3. Jesuit Schools are committed to Global Citizenship [50]
This means preparing students and their families to identify first and primary as members of the human family with a common responsibility for the entire world rather than just members of a particular nation or group.
For most of its history, Jesuit Education has been multinational. We have much to contribute to this effort of global citizenship. Our Ignatian vision allows us to find God in all things and to set the world aflame with the warmth and light of God’s saving love. Preparing students of Jesuit schools to be global citizens is to prepare them to truly see God in all things, to be driven by compassion, and to utilize the power of religion for justice and peace.
Above all, our schools are instruments through which the Society of Jesus accomplishes its mission as expressed in the documents of the 35th General Congregation, Our mission of faith and justice, dialogue of religions and cultures has acquired dimensions that no longer allow us to conceive of the world as composed of separate entities; we must see it as a unified whole in which we depend upon one another.
To that end, Global citizenship education should not be merely an add-on, but integrated into the core curriculum. This is the case when teachers and students incorporate global and cultural examples throughout their study, when communication skills that are globally mindful, inclusive and effective are taught, when all disciplines are approached with an awareness of globalization and its impact on 21st century learning, and when one’s global and multicultural experiences are prioritized in student achievements and faculty hiring for mission.
This should lead to a pedagogy and programming aimed at preparing students to understand and respect world cultures, respect and value diversity, be open to experiences of countries, customs and cultures that are different from one’s own and to have a global perspective on social injustices.
Our schools should require:
Conversational skills in foreign languages
Partnerships between schools across the globe
Collaborative programs among schools to examine global issues and initiate joint projects
These can be achieved through cultural immersion trips, international service and immersion opportunities, academic-based exchange programs, technologically based exchanges such as virtual classrooms, seminars and courses; spiritual retreats, multicultural community service programs, and liturgies that reflect the diversity of our global Church. Students with impoverished backgrounds should be well represented in all of these activities.
Jesuit schools enjoy a built-in network to establish connections, partnerships and relationships around the world. Jesuit schools have built-in security, confidence, safety, local knowledge and established presence.
This will require our schools to live in the creative tension between being locally and globally rooted and aware. We want our students to recognize, value and celebrate their local community, tradition and culture, and at the same time, be able to communicate, work and identify with others as members of our global community. This is an important element of Educate Magis [51] . It provides a web-based platform for all of our institutions and educators to engage one another in this dynamic and creative process.
Exercise 21. For discernment:
How do you assess this challenge?
What are the most significant obstacles?
How can we adapt this challenge for all Jesuit schools so that it reflects the greater good?
In this context, what has your educational apostolate done?
