Education must adapt to globalization, Methodist academics say
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A Web-only photo courtesy of Board of Higher Education and Ministry Peter Vardy, of Heythrop College in London, says educators must equip young people to be “fully human.”
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“Unless
we equip young people to become more fully human and take a stand, we
are not fulfilling our task as Methodist educators,” says Peter Vardy,
vice principal at Heythrop College, University of London. He spoke at
the fourth meeting of the International Association of Methodist
Schools, Colleges and Universities, held July 11-1A4 at Westminster
School in Adelaide, Australia. A Web-only photo courtesy of the United
Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry. Photo #W05-090.
Accompanies UMNS #418. 7/25/05 |
July 25, 2005
A UMNS Feature
By Hendrik Pieterse and Vicki Brown*
Educators must teach a broader vision
of what it means to be human in a world struggling with the effects of
globalization, speakers told staff and students from Methodist-related
schools in 19 different countries.
“Unless we equip young people to become
more fully human and take a stand, we are not fulfilling our task as
Methodist educators,” said Peter Vardy, vice principal at Heythrop
College, University of London.
Vardy and others explored the ethical
challenges globalization raises for Methodist-related education at the
fourth meeting of the International Association of Methodist Schools,
Colleges, and Universities, held July 11-14 at Westminster School in
Adelaide, Australia.
Speakers warned that much education
today is “outcome dominated” and fails to deal with what it means to be
human amid the complexities of our global world.
“Institutional evil flourishes where
fear is present — where people fear to make a stand,” Vardy said.
Preventing that, he said, means educating young people to challenge
unjust economic systems and institutional evil.
Ninety-two participants explored the
topic “Globalization: Ethical Implications for Methodist-related
Education” at the conference, for which the United Methodist Board of
Higher Education and Ministry provided staff and financial support.
Presidents, administrators, faculty and
students struggled with the question of how Methodist-related
institutions of higher education identify and educate leaders to meet
these ethical challenges.
Walter Klaiber, a retired United
Methodist bishop from Germany, called for a new approach to Christian
education that he termed “global learning.” He defined global learning
as a holistic approach that rejects the narrow intellectualism of
traditional Western education, while fostering awareness of the
“connectedness” of different cultures and communities.
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A Web-only photo courtesy of Board of Higher Education and Ministry Walter Klaiber, a retired United Methodist bishop from Germany, calls for a new approach to Christian education.
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Walter
Klaiber, a retired United Methodist bishop from Germany, calls for a
new approach to Christian education that he terms “global learning.” He
spoke at the fourth meeting of the International Association of
Methodist Schools, Colleges, and Universities, held July 11-14 at
Westminster School in Adelaide, Australia. A Web-only photo courtesy of
the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry. Photo
#W05-091. Accompanies UMNS #418. July 25, 2005. |
“To learn to see (our neighbours) or even
to learn to see the world through their eyes would be one of the most
important goals of a form of global learning,” Klaiber said.
Jerome King Del Pino, top staff
executive of the Board of Higher Education and Ministry, said the
international association is an extension of the principle that
“knowledge and vital piety belong together,” that there can be no
effective commitment to care for the world and participate in God’s
mission to renew the world, without leaders who are “characterized by
intellectual excellence” as well as “holiness of heart and life.”
“It is not an exaggeration to assert
that if Methodist-related educational institutions and the church that
created them would be true to their calling, they will claim the ‘world
as their parish’ and promote learning that removes barriers — social,
political, racial, economic — that divide and separate the human family
of God,” Del Pino said after the conference.
Other speakers and participants
challenged United Methodist churches and educators to help shape the
impact of globalization on the economy, the environment, and religion
and culture.
Masayuki Ida, associate dean of the
Graduate School of International Management at Aoyama Gakuin University
in Japan, warned of the growing digital divide between the rich and the
poor.
The world’s developing countries own
just 4 percent of the world’s computers. In 2002, there were only 6.3
million Internet subscribers on the entire African continent, compared
with 34.3 million in the United Kingdom alone.
Ida noted that globalization has
brought economic and technological advances that have provided millions
of people with unprecedented opportunities for commerce,
self-improvement and social connection. But he and others warned
globalization also brings the dangers of exclusion, injustice and
marginalization.
Globalization does offer an important
window of opportunity for protecting the environment, one in which
educators have a critical role, said Peter Mullins, chief executive
officer of Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
He challenged educators to become more
aware and informed about threats to the environment and the complex
solutions that are needed.
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A Web-only photo courtesy of Board of Higher Education and Ministry Masayuki Ida of Japan warns Methodist educators of the growing digital divide between rich and poor.
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Masayuki
Ida, associate dean of the Graduate School of International Management
at Aoyama Gakuin University in Japan, warns Methodist educators of the
growing digital divide between rich and poor. He spoke at the July 11-14
meeting of the International Association of Methodist Schools, Colleges
and Universities, held at Westminster School in Adelaide, Australia. A
Web-only photo courtesy of the United Methodist Board of Higher
Education and Ministry. Photo #W05-092. Accompanies UMNS #418. 7/25/05 |
“Take a leadership role in pushing environmental awareness and thinking into your schools,” he said.
While most of the conference attendees
were educators, 10 students from the United States and Australia
participated through the cooperation of the Board of Higher Education
and Ministry’s Campus Ministry Section.
The students visited an aboriginal college, Tauondi College, in Port Adelaide, South Australia.
Tahara Rahman, a 21-year-old recent
graduate of Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, said she took away from
the conference the idea that “silence is consent” when there is an
injustice.
“If you sit back and don’t do anything, it’s just like you are consenting,” she said.
In other business, the association’s
board re-elected as president Rukudzo Murapa of Zimbabwe, the vice
chancellor of Africa University. Almir de Souza Maya of Brazil,
president of the Latin American Association of Methodist Institutions of
Education, was elected vice president, and Wanda Bigham, the Board of
Higher Education and Ministry’s assistant general secretary of Schools,
Colleges and Universities, will serve as secretary/treasurer.
The International Association of
Methodist Schools, Colleges and Universities represents more than 700
Methodist educational institutions around the world. It aims to develop a
dynamic, worldwide network of member institutions for preparing a new
generation of Christian leaders.
In panel discussions and group
sessions, participants warned that the injustices and inequities that
frequently accompany globalization may end up leaving large sections of
the world’s population behind.
“How can we talk about globalization
when two-thirds of the world’s population lives under the poverty line?”
asked panelist Elvira Romera of Argentina, a consultant to the minister
of education in the Buenos Aires province.
The United Methodist Church should
respond to globalization by fostering a sense of wholeness that calls
for respect of all living things and working to overcome the divisions
that still plague the body of Christ, Klaiber said.
“The church has to face this reality in all its complexity,” he said.
*Pieterse is director of scholarly
research, and Brown is associate editor and writer in the Office of
Interpretation of the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and
Ministry.
News media contact: Linda Green, (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
International Association of Methodist Schools
IAMSCU Founding Document
Westminster School
IAMSCU Directory
General Board of Higher Education and Ministry
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