Going Global

A journey from Evanston to India

Explore the importance of Global Education to our school and district.

Study explores the technology, standards and assessments that support Global Education
Teach looks at Global Education and how to implement it, why to have global education, and where to find professional development
Travel explores some of what I learned as part of my experience as a TGC Fellow

September 2017

Ganesha & Global Ed

Connecting the World

The day school started, pictures of Ganesha, a Hindu God, flooded my WhatApp group in celebration of Ganesha Chaturthi. Using these pictures, and sculptures I brought from my trip added depth to a story of Ganesha I read to my students that week. I greeted my students saying Namaste and placing a tilok on their foreheads showing how welcomed to the library they are. My students were fascinated by the stories of Ganesha and India. Some laughed at Ganesha's adventures. Some puzzled over whether Ganesha was male or female, and some were a little scared of this half man and half elephant. Some knew of Ganesha because they or family members were born in India. They asked if they could have a pen pal from India, they wanted more interaction, more stories, more dialogue. This was real. This was authentic. This was connected.

Education needs to be real and authentic to engage our students. Students need to connect why they are learning to what they are learning. If they are aware of the world around them and learn to look and understand different perspectives and reasons for those perspectives students will embrace their own learning. Global education is a conceptual way of presenting curriculum to students using authentic experience, giving students real life communication and collaboration skills.

My trip to India was more than an educational experience for me. It's about engaged learning for students. It will enhance my teaching and create richer learning experience for my students, I hope I can share these with educators and librarians in Evanston. I hope to share my perspectives on India and the importance of global education to you. I hope it will connect students to the world, and ease the transition to careers that will involve working globally.

The Global Competencies

Investigate the World

Recognize Perspectives

Communicate Ideas

Take Action

Asia Society

(above) With my fellow Fellows in Pathardi...what a group to learn from and with!

On top of Salabat Khan's tomb in Pathardi, Maharashtra, India with Shrikant Kalokhe, my host teacher

February 2016

Getting to Know Global Ed

I am traveling from Evanston, a suburb north of Chicago, Illinois to India in July of 2017. Why? It is my journey to understand global education and how our students gain global perspectives. I am a 2016-2017 fellow of Teachers for Global Classrooms, funded by the United States Department of State and coordinated by IREX.

Global education creates an education environment for our students to build critical thinking skills, collaborate and solve authentic problems with creativity. Technology, cultural shifts, rapid population growth, job choices have led to a changing world. Education needs to shift to enable our students to be participants of a global world; where the local effects the global, and global effects the local. This website is my capstone project as a fellow and will enable me to share what I have learned and track my steps taken to globalize my school and students.

I am a librarian at a school of Global Studies in Evanston-Skokie District 65. I applied for the fellowship at Teachers for a Global Classroom to increase my understanding of what global studies is and how we can truly transform our school. In 1995, what is now Rhodes, was opened as Timber Ridge School, a magnet school with a technology focus. The name was changed to Dr. Bessie Rhodes Magnet School 2005 to reflect the dynamic nature of it's first principal. And in 2013 the “Global Studies” was added to re-magnetize or re-focus our school six years ago. We have made many baby steps, but are still working on what it means to the students beyond a name change.

Fall 2016 , I completed an intense 10 week online course in global studies. In February of 2017 the school's administrator, Mrs. Norwood, and I attended a Global Studies Symposium in Washington D.C. The next step in my journey is to travel to India along with other members of my cohort and learn about the educational system in India and work with teachers there.

Tracy Hubbard

Library Media Specialist

Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies

Teachers for Global Classrooms

Evanston Skokie District 65

Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies

"This blog is not an official U.S. Department of State blog. The views and information presented are the grantee's own and do not represent the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program, IREX, or the U.S. Department of State."

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