Title: Beliefs and Collective Thought: Aligning the National with the International Curricula: The Indian E
1Beliefs and Collective Thought Aligning the
National with the International Curricula The
Indian Experience 21st IBAP International
Conference, Hanoi - Vietnam, October 2006
- P.Swarnalatha
- Dhirubhai Ambani International School
- Mumbai, India
2Globalization and the internationalization of
education Concerns regarding implanting of
international education into national systems Do
host country nationals impede international
education in international schools?
Indian experience of International Schools
necessity of co-opting both National and
International Curricula strands?
3- Objectives of the study
- explore issues and challenges encountered by
emerging IB schools in India in conceptualizing
and conditioning curricula for transmission of
universal values and beliefs - Understand fashioning of curricula that aim to
position the school into the fold of
international schools
4- Concept of international education perspectives
and debates - internationalism and international mindedness
- pragmatic globalist international education
- Balanced curriculum and internationalism
- Curriculum and thought collectives
5The Indian experience with international
education
6Need to understand meaning and nature of concepts
- internationalism and values (as perceived by
students, teachers, parents, and school
administrators)In India multicultural student
bodies are rarely found schools ambience is
conditioned by the presence of host country / one
country nationals.
How do students and teachers in Dhirubhai Ambani
International School perceive international
education?
7- Research Method and tools
- Sample survey teachers and administrators (29),
and secondary school students (34) - Questionnaire semantic-differential type scale
Mary Hayden, Jeff Thomson, and Geraint Williams
(2003) - Items seeking views on global awareness, values,
and pedagogies and methods related to delivery of
curricula in the classroom - Respondents asked to comment on each item on a
five - point scale of importance ranging from not
important to extremely important, or to rank
items on a particular theme
8- Important findings and conclusions
- GLOBAL AWARENESS
- Human rights, sustainable development, social
justice, and diversity accorded more importance - Concepts of interdependence, and conflict
resolution received little attention from students
9- Important findings and conclusions (contd.)
- 2. VALUES
- Sense of responsibility quite important
- Sense of spirituality least response
- Individualistic responses, no significant trend
on other values sense of achievement, sense of
independence and freedom, sense of belonging and
identity, sense of usefulness to community,
cooperation and team work - Students more in favour of critical pedagogical
approaches than teachers
10- Important findings and conclusions (contd.)
- 3. INTERNATIONALISM PEDAGOGIES AND METHODS
RELATED TO DELIVERY OF CURRICULA IN THE CLASSROOM - Multicultural faculty Both students as well as
teachers recognized the importance - Role of Language Important to learn a non-native
language but constraints in learning subjects in
a different language (non-English)
11- Important findings and conclusions (contd.)
- 3. INTERNATIONALISM (contd.)
- Globalist Education responses indicate
commodification of education dictated by ongoing
processes of globalization, and a pragmatic
attitude towards education. - Thought Collectives Catalyst for
Internationalism - thought collectives imbibed through formal
curriculum as a powerful force towards developing
sense of internationalism
12- Important findings and conclusions (contd.)
- 3. INTERNATIONALISM (contd.)
- Items related to learning beyond boundaries of
national culture are as significant aspects of
education in an international school by students - Role of Critical Pedagogies construction of
knowledge from a critical perspective - Theory of
Knowledge and Extended Essays seen as very
important
13- Important findings and conclusions (contd.)
- 3. INTERNATIONALISM (contd.)
- Value of Diversity given much weightage by
teachers and students - Balanced curriculum critical pedagogies and
approaches considered very crucial in promotion
of international mindedness - more than 50 gave highest importance to school
curriculum aiming at integrating the school
vertically in subject areas, and horizontal
integration aiming at interdisciplinary approaches
14- Conclusions
- internationalism increasingly recognized and
embedded into the national system - reinforcement and resilience of enduring values
through thought collectives and beliefs in the
classroom - more powerful approach for appreciation and
assimilation of universal values and traditions
15- Conclusions (Contd.)
- Despite fears of commodification, international
education offers opportunities to incorporate
concerns regarding womens equality, empowerment
and social justice within the educational system