IMPROVE AWARENESS AND

COMPREHENSION OF World ISSUES

Except where reference is made to the work of others, the work described in this thesis is myown or was done in collaboration with my Advisor This thesis does not include propriety or

RAISING GLOBAL AWARENESS IN HIGH SCHOOLS: THE USE OF JAPANESETEACHING METHODS TO IMPROVE AWARENESS AND COMPREHENSION OF World

Issuesproject submitted

byKeita Lloyd Placide

To LaGrange College

In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of

SPECIALIST IN EDUCATION

in Curriculum and InstructionLaGrange, GeorgiaDecember 31, 2010

iii

iv

Table of Contents

Abstract……….iii

Table of Contents……… iv

List of tables and figures Chapter 1: Introduction……… 1

Statement of the Problem……… ….…1

Significance of the Problem………2

Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks……… 3

Focus Questions……….…5

Overview of Methodology……… ……… 6

Human as Researcher……….6

Chapter 2: Review of Literature……….………7-13 Chapter 3: Methodology……….……13

Research Design……… ……….……13

Sample / Subjects / Participants……… 13-15 Procedures and Data Collection Methods……….……… 15-16 Validity and Reliability Measures……… #

Analysis of Data……….……….…….#

Chapter 4: Results……… #

Chapter 5: Analysis and Discussion of Results Analysis………#

Discussion………#

Implications……… #

Impact on Student Learning……….#

Recommendations for Future Research……… #

References………#

Appendices……… …#

List of Tables

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Statement of the Problem

American students do not exhibit a global perspective; they lack an appreciation,

awareness, and acceptance of different cultures and people in our ever changing world

(Demovsky & Niemuth, 1999) Georgia high school students are not being prepared at the secondary level of education to meet the criteria of successful twenty-first century student The criteria for global awareness can be broken down in three vital content areas: geography, culture and economics The Committee of Economic Development (2000) wrote “state high school graduate requirements include only minimal course work in international studies, such as world history, geography political and science area studies, and some states require none at all” (CED,

2000, p 1)

To graduate from high school in Georgia, most students must take and pass the Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT) which assesses five core academic content areas The social studies portion has a shortage of global and international questions placed on the test The majority of the questions on the GHSGT in this section are based on knowledge of American history The Georgia High School Graduation Social Studies section has a shortage of global andinternational questions placed on the test The GHSGT bases most of its questions about

American History Proponents of Global Education argue that American students tend to focus

on the United States’ role in other nations as a whole, but lack awareness, understanding, and acceptance of diversity (Demovsky & Niemuh, 2000) Demovsky and Niemuh (2000) also believe the lack of awareness has a negative impact on students’ acceptance of other nations and their cultures In the twenty-first century, nations can no longer concentrate on only national

business or trade More emphasis has to be placed on global trade if countries want to remain economically viable in twenty-first century.

In an era of AYP and standardized testing, the limited number of world history questions has left teachers to exclusively focus most of their teaching on United States history questions in order to best prepare their students The test is made up of thirty-five United States history questions, thirteen United States government questions, thirteen world history questions, and nine geography questions that may concentrate on the United States (GHGT, 2010) Georgia students are taught according to the Georgia Professional Standards [GPS] which only introducesstudents to world history in the sixth and seventh grades At the secondary level, students in the ninth grade have only two semesters of world history In the last three years, LaGrange High school world history domain, on the social studies section has never surpassed 68% (GDOE, 2010)

Unfortunately, the extreme focus of United States history has confined students to model their learning and cognitive styles Social studies teachers should incorporate more world history content with a social constructivist method to improve students’ understanding Constructivists maintain that learning is, fundamentally, a socially mediated activity, (Cleborne, Johnson, & Willis, 1997) The purpose of this study will examine social constructive teaching strategies in social studies (world history) and formulate an answer to the research question on how social constructive teaching strategies can increase the global awareness of Georgia students

Significance of the Problem

There are endless disadvantages and repercussions for students not being globally aware The first disadvantage to being globally illiterate is economic In the economic arena, the world

is seen as a “potential market” and in order for American students to compete effectively and

efficiently, global knowledge must be attained There is a serious educational gap between high school students’ curriculum and the business community in America In a 2006 report, the

Committee for Economic Development (CED) reported, “It may come as a surprise then, that a

2002 survey of large U.S corporations found that nearly 30 percent of the companies believed they had failed to exploit fully their international business opportunities due to personnel with international skills” (CED, 2006 p 6) The United States economy in its present condition cannotafford to lose international markets especially due to a lack of global education in the high schoolcurriculum The CED contends that United States corporations lack of global education exists in international business miscalculations when it reported that “Microsoft Corporation developed a time zone gap for Windows 95 operating system; it inadvertently showed the region of Kashmir lying outside the boundaries of India India banned the software, and Microsoft was forced to recall 200,000 copies of the offending software” (CED, 2006 p 7) The second repercussion is cultural sensitivity Many American students are regimented in their ways of thought and

problem-solving skills Most teachers would agree that students’ attitudes and perspectives towards the introduction of topics dealing with different societies, customs, and rituals (outside the U.S.) are mostly negative In order for America to lead the world into the next millennium, the education of students must become culturally sensitive and responsive to other nations Another disadvantage of American students not being globally aware is a weaker national

security To understand the threats of terrorism in the world and solutions to prevent it from reaching the shores of America is of national importance It is important for educators to keep students current with today’s world events It is also important that educators themselves do not fall prey to the old habits and teaching strategies By educators taking a closer look at world history, they will be challenged to find new ways of engaging their students Social

constructivists believe educators should be an active participant and guide for students

(Cleborne, Johnson, & Willis, 1997)

The goal of this study is to improve the student’s global awareness by helping them look

at other countries’ current events and to help their thinking process by communicating solutions

to their problems Advocates of social constructivist teaching maintain “Social Studies

incorporates rich opportunities to involve students in active investigation of issues, problems, consequences, and successes people encounter in the social world” (Sunal & Haas, 2007 p XIV).Creating an environment that helps students to be more globally aware will, in turn, help students

to not only understand a global events that affects global relationships to the United States, but also help them to develop cultural sensitivity

Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks

This research is directly linked to social constructivism Beck and Kosnik (2006) cite Dewey as saying in 1916, “education is not an affair of ‘telling’ and being told, but an active and constructive process” (p 9) This constructive perspective is directly linked to the theory that students must have involved critical thinking but essentially reinforces the learning by

experiences “At the school level, social constructivism implies a form of learning in which students are fully engaged, find the process meaningful, and relate ideas to the real world to a considerable extent” (Beck and Kosnik, 2006 p 2) Using the social cognitive theory in social studies, Sunal and Hass (2005) would support the idea of each student having interactive

experiences which will play a part in an improved learner’s understanding of and perspectives onglobal awareness

The introduction of more global studies into social studies curriculum relates strongly to

the second tenet of the Lagrange College Education Department’s (LCED) (2008) Conceptual

Framework exemplary professional teaching practices (p 5) Tenet Two emphasizes the

professional development of the teacher in order to be competent in the classroom The LCED

Conceptual Framework (2008), has three competency clusters, but this research will examine

only Competency Cluster 2.2 which focuses on the instructional skills such as “use of effective verbal, nonverbal, media communication techniques to encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem-solving and performance skills” (p.7) The Cluster also examines effective and appropriate management The main idea of a student-centered classroom is

supported by the theoretical concepts of Sunal and Hass (2008) in which they contend that the teacher creates an environment where the student is faced with a problem with four conditions: concepts, generalizations, higher level thinking skills and attitudes and disposition about the social world (p 31)

This research is directly linked to the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards [NBTS] Proposition Two Proposition Two states that the teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects to students This proposition encourages teachers to excel in their content area and interrelate it with other subjects The NBTS is a strong proponent of teachers having an “understanding of the history, structure, and real-world applications of the subject” (LaGrange College Educational Department 2009) The National Council for

Accreditation of Teacher Education Standard 1C and 1D are also aligned with this research Standard 1C states “Teacher candidates can apply the professional and pedagogical knowledge and skills delineated in professional, state, and institutional standards to facilitate learning” (LaGrange College Educational Department, 2009) NCATE’s Standard 1D emphasizes that teachers assess and analyze students and make adjustments This research also aligns with

Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Consortium’s (INTASC) domain 4 and 7 (LaGrange

College Educational Department k, 2009, p.12) Domain 4 advocates multiple instructional

strategies and domain 7 instructional planning When teachers become facilitators and allow students to socially construct their perspectives to their problems, higher order thinking skills come to the forefront

In this study, lessons were student-centered, and students were to ask to find solutions on four different global problems Creating an environment where there is classroom interaction, concepts, generalizations, higher level thinking skills and attitudes and disposition are core

teaching methods that are encouraged by the Conceptual Framework

Overview of Methodology

The research will be both qualitative and quantitative The location of this research will

be a South-Eastern high school in the United States The blacks and white demography of this school is proportionate There are less than 2% percent of Latino and Korean students The number of participants in the research will be 70 to 80 ninth grade world history students

A pre and post test on global education will be used to unpack focus question one The assessments will be analyzed for significant gains or losses by using independent and dependent

T tests, ANOVA, Correlation and effect size tests The qualitative data will be analyzed for categorical and repeating data On focus question two, a survey will be used to collect data on participants’ attitudes and concerns about global education The Chi Squared test will be used analyzed the quantitative data On Focus question three, evidence of department and

administrators’ endorsement of the global education will be collected in the form of an interview with the principal and a survey to social studies department members This qualitative data will

be analyzed and coded for themes

Human Researcher

This is my third year teaching social studies in the ninth through twelfth grade classrooms Istrongly believe in creating an environment where students are socially involved with the

content; this provides better learning experiences which enhances knowledge and their

perspectives From my experiences, students who are globally aware of issues in the world are more apt in answering questions and culturally sensitive to other cultures and nations It is my belief that it is a necessity that a twenty-first century teacher should teach from a global

perspective not only to pass a standardized test, but to also enhance their perspectives, their cultural identity, their cultural sensitivity, and their aptness for economic community, which is nolonger national but international

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW How does the introduction of student-centered, global awareness curriculum in social studies (world history) increase ninth graders assessment test scores? The main focus of the researcher is to help students to understand history’s key concepts with a global perspective in a student-centered environment The international community is becoming smaller and teachers need to move away from traditional styles of teaching The twenty-first century education

demands the United States’ students to be globally educated to compete in the international community In order to foster an environment for students to apply critical thinking and problem solving skills, the teacher must not dictate the classroom but provide guided instruction

(Demovsky & Niemuth, 1999).

Definition of Global Awareness

There are different interpretations of Global awareness and in order to establish an efficient Global education curriculum, a clear and precise definition must be constituted There are severalimportant variables of Global Awareness education Proponents of a global education curriculum contend the variables are “Growing economy, ecological, technological, political, and cultural interdependence in the today’s world” (Jones, 1992 p 15) It must be noted that the true

comprehension of the variables cannot be acquired without a social constructivist perspective The social constructivist perspective includes values, global issues and problems, global history, cross cultural understanding/interaction, awareness of human choices, the development of

analytical and evaluative, and strategies for participation and involvement (Lucas, 2010) The Council of Europe’s Centre North- south’s definition of global education corroborates Lucas’ definition, when they surmised “Global education is education that opens people’s eyes and

minds to the realities of the globalised world and awaken them to bring about greater justice, equity and human rights for all” (Maastricht Global Education Declaration, 2002 p 67)

Global Education ’s a effect on students’ grades

The main focus of this global awareness curriculum is to improve students’ grades Also,when a teachers a makes the content relevant to their students, the learning experience is

enhanced Traditional teaching styles have left students with limited knowledge and lack of problem-solving and performance skills to understand the international communities There is substantial evident evidence that supports students’ global education curriculum is unavoidable and vital to the United States Department of Education In a report conducted in the United States by the Committee for Economic Development (2000), 80 percent of the public believes that American students are not “adequately prepared” to deal with international issues (CED, 2000) The report conducted by Asia Society in 2001 and by the National Geographic Society in

2002 also revealed that “85 percent of young Americans (between the ages of 18 to 24) could notlocate Iraq or Iran on the middle East/Asia map (CED, p 23) In social studies, there are

historical events and concepts of how other societies behave that students may not comprehend until global perspectives and ideas are introduced In a 2005 Finnish report, researchers found that teaching geography (leisure, tourism and popular culture) is contemporary, entertaining, stimulated students’ interest, encouraged challenging questions and helped students understand complex concepts (Raento & Hottola, 2005) Hottolla and Raento (2005) concluded that teachersshould “find ways to deliver the message in clear, thought-provoking, and engaging ways to which the children of the era of global consumer culture and entertainment can relate and which they find meaningful” (Raento & Hottola, p 18)

The United States of America has one of the most diverse populations in the entire world.

In 2003, the United States Census Bureau (2003) estimated that there were 33.5 million

foreigners living in the United States As the immigration rate increases, America’s school population becomes increasingly diversified, thereby forcing the U.S Department of Education

to design a curriculum that promotes cultural and social sensitivity among high school students

By providing a global education curriculum in high schools, teachers are able to raise cultural awareness among American high school students Research shows that when teachers are

culturally responsive and proactive, it provides a classroom atmosphere that eliminates barriers

to learning and achievements by assisting students reach their full potential (Ford, 2010)

Teachers ’ and students ’ attitudes towards Global Awareness

“The intrinsic rewards for teachers with a global perspective are persuasive The global teacher recognizes the importance of preparing students for the 21st century and is aware of the

misunderstandings, stereotypes, prejudices, and conflicts that exist among members of the world communities… the global teacher meets the needs of the existing multicultural, and multi-

linguistic student population Thus, teaching with a global perspective is interesting, rewarding, and meaningful” (Yunker, 1992, p.18)

Studies have shown that traditional teaching styles and lack of global perspective will notprovide an equal opportunity learning environment for minority students to maximize the

educational potential Research shows that 45% of the public student population in the United States is culturally different compared to two decades ago (U.S Department of Education, 2009)

In developing a culturally sensitive curriculum it is necessary that teachers take into

consideration ‘all’ students’ opportunities and experiences are being met (Ford, 2010) Research