Education and International Relations: Science Education for Science Diplomacy

Science education has been on the state agenda since the 1970s and has been discussed from several perspectives. Despite the abundance of issues that shaped the debate on science education, the impact of science education on international relations has been neglected so far to an important extent. Even though the studies conducted seem to have a global outlook, the concern has been mostly national for the states or at best, regional. Policymakers have usually tended to assess the issue from a national perspective considering the need for raising scientists with the knowledge of basic scientific facts and/or citizens with scientific literacy. Whatever the goal was, science education was assumed to embrace universal values, such as openness, tolerance, and respect for diversity. However, despite acknowledging the close relationship between science and universal values, significance of these for achieving peaceful international relations was almost skipped by the education policymakers. States' emphasis on performing science diplomacy in the recent decade made this deficiency of science education much clearer. As states have recognized scientists' potential to be employed as science envoys for achieving peaceful mode of international relations, the need for scientists and policymakers that are cognizant of their global responsibility has become more urgent. It has underlined the immediate need for a science education that is capable of raising students with global awareness, instead of the one offering a mere acquaintance with universal values. In other words, recent novelties in the foreign policymaking process required adding an international dimension into science education matters. It has become clear that science education should shift its aim towards raising people with a collaborative spirit and with the awareness of their global responsibility. This study, concerning this, will introduce the close relationship between education and international relations, or in other words, between science education and science diplomacy. It will point out the need for reforming science education to attain peaceful international relations, and hence, will make suggestions to re-design the science education today for peaceful international relations tomorrow.