VIRTUAL New Schools of Thought

Abstract

In response to the urgent need to address global and local challenges, UNESCO championed transformative education, promoting skills and knowledge critical for the 21st century beyond traditional basic literacy. This approach supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG Target 4.7 on Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship Education (GCED). UNESCO’s revised Recommendation emphasizes GCED as a core pillar for education worldwide, aiming to equip learners with the necessary skills to build just and inclusive societies. Yet, effective integration of these frameworks requires solid pedagogical preparation to ensure teachers understand these concepts and have adequate teaching resources and tools. Although over 90% of teachers globally recognize the importance of integrating GCED and critical pedagogy, more than 40% report a lack of resources. This calls for drawing imperative attention to the quality of today’s pedagogy, revision of pedagogical resourcefulness, and reassessment of teacher education programs that prepare pre-service and in-service teachers to work in highly diverse and multicultural environments. Utilizing a qualitative approach through 28 in-depth interviews with faculty and thorough analyses of curriculum documentation, this study explores the extent to which transformative education is incorporated into pedagogical practices in the DC-MD-VA region—an area known for its strong democratic political orientation and diverse, multicultural communities. Grounded in GCED and Freire’s Critical Pedagogy frameworks, the study addresses two key questions: (1) How is transformative pedagogy integrated into teacher education programs in the DC-MD-VA? (2) What institutional factors facilitate or hinder the implementation of these practices?