Young People And Globalisation Essay

This report will be focusing on the impact immigration has on young people aged 11-16. Young people are growing up in a world of globalisation, which therefore has a predominant impact especially when they are in their teenage years and finding their own identities. The lives of young people are constantly being influenced by cultural, technological and social trends. In the UK, young people cannot be reduced to a series of types of identity that are locally, culturally, economically or socially defined. There is an assumption that young people can be seen as the passive recipients or the vulnerable victims of global change. Although young people are not seen as powerless when understanding global change, their economic position is noticeably more vulnerable than other social groups due to the uncertainties and risks associated with globalisation. Harvey (2003) believes that young people have no control over the speed or direction of social change, however, they can and do have a voice and they can determine the effect these global changes have on their lives.
Globalisation is the exchange and movement of economic, social, cultural as well as political activity across national and international borders. Albrow and King (1990, p421) state that globalisation refers to all those processes by which the people of the world are incorporated into a single world society. Harvey, (2003), suggests that globalisation should primarily be regarded as being about the interdependence of societies on a world scale, about existing links and those that can be developed globally between individuals, communities, nations and organisations. However, globalisation can be seen as a shifting concept which has therefore meant there is no universally accep...

... middle of paper ...

...has a profound impact on young people through the development of their identity. Immigration has meant that there has been an increase in combined nationalities and cultures within the UK which has had an impact on societal norms and values and therefore on the way young people have been brought up and developing their own views. However, as Ajegbo’s report has identified, education is an essential part to ensure that children and young people are brought up understanding society’s norms and values as well as it helping to develop ideas about citizenship and understanding that everyone is all part of one large community no matter where they are from. Education can also stress the importance of citizenship through the understanding that the UK is a diverse place to live which can be built on to make the country a stronger unit and a positive result of globalisation.