Global literacy competence of the students in secondary school social studies course: The case of Ünye

The purpose of this study is to reveal the theoretical model of global literacy as a requirement of the global age we live in and integrate this model into the social studies course. The mixed research method, in which qualitative and quantitative methods are tackled together, was used in this study. Furthermore, the study was designed with an exploratory sequential mixed pattern, in which qualitative data was prioritized and a connection was made from qualitative data to quantitative data. In the qualitative part of the study, within the scope of descriptive themes obtained from the relevant literature and theoretical discussions, analytical themes were generated by the researcher. These analytical themes in question constituted the theoretical model that represented the competence areas of global literacy. In this context, the competence areas of global literacy were identified in four dimensions as learning zones, basic perspectives, basic skills, and attitudes and behaviors. This chapter also revealed the basic principles and the key teaching approaches related to the development of global literacy in the educational environment. Within the scope of the theoretical model presented, the Social Studies Curriculum (2018) was evaluated. It was revealed that the curriculum included the issues related to global literacy, in terms of quantity, to a great extent. Nevertheless, it is thought that the Curriculum offered a structure open to development in order to teach the global literacy. In the quantitative part of the study, a three-factor and 18-item "Global literacy scale" was developed for secondary school students. Afterwards, the related scale was applied to a study group of 565 people studying in randomly selected secondary schools located in the Ünye district of Ordu. Within the scope of the results obtained from the study group, as far as the gender variable of the students in the study group is concerned, significant results were found in favor of female students compared to male students in terms of individual competence and global awareness dimension of global literacy. Considering the class variable, it was found that the global literacy scores of 8th grade students were higher in all dimensions compared to 5th and 6th grade students. Regarding the mother's educational status variable, significant results were found in favor of the students whose mothers had higher education, compared to the students whose mothers had a lower education level. Regarding the place of residence where the students spent most of their lives, significant results were found, in favor of the students who spent most of their life in the urban centers, in comparison to the students who spent most of their lives in rural areas by the dimensions of individual competence and global-local relationship. Regarding the status of having been abroad, significant results were found by the dimension of global awareness in favor of the students who went abroad, compared to the students who did not go abroad. Keywords: Global world, Global literacy, Global literacy education, Global competence, Social studies education