International Education
International education is an idea whose time has come.
During the past year, internationalism has become a subject of intense debate, at once an embattled concept and a cause célèbre. Foreign affairs in general have come to feel markedly less "foreign," and American classrooms have become battlegrounds for a nation struggling to equip students with a balanced understanding of the world.
The need to broaden our international understanding is critical, yet promoting international education remains an uphill battle. Over the past year, debates have raged over the place for critical self-examination in the teaching of American foreign policy, the correct approach to lesson plans covering the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the appropriateness of studying the Koran, the best way to cover the topic of terrorism—and the list goes on. Despite traditional resistance, however, I believe that international education is an idea whose time has come. The benefits of cross-cultural exchange are clear. The value of an international perspective is clear. And the need to prepare American students for a global environment is clear. What remains unclear is how to turn lesson plans into a tangible sense of the world as one community.
In this context, I have a suggestion, or rather, a working model, to offer. Nearly 500 schools in North America have adopted what is widely recognized as one of the most demanding international pre-university courses in the world: the International Baccalaureate program. Remarkably, a vast majority—92 percent—are public schools, encouraged to do so by their district superintendents. The IB program champions achievement in a time of academic mediocrity, internationalism at a time of widening ethnic fault lines, and renewed energy at a time of disillusionment. A tall order, yet it is working for these schools and for...
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