IB DIPLOMA PROGRAMME CORE AS A SUPPLIER OF GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION

Abstract

Global citizenship education (GCED) is a growing field in international education. The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 4.7 cited GCED as an official aim of the United Nations for 2030 in order to improve sustainable development, and this has created an increase in global research relating to the assessment of GCED within curriculums. The International Baccalaureate (IB), a private international organization known for its mission statement that promotes lifelong education for a peaceful world, prefers the term international mindedness. Consequently, the IB rarely addresses the concept of global citizenship directly in its Diploma Programme (DP). This paper studies the relationship between the existing DP curriculum and GCED through first providing a definition of GCED and its cognitive, socio-emotional, and behavioral conceptual domains according to UNESCO’s theoretical framework. The study suggests that the DP curriculum unequally addresses the GCED domains and lacks definitive learning objectives that are recommended by UNESCO. While the IB is known for its international education, the DP does address GCED elements that are crucial to active citizenship within the written curriculum, nor are the existing elements assessed at any point in the program.