Challenging the Internationalisation of Education

Book excerpt: This book presents a searing critique of the global take on education, questioning why the idea that education should be international has come to dominate the field and positing that the discourse of internationalisation has altered the way we conceptualise education. Using diverse examples from the Middle East, the UK and South-East Asia, the book gathers insights from international schooling, refugee education and the internationalisation of higher education to argue that the ‘global gaze’ renders other ways of looking at education as invisible. It suggests that an oversaturation of international comparison amongst individuals and institutions alike creates a culture of powerlessness, exclusion and silencing. Furthermore, this volume also debates the issues that are caused when education is required to transcend national boundaries. Ultimately questioning the global education system in its current form, this book will be an important contribution for academics, researchers and students in the fields of higher education, education policy and politics, and education and development more broadly.