At the end of the course, I ask the teachers to reread all their reflections since the first day of class and answer a few questions about what they have learned and how they perceive that they will apply such learning to their own teaching and future studies. A third strategy that helps the teachers understand global education is their experimenting with actual infusion of global perspectives. During those 4 weeks, the teachers experiment with global perspectives in their own teaching. The reflections on their actual teaching of global education are often turning points in the course as teachers face the demands and constraints of mandated curricula and deal with the attitudes, abilities, and experiences of their students. Conversations with their students and colleagues provide critical feedback on the problems and possibilities of infusing global perspectives into their courses and school.
Controversial issues emerge and raise new questions.
My only regret is that we have so little time in a 10-week quarter to recycle through experiments and debriefings. This article presents a case for systematic reflection as a major component of teacher education in global perspectives. In order to prepare teachers for the diffuse, complex, and controversial nature of global education, teacher educators need to plan reflective exercises as part of their instruction. Both teachers and teacher educators benefit from ongoing reflection on the evolution of their conceptualizations of global education and on experiences in applying such ideas to their own instruction. Reflection on global education, especially the process of applying it in one's teaching, has some far-reaching implications.