二十一世紀的世界文明，在科技持續進步、國際經貿體系為骨幹的全球化運動、社會多元化，以及大眾思維與行動後現代化的主導下，給當前道德教育帶來嚴重的挑戰。科技以控制自然、征服自然為目的，以「功效」為成敗標準，導致歷史人文思維凋零，自然生態環境受到剝削與破壞。其次以傳播消費文化為主軸的全球化運動，造成各民族固有文化的式微。個人主義、拜金主義、享樂主義氾濫，衍生出各種個人和群體的心理病態。其三，現代社會強調多元、容忍，造成價值中立和道德混淆；而「解構的後現代」思潮正是否定一切觀念、理想、價值、意義的虛無主義。受到世界文明的負面影響，道德教育究竟如何突破困境？本文試圖從全球倫理與中國古代「天下」的觀點，思考可能的出路。

It is with little doubt that the continuation of modern civiliza- tion in the 21st century under the mentality of scientism brought by the immense progress of science and technology, the movement of globaliza- tion backing up by capitalistic economic systems, democratic and bureau- cratized society, and postmodern vogue appeal to the general populace, have threatened moral education in China. In an anti-humanistic and anti-traditional era, what role can we expect moral education to play this century? What could be the civil function of moral education? This paper attempts to respond to these questions by fusing the concept of “global ethics” with the Chinese notion of “tianxia” or “Under-Heaven,” to find a way out of the predicament of moral education in the contemporary world.