The general issue of citizenship has been contested over a long period. Some people argue for cosmopolitan citizenship, while others support national citizenship. However, due to increasing globalization, the issue of education for globalization has been emerging as more countries seek to produce globally eligible students. This study will evaluate the issue of cosmopolitanism concerning its ideologies, institutionalization and social control. To govern cosmopolitan education worldwide and bring social order and peace globally, there should be an international education body.
Understanding Key Concepts and Relations between Education, Institutionalization, Ideologies, and Theories of Social Control
The traditional approaches of global citizenship prioritize specific political, social, and legal rights that people may have as individuals of foreign states. They argue that citizenship should be anchored in various sovereignty, territorial, and shared nationality boundaries (Akkari and Maleq, 2019: 177). The idea of cosmopolitan citizenship is essential for the minority and vulnerable groups who lack the political and economic power to rescue themselves. Cosmopolitan citizenship is based on the belief that outsiders should not be at the mercy of the political, economic, and military power of the region or society they live. This study will explain the relations between education, institutionalization, ideology, and social theories of social control based on global and cosmopolitan citizenship.
Education
Since public schools began in the US, the issue of citizenship education has been a major focal point for educational and political debates. Delays have caused the incorporation of curricular development in citizenship education with emerging aspects of citizenship (Delgado-Algarra, Bernal-Bravo, and López-Meneses, 2019: 168). Foreigners are expected to show loyalty in state building when offered US citizenship. This implies that they have specific responsibilities to the state, and the state will give them rights to enjoy as compensation. For instance, immigrants in the US are expected to live according to the morals and values of US society. However, education is one of the factors that is met with resistance whereby some people disregard the education system and prefer their own.
Although the US supports cosmopolitan education, educators face various challenges in teaching the curriculum. For instance, they lack adequate training, an exam-oriented curriculum, and vocal government and school officials to propel the curriculum (Vinokur, 2018: 978). However, in spite of the challenges, there is increasing demand for global education in the US due to recent economic growth, population mobility, and the interdependence of cultures. Despite the high demand for global education, little about cosmopolitan education is heard in classes because teachers are practitioners who are used to operating with concrete terms (Tarc and Budrow, 2022: 13-15). Cosmopolitan education is a factor that has supporters and opponents, making teachers shy away from choosing sides. According to the opponents, cosmopolitan education hinders identity and diversity by trying to make the world equal (Tarc and Budrow, 2022: 5). This shows that education is a controversial issue concerning cosmopolitan citizenship because it has both advantages and disadvantages.
Institutionalization
The institutionalization of cosmopolitan citizenship started after the Second World War and was based on human rights principles. After the Second World War, there was an agreement of cosmopolitan rules which declared human rights as a global standard, and genocide was acknowledged as an international crime (United Nations, 2019). This led to international institutions such as the United Nations, which would keep watch on the cosmopolitan laws. However, as cosmopolitan relationships evolved, institutionalization was brought to schools and learning institutions. The pressure for education institutions to produce global students who can join the workforce in any region of the world has led to the growth of global citizenship education through institutionalization (Hughes, 2021: 125). The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization has put cosmopolitan education citizenship among its strategic focus for 2014-2017 and has thus, made cosmopolitan institutionalization common in the US.
Many schools in the US have been forced to adhere to international standards set by UNESCO to remain relevant in this competitive industry. Leaders have adopted internationalization to align their learning institutions to global demand (Hughes, 2021: 123). Cosmopolitan institutionalization relies on five main factors, including the interdependence on social, political, and economic perspectives (Keohane, 2020: 13). Additionally, they aim to understand their personal beliefs and learn to appreciate others’ cultures, conflict resolution, social and constitutional justice, and sustainable futures (Keohane, 2020: 13).
Ideology and Theories of Social Control
The world faces difficult times due to terrorism, political violence, pandemics, hyper-inflation, and racism. Cosmopolitan citizenship education helps to prepare young people to live together in harmony in an increasingly diverse world and make them feel empowered to make a change (Sincer, Severiens, and Volman, 2019: 184). When young people are educated about political efficacy and societal cohesion, they are more likely to embrace a peaceful world and have a unique focus on state loyalty and instead focus on global loyalty. Students should be taught theories of cosmopolitan democracy, which enhance the interconnected world, living in a diverse world, and negotiating multiple loyalties. One of the cosmopolitan democracy theories is the political theory which states that all people should be treated equally and with respect despite their citizenship (Pérez, 2019: 315). These theories help to have a peaceful world where diversity is highly valued.
The United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child states that students should be treated in their “best interest.” This guarantees children the right to freely express themselves and their views to be significantly considered in decision-making (UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti, 2019). Thus, the education system and other agencies that serve students should adhere to these standards, and the government should take a moral obligation to enforce them. Students should be given a role to play in politics and society by being involved in decisions that affect them. Educators should teach students about their rights and facilitate an environment that allows them to practice through student councils. According to modern theory, political participation in society is inseparable from an equal society (Widerquist and McCall, 2021: 48). Thus, when students are given a voice in the political field, they can raise their ideologies on having a better society.
Since schools alone cannot enhance the ideology of cosmopolitan citizenship, they require other partners such as museums and relevant local institutions to help them. Museums help schools to develop family histories and personal experiences by integrating them to reflect on the diverse local, national and global outlook (Noy and Hancock, 2020: 37-38). The local government should allow students to learn about their histories and human rights because cosmopolitan education is built on the ideology of human rights and enhances students to create solidarities from local to global scales.
The Relation between Education, Employment, Globalization, and Neoliberalism
One of the main educational debates in the world concerns the shift of research, policy, and philosophy from nationally global education to an international outlook. The education sector is being revolutionized to focus on global economic structures, diverse populations, neoliberal policies, and enhancing global communication due to the quickly evolving digital technologies. Thus, education in cosmopolitan citizenship seeks to address the challenges these new technological advancements bring to the people.
Due to the increase of cosmopolitan citizenship in education, there has been an increased demand for a cosmopolitan labor force. Many global firms consider employing professionals according to their cosmopolitan reputations, such as language skills, physical impressions, gendered dimensions, and dress code (Valbrune, 2018). English is a major consideration in cosmopolitan working space based on language skills. A person working in a cosmopolitan environment must be physically presentable regarding hair, jewelry, posture, gesture, and dressing (Valbrune, 2018). Thus, cosmopolitan schools teach people language proficiency, dress code, and ethics that are considered cosmopolitan.
Globalization in cosmopolitanism is based on reversing political inequalities that have existed for a long time and making the world fairer. Hence, globalization has been defined as the process of the movement of capital across national borders (Horner, 2019: 6). Capitalism keeps growing and expanding; thus, there is always an increased demand for goods and services. Hence, globalization is a natural, inevitable phenomenon with or without cosmopolitans (Kobrin, 2020: 281). Thus to enhance globalization in a cosmopolitan society, there is a need for a central body that is answerable to the people. Thus, neoliberals found it good to develop governments that could control capitalism and ensure they were not exploited.
Legacy of Colonialism and New Forms of Racism and Discrimination in Education in a Globalized Era
The legacy of colonialism still thrives in the 21st century through the regulation of international institutions. While international institutions have to adhere to these international standards, they face the pressure of integrating these merits with local demands for justice. International standards have been made to discriminate between students depending on their color and societal status (Manthalu and Waghid, 2019: 8). For instance, in a country like South Africa, the education system is characterized by schools for white that provide more quality tertiary education than those for black South Africans. This is done to ensure that the South Africans have no place in Euro Descendants and have limited opportunities by being semi-skilled and hence more inferior. Thus, in such a case, the country must struggle to balance incorporating the competitive international economy and the local concerns that aim to address racial injustices.
The issue of education discrimination does not only happen in developing countries as other advanced states such as the US have been in the limelight for discriminatory education. Although the US government has substantially helped to fill the gap of educational inequality between whites and other ethnic minorities such as African Americans, Latinos, and Asians, there is still considerable racism. Most students from minority groups are likely to attend minority schools that are not adequately funded like the white dominant schools (Lombardo, 2019). Schools with many students of color received fewer resources than predominantly white. In addition, the schools that serve minority ethnic groups lack qualified staff and the basic amenities to teach. For instance, Laboratories are not fully equipped, demonstrating inequality in resource distribution.
Can Education Work Towards Social Justices
Education has been used in the world for both political and developmental purposes. However, the idea of cosmopolitan education can serve significantly in addressing the issue of social injustices in society (Hobbs, 2021: 11). When international schools are linked together and integrated with local cultures, they will help to teach young people how to relate with one another, bring a global economy and enhance peace (Alexander, Julia and Byun, 2018: 113). When people do not understand one another, there is a likeliness of conflict; thus, cosmopolitan education will enable students to understand their cultures and the cultures of others (Tabassi, Abdullah and Bryde, 2018, 104). This will lead to respect and dignity towards other cultures; hence there will be fewer disputes because people will be willing to understand each other’s views.
In addition, the cosmopolitan education system will teach young people conflict management skills, implying that they can amicably sit down and resolve their issues without violence. This is an important aspect of the cosmopolitan education system because chaos will not erupt when there are good negotiation and conflict resolution methods (Tafvelin, Keisu, and Kvist, 2019: 49). Finally, with the help of cosmopolitan institutions such as the United Nations, and the International Criminal Court, there will be better ways of managing conflict if it gets out of hand. Thus, cosmopolitan education can help achieve social justice; however, there is a need to improve the systemic inequalities placed on them.
Although Cosmopolitan citizenship in education has received both supporters and opponents, looking at it from a general perspective, it has a solution to the world’s social injustices. While some nations like the United States will be ‘above the law,’ cosmopolitan education will benefit developing economies. They will be able to produce world-class professionals with a significant economic and political boost. In addition, cosmopolitan education teaches young people about diversity, respect for human rights, and conflict management skills, implying that it will secure a peaceful future. Thus, cosmopolitanism will help enhance peace and justice across the world.
Reference List
Akkari, A. and Maleq, K. (2019). Global citizenship: Buzzword or new instrument for educational change? Europe’s Journal of Psychology, 15(2), pp.176–182.
Alexander, L., Julia, H. and Byun, W.J. (2018). Issues and trends in education for sustainable development. [online] Google Books, UNESCO Publishing, pp.1–276. Web.
Delgado-Algarra, E.J., Bernal-Bravo, C. and López-Meneses, E. (2019). Multicultural competence and cosmopolitan citizenship in the Hispanic-Japanese context of higher education. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 8(2), p.166-174.
Hobbs, J. (2021). National Injustice, Caring Institutions and Cosmopolitan Motivation. Res Publica, 13(2), pp.1–20.
Horner, R. (2019). Towards a new paradigm of global development? Beyond the limits of international development. Progress in Human Geography, 44(3), pp.1–22.
Hughes, C. (2021). Operationalising Global Citizenship Education. L’éducation en débats : analyse comparée, 10(1), pp.122–138.
Keohane, R.O. (2020). Understanding Multilateral Institutions in Easy and Hard Times. Annual Review of Political Science, 23(1), pp.1–18.
Kobrin, S.J. (2020). How globalization became a thing that goes bump in the night. Journal of International Business Policy, 3(3), pp.280–286.
Lombardo, C. (2019). Why white school districts have so much more money. [online] Npr.org. Web.
Manthalu, C.H. and Waghid, Y. (2019). Interrogating a cosmopolitanism of African higher education. South African Journal of Higher Education, 33(2), pp.1–15.
Noy, S. and Hancock, M. (2020). Teaching International Development Locally: Using Museum Collections to Ground Students’ Learning. Teaching Sociology, 13(2), pp.32–44.
Pérez, G.P. (2019). Transformation of the Political Theory: Cosmopolitan Citizenship and Democracy. Open Journal of Political Science, 09(02), pp.314–348.
Sincer, I., Severiens, S. and Volman, M. (2019). Teaching diversity in citizenship education: Context-related teacher understandings and practices. Teaching and Teacher Education, 78(5), pp.183–192.
Tabassi, A.A., Abdullah, A. and Bryde, D.J. (2018). Conflict Management, Team Coordination, and Performance Within Multicultural Temporary Projects: Evidence From the Construction Industry. Project Management Journal, 50(1), pp.101–114.
Tafvelin, S., Keisu, B.-I. and Kvist, E. (2019). The Prevalence and Consequences of Intragroup Conflicts for Employee Well-Being in Women-Dominated Work. Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance, 44(1), pp.47–62.
Tarc, P. and Budrow, J. (2022). Seeking the cosmopolitan teacher: internationalising curricula in a Canadian preservice teacher education program. Teachers and Teaching, 14(3), pp.1–18.
UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti (2019). The Convention on the Rights of the Child. [online] Unicef-irc.org. Web.
United Nations (2019). United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect. [online] Un.org. Web.
Valbrune, M. (2018). Council Post: Gender-Based Dress Codes: Human Resources, Diversity And Legal Impact. [online] Forbes. Web.
Vinokur, E. (2018). Cosmopolitan education in local settings: Toward a new civics education for the 21st century. Policy Futures in Education, 16(8), pp.964–984.
Widerquist, K. and McCall, G.S., 2021. The Prehistory of Private Property: Implications for Modern Political Theory. Edinburgh University Press.