Preparing social workers for global gaze: locating global citizenship within social work curricula

Abstract

Institutions of higher education have been particularly vulnerable to the pressures of globalization, resulting in policies and ensuing curricula that look to address the needs of students to be better prepared for living and working in a world in which global awareness, and perhaps even global identity, are requisites for success. Social work education is uniquely positioned to adapt its curricula for successful student outcomes in an increasingly globalized world. The challenges associated with social welfare, which have intensified under globalization, has been a long-standing concern of social work policy and practice. This article suggests strategies for integrating global citizenship education within social work studies, recognizing the affinities that exist between contemporary conceptualizations of global citizenship and social work practice. The article proposes four interrelated components that might be strategically implemented within existing social work curriculum, in consideration of the contextual ethos of the respective school of social work.

Keywords:

• Globalization
• global citizenship
• social work curriculum
• higher education

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to acknowledge the support of the Department of Educational Research, Lancaster University, U.K., and to thank Dr. Jan McArthur, Lancaster University for her helpful critique of the draft article.