Increasing numbers of internationally branded schools serving local [rather than predominantly expatriate] populations and Ministries of Education engaged in educational reform, are adopting what they perceive as international best practice. This raises a number of questions and issues explored in this lecture. Is there such a thing as international best practice? Does globalization imply the need for a common curriculum and pedagogy in order to prepare students for the modern world? Should curriculum be about cultural transmission or transformation?

A few principles and practices that might be helpful in building a curriculum that respects local and global realities are considered. Change, which is both desirable and inevitable, needs to be evolutionary and grounded in an understanding of local context and culture if it is to lead to beneficial outcomes. One curriculum prescription does not suit all.