How do college and university undergraduate level global citizenship programs advance the development and experiences of global competencies?

Abstract

Colleges and universities across the nation have, within the last 20 years, mobilized to prepare their students to become globally aware, socially responsible, and engaged citizens of the world. Although the imperative for these colleges and universities is to provide students with the intellectual tools to function as global citizens, there is no scholarly consensus on the definition of the term “global citizenship,” no agreement on the implementation of such a curriculum, and hence, no programmatic assessment model. As such, the scholarly discussions surrounding the topic of global citizenship programs have led to an increased curiosity about and interest in the development and experiences of global competencies. This study applies Hunter’s (2004) concept of global competence as a measure of global citizenship, and evaluates a representative group of 25 colleges and universities offering undergraduate level global citizenship programs on a range of specific knowledge, skills, and attitudes. The focus of the study is to answer two major research questions: what are the guiding principles of undergraduate level global citizenship programs, and, how are they advancing the development of global competencies? This study employs a mixed methodological approach, consisting of a quantitative Likert-scale survey and in-depth interviews, to better understand global citizenship concepts, the manner in which programs are organized, thoughts about what is happening with global citizenship education, and faculty and administrator experiences. The findings of this research, although exhibiting overlap with Hunter’s (2004) findings, reveal that global competencies are not synonymous with global citizenship. By employing Hunter’s (2004) checklist, which provides a focused starting point for assessing global citizenship programs, this research study reveals the various programmatic components, themes and guiding principles that are beneficial to the development of global citizenship, but which are not the same as those required for global competency.%%%%Ph.D., Educational Leadership Development and Learning Technologies  – Drexel University, 2007