How internationally minded are you?

Education has always been perceived as a national priority. It has been the means of defining, debating and maintaining a nation’s culture from one generation to the next and therefore its very sense of identity. Furthermore, governments cannot ignore the broad relationship between education and economic prosperity. Decisions about who should teach, what they should teach and how they should teach it lie at the heart of cultural transmission. Whose view of the nation’s future needs should be promoted? Which selected elements of the nation’s culture should be nurtured?

There have always been people ready to think beyond national frontiers in order to imagine things from a different perspective. That does not require anyone to surrender their national identity and culture, but rather to take notice of the identity and culture of others. Indeed, it is only when we know and celebrate our own heritage and culture - warts and all - that we can start knowing and cherishing the heritage and culture of others.

Why is it important to be internationally minded?

Today, in an age where there is an increasing emphasis on connectedness, this is a practical necessity for us all. We live in an age of increasing international mobility in business and dramatic global migration patterns.

• One of the seminal IB documents, IB Diploma Programme: From principles into practice (2009) speaks of “the need to fit academic studies into a human and global context….. Our students must develop the necessary skills, habits of mind and the moral and ethical values to be able to understand and manage the inter connectivity and complexity of the modern world.”
• In an IB position paper Irene Davy promotes the IB as a curriculum for global citizenship: “The world is changing, and there is evidence that we are entering a “post-international environment”: borders are weakening, multiple citizenships are more commonplace, migration has reached record levels, and we have encountered the “death of distance”. “We are increasingly living next to, working alongside, sharing our leisure with, and choosing our partners from people with different cultural backgrounds”. 
• A recent study of the skills required by businesses throughout the world has concluded that “The modern workplace is increasingly globalized and competitive. Communicating with customers, colleagues and partners across international borders is now an everyday occurrence for many workers around the world. Consequently, employers are under strong pressure to find employees who are not only technically proficient, but also culturally astute and able to thrive in a global work environment.” Culture at work: the value of intercultural skills in the workplace, British Council 2013.

“Engaging with different perspectives and world views requires individuals to examine the origins and implications of others’ and their own assumptions. This, in turn, implies a profound respect for and interest in who the other is, their concept of reality and their perspectives. Recognising another’s position or belief is not necessarily to accept that position or belief. However, the ability to see through multiple lenses provides opportunities to deepen and question one’s own perspectives and to make more mature decisions. Where we are not successful with this, we are building our education systems on sand. The bottom line is that we can try to assert boundaries, but we cannot hold them against the reality of interdependence.”  (Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills, OECD: World Class - How to build a 21st century school system pages 32-33)

Becoming an IB World School often requires changes in the organizational culture including the acceptance of new values and beliefs, new behaviours, new structures and new practices in line with the IB philosophy and the IB Programme Standards and Practices. This section will explore the concept of international mindedness:

• What does the IB mean by international-mindedness?
• What characteristics are internationally minded individuals expected to possess?

Defining International-Mindedness

The world in which you were born is just one model of reality.  Other cultures are not failed attempts at being you:  they are unique manifestations of the human spirit.”  ~Wade Davis

The 21^st century world is a globally interconnected one in which people are expected to be internationally minded, able to navigate and transcend national and cultural borders (IB Standard A4). Many words and ideas exist for describing the need for education that focuses on preparing students to be responsible members of the global community. Since 1968 the IB has used the umbrella term ‘international mindedness’ to describe the aim of such an education. There are many other terms in play in the field: global/international/ cosmopolitan/ multi/intercultural consciousness, awareness, perspective, dimension/ competence, citizenship, civics – each has its own connotations and utility.

The IB's definition of international-mindedness has evolved and matured. The 2009 definition largely equated it to global and intercultural understanding. Today the IB definition has incorporated two more dimensions, namely global engagement and multilingualism. These three dimensions are embedded in the IB Learner Profile. An internationally minded learner is one who is a competent communicator, open-minded and knowledgeable. The IB recognizes that their original definition of international mindedness arises out of 'western knowledge' and they are mindful of the influence of non-Western linguistic, humanistic, scientific, mathematical and artistic cultures.

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