Veronica Boix Mansilla and Anthony Jackson are key figures in the world of education, known for introducing the important idea of “global competence.” This concept has become a major part of how we think about teaching and learning today.

Veronica Boix Mansilla works at Harvard’s Project Zero, a place where people study how to improve education. She has spent a lot of time understanding how different cultures see the world and how this knowledge can help students. Imagine her as a teacher who loves to show students how people from different parts of the world think and live.

Anthony Jackson leads the education program at the Asia Society. He believes that schools should teach students about the world, including different cultures and languages. He thinks this kind of education prepares students to be leaders in a world where countries and people are more connected than ever. Picture him inspiring teachers to bring the world into their classrooms.

Together, Mansilla and Jackson came up with the idea of “Global Competence,” which has four main parts:

1. Understanding Different Cultures: This means learning about and respecting how people from other places live and think.
2. Thinking Critically and Comparing: This involves looking at information from around the world and thinking about it carefully to understand it better.
3. Acting Responsibly in the World: This is about knowing what’s happening around the world and wanting to help solve global problems.
4. Communicating Across Cultures: This skill is about talking and working well with people from different backgrounds, sometimes in different languages.

Mansilla and Jackson believe that teaching students these skills is not just good for their future jobs, but also for making the world a better place. Schools and teachers everywhere are using their ideas to help students learn about and understand our world better.

Their work shows us how education can help build a future where people from different places understand and work with each other better. ***LC-R