The marketization of education

This chapter explores the process of marketization or 'quasi-marketization'. It describes the notion of choice for individuals within education. The chapter explains the debate surrounding accountability within a market economy. Much has been written about the marketization of Higher Education in England, with the emphasis on student choice of university. The chapter examines market forces within the wider sector of education. This marketization, or rather 'quasi-marketization', of education refers to privatization of the education industry in the process of providing educative services. Economic advantage is the main driving force for the emergence of this style of education. As economic globalization takes hold across the world, there is an increase in economic competition, resulting in instability, high unemployment rates, heavy pressure on public expenditures and a continuous pursuit of competitiveness. Market accountability has sought to make available a range of information by which consumers (parents) could hold English schools accountable.