Lecture1

What is neoliberalism
“…an ensemble of economic and social policies, forms of governance, and discourses and
ideologies that promote individual self-interest, unrestricted flows of capital, deep reductions
in the cost of labor, and sharp retrenchment of the public sphere. Neoliberals champion
privatization of social goods and withdrawal of government from provision for social welfare
on the premise that competitive markets are more effective and efficient.”
Darling-Hammond (2006) p. 317

N eo-liberalism is the driving force behind globalisation.Darling-Hammond (2006

• Carter & O'Neill (1995) summarised evidence on the state of education policy making
in their two-volume collection on international perspectives on educational reform.
• They identified the new orthodoxy: a shift taking place between politics, government
and education in complex Westernised post-industrialised countries as a result of the
rise of neo-liberalism and globalisation.

They cited five main elements to this new orthodoxy.

(1) Improving national economics by tightening the connection between schooling,
employment, productivity and trade.
(2) Enhancing student outcomes in employment-related skills and competencies.
(3) Attaining more direct control over curriculum content and assessment.
(4) Reducing the costs to government of education.
(5) Increasing community input to education by more direct involvement in school
decision making and pressure of market choice.
Carter & O’Neil (1995

Ball (1998) identified 4 key characteristics of how neoliberalism was affecting educational
policy:
1) New Institutional Economics
2) Performativity Culture
3) Public Choice Theory
4) New Managerialism

Examples of new institutional economics in the UK

• An example of devolution – recent changes to the assessment system in the UK;
schools allowed to assess any way they like.
• An example of targets - each school is expected to exceed the ‘floor standard’ in
SATS tests.
An example of incentives – schools who converted to academies are exempt from Ofsted
inspection for 2 years
1.New Institutional Economics
• Sought to explain the workings of social life and its various institutions, and the
construction of relationships and co-ordination of individual and collective behaviour,
in terms of the choices and actions of the rational actor’ (Seddon, 1997, p. 176).
• This involves the use of a combination of devolution, targets and incentives to
bring about institutional redesign.

2.Performativity Culture

• 'Performativity is a principle of governance which establishes strictly functional

relations between a state and its inside and outside environments' (Yeatman, 1994,
pp. 111).
In other words performativity is a steering mechanism. A form of indirect steering or steering
at a distance which replaces intervention and prescription with target setting, accountability
and comparison

3) Public Choice Theory

• Choice is a key aspect of neoliberalism (see Organization for Economic Co-operation

and Development (1994) for a review of choice policies in six countries).
• Parents are given a choice as to where they send their child to be educated.

What choices can a parent make about

how their child is educated in the UK?

4) New Managerialism

• The insertion of the theories and techniques of business management and the 'cult of
excellence' into public sector institutions.
• Managerialism is, in this sense, both a delivery system and a vehicle for change.
• This 'new' managerialism stresses constant attention to 'quality', being close to the
customer and the value of innovation (Newman & Clarke, 1994, p. 15).
• In the education sector the headteacher is the main 'carrier' and embodiment of new
managerialism and is crucial to the transformation of the organisational regimes of
schools (Grace,1995).

The signs of new managerialism in schools in the UK

• The evolution of the role of the Headteacher: once responsible for one school, some
Headteachers now find themselves with the title of CEO of multiple schools.
 • The evolution of leadership in schools. It used to be the case that schools would be
‘led’ by a Headteacher and a Deputy. Now, there are multiple layers of distributed
leadership across the system.

In summary
Structural Influence,and Curricular Influence
Why has neoliberalism and globalisation influenced educational policy?

CARTER, D.S.G. & O’NE ILL, M.H. (1995) International Perspectives on Educational Reform
and Policy Implementation (Brighton, Falmer).
Dale, R. (2000). Globalization: a new world for comparative education?, in: J. Schriewer (Ed)
Discourse
formation in comparative education. Oxford: Peter Lang.
Darling-Hammond, L. (2006, October). Securing the right to learn: Policy and practices for
powerful teaching and learning. Educational Researcher, 35(7), 13–24.
Dimmock, C. & Walker, A. (2000). Globalisation and Societal Culture: redeŽ ning schooling
and school leadership in the twenty-first century. Compare, Vol. 30, No. 3, 2000. pp. 303-
313.
GRACE, G. (1995) School Leadership : beyond education management: an essay in policy
scholarship (London, Falmer)
Hursh, D. (2007). Assessing No Child Left Behind and the Rise of Neoliberal Education
Policies. American Educational Research Journal (44:3) pp. 493 –518.
NEWMAN, J. & CLARKE, J. (1994) Going about our business? The managerialization of
public services, in: J. CLARKE, A. COCHRANE & E. MCLAUGHL IN (Eds) Managing Social
Policy (London, Sage).
SEDDON, T. (1997) Markets and the English: rethinking educational restructuring as
institutional design, British Journal of Sociology of Education, 18, pp. 165±186.
STRONACH, I. (1993) Education, vocationalism and economic recovery: the case against
witchcraft, British Journal of Education and Work, 3, pp. 5±31.

Lecture2

PISA international

The definition globalisation. (You will need this for your introduction.)
An understanding of the link between neo-liberalism and globalisation. (You will need
this for your introduction.)
Direct examples of how neo-liberalism and globalisation have affected schools in the
UK. (You may wish to make reference to this in the ‘themes’ you identify in the main
body of your assignment
 • With such a key focus on self-improvement, target setting and high standards, neo-
liberal policy allows the education system to ‘measure’ its progress.
• Through measuring progress, an education system is able to ‘compete’ against
others.
• What are the implications of this…
 For students?
 For teachers?
 For school leaders?
 For a government?
 For a country?
 For the world?

What can I take away from today’s

session to support my assignment
• One of the central tenets of globalisation is strong economic development.
• Strong economic development appears to be dependent upon a strong knowledge
economy.
• A strong knowledge economy is dependent upon a strong education system.
• Therefore, a government who wants to compete globally is likely to take a keen
interest in its education system.
• As a result, this would directly affect the education system, policies and practice
within a country.
• Today’s session highlights the motivation behind change. You will draw upon this in
the introduction to your assignment in particular.

Alexander, R. (2000). Culture and Pedagogy, International Comparisons in Primary

Education. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing UK.

Aubert, J-E., & Reiffers, J-L. (2003). Knowledge Economies in the Middle East
and North Africa: Toward New Development Strategies. Washington, D.C.: The
World Bank.
Chen, C. and Dahlman, C.J. (2006) The KAM Methodology And World Bank Operations.
OECD.

Weber, A.S. (2011). The role of education in knowledge economies in developing

countries. Procedia – Social and Behavioural Sciences (15) pp. 2589 – 2594 .
The four pillars of an effective knowledge economy

Educated and Skilled Labor Force

A well-educated and skilled population is essential to the efficient creation, acquisition,

dissemination and utilization of relevant knowledge, which tends to increase total factor
productivity and hence economic growth. Basic education is necessary to increase peoples’ capacity
to learn and to use information. A more educated population also tends to be relatively more
technologically sophisticated. This generates local quality sensitive demand for advanced goods,
which in turns tends to stimulate local firms to innovate and design technologically sophisticated
goods and production techniques.
An Effective Innovation System

Economic theory indicates that technical progress is a major source of productivity growth and an
effective innovation system is key for such technical advancement. An innovation system refers to
the network of institutions, rules and procedures that influences the way by which a country
acquires, creates, disseminates and uses knowledge. Institutions in the innovation system include
schools, universities, public and private research centers and policy think tanks. Non-governmental
organizations and the government are also part of the innovation system to the extent that they also
produce new knowledge. An effective innovation system is one that provides an environment that
nurtures research and development (R&D), which results in new goods, new processes and new
knowledge, and hence is a major source of technical progress.

An Adequate Information Infrastructure

Information and communications technologies (ICT) infrastructure in an economy refers to the

accessibility, reliability and efficiency of computers, phones, television and radio sets, and the
various networks that link them. The World Bank Group defines ICT to consist of hardware,
software, networks, and media for collection, storage, processing transmission, and presentation of
information in the form of voice, data, text, and images. They range from the telephone, radio and
television to the Internet (World Bank, 2003a and 2003b). ICTs are the backbone of the knowledge
economy and in recent years have been recognized as an effective tool for promoting economic
growth and sustainable development. With relatively low usage costs and the ability to overcome
distance, ICTs have revolutionized the transfer of information and knowledge around the world.
Over the past decade, there has been a series of studies that show that both ICT production and ICT
usage have contributed to economic growth

A Conductive Economic and Institutional Regime

The final pillar of the knowledge economy framework, but by no means the least. The economic and
institutional regime of an economy needs to be such that economic agents have incentives for the
efficient use and creation of knowledge, and thus should have well-grounded and transparent
macroeconomic, competition and regulatory policies. The financial system should be one that is able
to allocate resources to sound investment opportunities and redeploy assets from failed enterprises
to more promising ones. Features of a conducive institutional regime include an effective,
accountable and corrupt-free government and a legal system that supports and enforces the basic
rules of commerce and protects property rights. Intellectually property rights should be also
protected and strongly enforced. If intellectual property rights are not adequately protected and
enforced, then researchers/scientists will have less incentive to create new technological knowledge
and even in the event that knowledge is created, the lack of intellectual property rights protection
will greatly hamper dissemination of such new knowledge.

Lecture3

Further reading on the impact of PISA

Grek, S. (2009) Governing by numbers: the PISA ‘effect’ in Europe. Journal of Educational
Policy (24:1) pp. 23-37.

Afonso, N., & Costa, E. (2009). A influência do PISA na decisão política em Portugal: o caso das
políticas educativas do XVII Governo Constitucional Português [The influence of PISA on the
political decision in Portugal: the case of the educational policies of the XVII Portuguese
Constitutional Government]. Sísifo. Revista de Ciências da Educação, 10, 53–64.
Baird, J-A., Isaacs, T., Johnson, S., Stobart, G., Yu, G., Sprague, T. L., & Daugherty, R. (2011).
Policy effects of PISA. Pearson UK
Bieber, T., & Martens, K. (2011). The OECD PISA study as a soft power in education? Lessons
from Switzerland and the USA. European Journal of Education, Research, Development and
Policy, 46(1), 101–116.
Biesta GJJ (2012) Good education in an age of measurement: On the need to reconnect with the
question of purpose in education. Educational Philosophy and Theory 44(6): 581–593
Dall, A. (2011). Is PISA counter-productive to building successful educational systems? Social
Alternatives, 30(4), 10– 14.
Duit, R. (2007). Science education research internationally: Conceptions, research methods,
domains of research. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics Science and Technology Education, 3(1),
3–15
Eccleston R (2011) The OECD and global economic governance. Australian Journal of
International Affairs 65(2): 243–255.
Grek, S. (2009) Governing by numbers: the PISA ‘effect’ in Europe. Journal of Educational Policy
(24:1) pp. 23-37.
Grek, S. (2010). International organisations and the shared construction of policy “problems’:
Problematisation and change in education governance in Europe. European Educational
Research Journal, 9(3), 396–406
Hendrickson, K. A. (2012). Learning from Finland: Formative assessment. The Mathematics
Teacher, 105(7), 488–489
Henry M, Lingard B, Rizvi F, et al. (2001) The OECD Globalisation and Education Policy.
Amsterdam: Pergamon.
Hopfenbeck, T., Lenkeit, J., El Masri, Y., Cantrell, K., Ryan, J. and Baird, J. (2018). Lessons
Learned from PISA: A Systematic Review of Peer-Reviewed Articles on the Programme for
International Student Assessment. SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL
RESEARCH, 2018 VOL. 62, NO. 3, 333–353
Lawn M and Lingard B (2002) Constructing a European policy space in educational governance:
The role of transnational policy actors. European Educational Research Journal 1(2): 290–307.
Meyer, H. D. (2014). The OECD as pivot of the emerging global educational accountability
regime: How accountable are the accountants?. Teachers College Record, 116(9), 1–20.
O’Mara, J. (2014). Closing the emergency facility: Moving schools from literacy triage to better
literacy outcomes. English Teaching: Practice and Critique, 13(1), 8–23
Perry, L. B., & McConney, A. (2010). Does the SES of the school matter? An examination of
socioeconomic status and student achievement using PISA 2003. Teachers College Record,
112(4), 1137–1162.
Pons, X. (2017). Fifteen years of research on PISA effects on education governance: A critical
review. European Journal of Educ (2017: 52) pp.131–144
The Impact of PISA

Baird, J-A., Isaacs, T., Johnson, S., Stobart, G., Yu, G., Sprague, T. L., & Daugherty, R.
(2011). Policy effects of PISA. Pearson UK

Problems with PISA

• Validity – does it actually test educational success or measure how well 15-year olds
can perform in a test?
• Cultural differences – will all students interpret questions in the same way? (Huang et
al.,2016)
• Differences in education systems (i.e. SEND pupils are taught in separate schools in
some countries, etc.)
• Varied curriculum (and life!) experience of students from different countries.
• Questions ‘jump around’ too much to try and address areas of all curricula.
• Issues with translation (Arffman, 2010; Eivers, 2010)
• Methodology – how are results calculated in light of the above?
• One of the main concerns about PISA is the extent to which the adapted forms are
comparable to the source versions (English and French).
 Bias could emerge because of poor translation but could also be due to differences in
language, culture, curriculum coverage and so on (Grisay et al., 2007; Nardi, 2008)

The Curriculum and Assessment Around the World

Seminar 4
• To compare and contrast international approaches to the curriculum.
• To compare and contrast international approaches to assessment.
• To reflect upon how these may have been affected by globalisation.

Hall and Øzerk (2008) found that…

• Most countries surveyed had a consistent approach to the curriculum.
The majority of countries had provision for: first language, mathematics, science,
information technology, design and technology, history, geography, physical
education, art, music, and religious education

Recurring in the various curriculum policy texts were all of the following foci:
• the development of all children’s potential;
• the promotion of the rounded individual;
• the fostering of the good citizen;
• the cultivation of the lifelong learner;
• the shaping of the flexible individual for life in a rapidly changing globalized world.

Benavot et al. (1991

• First language, mathematics, science and social studies are not merely standard in
primary curriculum internationally, but the amount of time devoted to each is almost
identical across nation states, regardless of a country’s level of industrialization,
urbanization or political structure.
The real surprise of our findings lies not in the unimportance of social influences, but in the
relative unimportance of national influences on curricular structure. Similarities clearly
outweigh differences. The few differences observed tend to be unstable and seem to arise
as a matter of chance in national societies differing dramatically in wealth, political structure,
and cultural and religious tradition. We may speak with some confidence about a relatively
standard world curriculum.”
(Benavot et al. 1991 p. 181

Globalisation, School Leadership and Teacher Education

Lecture 6
• To explore how globalisation has affected school leadership and teacher
education;
To compare and contrast the effects of this in different countries

Globalization “is fundamentally changing the parameters of political deliberation throughout

the industrialised world, raising the stakes for education policy and changing the ground
rules for its adoption and implementation. This has revoluntionised structures for school
management.”
(Mitchell & Boyd, 2001, p. 60).

Globalisation in educational management implies the export of approaches to business

management into the day-to-day running of schools.
Three reasons for this:
1. schools, as organisations, have generic functions (i.e. mission stating, goal setting,
recruiting, monitoring, and evaluating etc.)
2. comparisons between types of organisations and their management may be
instructive
3. governments are keen to make school management more business like.
(Dimmock & Walker, 2000
)
• Current educational policy reforms designed to achieve competitiveness and
diversity by means of standardised curricula, national standards and
standardised assessment suggest an increasing centralisation.
• On the other hand, the rise in policies of educational restructuring in response to
demands for equity, participation and diversity, have the effect of encouraging
decentralisation of schooling.
• This has had a profound effect on the role of a school leader.
(Daun 2002

The effects of globalisation on school leadership

Principals around the globe are found to be experiencing work intensification and role
diversification that negatively impacted on their educative leadership.
Leaders report that their focus on bureaucracy has intensified considerably.
This has been labelled as new managerialism.
Webba,Vulliamyb, Sarjac and Hämäläinen (2006

Globalisation & Teacher Education

 • The fight to get every child into the classroom has now taken on a new level, based
on the profound realisation that being at school is simply not enough.
• There is now an increasing focus – particularly in developed countries – to ensure
children benefit from the best teachers possible.
• Countries around the world have started to question how they can provide the best
teachers possible.

The rise of competition on the global sphere has lead many countries to intensify teacher
training routes so that their children benefit from the highest quality of teaching possible.
Townsend (2007)

• Working in groups organised last week, you should now finalise arrangements for
your 5-7 minute presentation about teacher education in a specific country.
• Countries to be explored are:
-Australia
-Canada
-Finland
-Shanghai
-Singapore

What can I take away from this week’s sessions for my assignment?
• Globalisation has significantly affected the system – decentralisation of
administration v. centralisation of curriculum and national testing.
• Globalisation has affected school leaders – Headteachers have to manage
administration and accountablility now more than ever.
Globalisation has affected teacher education – countries are attempting to improve
educational outcomes by producing the best teachers possible

Carnoy, M. 1999. Globalization and educational reform: What planners need to know. Paris:
International Institute of Educational Planning, UNESCO. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/
images/0012/001202/120274e.pdf (accessed September 23, 2011)
Daun, H. (2002). Educational Restructuring in the Context of Globalisation and National
Policy. New York: Routledge Falmer.
Dimmock, C., and J.W.P. Goh. (2011). Transformative pedagogy, leadership and school
organisation for the 21st century knowledge-based economy: the case of Singapore. School
Leadership and Management 31, no. 3: 215–34.
Dimmock, C. & Walker, A. (2000). Globalisation and Societal Culture: redeŽ ning schooling
and school leadership in the twenty-first century. Compare, Vol. 30, No. 3, 2000. pp. 303-
313.
Green, A. (2007). Education, Globalization, and the Nation State. New York: St. Martin's
Press
Gopinathan, S. (2007). Globalisation, the Singapore developmental state and education
policy: A thesis revisited. Globalisation, Societies and Education 5, no. 1: 53–70.
Levy, F., and R.J. Murnane. (2004). The new division of labor: How computers are creating
the new job market. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
McKinsey & Company. 2007. How the world’s best-performing school systems come out on
top. http://www.mckinsey.com/App_Media/Reports/SSO/Worlds_School_Systems_ Final.pdf
2007, Handbook of teacher education : globalization, standards and professionalism in times
of change. Edited by Townsend, Tony and Bates, Richard, Springer, Dordrecht, The
Netherlands
Lecture 7: Globalization and the curriculum a focus on early years, to explore how best
practice in early years education is defined in international research

Lecture 8: Education in high income countries,

Lecture 9 Education in low income countries

 To identify which countries are identified as the Asian Tigers

 To explore the history of these countries and to establish how education may
have facilitated their economic development
 To determine the effects of the Asian tigers on the global education

Lecture 7, 8,9 a short mention, if you find it difficult I will do it.