ABSTRACT
In the past two decades, education has emerged as a global policy concern, similar to other such concerns like peace, environmental conservation, climate change, financial stability, drugs, and human trafficking. Rationales have varied, from universalizing human rights, facilitating international understanding, and achieving a more balanced global social development (i.e., reducing North/South asymmetries) to improving education quality and fostering economic growth and cost reduction. This chapter draws on theories of globalization, governance, and global participatory and deliberative democracy. To compare and contrast the mission of three complex organizations as governance regimes, the chapter focuses on their origin and mission, governance and funding, and policy orientation. The origin of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) dates back to the year 1958 when a small group of researchers met at the UNESCO Institute for Education in Hamburg, Germany. Unique among organizations of international governance, UNESCO's governance is based on the 'one country, one vote' principle.
