Developing Global Citizenship Consciousness: Case Studies of Critical Cosmopolitan Theory

The development of global citizenship among teachers needs to begin even before teachers sign their first contract. Global citizenship development should start when teacher candidates are being prepared to teach. Using the Critical Cosmopolitan Theory (Byker, 2013), this article examines the integration of a global citizenship curricula in teacher education programs in North Carolina and Texas. The article describes and compares the teacher candidates’ (n=136) perceptions of the global citizenship curricula. The study found that after participating in the global citizenship curricula participants: (1) made conceptual leaps in their global citizenship definitions; (2) developed a stronger commitment for their future role as educators in developing global citizens; and (3) were more willing to take action for social justice related issues in education.