Students with more positive global and intercultural dispositions tend to engage more broadly in learning activities at school, such as learning about other cultures, developing perspectives on global issues, and learning to resolve conflicts with their peers. Schools and educators could integrate several learning activities to cover a wide range of global and intercultural topics. Effective learning requires a consistent approach rather than sporadic or one-off activities. This, in turn, requires curricula to cover the breadth of global and intercultural topics relevant to 15-year-olds.
Global competence
Global Competence is a multi-dimensional construct that requires a combination of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values successfully applied to global issues or intercultural situations.
Key messages
Students with more positive global and intercultural dispositions tend to engage more broadly in learning activities at school, such as learning about other cultures, developing perspectives on global issues, and learning to resolve conflicts with their peers. Schools and educators could integrate several learning activities to cover a wide range of global and intercultural topics. Effective learning requires a consistent approach rather than sporadic or one-off activities. This, in turn, requires curricula to cover the breadth of global and intercultural topics relevant to 15-year-olds.
PISA 2018 results show differences in how girls and boys engage with global and intercultural learning activities at school. Girls should be empowered to take an active role in more participatory learning activities and boys encouraged to participate in activities focusing on intercultural understanding and communication. This will foster more positive intercultural skills among boys and boost girls’ self-efficacy in global and intercultural issues.
Context
Short-term performance trends in the context of pre-2018 trends
Students who participated in PISA 2018 were asked ten questions about different intercultural and global learning activities. The most common activity across OECD countries was learning about different cultures at school: 76% of students reported that they engage in this activity at school.
Students engaged in learning opportunities at school (2018)
Socio-economic gap in intercultural and global learning opportunities
Socio-economically advantaged students have access to more intercultural and global learning opportunities than disadvantaged students. This finding holds true in 32 of the 64 participating countries and economies, with the largest differences observed in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong (China), Korea, Macao (China), New Zealand, Scotland (United Kingdom) and Chinese Taipei.
Number of learning activities, by socio-economic status (2018)
