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This Learning Module on The Contemporary World is the SorsogonState College’s response to providing flexible learning contents andoutcomes-based assessment to students.This module which integrates independent and collaborative tasksexposes learners to the contemporary world which encompasses theemer...

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This Learning Module on The Contemporary World is the Sorsogon State College’s response to providing flexible learning contents and outcomes-based assessment to students.

This module which integrates independent and collaborative tasks exposes learners to the contemporary world which encompasses the emergence of economic, political, social and cultural systems amid globalization. This module aims to develop among learners critical and analytical thinking skills as they reflect on their roles and responsibilities as global citizens.

This course introduces students to the contemporary world by examining the multifaceted phenomenon of globalization. Using the various disciplines of the social sciences, it examines the economic, social, political, technological, and other transformations that have created an increasing awareness of the interconnectedness of peoples and places around the globe. To this end, the course provides an overview of the various debates in global governance, development, and sustainability. Beyond exposing the student to the world outside the Philippines, it seeks to inculcate a sense of global citizenship and global ethical responsibility. This course also includes mandatory topics on population education in the context of population and demography.

FELINO S. JASMIN, Jr. SSC-Education-Accountancy Department

Introduction to Globalization The Structures of Globalization The Global Economy Market Integration The Global Interstate System Contemporary Global Governance A World of Regions The Global Divides: The North and the South Understanding Global Stratification A World of Ideas Media and Globalization The Globalization of Religion Global Population and Mobility Global City Global Demography Global Migration Towards a Sustainable World Sustainable Development Food Security Global Citizenship Global Citizenship

LESSON 1: WHAT IS GLOBALIZATION? Different scholars have different viewpoints of what globalization is. Some would view globalization as a positive phenomenon, some would see its detrimental effects on society which cannot be separated from issues of global economic and cultural imperialism.

OBJECTIVES: At the end of this lesson you are expected to: • • • •

describe the contemporary world. craft one’s own working definition of globalization based on the different meanings of globalization differentiate the meaning of globalization, globality and globalism from one another be familiarized with the dimensions and characteristics of globalization

PRE-READING ACTIVITY Before reading the text below, choose whether to create a poster/collage, compose and perform a song, or compose poem and deliver spoken poetry which depicts your concept of the world today. Writing a short paragraph of description of our present world is also an option. Document your choice and what you did.

READING Giddens (1990) points out that globalization is the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles and away. In a conference in 2000, Giddens explained, “globalization is not a single set of processes and does not lead into a single direction. It produces solidarities in some places and destroys them in others. It has quite different consequences on one side of the world from the other. In other words, it is a wholly contradictory process. It is not just about

fragmentation. I see it more as a shake-out of institutions in which new forms of unity go along with new forms of unity go along with new forms of fragmentation.” Wallerstein (1998) believes that globalization is a reflection of the triumph of a capitalist world economy bonded by a global division of labour. Khor (1995) in discussing the world politics expressed that globalization has long been experienced by the Third World called colonization. For Mcgrew (1990) globalization is composed of multiple sameness and interconnectedness that go beyond nation states where individuals and organizations in one part of the world is affected by the activities, affairs, and convictions on another part of the globe. Holm and George (1998) described globalization as the intensification of economic, social and cultural relations across borders. Similarly, it is the processes by which the peoples of the world are incorporated into a single world society, global society (Albrow, 1990). Simply, Kanter (1995) said that it is a condition where the world is becoming a global shopping mall in which ideas and products are available everywhere at the same time. One of the most popular definitions of globalization is provided by Steger (2009) which defined globalization as a set of social processes that appear to transform our present social condition of weakening nationality into one globality. It is about the unprecedented compression of time and space as a result of political, economic and cultural change, as well as powerful technological innovations. Manfred further differentiated globalization, globality and globalism. While globalization is a process, globality signifies a future social condition characterized by thick economic, political and cultural interconnections and global flows that make currently existing political borders and economic barriers irrelevant. On the other hand, globalism means globalization as an ideology reflecting shared ideas, norms, values accepted as truth. He adds that there are three kinds of globalism namely: •

Market globalism advocates promise a consumerist, neoliberal, free-market world. This ideology is held by many powerful individuals, who claim it transmits democracy and benefits everyone. However, it also reinforces inequality, and can be politically motivated.

•

Justice globalism envisages a global civil society with fairer relationships and environmental safeguards. They disagree with market globalists who view neoliberalism as the only way.

•

Religious globalism strives for a global religious community with superiority over secular structures.

Steger (2009) further defines globalization as the expansion and intensification of social relations and consciousness across world-time and world space. He explained that globalization has several dimensions: Economic: ‘The economic dimension of globalization’ explores how the way people have undertaken economic production has changed. The global economic order emerged after World War II, when the Bretton Woods Conference laid the foundations for the IMF, World Bank, and WTO. In the 1980s neoliberalism liberalized financial transactions. However, this unstable growth led to the Great Financial Crash, where banks traded toxic assets without regulation. Transnational corporations rival nation-states in economic power, and

have had a profound effect on the structure and function of the global economy. The Washington Consensus was drafted to reform indebted developing countries, but it has thus far rarely helped countries develop. Political: The political dimension of globalization’ looks at political arrangements beyond the nation-state. Traditional politics harboured an ‘us’ and ‘them’ mentality. Contemporary globalization has led to a permeation of those borders. The modern nation-state came into being after the Protestant Reformation, characterized by centralized government and selfdetermination. The rise of organizations such as the United Nations has threatened the nation-state, according to globalization sceptics. However, national governments still hold significant powers. There has been a rise in the number of supra-territorial institutions, operating from the local level all the way to the global level Cultural: The cultural dimension of globalization’ explores the intensification and expansion of cultural flows across the globe. Critics of cultural globalization claim that the world is being homogenized or ‘Americanized’. However, advocates say that globalization reinvigorates niche cultures instead of eliminating them. The existence of the global imaginary is linked to the rise of global media networks. These networks are owned by a small group of transnational corporations, which can affect journalistic integrity. Several different hypotheses exist about the effects of language globalization. Some say that it leads to protection of native tongues. On the other hand, some foresee the rise of a ‘Globish’ language. Ecological: ‘The ecological dimension of globalization’ examines the effects of global alliances on ecological issues. There is an inexorable link between all humanity and the planet Earth. The Industrial Revolution has caused many ecological problems, including, resource and food shortages, overpopulation, reduced biodiversity, pollution, and climate change. All these problems are global — the result of aggregated human action — and require a coordinated response. However, there are still debates about the seriousness of ecological issues, and, whilst progress has been made, few multilateral measures have been implemented. Furthermore Cox (1999) provides the characteristics of globalization trend:

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

internationalizing of production globalizing of finance and securities trading changing international division of labor vast migratory movements from South to North competitive environment that accelerates these processes internationalizing of the state making states into agencies of the globalizing world

POST READING ACTIVITY Reflective discussion and written output with a classmate, relative, friend, or household member. Present your answers in a matrix/table form : 1. Craft your own personal definition of globalization based on how you have experienced it. Relate your definition to your outputs about depicting the contemporary world. 2. What is the difference between globality and globalism?

Assignment: Write an Essay of Analysis composed of 6 paragraphs on : How can a globalizing world of differing countries – rich and poor, democratic and authoritarian – best promote inclusive growth and human security by meeting the challenges of inequality, climate change, rising populism, and global disease?

REFERENCES AND READINGS Albrow, Martin (1990). Globalization, Knowledge and Society. London: Sage. Giddens, Anthony (1990). The Consequences of Modernity. Cambridge: Polity Press. Holm, Hans-Henrik and Georg Sorensen (1995) “Introduction: What Has Changed?” in HansHenrik Holm and Georg Sorensen, eds., Whose World Order? Uneven Globalization and the End of the Cold War (Boulder, CO: Westview), 1–17. Kanter, Rosabeth Moss (1995). World Class: Thriving Locally in the Global Economy (New York: Simon and Schuster, as cited in J. A. Scholte, “The Globalization of World Politics”, in J. Baylis and S. Smith (eds.), The Globalization of World Politics, An Introduction to International Relations. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Khor, Martin (1995). "Address to the International Forum on Globalization," New York City. Mcgrew, A. (1990). A Global Society: Modernity and its Futures as cited by Brazalote and Leonardo (2019) The Contemporary World: Outcome-Based Module. Quezon City: C & E Publishing Inc. Steger, Manfred. B. (2009). Globalization: A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wallerstein, Immanuel (1974). The Modern World-System: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the European World-Economy in the Sixteenth Century. New York: Academic Press.

https://gened.fas.harvard.edu/urgent-problems-enduring-questions

LESSON 2: THE GLOBAL ECONOMY The Global economy alludes to different financial exercises among various nations with either negative or beneficial outcomes. The idea of a world economy is identified with regular day to day existence dependent on the interconnected idea of the different countries around the world. Exchange interrelations are noteworthy pointers of the worldwide economy. Thus, the growth of globalization of the world's economies to a great extent is dependent on the advancement of science and technology. Notwithstanding the drawbacks, globalization is still changing the world. Socially, it has encouraged the trading of thoughts and societies, adding to a world view wherein individuals are progressively open and lenient of each other.

OBJECTIVES: At the end of this lesson you are expected to: 1. Define economic globalization; 2. Reflect on the various theories and perspectives explaining the practice of international trade; 3. Collect information about a foreign product being sold in the Philippines.

HELPFUL POINTS Economic Globalization The International Monetary Fund (IMF) regards “economic globalization’ as a historical process representing the result of human innovation and technological progress. It is characterized by the increasing integration of economies around the world through the movement of goods, services, and capital across borders. These changes are the products of people, organizations, institutions, and technologies. As with all other processes of globalization, there is a qualitative and subjective element to this definition. According to the United Nations (as cited by Shangquan, 2000), economic globalization refers to the increasing interdependence of world economies as a result of the growing scale of cross-border trade of commodities and services, flow of international capital and wide and rapid spread of technologies. It reflects the continuing expansion and mutual integration of market frontiers, and is an irreversible trend for the economic development in the whole world at the turn of the millennium. International Trade The conclusion of World War ll signaled the beginning of trade facilitation around the globe. Economies set rules and guidelines for international trade which led to the formation of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). These trade rules were developed through series of rounds or meetings of member ‘economies. International Trade (IT) is the process and system when goods, commodities, services cross national economy, and boundaries in exchange for money or goods of another country

(Balaam and Veseth, 2008). Global trade has grown dramatically since the post-cold war era as a result of increasing demand of goods and services of countries. This global norm is a reflection of growing practice of internationalizing and globalizing local products and services. Trade Theories There are two types of trade theories explaining international trade. • Descriptive Theory. It deals with the natural order and movement of trade. it describes the pattern of trade under the idea of laissez faire, a French term which means "leave alone". It refers to the notion that individuals are the best economic agents to solve the problems through invisible hand rather than the government ‘policies. Descriptive theory addresses the questions of which product to trade, how much product to offer and produce, and which country to trade in the absence of government restrictions. • Prescriptive Theory. This prescribes whether government, an important economic institution, should interfere and restrict with the movement of goods and services. This theory views government to have participation in deciding which countries to alter the amount, composition and direction of goods. The pressing question describing descriptive theory is “Should the government control trade?” Three Perspectives on International Trade • Economic Liberals David Ricardo and Adam Smith were known critics of late-eighteenth century on the abuses of mercantilism in England. Their liberal ideas and contribution in understanding global trade are still relevant until today. For Ricardo, his influential work Law of Comparative Advantage explains that free trade efficiency is attainable if two countries can produce more goods and trade products separately. The advantage of this theory in international trade is deriving from the principle of specialization and division of labor (Nau, 2009). Countries have different resources and talents; they are better in performing in that economic activity than other economic activities • Mercantilism An economic theory emerged from about 1500-1800. This period was the emerging eras of nations-states and the formation of more central governments. This system flourished due to the following reasons: ▪ Higher export than import. ▪ Export less high valued product and import less high valued product ▪ The benefits of colonial powers. • Structuralists The earliest wave of mercantilism was described as classical imperialism. The drive of European countries to explore and colonize underdeveloped countries originated from the aggressive mercantilist behavior of European economies. This idea was extended to the practice of modern capitalist-imperialist approach by countries and economies that have the immense resource through the use of hard power over developing and less developed countries.

The Modern World System (MWS) theory deveIoped by Immanuel Wallerstein, explains the contact of economies between core, semi peripheral, and peripheral countries in the world. The core states have the absolute advantage over the other through unequal exchange and extraction of raw materials from periphery and semi-periphery. Thus, the economic globalization and market integration of the 21 st century are extensions of the same economic motives of imperial powers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Balaam and Veseth, 2008)

ACTIVITY Follow the product! Globalization allows for a worldwide exchange of most of the commodities that we consume. This activity will allow you to investigate the origin and spread of the products and services sold in our country. You will also be able to know the countries involved in the production, distribution, and consumption of the products being sold and consumed in the country. The following are the steps to accomplish this activity: 1. Choose a specific foreign product/brand that is being sold in the Philippines. 2. List down the main ingredients or raw materials in manufacturing the chosen product. Identify the corresponding country from which each ingredient or raw material came from. 3. Identify the countries involved in the manufacturing of the chosen product. Indicate the corresponding service the country does for the product (e.g., Costa Rica planting of coffee beans). 4. Aside from the Philippines, list other countries where the product is being sold. Cite the kinds of technology that made the creation of the product possible. Consider communications and transportation. 5. Write one to three statements about the creation of the product and answer the following questions: • How do economic trading institutions influence global economic activity? • How does it affect the Philippine economy? • Does the position of rich countries as giants in the economic chain threaten the status of less developed countries in the global market?

REFERENCES Balaam, D and Vesseth, M. (2008), Introduction to International Political Economy, 4th ed. Pearson Prentice Hall, Pearson Education, Inc. De Ocampo, F., Ramos, B., Llomora, R.,Macaraeg, A., David, M.A. (2018), Introduction to Contemporary World. St. Andrew Publishing House. Claudio, L., Abinales, P. (2018), The Contemporary World. C & E Publishing, Inc., Shangquan, G. (2000). Economic Globalization:Trends, risks and risk prevention. CPD background paper no.1. United Nations Development Policy and Analysis Division. Nau, H. (2009). Perspectives on International Relations: Power, Institutions, and Ideas. 2 nd edition. Washington DC: CQ Press Sage Publishing. 2009

Lesson 3: MARKET INTEGRATION Much of globalization is anchored on the role global economy plays in the different nations. We often think of economy as something that covers a wide variety of financial aspects like employment, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or the stability of stock markets. However, we must understand that the economy is composed of people. It is the social institution that organizes all productions, consumptions and trade of goods in the society....