NECESSITY OF GLOBAL COMPETENCY
* Global Competency Standards are imbedded in both the Wyoming State Standards and the Common Core. Often referenced as 21st Century Skills or College and Career Readiness, they represent essential knowledge and skills for the future.
* The NCA Accredidation Rubric includes Global Competency
Examples of Global Competencies in Some Wyoming Social Studies Standards
Citizenship/ Government/ Democracy:
Students demonstrate how structures of power, authority, and governance have developed historically and continue to evolve.
Global perspectives can be integrated into this standard from the Wyoming State Social Studies Standards for grades 9-12 by comparing and contrasting different governing systems. The global competency of investigating the world beyond their immediate environment could be targetted by including systems that are similar to and different from the US system. The summative assessment could be a compare/contrast chart based on the democratic government criteria presented on ushistory.org.
Production, Distribution, and Consumption:
Students demonstrate an understanding of economic principles and concepts and describe the influence of economic factors on individuals and societies.
Global perspectives can be integrated into this standard from the Wyoming State Social Studies Standards for grades 9-12 by focusing on global economics. Several competencies could be addressed with this standard like recognizing different perspectives, investigating the world, taking action to improve conditions, and possibly communicating with diverse audiences. Students could investigate a “local” product and map how that product/business is dependent on the world to survive by interviewing people at the business to discover where all the components to make, market, and ship the product comes from and determine if the business is globally dependent. More global competencies could be added to this lesson by connecting the students to students from a nation that supplies products to many of our local businesses. We have many rustic/western furniture makers here that use local or Canadian pine to make furniture, but get most of the leather they use for upholstery from Brazil. Working alongside a student from Brazil, the pair could investigate the impact of our local business on the Brazilian and Wyoming economy and environment. The summative assessment would be an action plan web that would improve the environment and economy of both places.
Time, Continuity and Change
Students demonstrate an understanding of the people, events, problems, ideas, and cultures that were significant in the history of our community, state, nation and world.
Global competencies can be increased in lessons addressing this standard from the Wyoming State Social Studies Standards for grades 9-12 by focusing on intercultural impact of people, events, problems, ideas and cultures and looking at those topics from different perspectives. Students would be encouraged to investigate how an event or person from history is reported in different sources from different cultures & nations. An example would be the different ways that the Romans and the Parthians present Cleopatra. They could role play as dinner guests from the different eras/places eating together and talking about the individual or event from their different perspectives. The summative assessment could be a paper reflecting on the different perspectives. Students could be asked to analyze which perspective has been “heard” the most and the impact of that version on the story that is most remembered. They would also need to predict how the world would be different if a different story had been “heard” the most.
Examples of Global Competencies in Some Common Core Standards
Comparing Point of View
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.6
Compare the point of view of two or more authors for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their respective accounts.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.9
Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources.
Global competencies could be increased in lessons addressing these two Common Core Reading in History Standard as it is almost identical to the Global Competency Standard of ackowledging differing perspectives. Broadening perspectives to include those from different locations and time periods as well as those on each side of an in particular conflict. For example, in my Middle East Unit students look at the Palestinian/Israeli conflict from the perspective of the Palestinians and Israelis and from the perspective of Christians, Jews and Muslims. We use writings and video interviews of people impacted by the conflict as well as commentary written by historians who have studied the conflict. When they consider U.S. foreign policy, they are asked to consider how Americans would feel about their policy as well as how that policy would impact those living in the Middle East. This standard can be assessed with a simple chart comparing and contrasting perspecitives, demonstrating that students can find ways the authors both agree and disagree on the issue.
Integrating Ideas
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.9-10.7
Integrate quantitative or technical analysis (e.g., charts, research data) with qualitative analysis in print or digital text.
Global competencies can be integrated into the curriculum while addressing this standard by utilizing data and readings from different parts of the world. For example in my Birth of Agriculture Unit I address the issue of food insecurity. Interactive maps that show the levels of hunger in different parts of the world can be compared to primary source documents where individuals living in those areas explain what it is like to try to live on the food that is available to them there. Students can be assessed on this standard by measuring their ability to find correlations between the data on the map and the stories read. They may also find discrepencies where the stories and the map data do not appear to match up.