The privatization of education : a political economy of global education reform / Antoni Verger, Clara Fontdevila, and Adrian Zancajo.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Verger, Antoni, 1975- author.

Fontdevila, Clara, author.

Zancajo, Adrian, author.

Series:

International perspectives on education reform

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Privatization in education--Cross-cultural studies.

Privatization in education.

School choice--Cross-cultural studies.

School choice.

Education--Finance--Cross-cultural studies.

Education.

Education--Economic aspects--Cross-cultural studies.

Education--Economic aspects.

Education--Finance.

Education and state--Cross-cultural studies.

Education and state.

Educational change--Cross-cultural studies.

Educational change.

Genre:

Cross-cultural studies.

Physical Description:

xii, 244 pages ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Teachers College Press, [2016]

Summary:

Education privatization is a global phenomenon that crystallizes in countries with very different cultural, political, and economic backgrounds. In this book, the authors examine how privatization policies are being adopted and why so many countries are engaging in this type of education reform. The authors explore the contexts, key personnel, and policy initiatives that explain the worldwide advance of the private sector in education, and identify six different paths toward education privatization- as a drastic state sector reform (e.g., Chile, the U.K.), as an incremental reform (e.g., the U.S.A.), in social-democratic welfare states, historical public-private partnerships (e.g., Netherlands, Spain), de facto privatization in low-income countries, and privatization via disaster. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I Introduction

1 The Globalization of Education Privatization: An Introduction 3

Inquiring into Education Privatization Processes 4

The Scope and Meaning of Educational Privatization 7

The Systematic Literature Review Approach 10

Book Structure 12

2 The Political Economy of Global Education Reform 15

Global-Local Divide 16

Material-Ideational Divide 20

The Scope and Dynamics of Policy Change 26

Conclusion 31

Part II Paths Toward Privatization

3 Education Privatization as a State Reform: The Ideological Road to Privatization in Chile and the United Kingdom 35

The Neoliberal Influence in Education 36

An Education Privatization Laboratory: The Case of Chile 37

From Thatcherism to New Labour: The Case of the United Kingdom 45

Conclusion 53

4 Education Privatization in Social Democratic Welfare States: The Nordic Path Toward Privatization 55

The Spread of Global Neoliberal Ideas 56

Political Institutions and Party Politics in the Nordic Region 57

New Social Democracy and the Modernization of the Welfare State 64

Conclusion 66

5 Scaling Up Privatization: School Choice Reforms in the United States 69

School Choice Reform Breeding Grounds: Discursive, Institutional, and Legal Contingencies 70

Policy Outcomes: The (Uneven) Advancement of Charter Schools and Voucher Programs 76

Conclusion 86

6 Privatization by Default in Low-In come Countries: The Emergence and Expansion of Low-Fee Private Schools 89

A Growing Demand for LFPSs 90

The Global Promotion of LFPSs 95

Conclusion 102

7 Historical Public-Private Partnerships in Education: The Cases of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Spain 104

The Netherlands: Pillarization and Religious Segregation 105

Belgium: Ups and Downs in a Private School Financing Agreement 109

Spain: The Consolidation of the Private Sector in the Transition to Democracy 112

Conclusion 116

8 Along the Path of Emergency: Privatization by Way of Catastrophe 119

Education Privatization in Catastrophe Settings: Identifying Constant Features 119

Natural Disasters as an Opportunity to Privatize Education 121

Education Reform in Postconflict Contexts 128

Conclusion 132

Part III Actors for and Against Privatization

9 The Emerging Role of Nonstate Actors in the Promotion of Educational Privatization 137

Think Tanks: Producing Pro-Privatization Ideas 138

The Media: Means or Agents in Education Privatization? 140

Policy Entrepreneurs 141

Private Corporations and New Forms of Philanthropy 144

Advocating Privatization: Frequent Strategies of Influence 151

Conclusion 156

10 Resisting Privatization: The Strategies and Influence of Teachers' Unions in Educational Reform 158

Teachers' Unions Participation in Policy Processes: Different Models of Engagement 158

Unions' Strategies and Repertoires of Action 162

Conditions of Influence: Opportunities, Risks, and Threats for Unions 167

Conclusion 175

11 Conclusions: A Cultural Political Economy of Education Privatization 177

The Multiple Trajectories of Education Privatization 177

The Political, Economic, and Cultural Forces Behind Education Privatization 185.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 208-229) and index.

ISBN:

9780807757598

0807757594

OCLC:

941877038