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The previous section on global education as a business focused mostly on the response of the private sector and higher education to meet the growing demands, especially within the realm of technology. However, the essence of global education is not about who is running the classroom so much as what students are learning within it.
In a world where social, political, economic, and environmental issues seem to transcend borders in nano-seconds, students must be adequately prepared to react. The challenge then for education systems is how to create a holistic, inter-disciplinary approach that gives students skills as well as the ability to adapt these skills to fit a range of challenges.
The aim of global education is no easy feat. Because the needs of the educational community are evolving with those of the international community, the debate surrounding global education is constantly developing– seeking new answers or looking to revise old ones. Despite this ambiguity, a largely accepted goal for global education is to help students develop an understanding of the interdependence among nations in the world today, clarified attitudes toward other nations, and reflective identifications with the world community.29
In this section we will explore how the scope, pedagogies, perspectives, and classroom curricula are trying to achieve this goal.
29 Banks, James A. Educating Global Citizens in a Diverse World. P. 4.