Charting Global Education in Canada's Elementary Schools: Provincial, District and School Perspectives

In Canada and around the world, the idea that schools should equip children with the knowledge, skills and dispositions required for participation in a more globalized world has become a standard feature of the educational policy landscape. To date, however, there has been relatively little research on how global education is being implemented in Canada, particularly at the elementary level.

UNICEF Canada engaged the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) to undertake a major, cross-country study of the state of global education in Canada to help inform UNICEF Canada’s work with teachers and administrators. Based on interviews conducted at the provincial, district and school levels across Canada, the research draws two important conclusions:

First, there has never been a riper moment for introducing global education in Canadian elementary education: interest and commitment to teaching about global issues is very high. For example, global education is included in the curriculum reaching primary grades in some provinces, and thousands of teachers are leading their schools in cross-curricular and whole-school approaches. Second, there are also significant barriers to effective implementation: the dearth of support mechanisms for sustained curriculum development and pedagogical innovation; the fragmented nature of many NGO-initiated activities; and the low priority given to global education as compared to other subject areas.

Authors:

Karen Mundy, Associate Professor and Director of the Comparative, International, and Development Education Centre, OISE/UT.
Caroline Manion, PhD Candidate, OISE/UT.
Vandra Masemann, Associate Professor, OISE/UT.
Megan Haggerty, MA Candidate, OISE/UT.

Research Design:

Karen Edge, Institute of Education, University of London.

Researchers:

Annick Corbeil, Andrè Gagnè, Angela MacDonald, Kirk Perris, Lynette Shultz

For further information contact:

Karen Mundy — karen.mundy@gmail.com
Lisa Wolff — lwolff@unicef.ca