Improve Global Point of View

Global Studies is offered as an Independent Studies class on Fridays. Students in grades 10th through 12th (second to fourth year students), do activities, and combine their study results into an essay.

Students develop their global views during the year by selecting a theme, which interests them and then research it. The themes include the fields of poverty, human rights, the environment, leadership or international cooperation.

In the first half of the year, students learn about their theme from watching videos, Internet searches, and reading books. In the latter half of the year, they have opportunities for hands-on activities such as interacting with foreign students and attending lectures. As a direct result from their research, students begin to develop the unders

On one day, the students presented ideas about their essay themes and were able to listen to their peers` opinions. In a following class, the students learned about Michel Chikwanine, a former child soldier in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Later, when the students were divided into groups of three or four, each group had a discussion on each member’s theme. The discussion format was new for some students, but with encouragement from the teacher, they gradually began to join the discussion.

After talking about their themes, some students offered their additional thoughts. One student stated, "I'd like to know about the environmental measures in Germany," while another student said, "I'm going to study about Gaudi and his religious view that I've been interested in since I visited in Spain".

In the latter half of the class, the students moved to another classroom, and learned about Michel Chikwanine. They gathered in front of a PC monitor, and by using some of the preselected keywords, they were able to pick up additional information. Each group became focused in their search and their interest level intensified as they learned more about Michel Chikwanine and child soldiers.

Students found pleasure from the Global Studies activities, which taught them about global affairs and the ability to understand them from alternative views.