6.3.3.1 Activity Types University Tutors Use to Develop their Students’ Global Competence (Study 7) Teacher trainers use a wide range of activities to develop their students’ global competence. One of the most popular activity types they mentioned was debates: they ask their students to debate controversial topics either in pairs, in smaller groups or with the whole group. As has been argued by OECD/Asia Society (2018), by using structured debates, the students may need to articulate views that are different from their own and thus, they are encouraged to develop their perspective-taking skills. Another advantage of using debates, from a language learning point of view, is that it encourages learners to take a stand in a foreign language and engage in meaningful discussions with their peers. The teacher trainers also tend to use experiential learning activities, such as role-plays, drama activities and simulations, to generate a deeper level of engagement from their students, build their empathy, and form their attitudes. It has also been advocated by several authors (Brander et al., 2015; Hennesy, 2007; Pike & Selby, 1988; Sampedro & Hillyard, 2004) that drama in the classroom is a perfect vehicle for exploring global content and engaging with controversial issues from a safe distance. It is somewhat unfortunate though that the tutors did not refer to using other types of experiential learning activities, such as service-learning activities or web-collaborations projects in their groups, with the help of which students could develop their global skills and learn to act for collective well-being, possibly beyond the walls of the classroom. The tutors often ask their students to give presentations on subjects of their choice, making them bring in content for further discussions in this manner. By asking the students to choose their own topics, tutors shift the focus of power and decision-making in the classroom (Pike & Selby, 1988) and develop students’ autonomy. Moreover, they frequently use different opinion line activities (Oxfam, 2018; Szesztay, 2020), with the help of which they gently inspire their students to take a stand on controversial matters. As can be seen from the above, the tutors use various student-centred activities to engage their students in discussions about issues of global, local, and intercultural significance.

 

6.3.3.2 Activity Types Secondary School Teachers Use to Develop their Students’ Global Competence (Study 8) The most common technique the 12 secondary school teachers use to develop their students’ global competence is supplementing the coursebook with interactive materials, such as videos, songs, and online texts. Their reason for supplementing the coursebook is that they think the reading and listening texts about certain topics are rather bland and they need more interesting materials to spice them up and make them appealing and relevant for their students. They use authentic videos, such as animations, TED talks and advertisements (as suggested by Aljoani, 2019; Davis, 1997; Keddie, 2014, Stempleski & Tomalin, 1990), songs (Divéki, 2019; Sampedro & Hillyard, 2004) and different text types (Ghosn, 2002; Valente, 2004) to this end, to raise their students’ interest and global awareness while also developing their language skills (e.g., vocabulary, listening and reading skills).

6.3.3.3 Conclusion and Implications The findings of the two studies imply that both teacher trainers and EFL teachers use a wide range of techniques and activities to develop their students’ global competence. Tutors’ preferred activity types include debates, drama activities, presentations, and opinion line activities, while EFL teachers most commonly supplement their coursebook with interactive materials and use drama activities. Consequently, it seems that both tutors and teachers prefer using activities relying on their students’ active participation (in line with the recommendations of Cates, 2002; Sampedro & Hillyard, 2004; OECD, 2018). Although it is applaudable that teachers already use these activity types, they did not mention using many creative transformative learning practices, such as service-learning, storytelling, or project-based learning (UNESCO, 2018), nor did they refer to the creative usage of ICT tools (Ruas, 2017; UNESCO, 2014).