Globalizing Minds: Rhetoric & Realities in International Schools

Co-edited by Iveta Silova and Daphne P. Hobson

College of Education, Lehigh University

To be published by Information Age Publishing in 2009/2010

http://www.infoagepub.com/

CALL FOR CHAPTER PROPOSALS

Globalization has a profound effect on the mission and goals of education worldwide. One of its most visible manifestations is the worldwide endorsement of the idea of “education for global mindedness” or “global citizenship.” National governments, politicians, and policy-makers enthusiastically support these concepts across different nations. Increasingly, the educational enterprise feels under pressure to respond to globalization by preparing students to engage competitively and successfully with this new realm, lest their nations be left in the dust.  Educational institutions at all levels (schools and higher education institutions) face pressure not only from powerful external sources, but also from within national boundaries. Despite various attempts to define the concept of “global mindedness” or “global citizenship,” it is impossible to settle on a commonly agreed definition because it takes distinct meanings in different contexts. Moving beyond the wish list of “global citizenship” features, this book aims to understand why the idea of “global mindedness/citizenship” is becoming so appealing to nations, even to some of the most authoritarian and conservative countries, across the world.

The book will focus on theory and practice of “education for global mindedness/citizenship” in the context of international schools. Located throughout the world, international schools are in an educational class of their own.  They are quasi-independent institutions at the intersection of local and global economies. They straddle both worlds, mediating national, international and local curricula for a typically multinational student body situated in a particular cultural context that is concrete, specific, immediately available, and, to at least some if not most members of the school community, “foreign.” The demands for academic excellence and achievement at these schools can be ferocious.  These demands derive specifically from school community members, who, through their own trans-national activities, lean towards programs that promote international values, best practices, and global competitiveness.  As “global” hybrids, international schools are living laboratories for such challenging areas as cross-cultural understanding, language acquisition, integrated curricula, contextualization, and leadership for diversity.  Indeed, they have a legacy of achievement that is now six decades old, and there is a substantial and growing body of academic literature about them. For all these reasons, international schools will rightfully continue to be central to any debate about global citizenship for the 21^st century.

            We invite chapter proposals that address any number of topics related to the nature, dynamics, and evidence of “education for global mindedness/citizenship” in international schools.  Chapters may examine the complexity of factors that drive educators to develop curricula for “global mindedness/citizenship” and also, to examine how the phenomenon is understood, interpreted, and modified in different cultural settings.  Topics should be international in scope and could include, but are not limited to, international differences in the meaning of “education for global mindedness/citizenship,” theory and practice of implementing the concept, the role of international organizations in shaping the idea of “global mindedness/citizenship,” and culturally contextualized meanings of the concept across international schools in different nations. The intent is to have a combination of theory-driven syntheses of current scholarship, reports of new empirical research, and critical discussions of major topics around the book's theme.

            Chapter proposals should be 2-3 page summaries of the proposed chapter and deal explicitly with the following, preferably in this order: (1) objectives or purposes; (2) perspectives or theoretical framework; (3) methods, techniques, or modes of inquiry; (4) data sources or evidence (if applicable); (5) results, conclusions, or point of view; and (6) the significance or relevance of this chapter to the volume's overall theme. Chapter proposals are due by November 1, 2008 and should be sent to either Iveta Silova (ism207@lehigh.edu) or Daphne P. Hobson (ddh2@lehigh.edu). All proposals will be peer reviewed and those selected will be notified by December 1, 2008. Authors of successful proposals will be asked to provide a complete chapter manuscript by February 1, 2009. Final accepted chapter manuscripts are due May 1, 2009.

Please contact Iveta Silova (ism207@lehigh.edu) or Daphne P. Hobson (ddh2@lehigh.edu) with questions.