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Global South university educators’ perceptions of global citizenship education: Reflective dialogue, social change, and critical awareness

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Abstract

This article investigates senior educators’ (n=10) perceptions of global citizenship education (GCE) in higher education in the Global South, focusing specifically on Colombia, Ghana, and South Africa. Data were gathered through questionnaires and interviews and subsequently analysed using grounded theory and constant comparative method. Three GCE themes emerged from the findings. According to the educators, GCE should: (a) encourage reflective dialogue in the classroom setting; (b) provide students with the confidence to believe that they can be catalysts for social change; and (c) foster students’ critical awareness. The findings suggest that the 10 educators’ approaches to GCE in Colombia, Ghana, and South Africa are generally focused on critical and ethical principles of GCE intended to foster critical global citizens. Based on this, the article concludes with a proposal for a GCE framework informed by critical pedagogy and rooted in social justice that can be used to teach GCE in universities in the Global South.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of English and American Literature, Faculty of Letters, Toyo University, 5 Chome-28-20 Hakusan, Bunkyo City, Tokyo, 112-0001, Japan

    Emiliano Bosio

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Bosio, E. Global South university educators’ perceptions of global citizenship education: Reflective dialogue, social change, and critical awareness. Prospects (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-023-09635-y

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