Three faces of global citizenship education: IB Schools’ self-representations in four local contexts

This study examines the construction and meaning of International Baccalaureate (IB) schools as manifested by schools in four locations: Chicago, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates. Through analysis of schools’ websites, we identify three major approaches towards constructing the schools’ image: globally acknowledged quality, moral global citizenship, and neoliberal global citizenship. We show how these approaches are employed in each of the contexts and discuss theoretical implications. We suggest a further nuanced conceptualization of global citizenship education (GCE) by reviewing the varied ways these IB schools are engaging with the topic, and how local contexts might shape these. In light of the growing prominence of International Baccalaureate Organization programs worldwide, it is important to foster theoretical discussions on the ways GCE is articulated and manifested.