Questions about School System Climate and Support (www.globaled.org)
Curriculum
- Is ethnic and racial diversity reflected in your school curriculum?
- Does the staff have time for curriculum planning or professional development opportunities so that they can include a global perspective in the school curriculum?
- Does your school offer programs that promote contact with other cultures and nations?
- Do the print and non-print materials in your Media Center provide students and teachers with up-to-date materials on global issues between the United States and the world?
The School Community
- Is your school community ethnically and racially diverse?
- Do any individuals or groups representing these ethnic and racial groups have a voice in planning your school community activities?
- Do any individuals or groups representing these ethnic and racial groups make presentations in, or assist teachers and librarians in teaching and learning about other cultures, global connections, or global issues?
- Do your school building and grounds reflect global themes and ideas that connect your students with what they are learning about the world? Are the diversity of your student body and their respective cultures reflected in your buildings and on your school grounds?
- Is a global/international focus evident in your extracurricular activities?
- To what extent do the interest and involvement of parents in the school enhance global/international learning?
Local School Systems
- Does the school system adopt policies and support programs designed to begin and strengthen second-language study in world languages and area of global/international education such as geography, history, literature, and the sciences?
- Does your school system have a policy of encouraging ethnic and racial diversity in school activities?
- Are ethnic and racial group members encouraged to assume leadership positions in the school system?
- Does the school system encourage exchanges of students and teachers with other nations around the world?
- Does the school system utilize the resources of higher education to provide knowledge and skills to educators and other community members regarding the ethnic and racial groups in your community as well as about cultures, global connections, and global issues?
State Education Agencies
- Has a policy statement on global/international education been established?
- Has an individual in your agency been designated who has a primary and full time responsibility for global/international education?
- Does your state have a policy of promoting global literacy among the teacher training institutions that you certify (i.e. learning about other cultures and languages, world history and geography, global connections and global issues)?
- Do you establish communication with international organizations and counterparts in other countries to provide information about global/international education and cross-national studies and activities?
- Do your state standards contain global concepts, connections, ideas, and issues?
- Do you work with various levels of the educational system (elementary through post-secondary) to integrate instruction so that global/international education and second-language study is well connected among levels so that each student's learning is continuous?
- Do you work with professional educational organizations, higher education institutions, and international organizations to sponsor conferences for educational staff on global/international education and second-language study to further program collaboration and information dissemination?