Interculturalism in student and teacher understandings of global citizenship education in three International Baccalaureate international schools

Abstract

This article addresses the question of how global citizenship, often an aim of international schools, is conceptualised as interculturalism by students and teachers. It presents selected findings of global citizenship expressed as interculturalism and perceptions of learning through interculturalism, from a larger empirical study which investigated articulations of global citizenship education in three International Baccalaureate international schools in different locations: Finland, The Netherlands and Australia. Reflexive thematic analysis of phenomenological interviews with students, school leaders and teachers in the three schools revealed two important themes: that global citizenship is interpreted as simplistic interculturalism, with students focusing more on relational aspects of intercultural experiences, and that global citizenship is perceived as being learned through intercultural engagement. The article contributes to research into the expressions and practices of global citizenship in International Baccalaureate international schools. The article proposes that school leaders, teachers and students could engage further with critical and human rights constructivist approaches to interculturalism.