ABSTRACT

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.

chapter 1|19 pages

Introduction

Two faces of internationalisation

chapter 2|19 pages

The international turn in education

A short history

chapter 3|18 pages

The global education industry

Selling learning abroad

chapter 4|13 pages

Policy borrowing in international contexts

West knows best

chapter 5|17 pages

Preparing students for a globalised world

Global classroom

chapter 6|19 pages

Travel and the construction of excellence

International schools

chapter 7|12 pages

Refugee education

Permanently excluded

chapter 8|17 pages

Imperial professors and academic tourists

Paid to be white

chapter 9|19 pages

Certification and curriculum in international contexts

Colonialism by degrees

chapter 10|8 pages

Conclusion

The global gaze