Showing papers in "Journal of Education Policy in 2019"
TL;DR: This article examined whether, to what extent, and how international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) have influenced education policy-making at the national level, and found that ILSAs, with their multiple and ambiguous uses, increasingly function as solutions in search for the right problem.
Abstract: This paper examines whether, to what extent, and how international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) have influenced education policy-making at the national level. Based on an exploratory review of the research and policy literature on ILSAs and two surveys administered to educational policy experts, researchers, policymakers, and educators, our research found that ILSAs, with their multiple and ambiguous uses, increasingly function as solutions in search for the right problem – that is, they appear to be used as tools to legitimize educational reforms. The survey results pointed to a growing perception among stakeholders that ILSAs are having an effect on national educational policies, with 38% of respondents stating that ILSAs were generally misused in national policy contexts. However, while the ILSA literature indicates that these assessments are having some influence, there is little evidence that any positive or negative causal relationship exists between ILSA participation and the implementat...
70 citations
TL;DR: In early 2015, the Australian Government and an associated Ministerial Group called for ‘urgent national action to improve the quality of initial teacher education’ as mentioned in this paper, and this call was not heeded.
Abstract: In early 2015, the Australian Government and an associated Ministerial Group called for ‘urgent national action to improve the quality of initial teacher education’. Following this call for action,...
48 citations
TL;DR: The authors examined the role of PISA in the globalisation of education policies and found that education policy debates feature an increasingly global discourse in which organisations such as the OECD have an authoritative role.
Abstract: The paper examines the role of PISA in the globalisation of education policies. It approaches the question by assessing the effects of PISA on the ways in which new legislation was debated in national contexts in the period 1994–2013. The study asks: Has there been an increase in the number of references to the international community in debates on education policy due to PISA, and, if so, is this change confined to debates on education policy? Our analysis shows that education policy debates feature an increasingly global discourse in which organisations such as the OECD have an authoritative role. Yet, our findings do not support the claim that PISA is the cause of a change in this respect. Debating national policies in a global context and utilising the same transnational discourses regardless of the policy issue area in question has long been with us, yet there is a global trend in which national policies are increasingly often debated through appeals to models and policy advice promulgated by...
37 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors trace the "policy mobilities, fast policy processes and distributed "policy assemblages" that have led to the introduction of new computer programming practices into schools and curricula in England, Sweden and Australia.
Abstract: Education policy increasingly takes place across borders and sectors, involving a variety of both human and nonhuman actors. This comparative policy paper traces the ‘policy mobilities,’ ‘fast policy’ processes and distributed ‘policy assemblages’ that have led to the introduction of new computer programming practices into schools and curricula in England, Sweden and Australia. Across the three contexts, government advisors and ministers, venture capital firms, think tanks and philanthropic foundations, non-profit organizations and commercial companies alike have promoted computer programming in schools according to a variety of purposes, aspirations, and commitments. This paper maps and traces the evolution of the organizational networks in each country in order to provide a comparative analysis of computing in schools as an exemplar of accelerated, transnationalizing policy mobility. The analysis demonstrates how computing in schools policy has been assembled through considerable effort to creat...
35 citations
TL;DR: The authors have been concerned with the labelling and treatment of children with mental health difficulties in the education system in England for some time, and these concerns have centre on the following issues:
Abstract: Educationalists have been concerned with the labelling and treatment of children with mental health difficulties in the education system in England for some time. These concerns have centre...
34 citations
TL;DR: In Sweden, together with other Nordic countries, private supplementary tutoring (PST) is a worldwide enterprise that comes in a variety of forms and with a growing number of students.
Abstract: Private supplementary tutoring (PST) is a worldwide enterprise that comes in a variety of forms and with a growing number of students. Sweden, together with the other Nordic countries, has ...
32 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine how higher education institutions in one nation state, Wales, enact its Government's policy on "widening access" to higher education and reveal divergences between HEIs in how this policy agenda is interpreted and delivered.
Abstract: Patterns of participation in higher education (HE) in the UK, as elsewhere, have been marked by social inequalities for decades. UK Governments have responded with a plethora of policies and agendas aimed at addressing this broad social issue. However, little is known about how higher education institutions (HEIs) interpret and ‘enact’ these policies in relation to institution-specific contexts. Drawing on concepts from policy sociology this paper examines how HEIs in one nation state, Wales, enact its Government’s policy on ‘widening access’ to higher education. Interviews with a range of ‘policy actors’ along with analyses of institutional ‘widening access’ policy documents, reveal divergences between HEIs in how this policy agenda is interpreted and delivered. These differences reflect institution-specific contexts – not least their internal politics and assumptions about the type of students they admit, but also their interests and priorities in relation to their positions within a global, marketised, HE system. The implications of this for the reproduction of university hierarchies in the UK, as well as social inequalities more generally are brought to the fore.
30 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a significant body of research has illuminated the educational data work on data for contemporary education policy and governance, and the most significant and contentious resources for education policy, governance and governance.
Abstract: Data have become the most significant and contentious resources for contemporary education policy and governance. Although a significant body of research has illuminated the educational data work o...
27 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a critical discourse analysis of how Whiteness works through the use and meaning making of the term "cultural diversity" in six Norwegian teacher education policy and curriculum documents is presented.
Abstract: This article adds to new ways of understanding the institutionalisation of Whiteness as subtle workings of race and racism within education policy. It presents a critical discourse analysis of how Whiteness works through the use and meaning making of the term ‘cultural diversity’ in six Norwegian teacher education policy and curriculum documents. These documents are positioned as promoters of social justice. This article, however, aims to contest this position. Framed under the theoretical perspectives of critical Whiteness studies, discourse analysis and Goldberg’s theorisation of racialised discourse, the findings indicate that Whiteness is embedded in the usage of the term ‘cultural diversity’, manifested in discursive patterns of (1) three hierarchically arranged pupil group categories, (2) descriptions that place the pupil group categories as either superior Norwegian or as inferior non-Norwegian, and (3) the role of student teachers as ‘political actors of assimilation’. I argue that despite...
26 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the increasing encroachment of data into the Japanese education system, in particular, the use of data associated with standardised academic assessments for governance purposes, and expose the possible limits of the existing English-language scholarship on this phenomenon.
Abstract: Juxtaposed with the emerging body of literature about datafication in schooling, this paper examines the increasing encroachment of data into the Japanese education system, in particular, the use of data associated with standardised academic assessments for governance purposes. In so doing, we use the Japanese ‘case’ to expose the possible limits of the existing English-language scholarship on this phenomenon. By providing a contextualised, descriptive account of how data is incorporated into the three layers of Japanese education bureaucracy (municipal, prefectural, national), we call into question the assumed universality of datafication in schooling and its effect as proffered by Anglo-American education policy scholars. Using the Japanese case, the study elucidates the ways in which the particular policy context of the Anglo-American countries, where datafication has been extensively studied, sets certain limits on the existing discussion and leaves underexplored certain questions that might be more relevant to countries and regions beyond Anglo-American education policy contexts.
25 citations
TL;DR: There is little conclusive evidence linking academies reform in England with school improvement as discussed by the authors, while this reform has been effective in improving educational outcomes in some contexts, it has been ineffective in other contexts.
Abstract: There is little conclusive evidence linking academies reform in England with school improvement. While this reform has been effective in improving educational outcomes in some contexts, it has been...
TL;DR: The authors conducted a critical ethnography in two New Zealand primary schools and drew on Foucauldian notions of government and "practices of assemblage" to examine how the private sector uses the notion of philanthropy to shape school-based solutions to obesity and unhealthy lifestyles.
Abstract: In contemporary times, corporate philanthropy is positioned as an effective means to ‘solve’ a variety of social problems. Childhood obesity is one such ‘problem’ that has captured the interests of schools, corporations, industry groups and a number of ‘not-for-profit’ players. In this paper, I critically examine how the private sector uses the notion of philanthropy to shape school-based solutions to obesity and unhealthy lifestyles. By conducting a critical ethnography in two New Zealand primary schools and drawing on Foucauldian notions of government and ‘practices of assemblage’, I illuminate how a number of organisations officially planned to employ philanthropy as a means to govern others, as well as what actually happened when these plans met their intended targets: children, teachers and principals. Although corporations, charities and schools were assembled together through their combined ‘will to give’, the notion of philanthropy helped to re-assemble and re-invent private sector organis...
TL;DR: In this paper, Mettler's concept of the policyscape is applied to an examination of policy-making processes and events as they pertain specifically to an analysis of transgender inclusivity and gender diversity in the Ontario context.
Abstract: In this paper we draw on Mettler’s concept of the policyscape and apply it to an examination of policy-making processes and events as they pertain specifically to an analysis of transgender inclusivity and gender diversity in the Ontario context. We employ Ball’s focus on policy as text and policy ensembles alongside Bailey’s employment of policy dispositifs to map key events that characterize important legislative developments that define the Ontario education policy landscape with regards to addressing gender identity and gender expression as a basis for anti-discrimination. We situate particular events such as the GSA (Gay Straight Alliance or Gender and Sexuality Alliance) and sex education controversies within a broader context of trans activism, which we identify as pointing to quite specific contingencies that characterize the Ontario policyscape. Overall, the paper extends a consideration of the specificities of the Ontario case in Canada to a broader reflection on the utility of the policyscape as a crucial concept for making sense of the relevance of more general characteristics of a spatially-focused trans informed policy analysis.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored how a group of private Haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jewish) schools legitimized an innovative non-mandatory reform, and examined the circumstances that facilitated and hin...
Abstract: The study explored how a group of private Haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jewish) schools legitimized an innovative non-mandatory reform. Specifically, it examined the circumstances that facilitated and hin...
TL;DR: In this paper, the importance of redistributing power in the field of education development by enhancing the self-sustainability of education initiatives and minimizing their roots in depe...
Abstract: We defend in this paper the importance of redistributing power in the field of education development by enhancing the self-sustainability of education initiatives and minimizing their roots in depe...
TL;DR: In this article, the complexities emerging from attempts to forge greater alignment of policies and processes are considered, by considering the complexities that emerge from the attempt to forge alignment of processes and policies.
Abstract: This article problematises contemporary debates in favour of ‘policy alignment’ by considering the complexities emerging from attempts to forge greater alignment of policies and processes a...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors challenge the notion that quantitative data exist independent of a nation's political and racial landscape, and use large-scale national attainment data to support their claim that such data exist as a numeric truth.
Abstract: This paper challenges the notion that quantitative data – as a numeric truth – exist independent of a nation’s political and racial landscape. Utilising large-scale national attainment data...
TL;DR: In Spain and elsewhere in Europe, the state's monopoly over education has softened and new forms of e... as mentioned in this paper focused on the evolution of the school governance model in Spain since the 1980s.
Abstract: This article focusses on the evolution of the school governance model in Spain since the 1980s. In Spain and elsewhere in Europe, the state’s monopoly over education has softened and new forms of e...
TL;DR: Opportunities for social mobility are generated by education systems designed to alleviate the effects of social origin by providing equality of opportunities and resources as mentioned in this paper. But the persistence of the social origin is a challenge.
Abstract: Opportunities for social mobility are generated by education systems designed to alleviate the effects of social origin by providing equality of opportunities and resources. The persistence of the ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors claim a central role for school leaders in the enactment of social justice policy in schools, who act as key agents or "gate keepers" for what counts as social justice in their contexts of practice.
Abstract: This paper claims a central role for school leaders (principals or head-teachers) in the enactment of social justice policy in schools, who act as key agents or ‘gate keepers’ for what counts as social justice in their contexts of practice. Social justice means different things in different contexts depending on where leaders – who use policy as an opportunity to advance what they think is achievable within the limits of available resources – are positioned in the field and how that defines their stances. Drawing on qualitative data generated through in-depth interviews with ten secondary school principals in two Australian cities, the paper analyses the engagement of school leaders with nationally prescribed equity-related policies. Our analysis shows that, depending on the institutional ethos and resources of schools and their own social justice dispositions, school leaders tend to take different stances towards nationally defined equity agendas. Their responses range from compliance to compromi...
TL;DR: Inclusive education is not dead, it just smells funny as mentioned in this paper, a challenging and thought-provoking consideration of inclusive education from historical perspectives to the pre-segmentation of education.
Abstract: Roger Slee’s latest book, Inclusive education isn’t dead, it just smells funny, is a challenging and thought-provoking consideration of inclusive education from historical perspectives to the prese...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the impact of accountability assessment on teacher's understandings of valued assessment evidence and conclude that a paradigmatic shift to support student learning in Australian schools is a policy imperative that includes the need for professional development and learning support for teachers.
Abstract: Assessment is a major component of education, significant in directing what is identified as valued student learning. This paper is framed within an understanding of imperative and exhortative policy. Two paradigmatically different, and potentially contesting, assessment policy directions in Australian education – educational accountability to monitor school and teacher performance, and teacher assessment practices to improve learning (assessment for learning [AfL] or formative assessment) – are examined for their impact on teacher professionalism. Both approaches have official endorsement in Australian policy. Mandated participation in national tests is indicative of educational accountability assessments under national direction. While also endorsed nationally, AfL implementation is reliant on state and territory direction. Our examination reveals tensions in the alignment of both policies. This is evident in the impact of accountability assessment on AfL implementation, in particular, teachers’ understandings of valued assessment evidence. We conclude that a paradigmatic shift to support student learning in Australian schools is a policy imperative that includes the need for professional development and learning support for teachers.
TL;DR: Lebanon, a country impacted by ongoing political and economic instability, has an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees competing for access to already fragile healthcare, education and labor secto...
Abstract: Lebanon, a country impacted by ongoing political and economic instability, has an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees competing for access to already fragile healthcare, education and labor secto...
TL;DR: In this paper, a critical discourse analysis of the New Jersey Opt-Out Movement is presented, in response to the increasing standardization of US public school instruction, and over-use of high-stak...
Abstract: This study is a critical discourse analysis of the New Jersey Opt-Out Movement. In 2015, and in response to the increasing standardization of US public school instruction, and over-use of high-stak...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report on a study conducted in the context of early childhood education, where the authors investigate the mediatisation of education policy in early childhood contexts, focusing on early childhood environments.
Abstract: While research investigating the mediatisation of education policy has primarily been undertaken in school contexts, this paper reports on a study conducted in the context of early childhood educat...
TL;DR: The solutions proposed in the UK under successive governments reflect a problematic individualism that is not about helping all of the people as mentioned in this paper, and this individualism is problematic for the whole community.
Abstract: Promoting social mobility seems to be simple common sense. However, the solutions proposed in the UK under successive governments reflect a problematic individualism that is not about helping all o...
TL;DR: Student participation at school is receiving heightened attention through international evidence connecting it to a range of benefits including student learning, engagement, citizenship and well-being as discussed by the authors, and it is receiving a lot of attention.
Abstract: Student participation at school is receiving heightened attention through international evidence connecting it to a range of benefits including student learning, engagement, citizenship and wellbei...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors draw on theories of policy enactment to explore the ways in which the situated, material and external contexts and professional cultures in adult literacy in the UK have influenced practitioners.
Abstract: We draw on theories of policy enactment to explore the ways in which the situated, material and external contexts and professional cultures in adult literacy in the UK have influenced practitioners. Our analysis of the transnational (OECD, EU) and UK external policy contexts found that skills-related education is prioritised, with a focus on economic growth through increased productivity and accountability. This can lead to a narrow conceptualisation of literacy as a set of information processing skills needed for employment that limits the curriculum so that the knowledge of the participants is ignored. However, our findings show that there is not a one-way flow from the transnational to the local. Instead, literacy practitioners translate and enact policy texts based on their situated contexts and professional cultures leading to approaches to teaching and learning that keep learners and their goals at the centre of the curriculum. We conclude that shared understandings of good practice and an underpinning value system, along with creative ways of delivering pre-set outcomes, allow practitioners to resist to some extent the neoliberal discourse whilst meeting the requirements of policy and funding. However, how feasible delivering this alternative curriculum is over the longer term remains to be seen.
TL;DR: In the past half-decade, references to educational policies in media, academic and political circles have become omnipresent as mentioned in this paper, and many advantageous policies, increasing public financial support, chan...
Abstract: Over the past half-decade, references to educational policies in media, academic and political circles have become omnipresent. Many advantageous policies, increasing public financial support, chan...
TL;DR: In this article, the Foucauldian docile body manufactured within the Department for Education's special educational needs and disability code of practice 2014 through employment of a theoretica, was revealed.
Abstract: This article reveals the Foucauldian docile body manufactured within the Department for Education’s special educational needs and disability code of practice 2014 through employment of a theoretica...