Introduction: Education and the Global/Local Construction of the Universal, Modern, and Globalized Child, School, and Nation

Abstract

Educational discourses currently favored by governments across the globe focus attention on notions of accountability, standards, and best practices. These concepts, and the policies that promote them, are based on a common assumption—the assumption that it is possible to establish formulae through which to uniformly and objectively judge and assess all students. In the United States, the principles of standardization, accountability, and best practices are manifested in government policy such as No Child Left Behind directed at elementary education and beyond, and Good Start/Grow Smart directed at Head Start programs. Reforms and discourses that seem remarkably similar are evident in education initiatives appearing in various contexts, including the United Kingdom’s Education Act 2002 and Taiwan’s voucher program (both discussed in this volume). The similarity of educational discourses reflects common understandings of childhood and education. These include the concepts that (1) the child is knowable through scientific, objective study, (2) the knowledges derived through scientific study are universally applicable to all children, (3) educational practices can be derived from these knowledges and applied unilaterally to all children, and (4) that societal issues and problems can be addressed through educational processes designed to enhance individual development and learning.