Developing international-mindedness

How can global mindset develop in a school with almost homogeneous pupils, asks John Labor, IB Coordinator at Arabian Pearl Gulf (APG) School..

Children are happy. They feel at home. They belong. They feel the personal care. In turn they care for others. They warmly welcome visitors and guests. They are eager to converse with them. They treat them with respect.

These are pleasant comments to hear from international visitors, guests, and parents.

Where pupils are mixed nationalities, international-mindedness can develop quite spontaneously. It has the benefit of diversity in which learners learn to accept differences, adapt to the dynamics of social interactions, and acquire set of skills that enable them to play happily and work effectively with peers of different cultures. This of course does not mean “that will do”. Pupils will benefit more from a comprehensive program.

But what if the school is catering to almost homogenous cohort of pupils? That demands more effort. That raises curiosity over the means in promoting a global mindset. We are that school. Like most schools, we continue to reflect on the best practices that make global mindset thrive. We offer international curriculums. That takes care a lot of aspects in developing international-mindedness. But the challenge remains: how do we know pupils have become internationally-minded?

One gauge is feedback from international visitors and guest speakers. They say: pupils warmly welcome them and eagerly invite them to class; they greet them pleasantly; they show respect; they fondly converse with them. These seem ordinary behaviour and expected of students from any reputable school. But when visitors and guests start to compare between these behaviours and behaviours they observed in other schools, then they make a point.

Another is listening to parents happily report the great personal and social improvement of their children. Parents say their child exudes confidence in dealing with people of different age, race, gender, language, and religions. That ability to communicate and connect, transcending differences, is vital in our effort to form good global citizens. Language learning is essential in developing pupils’ sense of identity, just as it is essential to have a strong sense of identity to be internationally-minded.

When parents consider schools, they say: this school is good in Arabic, that school is good in English. But if they want their children to be competent in both, they send them to us. And we add the third, French.

Actions do speak louder than words. International-mindedness is not couched in pompous ideas but reflected in simple gestures of warm welcome to a visitor, due respect to a fellow human person, sincere delight in the presence of someone different from us. We believe if children can hardly show them at home, or at home-school, or at home-country, we can hardly expect them to exhibit the same at the wider world.

What is truly global is grounded on the local.

In “Think globally, act locally” slogan of international-mindedness, we believe the former is mostly promoted by the international curriculums, and the latter is partly so. Act locally is mostly inspired by the school environment designed specially to nurture the caring side of each pupil. If the teachers just teach, if the admin just administer, if the management just manage, if the support staff just that support, the pupils will just be pupils. These are not facts of schools, of course – hopefully.

Neither is care. But if genuine care can proceed from each of the units, we are most likely able to produce not only the inquiring and knowledgeable but especially caring young people who we expect to help create a better and more peaceful world.

… through intercultural understanding and respect.

We hold respect as a core value. It is fundamental in the mindset of a global citizen we wish to mould. It is respect for self and others, respect for cultures and religions, respect for the natural environment. The kernel of that respect is care.

Care leads to genuine interest in others, their cultures, their religions. It produces not just knowledge but understanding, not just service but humane actions. It transforms the view that sees others as different to a paradigm that embraces our common humanity. It goes beyond recognizing others as in need of service: it treats others as family members deserving care, not only when in need.

We share with others’ belief that care should be at the heart of international education. We doubt the success of international-mindedness without care education permeating the hearts of pupils. When pupils are cared, they become caring. When pupils care, they become self-directed. And when they are self-directed, with conviction of care and principle of respect, we believe we have sown the seed of global mindset that will germinate and bear fruit for the world in their lifetime.

We are happy of many cases of self-realization and inspiration our pupils experience because of the integration and reflection on their learning experiences. Meaningful CAS activities have made turning points in the lives of some – a eureka moment. Suddenly, they found something to care for, to be passionate about. This has given meaning to what they do and hope to their future.

When pupils are inspired to chart their future, we feel successful. It takes patience to wait for that moment. Many educators have intuitive feeling of that success. And joy overwhelms the heart when that comes. And we have the share of it.

So, while the education of the mind is crucial in international-mindedness, we firmly believe it must be balanced with the education of the heart. We especially put the importance of care and respect at the core of international education. We foresee the growing relevance of these values in the world now and in the future. This is how we define highly educated learners in our vision statement – excellence in academics and intellect + global mindset and competence founded on genuine care and respect.

Developing global mindset in a homogenous school is not easy. But it is also not a guarantee in a heterogeneous school. To us, the key is to nurture the basic values: care and respect.