On Incubating Global Leaders
No matter how we look at it, CNU's educational objective can be expressed in the same way as the title of this article. In some aspects it looks too ambiguous for us to share its meaning and to put it into practice. Therefore we should clarify this concept by answering some questions that are directly related to it.
The first question is this: Taking into consideration the current situation that almost 80 percent of college-aged students go on to higher education, and at the same time the fact that universities have already abandoned their elitist nature, is this goal appropriate for us? Secondly, what is a concrete definition of words “Global Leaders”? Thirdly, how can a global leader be incubated or nurtured by CNU? In other words, what kind of student characteristics should be fostered and encouraged? Lastly, what kind of educational schemes are needed for preparing CNU students to be global leaders? Or what is the immediate agenda of CNU for nurturing global leaders? Let's think these questions over one by one.
Globalization is defined as a process of multiple integration toward a borderless world through the removal of artificial walls between nations, as well as through the diverse diffusion of knowledge and information. To get an idea of how globalization is going on and is affecting us, you can think of your IT products. You'll find there a virtual U.N. of intellectual property rights and of suppliers of components. Under this far-flung historical process there can be few exceptions and "going global" is an inevitable choice for every individual and organization of this turbulent age. Of course, a university can't be an exception. You can also see that even some kindergartens state that their mission is in nurturing global leaders. Therefore it can be said that the above educational goal is an inevitable choice for CNU, just as globalization is an unavoidable evolutionary step for all of us.
With regard to the third question, we know that universities no longer seek elitist status, rather they have begun to lean toward mass education. Consequently, the term “Global Leaders” does not necessarily refer to world famous figures who initiate global affairs. When I think about it, it reminds me of Socrates who might have been one of the first truly international humans. He declared far more than two thousand years ago, “I am not a citizen of
With regard to the third question, we can't find a neat and definitive interpretation for the concrete characteristics of Global Leaders because globalization is going on in a progressive way and it reveals multifaceted phenomena. Keeping the preceding paragraph in mind, it can be inferred that becoming a global leader means to become a world class global citizen: He or she thinks and acts globally; to think and act in accordance with values that are good not just for us, our own country, or our religion, but good for all the lives in the world. So it is very important to recognize that becoming a global leader is not primarily a question or matter of knowledge or of emotions. But, it is a matter of values. He who embodies values that cross borders in addition to his core competencies is a global leader.
With regard to the fourth question: How can we help CNU students to become global leaders naturally, in the same way that an egg grows into a bird? Should we change our existing curriculum completely and do lectures in English only? I don't think so. It is not the content of education that determines whether it is global or not, but rather, it is values. Then what kind of values should we let our students try to embody during their school years? To elaborate on this case, there is a French saying, “chacun a son gout,” which is about how tastes differ, and everyone has his own idea about it. Notwithstanding, there might be some fundamental values that are especially fit for the global knowledge age. For example, open-mindedness, value-network, creativity, participatory democracy, volunteerism, etc. These values cannot be easily learned or acquired in the classroom. Hence diverse extra-curricular activities suitable for this value orientation should be developed properly. To organize these extra-curricular activities it might be urgent to examine the feasibility of establishing an
The first step on the road toward Global Leadership begins at the point when we realize that it is the global sense of value that really matters. The roadmap of our journey to this vast place of human development may need many new revisions as globalization deepens.
[#264 Editorial]