Ei-iE

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Fighting the commercialisation of education

Education is a human right and a public good that can be fully realised only through the provision of free, equitable, inclusive, quality public education. The growing commercialisation and privatisation in and of the sector is the greatest threat to the universal right to education.

Across the world, corporate interests are striving to transform all levels of education, from early childhood to higher education, into yet another market with winners and losers. As private-sector management models are applied to education institutions, employment conditions in the sector are being undermined. As low-fee, low-quality private schools expand rapidly, there is a risk that governments abrogate their responsibility to ensure the right to education for all. Unaccountable corporations have undue influence on education policies and institutions. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this trend which risks transforming education into a commodity, favouring profit over quality education.

As educators, we put students before profit. In 2015 we launched our Global Response to the Commercialisation and Privatisation of Education. Through this campaign, we work to expose and challenge the policies and practices of governments, intergovernmental organisations and international financial institutions which undermine public education and the rights and status of teachers and education support personnel. We also resist global corporate actors, especially education technology providers, who push the commercialisation and privatisation in and of education.

Our work in this area

  1. News 4 August 2017

    India: unions oppose privatisation of schools

    Unions have voiced their strong opposition to the memorandum of understanding between public authorities and private education providers during a public forum against the privatisation of education in Hyderabad, India.

    India: unions oppose privatisation of schools
  2. Worlds of Education 31 July 2017

    Liberia’s Private Experiment in Education

    By Tyler Hook & the University of Wisconsin research team The Ministry of Education (MoE) in Liberia launched the PSL pilot project in 2016, handing over 94 schools to 8 private service providers, enrolling approximately 27,000 students. Modeled after the United States charter and the United Kingdom (UK) academy systems,...

    Liberia’s Private Experiment in Education
  3. News 31 July 2017

    Liberia: civil society rejects privatisation project

    Unions and civil society organisations have warned about the devastating effects of the privatisation of education on both students and teachers during the launch of a new study on Liberia’s PSL project.

    Liberia: civil society rejects privatisation project
  4. Research

    Partnership Schools for Liberia: a critical review

    Tyler Hook
    11 July 2017

    This report reviews and analyses documents related to the Partnership Schools for Liberia (PSL) pilot. The analysis focuses on three key areas: transparency and accountability, students and teachers, and scalability and sustainability.

    Partnership Schools for Liberia: a critical review
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  5. Research

    School vouchers and the privileges of choice

    Tore Bernt Sorensen
    11 July 2017

    Since the 1980s, the debate on school vouchers has been prominent along with the more general efforts to institute market forces, school choice, and privatisation in education sectors in many countries.

    School vouchers and the privileges of choice
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  6. Worlds of Education 6 July 2017

    The issue of data privacy in public education

    By Anna Hogan, Bob Lingard & Greg Thompson Data has become the new black in public education. It is generated by students, schools and systems and collected and analysed by a variety of organisations. While traditionally data has been held by government departments, increasingly we are seeing commercial entities accessing...

    The issue of data privacy in public education
  7. News 4 July 2017

    America’s largest teachers’ union faces down Trump administration over charter schools

    The National Education Association will not meet with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos until she answers simple questions about her commitment to accountability and transparency for charter schools and to protecting America’s most vulnerable students.

    America’s largest teachers’ union faces down Trump administration over charter schools
  8. News 29 June 2017

    Ivory Coast: Weary of privatisation, educators launch inquiry

    The expansion of private for-profit education in the West African country has caught the attention of education unions, leading to research and demands addressed at the government.

    Ivory Coast: Weary of privatisation, educators launch inquiry
  9. News 27 June 2017

    UN resolution lets governments off the hook

    In many ways, the United Nations’ new resolution on the right to education is a positive step forward but unfortunately opts for the development of regulations for private providers instead of urging governments to uphold their responsibilities.

    UN resolution lets governments off the hook
  10. Publications

    Pearson and the neo-liberal global assault on public education

    Alan Singer and Eustace Thompson
    26 June 2017

    Pearson, the British-based mega-publisher, testing company, and Third World edu-entrepreneur, has inordinate influence over education policy around the world, yet it also has serious vulnerabilities. Corporate over-reach generates inefficacies that alienate its customer base and contributed to “blowback” campaigns against the company. This essay explores the Pearson and neo-liberal threats...

    Pearson and the neo-liberal global assault on public education
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  11. 26 June 2017

    Education and Training Policy in the European Semester - Public Investment, Public Policy, Social Dialogue and Privatisation Patterns across Europe

    The European Union has answered to the economic and financial crisis, adopting the Europe 2020 Strategy plan for sustainable, smart economic growth. Education, employment, fighting poverty and social exclusion are at the hearth of the Europe 2020 Strategy and the EU-policy making, coordinated through the European Semester coordination. Since the...

    Education and Training Policy in the European Semester - Public Investment, Public Policy, Social Dialogue and Privatisation Patterns across Europe
  12. Worlds of Education 22 June 2017

    Venture philanthropy & the neoliberal ecosystem: who needs a Ministry of Education?

    By Antonio Olmedo, University of Roehampton Coinciding with this year's World Social Forum in Davos, Oxfam released a report based on Credit Suisse Global Wealth Databook[1] , denouncing that the top 1% richest people have gained more income than the poorest 50% altogether[2] . The tendency seems to be worsening.

    Venture philanthropy & the neoliberal ecosystem: who needs a Ministry of Education?
  13. News 14 June 2017

    Education unionist elected onto ILO’s governing body

    Amanda Brown, the Assistant General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, has been elected onto the Governing Body of the International Labour Organisation as part of the workers’ group.

    Education unionist elected onto ILO’s governing body
  14. Worlds of Education 12 June 2017

    Public education needs public investment, not private profit

    By Howard Stevenson, University of Nottingham  It is nearly nine years since Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in the USA and triggered the banking crisis that has blighted the world economy ever since. The company held over $600 billion in assets and it remains the largest bankruptcy in US history.

    Public education needs public investment, not private profit
  15. Worlds of Education 5 June 2017

    The CETA’s “Investment Court System”: A Supreme Tribunal to Protect the Wealth of Foreign Nationals

    Gus Van Harten

    Imagine if governments proposed a supreme tribunal for the world. The tribunal would have the power to review anything countries can do in their sovereign role. It could review countries’ laws and regulations at any level. It could review the judgments of their highest courts.

    The CETA’s “Investment Court System”: A Supreme Tribunal to Protect the Wealth of Foreign Nationals