1. Globalization – The process of spreading ideas, products, and other aspects of
culture due to the interaction between different areas of the world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Globalization
In education this can be seen as new ways of teaching with technology for students,
technology for teachers, and advancements in teaching methods.
A Globally Educated Student Can:
Investigate the world
Recognize Perspectives
Communicate Ideas
Take Action
Our children will compete for jobs in a global economy that too many of our schools
do not prepare them for. In a global economy where the most valuable skill you can
sell is your knowledge, a good education is no longer just a pathway to opportunityit is a prerequisite. – Barack Obama
Philaglobaled.org
As the world is becoming more of a global culture, with many subcultures within,
there becomes a need to incorporate others opinions, values, and ideas.
Globalization also plays a role in communication between the subcultures, which
creates the need to move with the flow instead of pushing against the current.
It has created a whole new database for information, and a new way of interpreting
information as it comes in. This has allowed for unturned stones to now become
accessible, which gives students opportunities that were before unavailable.
21st Century Education:
Video Conferences (YouTube) – with exchange students in other countries
Blogs – posting opinions on news or debates, between two different cultures
Large Scale Group Work (exchange of ideas/information) – students can work with
students from another countries on a project
Podcasts – actual conversation between different languages
Second Life – friendships between students in different areas
Twitter – spreading of news quickly and efficiently, allowing for faster responses
TV –visual examples of other cultures, as well as the spread of news
Examples:
A teacher, in the United States, is able to use a podcast to teach a Spanish class by
creating a conversation between a primary Spanish Speaker. The teacher can assign
a reading from the textbook (which comes from Japan) to the students concerning
greetings and wellbeing. The teacher uses a computer (which was made in China) to
interact with a person from Venezuela (who also is using a computer from China).

2. The person from Venezuela, we’ll call him Harold, uses podcasting software that was
made in India to create his podcast for the class.
Here we see a person from the US interacting with someone from Venezuela, while
using technology created in Japan, China, and India. This illustrates how information
and culture is able to spread through globalization due to the already globalized
technology.
Role of Technology:
In the beginning of globalization, the spread relied on the actual movement of
people while cultures piggybacked with them. As trade routes developed so did the
lines of communication of these cultures. This began in Europe and Asia and then
slowly moved to the Americas as technology created better transportation. As
technology continued to improve, with the creation of computers and phones, the
movement of people didn’t matter as much as their actions did. The 21st century saw
globalization become a viral movement. Although this is an advantage for the
wideness of the spread, it can be a disadvantage for some countries. Countries that
do not always have the needed technology to access the global culture can miss out
on this information.