Towards Global Citizenship Education: Utilizing ICT

Abstract

There has been a shift in education discourse and practice towards the needs of a “global age”. Educational reformers have identified a gap between what is taught in schools and the skills and knowledge necessary for an interconnected 21st century. In a recently concluded forum on Global Citizenship Education (2015), the UNESCO Director- General stressed the need to rethink education. “we need new skills for new times – to foster greater respect and understanding between cultures, to give learners tools to make the most of diversity, to develop new values and behaviours of solidarity and responsibility, to harness the energy of young women and men for the benefit of all,” Educators know their students. They know that most students' views are derived from their familiar community as such it is parochial and local. Educators also know that this view can be enlarged by increase in educational opportunities of interaction with others outside their immediate environment. For most students in Kenya as with most countries around the world, student exchange is an option that is often unreachable. There is an alternative to student exchange. This presentation will focus on examples of current and ongoing collaborative projects that are utilizing digital technologies (video conferences, collaborative blogs, goggle docs , Wiki, chats etc.) to break international barriers and foster cross-cultural interactions, connections and understanding in order to bring about improved international and social relations for emerging global citizens. New collaborations will be explored.