national standards for psychological literacy and global citizenship

July 18, 2012
Evaluation of ALTC/OLT National Teaching Fellowship
Awarded to Jacquelyn Cranney, PhD
Dana S. Dunn, PhD
Moravian College
Overview
I was invited by Professor Cranney to write an evaluation of her excellent work
during the course of her ALTC/OLT Fellowship. I am delighted to do so. My comments
follow the prescribed areas of evaluation, however, my main focus will be to discuss the
promise of psychological literacy as the primary outcome of UG education. My comments
are apt to reflect the fact that I teach, write, and do research in the USA.
Extent to Which the Fellowship Project Achieved Intended Outcomes
The purposes underlying delivery of quality undergraduate education are being both
reviewed and renewed. Stakeholders—college/university faculty and administrators, regents
and trustees, government officials, professional organizations and societies, and students and
their families—now recognize that much of what is learned in the course of UG education
should be applicable to students’ subsequent public (career, work) and private (home, family)
lives. As the work done by Professor Cranney during her Fellowship attests, particular
recognition of this issue has emerged from the psychological community. Two issues stand
out: Most UG psychology majors in Australia (and in the US) do not continue further study
of psychology for professional careers and there is collective recognition that psychological
knowledge gained at the UG level should be applicable to postgraduate life (i.e., in the work
place and in community life).
Professor Cranney’s research, writing, speaking, and collegial consulting advocate
that these two issues be addressed by recognizing a role for psychological literacy (PL) and
its connection to the promotion of global citizenship. PL is defined as a general intellectual
capacity to adaptively apply principles and findings from psychological science to address
personal, professional, and societal needs. In effect, PL addresses how knowledge of
psychology can be used in helpful and pragmatic ways to improve daily life in all its spheres.
PL is not limited to one nation, rather, it is a construct that promotes global citizenship or
how individuals from around the world can share knowledge and cooperation so as to live,
work, and prosper together.
Her Fellowship had four aims (see her 2012 final report for in-depth discussion) and
Professor Cranney met them (some aspects are still in progress):
(1) Further development of academic standards for PL and global citizenship occurred;
(2) Efforts by Professor Cranney, her colleagues, and interested others developed and
promulgated creation and discussion of new evidence-based pedagogies linked to (1)—much
of this work is on-going;
(3) Networks of colleagues around the world are discussing, sharing, and implementing PL and
global citizenship concerns into their scholarship, pedagogy, curricula, and, most importantly,
classroom efforts;
(4) Interaction between and among various professional organizations (e.g., the Australian
Psychological Society [APS] and the American Psychological Association [APA]) regarding
PL and global citizenship continues apace.
NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL LITERACY AND GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP 77