DABBLING IN WORLD AFFAIRS

Our students were recently invited to participate in a conference on education sponsored by the Columbus Council on World Affairs. The goal of the 2008 Summit on Educating Ohio’s Global Talent was to bring together educators with business and community leaders to discuss the importance of creating graduates who are ready for a global world. The attendees would also discuss the Strategic Plan for International Education in Ohio, a roadmap drafted by Ohio’s International Education Advisory Committee. Battelle’s Carl Kohrt was one of the event’s speakers, along with several other leaders of various organizations and educational institutions.

As I’ve mentioned before, in Metro’s social studies class, students learn to think globally and as a STEM school, we encourage them to consider the concept of sustainability as a theme throughout their education. So when I was contacted by the Council and asked if our students would like to participate in some way, I knew they would love it.

One of the Council’s representatives, who was helping plan the event, came to Metro for a tour and to meet a few of our students who are very interested in global studies, economics, politics and education. After speaking with them, it was decided that they would act as facilitators of the group discussions to help the participants answer questions such as, “Why do you think international education is important?” and “How well does the strategic plan address the challenges and needs in Central Ohio?”

As facilitators, the students were each located at a table of participants to lead them in answering the questions and recording them on Post-Its and flip charts to share with the larger group. Their opinions and ideas were included as well.

Of course, I received rave reviews about the students’ maturity and capability. Zunera, a second-year student, excitedly told me that her table included Carl Kohrt, Patrick Terrien (CEO of the Columbus Council on World Affairs) and Jay Jordan (President of OCLC - the Online Computer Library Center). This was an amazing leadership experience for these kids!