Case Study: Integrating Global Citizenship Education at UCC (2017-2024)

CASE STUDY

Integrating Global Citizenship Education at the University College Cork (UCC)

Who We Are

Institution: School of Education, University College Cork (UCC) has systematically embraced Global Citizenship Education (GCE) to enhance educational practices and student outcomes.

Project Leaders:

  • Dr. Stephen O’Brien: The principal leader for DE/GCE projects, Dr. O’Brien has spearheaded DE/GCE projects with a vision to deeply embed global citizenship and sustainable education practices within teacher education. His leadership has been pivotal in aligning the project objectives with UCC’s strategic educational goals and global educational standards.
  • Dr. Gertrude Cotter: Co-leader on many of the GCE projects, Dr. Cotter has been instrumental in operationalising the integration of GCE into the curriculum. Her contributions include developing specific modules, organizing exhibitions, and enhancing public engagement through media.
  • Ms.Seánín Hoy: Collaborating closely with Dr. O’Brien, Ms. Hoy has brought innovative pedagogical approaches to the projects. Her focus on creating interactive and student-centred learning environments has significantly enriched the GCE curriculum.
Dr Stephen O’Brien (middle) alongside student teachers, participating in a workshop

What We Did

The primary aim was to integrate Development Education (DE)/GCE into the fabric of teacher education, ensuring that future educators are well-prepared to teach and embody global citizenship principles. The objectives evolved to include more extensive pedagogical strategies and digital integration, especially in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Project Objectives:

  • Integration of DE/GCE into Curriculum: The primary objective was to seamlessly integrate DE and GCE principles into the core modules of the Professional Master of Education (PME) program. This included embedding these principles into existing courses like ‘Curriculum and Assessment’ and developing new modules specifically dedicated to DE/GCE. Given the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, a significant objective was the creation and implementation of online and blended learning options to continue DE/GCE education without interruption. This included piloting new online modules and adapting traditional in-person activities to virtual formats.
  • Enhancement of Teacher Capacities: Building the capacities of pre-service and in-service teachers to understand and deliver DE/GCE content effectively in their classrooms was a major focus. This objective aimed at ensuring that teachers are not only aware of global citizenship concepts but are also equipped to actively engage students in these discussions in their respective classrooms.
  • Professional Development and Learning Initiatives: Another objective was to provide ongoing professional development opportunities for faculty and staff, focusing on DE/GCE content, pedagogical strategies, and assessment methods. These included a series of workshops, seminars, and continuous professional development (CPD) for staff, focusing on DE theories, practices, and integration into existing curricula.
  • Research, Monitoring and Evaluation: The project’s impact was consistently monitored through student engagement metrics, feedback mechanisms, and the development of digital content, which allowed for a broader evaluation of learning outcomes. Conducting research to assess the effectiveness of DE/GCE integration and using this data to continually refine and improve the programs was a critical objective. This included evaluating the impact on student learning outcomes, teacher preparedness, and overall institutional adoption of GCE principles.
  • Advocacy and Outreach: Promoting DE/GCE principles beyond the university setting through advocacy, outreach programs, and collaborations with local and international partners was also a fundamental objective. Engaging the educational community and the public through workshops, exhibitions, and public lectures was also key to spreading the reach and impact of DE/GCE initiatives. The project featured extensive outreach efforts, including exhibitions at the Glucksman Gallery, interactive websites, and participation in community radio programs. These initiatives
    significantly increased public engagement and awareness of DE/GCE themes

Impact Achieved

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Student Engagement/Educational Impact: Over the duration of the DE/GCE projects, UCC successfully prepared hundreds of teacher candidates to integrate global citizenship concepts into their teaching. Surveys and feedback from these educators indicated increased competence in their ability to engage students with complex global issues. DE/GCE principles were incorporated into multiple core modules within the PME program, reaching all enrolled students. This systematic integration ensures that every student teacher at the School of Education, UCC receives foundational DE/GCE training, which they carry into their professional teaching careers.

I started the Global Teacher Award thinking it was about environmental change. I came out thinking about climate justice and also tax, trade and debt justice.
Student teacher
The impact Id Est has had on the development of my personal and professional identity as a teacher has been truly transformative in terms of my thinking, in my approach to teaching, in my world view and in my values and beliefs for present and future education.
UCC Quality Audit, 2020: Seánín Hoy, former PME student and Project Leader
We know from ongoing discussions with students that Development Education is important to them.  They (foundationally) understand that teaching is as much about nurturing identity (for oneself and others) as it is about facilitating informed truths.  With the DE work we do with student teachers we notice that they come to appreciate that teachers have an important (and wider) social and civic purpose and that their work has local and global significance.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien
GCE has strengthened me as an educator in my use of active learning methods and in my flexibility and provided me with more vision because the more I practice, the more confident I am to let go and be more creative and innovative which is truly empowering. Reading literature in GCE, engaging with other professionals in GCE, exploring GCE with student teachers and school students has certainly had an impact on my values and my attitude in the sense that I see my role as a political obligation and participant in a collaborative move for justice.
Student Teacher
The Panel considered the submission for the UCC programmes to be exemplary. UCC have a demonstrably strong commitment to global citizenship, education for sustainable development and social justice across the college in general and within the school of education in particular.
Teaching Council Accreditation Review Panel, May 2023
In their post-lesson reflections, student teachers commented on their new understanding of DE/GCE, in their opportunities to invite DE/GCE into their respective disciplines and in the challenges that they encountered through this facilitation. They also commented that, in spite of such challenges, they felt more confident and more equipped to approach the teaching and learning of DE/GCE issues.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien

Public Outreach and Engagement: Public exhibitions, interactive websites, and community radio involvement led to a greater public understanding of DE/GCE themes. Students engaged in diverse projects ranging from local community initiatives to international educational programs, which allowed them to apply DE/GCE concepts practically. The quality and creativity of these projects were showcased in annual university exhibitions and online platforms, receiving positive community and academic feedback.

Facilitating workshops on GCE as well as designing and implementing a new module for Transition Year students has been profoundly impactful on me as an educator and researcher.
Student teacher
The participants’ experience of learning has a powerful influence on their own implementation and motivation for teaching and learning therefore it was imperative that the course authentically reflected the values of Global Citizenship Education, values such  as ‘Empathy’ and avoiding traditional narratives of sympathy.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien

Capacity Building: Ongoing professional development workshops and seminars have equipped UCC faculty and partner educators with advanced skills in DE/GCE, ensuring the sustainability of project initiatives. These efforts have fostered a robust community of practice committed to continuous improvement in DE/GCE.

In the workshops they [UCC faculty] commented on new learning, ‘unlearning’ and ‘relearning’.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien

Research and Evaluation: Comprehensive evaluations involving external reviewers from the Ubuntu Network have validated the effectiveness of the DE/GCE projects, highlighting significant advances in teacher preparedness and student outcomes. Ongoing research initiatives associated with the project have contributed to the academic literature on DE/GCE, with several papers published on the effectiveness of DE integration in teacher education.

Student teachers were challenged and rewarded by their experiences with GCE. In the workshops, they commented on new learning, ‘unlearning’ and ‘relearning’. In their post-lesson reflections, student teachers commented on their new understanding of DE/GCE, in their opportunities to invite DE/GCE into their respective disciplines and in the challenges that they encountered through this facilitation.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien

Student GCE outputs

Student GCE outputs

Student GCE outputs

Student GCE outputs

Vicky Donnelly leads a GCE workshop with the UCC Praxis Working Group 

What We Learned

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Sustainability of Initiatives: Long-term sustainability requires ongoing commitment, resources, and institutional support. The experience has underscored the necessity of embedding DE/GCE deeply within the curriculum and school policies to ensure lasting impact.

DE/GCE is of particular importance to me and I am committed to seeing teaching in another way.
Student teacher
It is important to note too that the deep learning which all participants (teachers and students alike) are invited to engage in, is a long process and requires constant evaluation and reflection and patience with reservation of judgement as individuals learn at different levels and paces.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien
Overall the visceral feeling of creating an artefact can bring student teachers in touch with more profound and different understandings of their work in the classrooms.  The student teachers had to see, feel, think and hear differently and in so doing I gained new insights.
Project Leader Dr Gertrude Cotter

Community and Collaboration: Building a community of practice among educators and students has been invaluable. Collaborative efforts, both locally and internationally, have enriched the learning environment and broadened the scope of DE/GCE.

Meet, exchange ideas and collaborate with like-minded peers.
Student teacher
It made me think more about education as a human right, everyone deserves to learn.
Post-Primary student refection
I would like this project to encourage others to learn more about access to education around the world, not everyone is able to go to school, that is not fair.
Post-Primary student refection
The project reinforced the value of collaboration and inclusion in teaching and learning, working together to examine the real world we live in.
UCC Quality Audit, 2020: Seánín Hoy, former PME student and Project Leader

Reflection and Adaptation: The transition to online learning during the pandemic taught us the importance of flexibility and the potential of digital platforms to sustain educational continuity and innovation.

Creativity is very important in this critical and cultural work, being intrinsically motivated to create lessons and units of learning based on real world events and experiences and my research is very helpful in terms of learning from others and best practices, seeing how they can be adapted to potentially suit other learning environments.
Student Teacher
Student teachers were challenged and rewarded by their experiences with GCE. In the workshops they commented on new learning, ‘unlearning’ and ‘relearning’. In their post-lesson reflections, student teachers commented on their new understanding of DE/GCE, in their opportunities to invite DE/GCE into their respective disciplines and in the challenges that they encountered through this facilitation.
Project Leader Dr Steven O’Brien
Teaching through the lens of DGCE takes planning, preparation, commitment and a degree of humility to relinquish control.  It takes patience to allow multiple perspectives and multiple disagreements to occur, it takes a willingness to stand by your own morals and principles to say to colleagues, school management, parents and others that these conversations are not just worth having, they are essential.
UCC Quality Audit, 2020: Seánín Hoy, former PME student and Project Leader

This case study aims to showcase the transformative power of Development Education / Global Citizenship Education within the School of Education, University College Cork, highlighting the sustained efforts and innovations that have significantly shaped the educational landscape, influencing both policy and practice on local and global scales.