Global citizenship in teacher training

Nuffic is a driving force behind global citizenship education in primary education, secondary education, vocational education and higher education. Within higher education, we support the professional development of teacher trainers through our Centre for the Internationalisation of Teacher Training (Cilo): a network of teacher training programmes for primary, secondary and vocational education. Professional development takes place through inspirational meetings, masterclasses and other forms of knowledge-sharing.

By providing future teachers with a high-quality education, we equip them with the knowledge and tools to put global citizenship education into practice. In this way, we can better embed global citizenship in primary education and educate pupils to become global citizens.

Global citizenship education as a concrete manifestation of the citizenship mandate
Under the Dutch Citizenship Education Act (2021), schools are required to address themes such as migration, climate change, conflicts, the economy and digitalisation through citizenship education. Schools are free to decide how they go about this, but they do struggle with it. This is evident from the large number of corrective measures issued by the Education Inspectorate (2026) in the area of citizenship. This can also be explained by the fact that around 40 per cent of school leaders and teachers (Van Schooten, Krepel and Van Binsbergen, 2022) state that they do not consider themselves capable of teaching citizenship.

International studies show that the Dutch situation is not unique: the lack of self efficacy in teaching citizenship education is a common phenomenon in other countries as well (Talis, 2018). Moreover, a large proportion of both experienced and new teachers in the Netherlands and across countries report that their teacher education programme did not adequately prepare them to teach in multicultural and multilingual settings (TALIS, 2018). In the Dutch context we see that the shortage of teaching staff is specifically problematic in schools located in the bigger cities with multicultural and multilingual communities. From this perspective, it makes sense that teachers prefer not to work at schools where they do not feel capable enough. When it comes to inclusion and equal opportunities this makes it even more urgent.

The same applies to teacher training programmes. While there is a national knowledge assessment and mandatory competencies that students must develop, the overarching frameworks and governance still leave autonomy with individual programmes. Furthermore, according to Nuffic’s own research (2024), a significant number of teacher trainers lack the necessary knowledge and skills in citizenship education. However, the same research highlights that high-quality initiatives, classes, projects, and courses do exist within teacher training programmes. Although this has the potential to lead to a more aligned curriculum in the future, institutions currently admit that these elements of citizenship education could easily be dropped from the programme in the event of curriculum reform, educational innovation, staff turnover, or changes in management

In both primary education and teacher training colleges, we see that whilst national policy does provide a framework, teachers are struggling to implement it. We see this at teacher training colleges, too. Not every teacher training college lecturer is capable of delivering citizenship education effectively. At many teacher training colleges, citizenship and global citizenship are given a less central role within the programme and are largely left in the hands of a select group of lecturers. A shared and widely supported continuous learning pathway in this area is rarely in place.

It is hardly surprising, then, that newly qualified teachers may not possess the necessary knowledge. Research also shows that a large proportion of both experienced and inexperienced teachers report feeling ill-prepared by their teacher training to teach in a multicultural and multilingual setting (TALIS, 2018). As the teacher shortage is particularly acute in such settings, it appears that these teachers are more likely to choose to work in schools where this is less of an issue. By focusing on training and professionalising teachers in global citizenship, we indirectly contribute to equal opportunities and to reducing the teacher shortage.

The Nuffic Global Citizenship Quality Mark aims to contribute in a targeted and efficient manner to a coherent curriculum in the field of global citizenship. The focus here is also on organisation and policy, so that the curriculum remains sustainably embedded. The Quality Mark is a development-oriented tool whereby the institution under review is assessed on the basis of a peer-review system, but, above all, receives feedback to support its ongoing development. It can be a valuable tool both for institutions engaged in educational reform and new developments, and for those that are further along in their global citizenship curriculum.

In practical terms, this means that an accreditation committee assesses a self-evaluation report submitted by the teacher training college under review. The committee then holds discussions with the institution on this matter. Finally, the institution under review receives a report containing feedback. Both the self-evaluation and the feedback are based on a scientifically underpinned framework consisting of an operationalisation of various global themes.

These global themes are issues that go beyond current affairs, such as: the digital transition, ecological transitions, social transitions and EDI (equity, diversity and inclusion), as well as governance transitions focused on democracy, politics and the law. In addition, the committee is examining how the integration of global citizenship into the curriculum is supported by policy, vision and organisation, so as to minimise the programme’s vulnerability. You can find more information about how the framework was developed and its academic rationale here.

At Nuffic, we continue to invest in and explore ways to support teacher training programmes in the field of global citizenship. We are always open to questions, feedback, ideas, and/or tips.

Are you interested in discussing the Quality Mark further, or in how the peer review system could be of value to you? Would you like to see your educational institution develop further in the area of global citizenship education? Or are you more interested in the academic side of the Quality Mark? If so, please feel free to contact Koen de Jonge: kdejonge@nuffic.nl.