Frequently Asked Questions about the World in Transition and the Flagship Program

What is World in Transition?
Who has supported it?
How is it developed?
Is it linked to national and state social studies standards?
Who uses it?
Are there evaluations of it?
What do people say about it?
What is the World in Transition/WACA Flagship Program?
Why is the focus on teachers?
How does the Flagship Program work?

WHAT IS THE WORLD IN TRANSITION?
The World in Transition (WIT) is a major initiative to improve international affairs education in schools nationwide.  It includes teacher workshops and classroom materials.

WHO HAS SUPPORTED THE WORLD IN TRANSITION?
United States Institute of Peace, European Delegation of the European Commission, The Africa Society, Carnegie Corporation of New York, State of Georgia, Commonwealth of Virginia, State of North Carolina, State of Alabama, The Coca-Cola Company, The UPS Foundation, Delta Airlines, Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, Roberto C. Goizueta Foundation, Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation, Lettie Pate Evans Foundation, Dr. Jerome S. Tannenbaum, and others.

HOW ARE THE WORLD IN TRANSITION MATERIALS DEVELOPED?
The Southern Center for International Studies develops each unit in the World in Transition series in close cooperation with:

* Prominent subject-matter experts such as Ali Mazrui on Africa, Jennifer McCoy on Latin America, and Rajmohan Gandhi on South Asia

* Nationally known pedagogical specialists, such as John Rossi of Virginia Commonwealth University and Glen Blankenship of the Georgia Council for Economic Education

 The companion videos, which are interwoven with the instructional guide, are produced by Peabody-Award winning producer Julia Johnson White and include short documentaries as well as commentary from a range of prominent world leaders.

ARE THE WORLD IN TRANSITION MATERIALS LINKED TO NATIONAL AND STATE SOCIAL STUDIES STANDARDS?
Yes, a correlation grid of the WIT series to national standards is available.  WIT has also been correlated to the standards of a number of states.

WHO USES THE WORLD IN TRANSITION?
Over 38,000 high school and middle school teachers have been trained across the country, reaching millions of students. The United States Air Force ROTC uses the materials to train all senior cadets in its officer-training program. Through a pilot program with the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, five colleges of education use the WIT program to train tomorrow’s teachers.

ARE THERE EVALUATIONS OF THE WORLD IN TRANSITION?
* In 1999, Dr. Michael Wesley Hickman concluded in his PhD dissertation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill that the World in Transition materials “had a positive impact on teachers’ ability to teach social studies effectively and on the improvement of student performance in social studies at both middle and high-school levels.”

 * In 2003, Dr. Sally Krisel, an education specialist at the University of Georgia, again independently evaluated the materials, focusing on Europe in Transition and Africa in Transition.  She concluded that “classroom teachers at both the middle and high-school levels found the SCIS materials to be superior in many ways to the curricula they had used in the past to teach the same content.”  Dr. Krisel also found clear evidence that student achievement gains were correlated with the extensiveness of WIT use.

* In 2004, the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia funded an $80,000 evaluation of the WIT materials.  This evaluation is now underway.

WHAT ARE PEOPLE SAYING?
Africa in Transition provides “timely information and analysis on the oft-overlooked continent of Africa and indeed might be appropriate for students in Africa itself.”  Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations

 “The Southern Center for International Studies’ … wonderful outreach efforts have enriched the international educations of students in high schools and colleges and universities throughout our country.  It is so important for the next generation of America’s leaders to understand America’s role in the world ...”  Colin Powell, U.S. Secretary of State

“It is critical that all Americans develop an international perspective in today’s ever interconnected world.  The Southern Center for International Studies World in Transition materials are an excellent way to bring high quality international affairs education to schools nationwide.”  Neville Isdell, Chairman & CEO of The Coca-Cola Company

"... I have been extremely pleased that for the past three years we have been able to partner with the Center to incorporate the World in Transition series into our training program for undergraduate and graduate-level student teachers.... We have selected these materials because they combine the highest quality area scholarship with the best practices in education." Thomas C. Meredith, Chancellor, University System of Georgia

"The World in Transition series has been developed over the past ten years and during that time, evaluations have shown that teachers rate effectiveness of the materials very highly and continue to use them year after year." Kathy Cox, State of Georgia Superintendent of Schools. 

“The materials are some of the best that I have ever used in my 26 years of teaching … Student interest is very high.”  Carl Siler, Director of Teacher Education, Taylor University, Indiana

“The tools needed to teach about today’s world … a teacher’s best friend.”  Paul Horne, Director of Curriculum & Programs Review, State of South Carolina Education and Oversight Committee

WHAT IS THE WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCILS OF AMERICA/WORLD IN TRANSITION FLAGSHIP PROGRAM?
The Flagship Program is a partnership with the Coca-Cola Company, the UPS Foundation, Delta Airlines, the Southern Center for International Studies and the World Affairs Councils of America to train teachers across the country using World in Transition (WIT) materials. The goal of the Flagship Program is to help councils that join the project become leading centers for international social studies education and professional development of teachers.

WHY FOCUS ON TEACHERS?
Many good programs teach students, but providing professional development for teachers maximizes impact.  When you teach one student, one student is educated.  When you train one teacher, hundreds of students are educated. The WIT program also minimizes cost.  WIT materials are for the teacher/one set per classroom.

HOW DOES THE FLAGSHIP PROGRAM WORK?

Please note, the steps outline below are subject to change.

Once a council is accepted, it is a three-step process.

Step 1: SCIS conducts a train-the-trainer workshop in the partnering council’s community to help it develop a cadre of teacher trainers.  SCIS provides each new teacher trainer with a full set of WIT materials at a two-thirds discount.  The partner council recruits no less than 15 and no more than 30 experienced teacher trainers through its local school district(s), invites potential funders interested in expanding international affairs education in their community, and provides the following: one-third of the materials costs for the workshop; honorariums for teacher trainers; reasonable travel and lodging for teacher trainers and workshop coordinators; venue and AV equipment; food and other related workshop needs.

Step 2: Once the partner council has hosted the initial workshop, it begins to conducted follow-up workshops using its new teacher trainers. Within the first year that the initial workshop is held (Year 1), SCIS provides additional sets of the World in Transition at a 50 percent discount for all follow-up workshops.

Step 3:, Beginning in Year 2, SCIS is able to offer a discount of 25 percent for all workshops held by the partnering council.

Each council that completes the above is invited to appoint one person to sit on SCIS’s Academic Advisory Board, which oversees the WIT project.