Teacher's Global Knowledge

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Impact of a Professional Development Cluster on Teachers as

Global Educators

Dr. Wendy R. ModzelewskiDelaware Department of Education

July 8, 2010

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Delaware’s Turning Point in History for Global EducationSeptember 11, 2001

• Students did not understand the events in terms of geography, history, and politics

• Many educators were unprepared to attempt to educate students

• Support for global education grew from interest groups, foundations, U.S. government, and educational organizations

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Delaware’s Response

• 2003 – 2004 - Conducted a statewide study of global education in K12

• Funded by the Longview Foundation• Purpose: Determine the status of global

education in our State

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Findings

1. Overcrowded curriculum2. Limited view and approach to global

educationInternational Education is not just learning ABOUT another culture, peoples, history etc, but it is learning WITH another culture. Capitalize on the power of first-hand experiences.

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Findings3. Teachers need space and tools to engage in professional development 4. Both the teachers and students need to experience the relevance of International Education.

Provide hands-on experiences where they become engaged with real people.

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Clusters

• Group of professional development experiences that lead to new knowledge and skills. They are research-based, long-term, and results driven.

• Focus: content knowledge, application, affect student achievement, teacher reflection

• Successful completion = salary increase

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International EducationTechnology Cluster

• Approximately 90-hours• Face-to-face meetings and online support• Partnered with iEARN; 40 hour online course• Classroom implementation of an international

project through iEARN• Development of two teacher portfolios• Data collection and analysis

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Cluster Goals

1. Increase teachers’ global education knowledge

2. Increase teachers’ global education skills3. Improve and increase teacher use of

technology for teaching and learning

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Why iEARN?

• International Education and Resource Network

• Capacity• iEARN is a non-profit global education

network of over 20,000 schools in 110 countries

• Since 1988, empowering educators and youth using technology to collaborate through projects

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iEARN Online Courses

• 9-week modular course providing skills in online collaboration

• International participation. Simulates experiences students will have.

• Participants align an iEARN project to their curriculum and standards.

• Courses are content specific. • Teachers end online course with a lesson plan

and are ready to continue with selected project/start new one

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Research Study

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Purpose of the Study To determine the impact of the International Education Technology

Cluster on teachers’ global education Knowledge and Skills.

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Need for the Study• Should the cluster be continued?• Can the study contribute to the body of

knowledge on global education and assist in the development of purposeful and meaningful professional development?

Research Questions

1. Do teachers who participate in the International Education Technology Cluster increase their global education knowledge?

2. What changes in global education pedagogical skills do teachers report as a result of their participation?

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Global Education Knowledge• Literature revealed 40 components• For purposes of this study they were aggregated

into 5 categories– Humanistic – dimensions that recognize our human

qualities– Global – appreciation for planet earth– Systems – interconnectedness of the world– Culture – total way of life held by a group of people– Choice – the choices we make may affect others

globally.

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Global Education Skills

1. Assist students to become global citizens

2. Integration of global education

3. Teach from multiple perspectives

4. Recognize stereotyping and bias

5. Recognize ethnocentrism

6. Local to Global perspective7. Personal to global

perspective8. Global to local perspective9. Teach with Multiple Media10. Participate in

International/Multicultural Festivals

11. Telecommunication Linkages

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Skills that comprise global education pedagogy:

Research Methodology

• Descriptive research• Content Analysis• Instrumentation:– Cluster Application and pre-survey– Portfolio A (mid-year; after iEARN online course)– Portfolio B (end of cluster)– Follow-up Survey (4-5 years after the cluster)

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Participants

• 15 females; 1 male• Age Range: 26 – 55• Number of years teaching: 1st year – 30 years • Taught 1 to 5 content areas:

• Diverse grade levels:

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9 - Social Studies 3 - Science 2 – Library Skills

5 - ELA 2 - Math 2 - Art

3 - Technology 2 – English 2nd Lang. 1 - World Language

5 - Elementary (K-5) 1 - Grades 4-12

6 - Middle School (6-8) 1 - Middle and High School

3 - High School (9-12)

Findings

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Pre-cluster Findings: Demographics

One commonality: All participants had traveled internationally before the cluster.

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Results - Knowledge Findings

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Category Total Components

Pre-cluster Notations

Portfolio A Notations

Portfolio BNotations

Humanistic 15 52 34 9

Global 18 41 28 9

Systems 2 5 3 0

Culture 3 15 0 0

Choice 2 3 1 1

Group Totals 116 66 19

Pre-cluster Findings: Knowledge

1. Average Knowledge components per teacher pre-cluster: 7.25 out of a possible 40

2. Culture was the predominate Knowledge component cited.

3. Contact, interaction or engagement with others in other countries was second most cited.

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Post-cluster findings - KnowledgeDo teachers who participate in the International Education

Technology Cluster increase their global education knowledge?

• Yes, teachers did increase their knowledge.• Average Knowledge components per teacher post-

cluster: 12.56 out of a possible 40• Majority of increase was by Portfolio A:

– 66 total Knowledge components (10%) by Portfolio A– 19 total Knowledge components (3%) by Portfolio B

• Largest gain: Humanistic category (7% increase)• Second largest gain: Global category (6% increase)

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Results – Skills FindingsSkill Pre-

clusterPortfolio

APortfolio

B

Commitment to assisting students to become global citizens

2 6 1

Integration of global education into existing curriculum 3 10 2

Teach from multiple perspectives 2 1 0

Recognize stereotyping, bias, frame of reference 2 3 1

Recognize ethnocentrism 0 3 0

Teach with local to global connections 0 2 2

Teach with personal to global connections 1 3 0

Teach with global to local connections 2 3 1

Teach with multiple forms of media 6 5 2

Participate in international/multicultural days 3 1 1

Telecommunications linkages 4 7 2

Group Totals 25 44 12

Percentage of Possible Points (176) 14% 25% 7%23

Pre-cluster Findings: Skills

• Average Skills per teacher pre-cluster: 1.56 out of 11

• Use of Multiple Media was the most commonly cited skill, however it was only selected by 6 out of 16 teachers.

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Post-cluster findings - SkillsWhat changes in global education pedagogical skills do teachers

report as a result of their participation?

• Majority of Skills increase is by Portfolio A:– 44 Skills (25% increase) by Portfolio A– 12 Skills (7% increase) by Portfolio B

• Average Skills per teacher post-cluster: 5.06 out of a possible 11

• Largest increase: Integration of international education into curriculum

• Second largest increase: Telecommunication linkages 25

Unintended finding: Joy & Happiness

• Teachers found this experience to be fun. Words used: exciting, exhilarating, enlightening, fun, rewarding, energizing, eager, enthusiastic, eye-opening, interesting, rewarding

• Three reasons cited:1. Teacher reaction to experience2. Teacher reaction to something the students did3. Teachers reporting directly on students’ reactions

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Flow, Happiness and Joy

• Csikszentmihalyi (2004) – Flow is the “state in which people are so involved

in an activity that nothing else seems to matter.” – Happiness does not simply happen to us. It’s

something that we make happen and it results from doing our best

• Wolk (2008) – Teachers should own their teaching so that they

can experience joy in school.

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Implications• Encourage travel for pre-service educators as

this seems to encourage an interest in global education.

• Primacy of culture was clear. Possibly emphasize teaching other knowledge components of global education at all levels.

• When offering global education professional development, analyze knowledge and skills of participants and define specific objectives.

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Limitations

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• Small study size• Clusters are unique to Delaware• Study conducted over 2 years• May not be generalizable outside of Delaware

Clusters Now

• Initial cluster was offered for 5 years; reached approximately 120 teachers

• It was updated for renewal; modifications were made: – Added additional face-to-face meetings– Increased mentor support – Additional instructional time on data analysis

• Clusters put on moratorium in 2008 due to State budgetary limitations

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The question of global education should not be one of choice, but of requirement to ensure

that students in the United States can understand and appreciate the peoples,

cultures, and histories of other countries and are prepared for their future.

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Thank You• Information about the International Education

Technology Cluster is available at

www.dcet.k12.de.us/instructional • If you are interested in my study, please email me.

Ask for: – The Modzelewski Matrix of Knowledge and Skills– Research results– Resources and literature list

Wendy Modzelewskiwmodzelewski@doe.k12.de.us

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