UiB Master’s Programme Secures NOK 3 Million Grant for Global Classroom Initiative
«We will teach the courses at five universities in different ways. We will create shared teaching materials, and students at all five institutions will participate through teacher and student mobility», professor Lise Rakner says.
Main content
The English master’s programme Politics and Governance of Global Challenges started up in 2022, making it the newest master’s program at the Faculty of Social Sciences. The idea behind the master’s programme was to create a truly international programme – a global classroom, says professor of Political Science, Lise Rakner, who leads the program.
«In an increasingly polarized world, we need global arenas to discuss the greatest global challenges we face,» she says.
«When teaching about global challenges, you must view them through a global lens. Last year, this master’s was the eighth most applied for master’s programme at UiB – after only existing for two years. We are quite proud of that,» Rakner says.
Five Universities Collaborate
Recently, the master’s program received three million Norwegian kroner from Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills and their Explore programme, for the project «A Global Classroom for Global Challenges». The project officially starts in March 2025 and lasts until 2028. It will be led from Bergen by Professor Regine Paul, Professor Lise Rakner, and Associate Professor Martina Vukasovic.
«Five universities – University of Bergen, University of Washington, University of Toronto, University of Western Cape, and University of Sao Paolo have joined forces and committed to decolonizing the curriculum,» Rakner says.
Shared Teaching Materials
The five universities will develop a common curriculum for two new courses: «Climate Governance in a Global Classroom» and «Migration and Citizenship in a Global Classroom». The overarching goal of the project is to enhance the quality, relevance, and effectiveness of teaching and learning.
«We will teach the courses at five universities in different ways. We will create shared teaching materials, and students at all five institutions will participate through teacher and student mobility. Students from the five universities will have the opportunity to spend a semester at one of the other universities. Three of our students are already going abroad. This is a dream come true,» Rakner says.
«We have actually managed to create a true global classroom here in Bergen and are now committed to working on issues from a global perspective. We ask questions like ‘How do climate changes look from the South? Is the climate debate really a Eurocentric debate? Who defines whether migration is a challenge or an opportunity?’»
A Political Science Lens
The master’s programme Politics and Governance of Global Challenges is based on project-based learning. This entails a lot of group work and a commitment to putting teaching at the centre. The master’s programme also gives students the opportunity to have internships, build their own semester with elective courses, or go on exchange.
«We place global challenges in a political science perspective. How can we use the political science toolbox to understand these challenges,» Rakner asks.
Today, there are students from 10 different countries at the master’s programme, and the application deadline for next year’s cohort is 1. March for EU students and 15. April for students residing in Norway.
