Economization Of Education: Human Capital, Global Corporations, Skills-based Schooling (sociocultural, Political, And Historical Studies In Education)

In this timely, cogent analysis of trends and powerful forces shaping global educational policy today, Joel Spring focuses on how economization is making economic growth and increased productivity the main goals of schools, and the ways these goals are achieved―including measuring educational policies by their costs and economic benefits, shaping family life to ensure productive workers and high-achieving students, introducing entrepreneurship education into curricula from preschool through higher education, and increasing the involvement of economists in educational policy analysis. Close attention is given to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, and multinational corporations, which, as advocates of economization, want schools to focus on teaching hard and soft skills needed by the global labor market. Economization raises questions about the effects of economically driven agendas for schools: Will education policies advocated by global organizations and multinational businesses corporatize and standardize human personalities and families? What type of global worker is being sought by global organizations and multinational corporations? What education programs are supported to educate the ideal global worker? What is the ideal family life for economic growth and development? Detailing and analyzing the politics and motivations driving economization, the book concludes with an assessment of the impacts of the confluence of business interests, economic theories, governments, and educators. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title Page 6 Copyright Page 7 Table of Contents 8 Preface 12 1 Economization and Corporatization of Education 14 Human Capital, Free Markets, and Economization 16 Corporatization of Education and Families 18 A Dystopian Vision of Corporate Control of Schools and Family Life 19 The Rational Choice Paradigm and Economization 20 Rational Choice, Milton Friedman, and Education Vouchers 24 Theodore Schultz: The Economic Value of Education 28 Gary Becker: Human Capital and Economization of the Family 30 Do Educational Investments Reduce Income Inequalities? 33 The Rhetoric of Education Investments and Global Economic Growth 34 The Economization of Life 36 Conclusion: The Economic Value of Education 37 2 OECD: The Economization of Test Scores 43 The Cold War and the OECD’s Economization of Education 45 OECD: The Triumph of Economization of Education 47 European Human Capital: Public Policy, Equal Education, and Protecting Cultural Traditions 48 OECD: Statistics, Global Standardization, and Measurement 50 Education Inflation and the Oversupply of College Graduates 51 OECD: Human Capital and the Economization of Everyday Life 52 Human Capital: Social Service and Cohesion 53 Expanding Human Capital 54 From Manpower Planning to Test Scores 56 Economization of Test Scores 57 PISA and its Contribution to a World Culture of Schooling 60 OECD, PISA, and the Economization of Schools 61 Conclusion 63 3 Skills: The New Global Currency 68 The Skills Wanted by Global Businesses 69 Is a Skills Gap Causing Unemployment and Labor Shortages? 73 Making Skills-Based Instruction Central to the Curriculum: The Case of Poland 75 The World Economic Forum: Teaching Skills and Linking Schools and Businesses 76 World Economic Forum: Entrepreneurship Education 79 OECD and Skills Instruction 80 OECD: Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) 81 The World Bank’s Step Skills Measurement Program: Shaping the Corporate Personality 83 An Example of Educating for Corporate Skills: Common Core State Standards 85 The Skills Gap 87 Conclusion 89 4 World Bank: “Our Dream Is a World Free of Poverty” 95 From Reconstruction to Education for Development 97 Education Loans and Measuring Economic Growth 99 Putting Education to Work for Human Welfare: The McNamara Years: 1968–1981 100 The World Development Reports: Education as an Economic “Asset” in the War on Poverty 104 The Knowledge Bank: Economization of Knowledge 107 The World Bank’s Education Strategy 109 Conclusion: Loaning Money for Education to Grow the Economy, End Poverty, and Bring Developing Nations into the Global Economic System 113 5 The World Economic Forum: Partnerships and Entrepreneurship Education for Global Businesses 118 The Human Capital Report: Another Global Olympiad? 119 Multistakeholder Partnerships: Business and Schools 121 Global Education Initiatives 123 World Economic Forum Partnership with UNESCO 127 World Economic Forum: Business Partnerships and Entrepreneurial Skills 129 Conclusion: Human Capital Index, Global Education Initiatives, Entrepreneurship, and Truthiness 133 6 Economization of the Family and Childhood: Educating the Corporate Personality 139 Economization of the Family: James Coleman and Social Capital 140 Economization of the Family: Gary Becker 142 Heckman and the Economic Benefits of the Perry Preschool 144 Preschool, Soft Skills, and the Corporatization of Personality 147 Preschool for the World: The Cultural Imperialism of Success in the Corporation 150 Conclusion: Shaping the Global Corporate Family and Personality 154 7 The Confluence of Business Interests, Economic Theories, Governments, and Educators: Go to School to Learn Job Skills 159 Index 163 In this timely, cogent analysis of the trends and powerful forces shaping global educational policy today, Joel Spring focuses on how economization is making economic growth and increased productivity the main goals of schools and the ways these goals are achieved, and raises questions about the effects of economically driven agendas for schools.