Effects of Globalization on Education Systems and Development

Book excerpt: With its comprehensive coverage and quality this provocative book is concerned with the future of developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. By providing in-depth analysis of the economic, social and educational challenges of emerging states it offers an alternative roadmap to development. The authors in this collection substantiate the notion that emerging states often do not participate in policy choices related to their development when faced with universalization of curriculum and internationalization of education. The authors make explicit the direct and indirect effects of globalization on educational systems, social equity, and the path of development. In demonstrating the impact of neoliberalism or market-based reforms on the developing world, the authors show that education without human rights is vulnerable to negative forces of globalization and internationalization. The message of the book is quite pessimistic about possibilities to widen the economic space or increase freedom, unless development cooperation is made possible by “Helping People Help Themselves” as suggested by David Ellerman. The authors note that in the past, the issue of emerging states as an appendage to the world economy was a fundamental question related to colonialism, but now has become a question of imperialism which needs to be examined when considering the current patterns of development.