February 5, 2018, IVECA International Virtual Schooling & Samsung Electronics America (Samsung) and with the support of the UN Department of Public Information hosted a half day event of the STEAM Education for Global Citizenship to Achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Organized around two themes – STEAM Solution Developed Through Global Education and Private-Public Partnership on STEAM Education for Global Citizenship – the event has explored the holistic and intercultural integration of global citizenship. High school students, educators, diplomats, NGO-representatives, and social entrepreneurs from many countries joined together at the United Nations to discuss the dilemmas, challenges, and the positive impact of global citizenship through intercultural education.
TThrough the Global Classroom STEAM Challenge (GCSC) program provided by IVECA with Samsung’s sponsorship and collaboration, students from eight high schools representing five different countries: Korea, USA, Brazil, Tunisia, and China have worked passionately for about a semester, more than 10 weeks. Each school worked with their global partnership school; for example, Ross Butler Tech School(OH) is partnered with Korea Science Academy of KAIST (Korea), Downtown College Prep High school (CA) with Zhenjiang Vocational Technical College (China), Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy (PA) with International School of Tunis (Tunisia), and Lawrence County High School (AL) with Luiza Formozinho Ribeiro Public School in São Paulo (Brazil). Covering the subject of areas of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM), they come out with innovative solutions to contribute to accomplishing the SDGs. Before coming to a final prototype, students discussed with their partners and exchanged questions and answers through mutual respect and intercultural collaborative learning process. By working together, students realized many similarities as well as differences in cultures and socio-economic systems between their communities and countries. Each representative student team expressed that global education and partnership is the fundamental pillar for tackling poverty, racism, gender violence, climate change and for promoting equality and economic development
The outcome of their one-semester collaboration and their prototypes of solution were presented to over 500 audiences at the United Nations and globally through the UN Web TV. Students’ hard work was shared through visual presentation, dialogue, and talk. The moderators, panel speakers, and audiences were mesmerized by students’ wonderful ideas, innovation, creativeness and the way they answered during Q&A session. Along with students, Ambassadors of Korea, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, and Qatar also spoke emphasizing the importance private-public partnership for holistic education and global citizenship. The entire event can be viewed at: http://bit.ly/2C5cwJU
This event was co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions of the Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, the Republic of Tunisia, and the State of Qatar to the United Nations, UNESCO New York Office, NGO Steering Committee for an International Day of Education for Global Citizenship, and NGO-DPI Executive Committee. The event undoubtedly is most memorable, inspirational and honorable moment for the youth leaders who came to the United Nations for the first time. The event was concluded with the Luncheon Award Ceremony. Representative students and teachers were conferred with the GCSC certificate and award endorsing hard work, dedication, intercultural competence and global citizenship they have demonstrated.