Abstract:

With so many years of globalization and the Hollywood-dominated media behind us, the question remains whether or not there exists a need for educators and sociologists to consider teaching a syllabus considered as a ‘global culture’ that is universal enough to encompass a majority of the people worldwide. Is such socialization necessary and possible at all? This paper is of the opinion that it is indeed possible and necessary to teach a ‘global culture’ in schools or the tertiary institutions today. Why? The reasons range from the waning influence of the United Nations to Islamic terrorism to the existence of the many types of Englishes throughout the world to the rapid penetration of the Internet amongst the world population, and the rising influence of China which concurrently indicates the United States’ loss of global influence. Teaching a ‘global culture’ will mean tackling the five most basic components of any culture, namely, the symbols, language or languages, values and beliefs, norms, and artifacts. It will necessarily be fraught with difficulties when deciding what is universal and what is not. However, to this end, this ‘global culture’ syllabus will have to consider symbols, language or languages, values and beliefs, norms and artifacts of the majority of the world population, bringing together a cultural mix that is akin to the first stage of assimilation in any country. In this case, a ‘global culture’ is nascent and assimilates the people of the world, making them ‘global citizens’ of planet Earth. The existing thesis on a ‘global culture’ has assumed that most people of the world have the same access to goods and services (Macionis, 1997) but this paper does not assume that much. It merely suggests that a syllabus on a ‘global culture’ should be considered as part of a student’s educational experience. This exposes the students of the world to certain common or universal symbols, language or languages, values and beliefs, norms and artifacts that are considered as ‘desirable’ possibly even in authoritarian states. Educators and sociologists who teach this ‘global culture’ syllabus or course must necessarily have some travel experience which will place in a better position to teach this course. Formulating a syllabus on a ‘global culture’ will draw on their wide knowledge and experience of other cultures in the world. This paper contends that teaching such a syllabus has many advantages for a student. For example, students who study this ‘global culture’ course will have a heightened awareness about our global cultural heritage.

Keywords:

Global culture, assimilation, United Nations, Islamic terrorism, global cultural heritage.