Global Citizenship Education as an Ever-Evolving Ethical Platform

Abstract

This chapter conceptualizes global citizenship education (GCE) as an ever-evolving ethical platform shaped by the shifting social, political, and epistemic conditions of an interconnected yet deeply unequal world. It argues that globalization has extended the scope of citizenship education beyond the nation-state, thereby requiring educators to cultivate learners’ critical consciousness so that they may interpret, question, and respond to complex global realities. At the same time, the chapter contends that the normative appeal of GCE must not obscure the structural conditions that continue to shape its possibilities and limitations, including coloniality, racial capitalism, epistemic hierarchies, and the uneven distribution of voice and vulnerability. Situated within contemporary scholarly and policy debates, the chapter presents GCE as a contested and dynamic field in which educational purposes, ethical commitments, and political imaginaries remain under continuous negotiation. In doing so, it positions GCE not as a fixed or universal doctrine, but as a dialogic and ethically grounded educational project oriented towards justice, inclusion, and democratic transformation.