Cultivating Global Citizenship

Drawing on the underpinning review of global citizenship education (Qureshi and Tian, forthcoming), Pakistani teachers’ knowledge and self-efficacy in teaching global citizenship (Qureshi and Tian, forthcoming) and action research on teachers’ professional development (Qureshi and Kalsoom, 2021), education for sustainable development (Kalsoom and Qureshi, 2017; Qureshi and Kalsoom, 2022), environmental consciousness (Zeeshan and Qureshi, 2023), digital citizenship (Liaquat, Qureshi, forthcoming) and social justice in teacher education (Roohi, Qureshi and Butt, 2022), this teacher CPD project aims to empower teachers to become change agents and competent educators in teaching global citizenship topics and launching community-based activities dealing with global challenges.

The project will accomplish the following objectives:

1. Deliver three sets of thematic workshops and seminars to enhance teachers’ knowledge of critical, social and digital dimensions of global citizenship.
2. Cultivate teachers’ pedagogical skills through arts-based methods like collage-making and story-telling (Tian, 2023).
3. Empower teachers to design and deliver projects, each addressing a specific global challenge relevant to students and local communities.
4. Cultivate mentor-mentee relationships between participants. Foster a community of practice among participants and training experts, enabling knowledge transfer.
5. Generate teacher CPD resources and research outputs on global citizenship education.

This project leverages our research in global citizenship education, teacher capacity building and arts-based methods to translate theoretical frameworks into tangible teacher competencies, global citizenship activities and an increased sense of global awareness and responsibility among youth in Pakistan.

The project comprises three sets of thematic workshops and seminars and one closing ceremony.

• Critical Global Citizenship
  Participants will gain a critical perspective on various cultures, social and economic inequalities and the interconnected nature of global challenges and advocacy of people’s voices (Oxley and Morris, 2013).

• Social Global Citizenship
  Participants will develop a deep comprehension of their rights and responsibilities within a global society (Franch, 2020), with a specific focus on issues of race, ethnicity and power dynamics within society (Kiwan, 2016), inclusivity and intercultural communication.

• Digital Global Citizenship
  Participants will acquire expertise to engage their students in data searching and analysis activities tailored to their respective age groups and use digital and critical thinking skills (Atta, 2022) to analyse the root causes of economic inequality, climate changes, poverty and cultural wars.

• Closing Ceremony and Project exhibition
  Participants will showcase their global citizenship education activities through presentations, blogs, podcasts, videos or posters.

Outputs and impact

The project will generate the following outputs and impact:

• We will collect evidence demonstrating how project-based seminars, workshops, exhibitions and social media coverage contribute to teacher capacity building and student engagement. By developing mutually beneficial long-term relationships with participants, we will document how the 60 teachers mobilise their knowledge and skills to transform classroom practices and launch community-based global citizenship activities.
• We will gather evidence illustrating how teachers apply and disseminate effective arts-based teaching methods among their colleagues. The arts-based approach aims to emotionally engage students, stimulate their auditory and visual senses and foster a stronger global citizen identity.
• Lastly, we will record the number of stakeholders involved and identify potential funding opportunities to extend the project's reach and establish a consistent framework for teacher CPD in global citizenship education across Pakistan.

Local-to-Global Knowledge Exchange

This project aims to foster a dynamic exchange of knowledge and experiences in regions of emerging global significance, with a particular focus on Pakistan. Pakistani teachers’ participation in this project will generate new insights into knowledge and pedagogical tools used for teaching global citizenship in schools and teachers’ levels of self-efficacy in delivering various global citizenship topics. This project, initially targeting the Punjab region of Pakistan, holds the potential for expansion across Pakistan and into other Asian countries such as India, Malaysia and the UAE.

Pre-service to In-service Teacher Knowledge Development

Pre-service teachers will have the opportunity to collaborate with in-service teachers, organically forming a community of practice. Pre-service teachers will be supported in securing placements and employment opportunities in schools. Initial teacher training institutions can benefit from this project by incorporating the project’s research findings and CPD resources into training programmes.

Community Engagement and Global Teacher Advocates

Our project empowers both pre-service and in-service teachers to become responsible, informed and socially conscious change agents. As teachers become actively involved in school and community-based projects, they will inspire other students, parents and teachers to engage in similar initiatives and raise public awareness about shared global concerns. By December 2024, the project will establish a network of 200 global teacher advocates.

Collaboration with Local and International Experts

Local and international experts in global citizenship education will be invited to deliver workshops and seminars. An edited book will compile research and practical knowledge shared by these experts and serve as a resource for future teacher CPD training.

University of Education, Lahore

Ali Institute of Education

Academic Leaders’ Innovation Forum (ALIF)

School Education Department, Punjab