With few exceptions, global and international education issues have not dominated the discourse or research on teacher education until recently. Merryfield (1995) notes that in the 1980s the National Governors Association called for teachers to be better prepared in global education and international studies, and in 1994 the National Council for…

With regard to enhancing teacher candidates' global awareness, teacher education currently faces two challenges: indifference and inaction. The author based this claim primarily on observation and personal experience. In a course on teaching literacy in the content areas, the author began with an overview of the state of literacy, not just in the…

Identifying the challenges faced by teacher education as the global society becomes increasingly complex requires understanding the current contexts for teacher preparation while projecting what needs to be done to prepare for the future. In order to identify and address the challenges of today and tomorrow, the author contends that teacher…

Challenges facing teacher education in an increasingly global society are actually reflections of four major shifts in society--shifts that teacher educators must understand and accommodate to develop programs that capture the essence of the schools of tomorrow rather than stagnate in models of yesterday. First, electronic technology has become…

Thirty years ago, Maxine Greene (1978) wrote about mystification as it relates to teacher education during unquiet times. However, this is no longer the industrial age; people are well beyond the economic stagnation that existed in the 1970s, and to say that these are "unquiet times" would be to seriously downplay the transitions of the 21st…

As she reflects on the question forming the title of this piece, the author begins with a premise--namely, that they became teacher educators because they are motivated to make a difference. They are committed to education, and they feel compelled to prepare the next generation of teachers. With the best of intentions, the author does not think…

Central to schools of education are the professional preparation and development of future educators, who will be responsible for preparing citizens to function and live in a global community. Globalization and schooling have the potential to successfully or unsuccessfully affect the skills that students need to succeed in an increasingly global…

When asked to address the challenges faced by teacher education in an increasingly global society, the author answers only from her place-based perspective: she teaches in a Southern, conservative, primarily rural state where Whites outnumber Blacks two to one and where nearly 20% of the population falls below the poverty line. Although there are…

Lois Weiner (2007) asserts that neoliberalism is "a lethal threat to U.S. teacher education" (p. 274). In this paper, the authors argue that neoliberalism poses the most important challenge faced by teacher education in an increasingly global society. Neoliberalism is having a direct impact on U.S. teacher education in the form of the…

As globalization affects political and economic systems, cultures, and the environment, it affects the educational needs of a globalized workforce. In this complex, fast-evolving knowledge economy, workers must possess analytic skills, creativity, flexibility, and innovation. They need oral and written communication skills and the disposition to…

There are serious implications of the global economy for teacher education. In this paper, the authors identify some of the influences of the global economy on education and teacher education, point out responses to these, and discuss some of the resultant challenges from the vantage point of the United States.

These are demanding times for America and for nations around the world. Today, as at no time in recent history, everyone is experiencing massive, often-tumultuous changes that are transforming one's society economically, politically, and socially. As ongoing debates about these and other factors continue to redefine the world, America's education…

In this article, I address the following question: How, in a time of shrinking budgets and reduced graduation timelines, are university teacher preparation programs to best address the issue of global literacy for future teachers? In an effort to begin addressing this challenge, the College of Education at Stephen F. Austin State University…

The major challenge faced by teacher education in an increasingly global society is to prepare teachers who can function effectively in a standards and accountability environment while modeling and inspiring their students to be internationally minded, creative citizens. However, the demographic changes taking place throughout the world,…

This article examines the result of a study on teachers' reported use of instructional strategies in dealing with the U.S.-Iraq war, the resources that they use, the challenges that they face in implementing a globally oriented curriculum, and the sources of influence on their commitment to global education. A questionnaire was developed and used…