Doctor Do Van Hao, Nguyen Thi Nham, Nguyen Thanh Tu, Nghiem Van Long
Thai Nguyen University of Education
Abstract: "International understanding education" is an important issue that many countries are cared about. In the education program in many countries today, there is a lot of integration of knowledge to educate international understanding. In Vietnam, international understanding education is mentioned a lot in the Geography program, especially in the 11th grade Geography program. The objective of the program is to help students have an overview of the world's socio-economy, characteristics of typical economies, student have right attitude to socio-economic phenomena of some countries, regions and pay attention to issues such as population and environment.
Keywords: International understanding education, education, Grade 11th Geography.
1 What is "international understanding education"?
The phrase "international understanding education" in broad meaning is used to refer to education towards international fields including global education, development education...Called by many different names such as global education, international education, peace education or global citizen education depending on the context, is a comprehensive and multi-dimensional education initiative to promote the peace culture
2 Experience in the world about "international understanding education"
2.1 UNESCO
As in the preface of UNESCO Charter, "Because war is something born of a human heart, so it is necessary to build a stronghold of peace in the heart of man. The lack of mutual understanding of customs and life is the general cause of suspicion and distrust between the ethnics of the world throughout human history. Because of this suspicion and distrust, the disagreements between the ethnics have made war often occur”, derived from the profound awareness of the war's consequence for every nation in the world, based on the philosophy that to achieve peace, education of international understanding is indispensable, after World War II UNESCO has assumed a central role in the promotion of international understanding education.
At first UNESCO called it is "Education for International Understanding" (Education for International Understanding) but later the name changed continuously and from 1955 onwards it was renamed "Education for international understanding and cooperation" (Education for International Understanding and Cooperation). In 1952, UNESCO put international understanding education into practice and international scale. Its purpose is to compare, consider the practical test effect of international understanding education. On that basis, it has been applied in secondary schools in the union of 15 countries. It was later called the "UNESCO Associated Schools Project" (UNESCO Associated Schools Project). In the 18th Congress in 1974 UNESCO issued "Recommendations on international understanding education, cooperation, peace and education for human rights and fundamental freedoms", emphasizing the inevitability of connection and international cooperation to solve world-scale issues such as the rights of ethnics, maintaining peace, human rights, development, natural resources and environment...
2.2 New international understanding education trend
From around the 1980s onwards, a new trend of international understanding education began in the United States in the 1970s, expanding issues on a global scale such as disputes, human rights issues, racist, sexist, development, environment...has gradually been thought from the "global citizen" position and in the United Kingdom, it has been implemented with the name "World Studies".
In addition, education developed after the 1960s when it focused on educating the "global citizen" consciousness explaining the causes and situation of developing countries, aiming to solve the South-North problem. In contrast, multicultural education was born in the struggle movement for civil rights in United State in the 1960s. This movement respects the ethnic culture of ethnic minorities and the culture of immigrants in multinational nation.
3 Grade 11th Geography Program in Vietnam meets "International Understanding Education"
In Vietnam, well awareness of the role of international understanding Education, Geography program in high school has a lot of content to help students can understand internation. This program aims to help students have an overview, the most updated about the world situation, in addition to the program also introduces an overview of the natural and socio-economic characteristics of some developed countries. International understanding is an important and necessary knowledge of every Vietnamese citizen, helping each 21st century citizen to have the most general view of the world situation through which it can be changed, adapted to the development and constant movement of science technology. International understanding education with the important task of promoting people to be aware and take the right actions to solve global issues: Climate change, environmental pollution, war, violence, wellfare security, lack of education, unemployment, corruption, malnutrition and poverty...
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In Vietnam, international understanding Education has the most important purpose is to help children aware of their responsibility for global issues. That problem is integrated into the 11th grade Geography lessons by teachers to ensure that students have the best awareness of world peace, protect sea island of the nation and the habitat issue
References
[1]. Aya Matsuda. “International Understanding” through Teaching World Englishes.World Englishes 21(3), 436-40, 2002.
[2]. Carol M Barker, Corporation Convention New York, 2000. Education for international understanding and global competence.
[3]. Le Thong, Geography 11, Vietnam Education Publishing House, 2009.