This class at the University of Oregon has been one of my favorite classes at the University. I’ve been trying to put my finger on why this has been for most of the term. I couldn’t tell if it was because finally all the concepts I have learned throughout my time at the University were finally applied to something I am passionate about or if it was the new subject matter. I haven’t been in school for the past year and have been learning through my experiences. When I came back this term, I felt as though I had outgrown school. I wasn’t ready to sit in a classroom and analyze some reading that has nothing to do with me.

With the overarching theme and question “what is education,” I became a little wary of answering this within a class, in a university. I did not feel as though it was right to prescribe a definition to something that every person experiences differently. Yet, through this class I am beginning to learn what education means to me.

I had felt pigeonholed into this version of education, something that I knew was important and necessary toward my future career but I had outgrown this model of traditional western education. Now I feel as though learning through my experiences is more important, these are the things that are going to shape me.

This class’s openness to choose what we are interested in, to apply different concepts to these topics made this so interesting. And it wasn’t just me because each person’s passions and interests in their topic and their own experiences with education added to the excitement of the class. By creating our own course schedule and allowing there to be a dialogue about what we felt was important to our own education. We have all come to the point in our lives where we know how we learn best and we were able to create this environment in this class. “Learning is the process of ‘unknowing’ what one thinks one knows” [1].  In this class we did this, now I can examine and understand the mistakes and successes of global and local education as well as my own education experiences. I will always be learning and always be questioning what and how I have learned.

[1]] Shields, Robin. Globalization and International Education. 2013.

“I speak not for myself, but so those without a voice can be heard. Those who have fought for their rights. Their right to live in peace. Their right to be treated with dignity. Their right to equality of opportunity. Their right to be educated.” -Malala Youssef

NORRAG’s post on the post conflict education strategies following the 2015 deadlines of the MDGs, starts with a powerful quote from an inspirational girl. Malala’s fight for education is one that she is sharing with the world and is changing the conversation global education policies. These policies have primarily been focused on access with Education for All and Learning for All policies.

After acknowledging the problems with these uniform policies, namely their failure to address the different situations that they are being implemented in. NORRAG’s looks at this in the context of conflicts and how to fit education policies into aid that is arriving in these areas. As told by education consultant Christopher Talbot, “Neglecting education can sow the seeds for a next conflict. Education in emergencies is demanded, life-saving and life-sustaining.” The importance of the conflict education cannot be understated and is something that must be included in new education policies.

The conversation on education in conflicts and in post-conflict relief is becoming more and more relevant. With the spotlight on conflicts and disaster situations in Syria and the Philippines, the lack of comprehensive relief plans that include education are being shown to the globe. It is necessary that a framework for these unique circumstances be developed in order to create a sense of normalcy. Education can provide emotional support for children who have gone through traumatic events in addition to standard learning and this needs to be a priority in relief. Since this cannot be specifically addressed in the broad policies such as EFA and the MDGs, 2015 is the perfect time to implement new and creative ways to look at areas of conflict.

NORRAG’s blog post by Mieke Lopes Cardozo and Ritesh Shah addressing this issue of education frameworks in conflict and disaster areas is fantastic but it is only the start. Awareness of the problems and lack of solutions provides a perfect stepping stone for international organizations to build their policies. In order for new policies to come into effect, more voices like Malala’s must be heard and acknowledged.

Doctors and Lawyers—The documentary Schooling the World: The White Man’s Last Burden, asks the question “who benefits when all the worlds children are educated the same way?” Will children in rural Pakistan be able to do the same things with their western education as children in a wealthy neighborhood in Turkey? The concept of factory schooling is easy to implement but the outcome is not always what is expected.  As the documentary explains:  “Less than 10% of people are succeeding in becoming doctors/lawyers/etc. Most are unable to finish and fall between the cracks.” How many engineers, doctors, and bankers does a community need? The education of the masses does not provide an option for the 90% that are now forgotten. With decisions about education being made on an international level, the connection and ability to help those that have fallen through the cracks is just not possible.

Globalization—This term was first used to explain growing intertwined economies and now is applied to everything in our daily lives and has affected the way we educate every person in this world. With decisions about how people should be educated being made on the international level, the needs of the local community are forgotten.  The Western definitions of “progress” and “success” are now tied to how we educate. Students are taught to progress and succeed in ways that are not feasible in their communities; this begins to create a cycle of dependence. A dependence on this globalized economy where these definitions do apply, but which is not necessarily a standard that is attainable for all.

How globalization has shaped our education systems.

Failure— Schooling the World suggests that those who did not succeed in traditional schooling will be branded as failures. In the world of international education, students are told that being successful means something different then it did to their grandparents. No longer is working at the family business an admirable goal—students are continually taught that success is something more. Families now see it as necessary for their children to do something else, to learn a new way, and to become successful in the globalized world. However, without the cultures and economies of different regions, our world would not have the variety that makes our global system. Western education is not universally applicable as some may suggest. The world only needs so many doctors, it is the differences and creativity each person possesses that allow people to learn new things and allow for many different definitions of the word progress.

Solutions— Global ideas about education generally agree that education is a inalienable human right and those who attempt to work towards this goal generally do so with the correct intentions. However, as Schooling the World suggests, these people may not be “connecting the dots” and realizing the impact that certain types of education will have on a specific community. Our education system is already globalized but it is up to every one of us to be more optimistic as to our ability to educate others in ways that will lead them to achieve success organically. The world needs not only doctors and lawyers but also storytellers and carpenters.