Blended and Online Learning for Global Citizenship: New Technologies and Opportunities for Intercultural Education

215 Pages·2020·2.192 MB·English

by  William J. Hunter, Roger Austin

Blended and Online Learning
for Global Citizenship
By showcasing international, European, and community-based projects, this volume
explores how online technologies using collaborative and blended learning can
be used to bolster social cohesion and increase students’ understanding of what
it means to be a global citizen.
With the pace of technology rapidly increasing, Blended and Online Learning for
Global Citizenship draws timely attention to the global lessons being learned from
the impact of these technologies on peace building, community development,
and acceptance of difference. In-depth case studies showcasing successful
projects in Europe, Northern Ireland, and Israel explore blended learning and
illustrate how schools and educators have embraced online technologies to foster
national and international links both within and beyond communities. This has,
in turn, equipped students with experiences that have informed their attitudes
to cultural and political conflicts, as well as racial, ethnic, and social diversity.
Building on the authors’ previous work Online Learning and Community Cohesion
(2013), this thought-provoking text will be of interest to researchers, academics,
and postgraduate students in the fields of international and comparative
education. Educators and school leaders concerned with how multiculturalism
and technology play out in the classroom environment will also benefit from
reading this text.
William J. Hunter is Professor of Education at Ontario Tech University,
Canada and Professor Emeritus at the University of Calgary, Canada.
Roger Austin is Emeritus Professor of Education at Ulster University,
Northern Ireland.
Routledge Research in International
and Comparative Education
This is a series that offers a global platform to engage scholars in continuous
academic debate on key challenges and the latest thinking on issues in the fast-
growing field of International and Comparative Education.
Titles in the series include
Transculturalism and Teacher Capacity
Professional Readiness in the Globalised Age
Niranjan Casinader
Residential Schools and Indigenous Peoples
From Genocide via Education to the Possibilities for Processes
of Truth, Restitution, Reconciliation, and Reclamation
Edited by Stephen James Minton
Transnational Perspectives on Curriculum History
Edited by Gary McCulloch, Ivor Goodson, and Mariano González-Delgado
Japanese Schooling and Identity Investment Overseas
Exploring the Cultural Politics of “Japaneseness” in Singapore
Glenn Toh
Considering Inclusive Development across
Global Educational Contexts
How Critical and Progressive Movements can Inform Education
Christopher J. Johnstone
Blended and Online Learning for Global Citizenship
New Technologies and Opportunities for Intercultural Education
William J. Hunter and Roger Austin
For more information about this series, please visit:www.routledge.com/Routledge-
Research-in-International-and-Comparative-Education/book-series/RRICE
Blended and Online Learning
for Global Citizenship
New Technologies and Opportunities
for Intercultural Education
William J. Hunter and Roger Austin
First published 2021
by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2021 Taylor & Francis
The right of William J. Hunter and Roger Austin to be identified as the authors of the
editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in
accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in
any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to
infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Hunter, William J. (Bill), editor. | Austin, Roger (Professor of education),
editor.
Title: Blended and online learning for global citizenship : new technologies and
opportunities for intercultural education / edited by William J. Hunter and Roger
Austin.
Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020022881 | ISBN 9780367408213 (hardback) |
ISBN 9780367821661 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Blended learning—Cross-cultural studies. | Web-based instruction—
Cross-cultural studies. | Computer-assisted instruction—Cross-cultural studies. |
Internet in education—Cross-cultural studies. | Multicultural education—Cross-
cultural studies. | International education—Cross-cultural studies. | Civics—Study
and teaching—Cross-cultural studies.
Classification: LCC LB1028.5 .B563 2021 | DDC 371.33/44678—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020022881
ISBN: 978-0-367-40821-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-82166-1 (ebk)
Typeset in Perpetua
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
We want to dedicate this book to the policy makers who
create the conditions under which blended learning may
take place and to the teachers whose skills and attitudes
bring this work to fruition in the classroom. Together, they
have created life-changing opportunities for the children
they teach across the globe.

Contents
List of tables viii
Acknowledgments ix
About the Authors and Contributors xi
1 Blended Learning in an Age of Conflict 1
WILLIAM J. HUNTER, ROGER AUSTIN, AND RHIANNON TURNER
2 Shared Education in Northern Ireland: Systemic Change
Through Blended Learning 31
ROGER AUSTIN, RHIANNON TURNER, SAMMY TAGGART,
AND MAIREAD DAVIDSON
3 Lessons Learned From 15 Years of Multicultural Online
Collaborative Learning in Israel 59
ASMAA GANAYEM, ELAINE HOTER, AND MIRI SHONFELD
4 Building Cultural Awareness and Understanding
in Europe’s Schools: Insights From the European
Commission’s eTwinning Programme 92
CONOR GALVIN, ROGER AUSTIN, ELENA REVYAKINA,
AND ANNE MCMORROUGH
5 International Links and Global Citizenship 122
WILLIAM J. HUNTER AND ROGER AUSTIN
6 Blended and Online Collaborative Learning for
Citizenship in Catalonia, Spain 151
ANDRÉS BESOLÍ, ROGER AUSTIN, AND WILLIAM J. HUNTER
7 Promises Fulfilled and Challenges Ahead 173
ROGER AUSTIN AND WILLIAM J. HUNTER
Index 197
Tables
1.1 Different curriculum “homes” for global citizenship
education in Asia and Pacific countries 12
1.2 U.S. students’ experience with online courses,
2012–2016 20
1.3 MediaSmarts information literacy problem categories 22
3.1 Evolution of the TEC model 69
5.1 Countries involved in Connecting Classrooms through
Global Learning 141
Acknowledgments
We want to express our appreciation to many people who contributed to the
work of writing this book, starting with those named in several of the chapters;
they have provided us with timely drafts and responded to all our requests for
clarification with grace and good humor. We count ourselves very lucky to
have had such an excellent team of colleagues to work with. We believe that
the book has been immeasurably strengthened by their specialist knowledge and
research on blended learning for global citizenship in Northern Ireland, Israel,
the European Union, and Catalonia.
However, we take responsibility for the final versions in the book and blame
for any errors lies at our door.
A number of other people have contributed vital information or read early
drafts of chapters; we wish to thank Mark Baker from the Education Authority
in Northern Ireland for his insights on Chapter 2 and to the many teachers who
gladly cooperated with the research described in that chapter. We have had the
good fortune to work with Eamon McAteer from what was called C2K and with
a number of other colleagues in the Education Authority who are responsible
for the Shared Education programme. We also benefitted from the advice and
information provided by Ciara Mahon from the Curriculum Council for Exami-
nations and Assessment. We also wish to place on record our thanks to the staff
of Currie Primary School and Holy Family Primary School in Belfast for their
readiness to describe the remarkable work they are doing together in the Shared
Education program.
It would have been very difficult for us to have written Chapter 5 on Inter-
national links without the considerable patience and support of Liz Neil from
the British Council and the teachers in Northern Ireland who are involved in the
Connecting Classrooms through Global Learning project, in particular, the local
coordinator Ciara Crawley. Likewise, we are grateful to Ed Gragert for helping
us to get a better understanding of iEARN and for reviewing an early draft of
Chapter 5. To all of them we hope we have done justice to the remarkable work
described in that chapter.