Core Area 2: Capacity Building
As educators, we continually strive to better understand the interrelated development issues and our educational responses to them.
We assess the professional learning needs of our members and support capacity building through events and groups. We encourage participation, dialogue, and sharing of knowledge as fundamental to enhancing the collective capacity of our Ubuntu community.
Events
We encourage participation, dialogue, and sharing of knowledge among members as fundamental to enhancing the collective capacity of our Ubuntu community. Our events include Dialogue Days, Assembly gatherings, Research Meets, and Global Citizenship Education in School seminars. These occasions bring together Network members (and prospective members) to explore topics relating to Global Citizenship Education in line with relevant policy, curriculum, and standards. They draw upon research, project experiences and the expertise of national and international keynote speakers.
Groups
We run Communities of Practice and working groups to bring members together to explore niche areas of Global Citizenship Education (GCE) in the context of ITE and where appropriate develop guidelines or other outputs for the Network. Recent working groups explored GCE and Reflective Practice, GCE and Science Education themes, and GCE and School Placement.
Featured Working Group
Guidelines for the Introduction of Global Citizenship Education (GCE) into Initial Teacher Education
With the inclusion of GCE as a mandatory core element in the Teaching Council of Ireland’s Céim standards, this group is working to develop introductory guidelines for GCE. Due for completion in December 2022, this work centres on conceptualising GCE, providing self-reflective tools for GCE and best practice examples from Ubuntu Network projects.
Working with the Code
The Ubuntu Network is in the process of completing the IDEA Code of Good Practice for Development Education self-assessment and is working towards becoming a signatory to the code. This is an important part of our collective capacity building. In line with the core principles of the Code, Ubuntu Network teacher educators and pre-service teachers explore root causes of global issues and engage in active pedagogies that support critical thinking, including role-play, radio show production, art-based workshops, game-based learning, and film and documentary studies.
