INCORPORATING GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION INTO ELT COURSES: PERCEPTIONS OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS

Abstract

Aiming to gain insights into the perception of pre-service teachers toward the incorporation of global citizenship education into English language teaching courses, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic, this study applied the phenomenological design method with a semi-structured interview as a main tool of data collection. Analysis from interviews with 9 student teachers revealed that participants mostly referred to the “value” dimension of global citizenship. Despite limited understanding, prior experience, and training about global citizenship education, most participants believed in the potential of integrating global citizenship education into English language teaching courses by selecting content and creating relevant learning experiences. In such scenario, those teachers saw themselves as guides and inspirers. Furthermore, aligning learning outcomes with teaching materials and assessment, providing teachers with proper training, and dealing with learners’ reluctance were the three most prominent perceived challenges. Finally, judging the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on global citizenship education, the majority of participants perceived the experience to be conducive to global citizenship education in terms of raising individuals’ awareness of their responsibility for global issues and promoting active learning skills. Implications for integrating global citizenship education into English language teaching courses were then suggested.