The Global Economy
Teacher Resources
Lesson Guide
In addition to all the usual tips, tricks, and sample answers, be sure to read the activity instructions before you run the Our Interconnected World: Frames activity.
Blog Post: Teaching Globalization: Lesson Plans for a Connected World
Read about the long history of globalization in this blog post.
Driving Question: Is globalization making the world more equal or increasing inequality?
Where does the stuff we use come from, and who benefits from the production and distribution of these goods? This lesson follows the paths of goods, money, and migration to uncover how the global economy impacts lives in very different ways.
Learning Objectives:
- Use evidence to evaluate the effects of globalization through the production and distribution frame.
- Use a graphic biography to support, extend, or challenge the overarching narratives of this period.
Did you know: Modern container shipping transformed global trade after containers were standardized in the 1960s, making it dramatically easier to move goods between ships, trains, and trucks without constantly unloading and repacking cargo.
Globalization has knit our world together in a complex web of connections. Can you trace the links across the globe?
Interview with a Robot
- Students interview an AI agent about its past. In particular, they should explore what people, places, and products were needed for the AI agent to exist. As they conduct the interview, students should create a list of:
- Material components that allow the AI to function.
- Where material components are made and moved to.
- The companies and people involved in the AI agent’s creation.
- The resources the AI uses to maintain its functions.
- Once the interview is over, students should use their notes to create a global map of their AI agent, marking all relevant locations, people, and things that are part of its creation and functioning.
What does this do? As an extension of the Follow the Product activity, this interview will help students understand the massive amounts of resources and complexity needed for this simple interaction to occur. It will provide them with new evidence about the intricacies and connections of globalization and prepare them to grapple with questions about the Anthropocene.
Global production links people, places, and economies in surprising ways. Investigate how goods move across borders and what their journeys reveal about labor, trade, and inequality in the global economy.
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Guiding Questions
Globalization doesn’t affect everyone the same way. With these materials, you’ll see where opportunities are concentrated and how people respond through migration and adaptation.
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Guiding Questions
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Guiding Questions
This a great visual activity to help students understand globalization through the frames. Be sure to read the Lesson Guide before you begin. You’ll need three balls of different colored yarn, seven large pieces of paper, and smaller scrap paper.
Globalization has knit our world together in ways that affect how we live, work, and connect. Reading about it is one thing, but seeing it is another! Explore the concept of globalization through movement, visuals, and reflection to better understand how our world is deeply interconnected.
What have you learned about the effects of globalization? Is the world flattening or is inequality spiking?
From everyday life on Dollar Street to China’s global rise and voices from around the world, these resources add new layers to your understanding of global inequality and connection.
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Guiding Questions
