Summary of Conceptualizing Globalization and Education & Education and the Global Knowledge Economy

1. Comparative education
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Summary of Conceptualizing Globalization and Education &
Education and the Global Knowledge Economy
Submitted to: Dr. Ayesha Batool Rana
Submitted by: Ghulam Mujtaba

2. Conceptualizing Globalization and Education
This chapter has examined globalization and the many ways in which it is affecting education
around the world. The origins of the term globalization are found in the field of international
economics, but the concept has been applied to virtually all social science disciplines.
Globalization has come to mean different things to different groups of people in fact it is such a
variable concept that in many senses it lacks a concrete meaning. The study of globalization and
education differs from international comparative studies in several important respects: the
globalization perspective acknowledges that significant educational policy decisions are taken at
the supranational or global level, and growing inequalities within countries and similarities
between countries render many national comparisons meaningless.
The chapter examined three dominant theories of globalization from a broad base of social
science literature neoliberalism, world systems analysis, and world culture theory. The first of
these views globalization primarily as a phenomenon of increased competition as countries
compete with one another in the global economy they become more similar in many ways,
including their education systems. In contrast, world systems analysis attributes growing
similarities in education systems to global power relations and the influence of elites. Finally,
world culture theory identifies international organizations such as the World Bank and United
Nations as key agents of globalization: through their international declarations these
organizations embody a world culture that values individualism, democracy and human rights.
These competing theoretical conceptualizations all acknowledge increased similarities in
education systems, such as the trend towards decentralization, but they offer very different
accounts for why it is happening. This chapter underlines that globalization is surrounded by
controversy and confusion.
There is disagreement over what the term itself means, heated debate about whether it is for the
better or for the worse, and competing theoretical conceptualizations about how and why
globalization occurs. An unexpected outcome is that in the midst of this confusion and
disagreement there is remarkable clarity on key issues and questions for research. Regardless of
their theoretical position, researchers are asking why education systems throughout the world are
converging on a common set of policies and practices, examining the effects of international
organizations in contributing to this isomorphism, and questioning the future of the nation-state
in a globalized world.

3. Education and the Global Knowledge Economy
Summary
Over the past half-century, a number of scholars have described the advent of a global
knowledge economy, an increase in economic activity that focuses on the production and
application of knowledge, information and intellectual property. This idea has become widely
accepted among international organizations, national governments and other educational
policymakers, who see education as a key factor in creating a population of knowledge workers
who can compete in this new economic landscape. Education is increasingly considered in
relation to national economic competitiveness, particularly in the areas of lifelong learning and
higher education.
The global knowledge economy has also resulted in increased interest in international
achievement tests such as the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study and PISA. These are
administered to students in many countries around the world, producing a body of internationally
comparable data that ostensibly allows the ranking of national education systems. Policymakers
draw upon this data when discussing educational reforms, although this is often used to
legitimate existing policy decisions that are driven primarily by political ideology.
While the global knowledge economy has become a key driver of educational policymaking at
all levels, its deeply problematic nature is seldom acknowledged. The global knowledge
economy is not a value-neutral concept; it embeds contentious notions of global capitalism and
neoliberalism under the pretence of progressive social change that is desirable and inevitable.
Many of these characteristics are seen in changing discourses on Information and
Communication Technology in education, which are explored in the next chapter.