Efthymiou, Giannis Stefanos; (2024) Global Learning in Greek primary schools: teachers' struggle for possibilities of change. Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).

Text EfthymiouGS PhD FINAL Sep2024.pdf - Accepted Version Access restricted to UCL open access staff until 1 October 2025. Download (8MB)

Abstract

Global Learning (GL) is conceptualised as a pedagogical approach about the teaching and learning of global issues, which comes under the wider umbrella of educational approaches of Education for Global Citizenship (EGC). GL is placed in a critical pedagogy framework. As such, GL other than enabling cosmopolitan responses within formal education settings, it further poses possibilities to challenge dominant orthodoxies related to the neoliberal structure. This thesis examines the intersections of Teaching and GL. It explores this in the context of Greece’s primary education. The literature revealed a gap of EGC initiatives in the country, as well as scarce evidence of research that considers critical dimensions of EGC. The argument of this thesis is dual; first, it argues for the necessity of pedagogical initiatives for global social justice, and second, it identifies the importance of trusting teachers’ educational wisdom as the only possible alternative when it comes to considering the intersection of Teaching/GL. Hence, although GL is influenced by critical pedagogy notions, the intersection of Teaching/GL further draws on influences from a pragmatic positionality. These theoretical depictions guide the methodology of this thesis, which adopts a Transformative Mixed Methods Design (TMMD). There are two research phases, each with different samples. Phase 1 is a qualitatively driven case study that examined how teachers of one Greek primary school incorporated GL as part of their practice. Findings from phase 1 indicate teachers’ transformative journey to challenging normative practices of the neoliberal structure that directly relate to their professional lives. Phase 2, auxiliary to the first, adopts a qualitative methodology. It used semi-structured interviews with teachers from Greek schools who were experienced in EGC initiatives. Findings from this phase echo findings from the first and indicate possibilities emerging from teachers’ engagement with pedagogical approaches to GL towards their conscientisation. The thesis concludes that GL could offer alternative possibilities for teachers in Greek primary schools to respond to issues of cosmopolitanism as part of their teaching and learning. GL could also enable teachers to gain critical consciousness, and as such consciously struggle for possibilities of change in their educational realities.

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