Fulbright Scholar · Global Educator

Building bridges between classrooms and the world.

A Fulbright project on how schools in the Philippines support multilingual learners, and what U.S. educators can learn from a system that approaches the work differently.

Aerial view of islands and turquoise water in the Philippines
Philippines · 2025
A starting point

Global education is rooted in the understanding that our world is deeply interconnected.

Today's students must be prepared not just to live in their own communities, but to engage thoughtfully with people, cultures, and challenges across the globe. Global educators build a skill set in which students develop critical thinking, consider multiple perspectives, communicate across linguistic and cultural barriers, and take informed action on local and global levels.

As the United States approaches its 250th birthday, global education takes on renewed importance. This milestone is not only a moment to reflect on national identity, but also an opportunity to reimagine what it means to participate in a global society. Programs like Fulbright highlight the value of cross-cultural exchange, mutual understanding, and shared learning as essential to democracy and international cooperation. Promoting global education ensures that the next generation of Americans is equipped with the tools needed to shape a more connected and compassionate future.

Three ways in

Explore the resources, projects, and journey.

Three entry points, depending on whether you came for the resources, the projects, or the field notes. This website acts as a guide on how to incorporate global education into your classrooms, welcomes you to a community of global educators and research, and highlights experiences teaching abroad.

01 / Learn

Global Competence

Frameworks, key organizations, and the assessment tools I rely on in my own practice.

Browse resources →
02 / Teach

Projects & Artifacts

A unit plan, a podcast series, and papers from the Fulbright project — materials built for use in real classrooms.

View the work →
03 / Travel

Field Notes

Field notes from the Philippines on what culturally responsive teaching actually looks like, and which lessons translate.

Read the blog →
Portrait of Johna Meldau
About

An educator passionate about language, equity, and the power of global learning.

Johna teaches multilingual students in U.S. K-12 classrooms. Most of her work is literacy: building reading and writing skills in students whose first language often isn't English, without asking them to set that language aside.

Her Fulbright project takes her to the Philippines for a year to study how schools there build community through restorative practice, particularly in classrooms where multiple home languages are in use at once.

ProgramFulbright DAT
Host countryPhilippines
FocusMultilingual learners

This website is not an official U.S. Department of State website. The views and information presented are the participant's own and do not represent the Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms Program, the U.S. Department of State, or IREX.