Global Awareness Resources for YCCC Rubric: Welcome

What Do We Mean by Global Awareness

Consider the following:

"In the field of global citizenship, the focus is on encouraging students to open up to the larger world, become more ethnoculturally empathetic, tolerant of ambiguity, and engaged in active civic endeavors. This is not enforcing a political ideology, but rather an openness to new ideas, receptiveness to change, and engagement with the world in an active, rather than passive way (Stalnich).

"Cultural Awareness is the foundation of communication and it involves the ability of standing back from ourselves and becoming aware of our cultural values, beliefs and perceptions. Why do we do things in that way? How do we see the world? Why do we react in that particular way?" (Quappe)

"We are living and working in a multicultural society and it is not just about ethnicity. It is about gender, socio-economics, generations, climatic groupings, organizations, abilities, religious traditions, areas of interest and sexuality. Therefore, we constantly have to engage with people who are different to ourselves" (Turnbull et al. 31).

"At the root of it, being globally aware means building a value system that is flexible and open to other people’s cultures. It recognizes and respects that there can be more than one way to do something.

My son’s school district identified these ways to build global awareness in students:

• Creating an understanding of one’s civic duties and rights — from global to local.
• Developing the ability to respect and work with students from all backgrounds, cultures, and religions.
• Learning a foreign language.
• Building an understanding of different nations and cultures (Vashwanath)."

“Global awareness requires understanding other countries,cultures,languages,and ways of viewing the world. My position is that global awareness is developed through experience, exposure, and reflection.I believe that before global awareness is possible, educators (and students) must first look inward and examine their own beliefs, assumptions, biases, and influences. Then, as they grow in self-awareness, they can begin the journey to becoming more globally aware (Ramirez, 2)".

How should YCCC define Global Awareness beyond our Institutional Learning Outcome?

Respectfully engage with others and analyze issues from a multicultural and global perspective.