断裂还是承接?——芬兰基础教育改革的路径选择及其启示

二战后,芬兰教育系统处于复杂多变的政策改革进程下,经历了战后重建、公平系统组构、新自由主义改革重构三个截然不同的阶段。受到迥异的政治、经济和文化情境影响,各个阶段教育改革显现出阶段式的断裂表征。然而,在传统力量的制衡下,芬兰并未迷失在失控的现代教育改革浪潮中,教育理念和价值得以承继,并形成了独特的改革之路。     

The casualisation of teaching and the subject at risk

The casualisation of teaching in Australian higher education has come to be problematised as a risk to the quality of teaching and learning. However, the potential and location of risk, and therefore what constitutes an appropriate institutional intervention, requires interrogation as universities comply with the various regulations that, on the one hand, legitimise further casualisation in the name of flexibility, and on the other, insist on institutional responsibilities in the performance of quality. Taking a critical approach to risk consciousness, this paper examines the way casualisation is produced through workplace reform and problematised as a danger to the student learning experience through the quality agenda in Australian higher education. By examining the tensions between the discourses of flexibility and quality, the authors argue that casualisation should not simply be understood as a problem with individual teaching expertise that can be overcome through formal training of the individual. The neo-liberal political rationality that seeks to individuate responsibility and locate “risk” in this way masks the broader systemic tensions within the culture of the university which the authors argue have increasingly profound consequences for the quality of university education. Arguing that professional learning and quality enhancement are the product of open collaborative and collegial social practice, the authors conclude that addressing casualisation only in terms of systematic teacher training is a politically expedient response to a highly complex political issue facing Australian universities. Drawing on professional learning literature, the authors argue for a shift in policy and practice within the university to recognise, value and integrate the expertise and potential quality contribution of casual teaching staff at a micro-level with a particular focus on the teaching team.     

Education and the professionalization of nursing: non-collective action and the erosion of labourmarket control

It has been argued earlier in this journal that from the formation of the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) in 1984, until the initiation in 1989 of NHS reform by the third Thatcher administration, nurse education policy development was dominated by a nursing establishment located largely within the UKCC. During this period, in the context of an educational reform, a non-collective professional project emerged which left around 30% of the nursing workforce marooned in an obsolescent occupational group. Drawing on documents from UKCC archives, this paper analyses that professional project in terms of professionalization theory, and argues that by following a non-collective agenda, UKCC eroded nursing's labour market position in relation to the provision of care in the National Health Service (NHS). It is further argued that this eroded labour market position has subsequently been exacerbated by government-led policy developments concerning vocational education and NHS reform, with a consequent weakening of nursing's influence on important aspects of caring work in the health service. Explanations for these aspects of the professional project are proposed relating to the fact that although wide-ranging in terms of the nature and practice of nursing, Project 2000 was positioned and conducted as an educational reform. While education provided the ‘political space’ (i.e. free from the immediate priorities and direct involvement of the NHS) for UKCC to assemble and promote its radical professional project, that project as a consequence was uninformed by cost and workforce planning issues. Late stage engagement between professional aspirations and service needs demonstrated the likelihood of an eroded labour market position for nurses, and high levels of risk for the NHS in terms of the supply of nurses, but by that point UKCC was already committed to the key elements of its original proposals.     

Neo-liberalism and universal state education: the cases of Denmark,Norway and Sweden 1980–2011

This article investigates neo-liberal policy on education in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Traditionally, the edifice of the education system in these Scandinavian countries has been built on egalitarian values, but over the last 20 years they have increasingly adopted market-led reforms of education. The extent of neo-liberal policy varies between the countries. Denmark and Norway have remained more hostile toward such policies, thus protecting the education system from extensive deregulation and privatisation. Conversely, in Sweden a greater credence has been given to market forces, allowing private providers to play a much more significant role in delivering education services. This variation in neo-liberal policy on education in Scandinavia is usually ascribed to the increasing power of the Right. However, this article differs from most other education research in that it argues, on the contrary, that the answer is to be found mainly within the social democratic parties themselves.     

Emancipation,marketisation, and social protection: the female subject within vocational training policy in Canada, 1960–1990

This paper examines Canadian federal and cross-provincial higher education policy from 1960 to 1990, a critical time when provisions for vocational and adult training came under the auspices of governmental concern, justified under both an economic rationale and as a way to address persistent forms of inequality. The problematisation of skill during this period had particular gendered implications, as addressing inequality through education subsidies intersected with the perceived training needs of employers and the market. Employing Nancy Fraser's theory of a ‘triple movement’, the following paper ‘takes stock’ of how the three political forces of social movements, marketisation, and social protection have shaped gendered discourses of education and training, the implications for which are of continued relevance to those trying to understand the education and training within the contemporary neo-liberal state.     

Social partnerships: Practices, paradoxes and prospects of Local Learning networks

This paper discusses the formation, character and contradictions of social partnerships. We report on a specific initiative, the Local Learning and Employment Networks (LLEN) established by the Victorian Government in Australia in 2001, documenting the nature of this initiative and how it is playing out. We draw attention to some of the tensions that exist between different agencies, including different agencies within government. Through this detailed case study it is possible to identify parallels between LLEN and other social partnership initiatives developing in other parts of the world. This process of situating a specific Australian partnership within the wider trend to social partnerships permits a more contextualised analysis. It shows the way social partnerships are developing as a consequence of education reform shaped by neo-liberal governance and various patterns of compliance and resistance to this political rationality.     

Policy reform: testing times for teacher education in Australia

In Australia as well as elsewhere, initial teacher education has become centre stage to a political agenda that calls for global competitiveness in the knowledge economy. The common problem cited has been declining educational standards linked with the quality of teaching and teacher education. The avalanche of review and policy reform has exposed teacher education to neoliberal demands as well as political and public scrutiny. A policy web of interconnected concerns related to selection, curriculum, professional practice, graduation as well as employment fuels current reforms.     

Disaster preparedness,adaptive politics and lifelong learning: a case of Japan

Preparedness for disaster scenarios is progressively becoming an educational agenda for governments because of diversifying risks and threats worldwide. In disaster-prone Japan, disaster preparedness has been a prioritised national agenda, and preparedness education has been undertaken in both formal schooling and lifelong learning settings. This article examines the politics behind one prevailing policy discourse in the field of disaster preparedness referred to as ‘the four forms of aid’ – ‘kojo [public aid]’, ‘jijo [self-help]’, ‘gojo/kyojo [mutual aid]’. The study looks at the Japanese case, however, the significance is global, given that neo-liberal governments are increasingly having to deal with a range of disaster situations whether floods or terrorism, while implementing austerity measures. Drawing on the theory of the adaptiveness of neo-liberalism, the article sheds light on the hybridity of the current Abe government’s politics: a ‘dominant’ neo-liberal economic approach – public aid and self-help – and a ‘subordinate’ moral conservative agenda – mutual aid. It is argued that the four forms of aid are an effective ‘balancing act’, and that kyojo in particular is a powerful legitimator in the hybrid politics. The article concludes that a lifelong and life-wide preparedness model could be developed in Japan which has taken a social approach to lifelong learning.     

The Disengaged Academic: the Retreat from Citizenship

Citizenship education has developed against the backdrop of civic disengagement. However, as attention has focused on the incorporation of citizenship education into the school curriculum, the responsibilities of citizenship incumbent on the academic community within higher education has been largely overlooked. This paper examines the reasons for the apparent decline of academic citizenship through an analysis of three elements of citizenship. It argues that the erosion of academic self‐governance has led to the decline of political literacy in academic life and that a range of other forces, including under‐funded massification and research audit, have damaged social and moral responsibility and the responsibilities implied by community involvement. It is concluded that adjustments to reward and recognition structures and professorial leadership are vital if the academic is not to become increasingly disengaged from the service role.     

Rethinking the World Bank Agenda for Chinese Higher Education Reform

This article explores the way in which the World Bank has worked effectively with China in higher education. It investigates whether or not the cooperation between the two has changed in line with their changing relationship. More specifically, it discusses whether the World Bank’s China agenda reflects the reform package of socio-institutional neoliberalism which the World Bank has tended to promote worldwide in the era of the Post-Washington Consensus, and how China’s higher education reform has been influenced by the agenda. The article argues that as China is transferring its role from that of a recipient country to that of a donor country, it is increasingly important to position itself as a global player. Other than mastering the game rules of the international community, China should also expand its influence within and through these major international organizations.     

Education,the Free Market and Post‐Communist Reconstruction

This paper offers a number of comparative observations on economic restructuring and education reform in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It will be argued that there are powerful social and political forces which are making free market’ educational reforms, such as those being pursued in Britain, an increasingly attractive model of educational development in the CIS and Eastern Europe. It will be suggested that such a basis for reform not only leaves the tension between political and economic change unresolved, but threatens to undermine the process of post‐communist reconstruction.     

Negotiating for change: women’s movements and education reform in Taiwan

The dramatic changes during the past 20 years in Taiwan offer a good example of how gender policy in education is facilitated by a combination of interrelated economic, political and social forces. Taiwan’s policy on gender education emerged from the interaction of state, education, academic and non‐academic feminist positions in reforms. This paper demonstrates – first, the importance of the socio‐political contexts in which reform was proposed, and second, the actions of feminists in making best use of the opportunities thrown up by a confluence of social factors. The social, economic and political transformations of the 1980s saw the rise of a ‘new’ state both supposedly and in reality more responsive to the needs of non‐profit organisations. In testing out relationships of partnership with the state, feminist activists saw the deregulation of education as an opportunity to get women’s issues on the agenda. These reforms were catalysed by a series of social events bringing together supporters in a mood of celebration, protest or mourning specifically in response to particular events. The struggles, contentions, and negotiations that underlay the eventual approval of gender reform in education are illustrated.     

新媒体视域下高职艺术类学生课程思政教学创新

新媒体时代的到来,改变了青少年的阅读方式和学习方式。“碎片化”“图片化”“故事性”逐渐成为青少年人喜闻乐见的学习方式和内容,当代青少年不再满足于“纯理论、纯文字性”的理论学习,高职艺术类学生大多对于传统的“说教式”思政话题不感兴趣。通过半结构访谈法、问卷调查法来了解高职艺术类学生在新媒体视域下的思政教学需求,结果表明,可借助新媒体的优势,加强与新媒体的融合,积极探索专业与思政教育相融合,改革创新思政教学方法,从而提升高职院校课程思政教育的实效。     

The Future of the University: Reflections from New Zealand

Over the past two decades, references to "crises" in tertiary education – and in universities in particular – have appeared with increasing frequency in popular and academic texts. Some commentators have concentrated on shortfalls in funding and the exploitation of staff; others have focused on the "moral collapse" of the university, or on issues of curriculum reform and "political correctness" in the classroom. In New Zealand, as in many other countries of the Western World, serious concerns have been raised about the commodification, marketisation and privatisation of education at the university level. This paper provides a concise overview of recent changes in the tertiary sector in New Zealand, and considers possible futures for higher education in the 21st century. Special attention is paid to three themes: the emergence of the "perpetual chooser"; potential changes in conditions of work for academics; and the reconfiguration of academic priorities in the age of the market. The prospects for resistance against elements of the marketisation process are briefly assessed.     

英语应用文教学中的问题与对策

随着高校教学改革 ,英语教学方式及教学模式的改革也提到了每个英语教师的日程上。提出本人在英语应用文教学中的一些方式、手段和有关感受来进行探讨。     

通向博士的路径:在精英选拔与规模扩张之间

随着知识社会的出现,博士培养越来越成为制度管理、国家和超国家政策的关注对象。结构化的博士培养被提上欧洲高等教育改革议程,并得到了各个层面的政策支持。本文揭示了这一趋势下博士生规模扩张与精英选拔之间的矛盾,并探讨了通过博士培养模式多样化解决这一矛盾的可能性及其后果。     

Bringing the State Back In: restoring the role of the State in Chinese higher education

In the last few decades, in the wake of three major crises in political faith and the overall instability that followed the end of the Cultural Revolution, the post-Mao Chinese government has sought to improve the lives of its citizens and to restore political legitimacy through rapid economic growth that has focused almost exclusively on GDP. This strong focus has brought about rapid, widespread economic growth to China, and has, by classical market standards, been a success. At the same time, issues of social development and human well-being have received less attention. Before the Hu-Wen leadership's formal accession to power, the Jiang-Zhu administration sought to adopt neo-liberal ideas and practices to reform the delivery of social services and the implementation and funding of social policy. In this context, major fields of social policy such as health, education, and housing have been going through the processes of marketisation and privatisation, which have placed much of the financial burden of meeting these social welfare needs on China's citizens. After several decades of privatisation and marketisation in the educational system, the Chinese government has been the subject of repeated criticism for failing to tackle what is popularly known as the ‘new three mountains phenomenon’, namely, the rising cost of health, education, and housing in recent years. Against the wider policy context described above, this article examines the social and political consequences of the privatisation and marketisation of education. It also discusses the major policies and strategies recently adopted by the Chinese government to restore the role of the State in the education system in order to address the negative consequences of the privatisation of education. Finally, it critically examines the main implications of major reforms undertaken in higher education in Mainland China.     

Subtle discourses on equality in the Finnish curricula of upper secondary education: reflections of the imagined society

Assurance of citizens’ social rights and minimization of social differences have been central tenets that have framed the educational policy of Finland and the other Nordic welfare states. Equality has been on the official agenda in educational politics and policies since the comprehensive school reforms of the 1960s and 1970s. However, the conceptualization of equality has fluctuated, reflecting the political climate in which the policy statements have been created. In this article, we analyse Finnish curricular documents concerning upper secondary education from the 1970s to the 2010s in order to find out how the aims of educational equality are presented. Drawing on different conceptualizations of equality and social justice, as well as feminist theorizations of intersectionality, we scrutinize how gendered, classed and ethnised patterns are emphasized, challenged or muted in documents. Through the longitudinal data of this study it is possible to analyse the growing impact of this neo-liberal educational restructuring into Finland, which has a reputation for equal education and excellent records in the Programme for International Student Assessment tests. Hence, we ask how the Finnish society as an imagined community is reflected in the documents of different decades.     

‘Quality revolution’ in post-Soviet education in Russia: from control to assurance?

Employing the analytical framework of a discourse-driven social change, this paper unpacks the neoliberal concept of ‘educational quality’ in the course of Russian education modernisation reform from 1991 to 2013. Since the early 1990s, the global neoliberal discourse has served as the backbone for post-Soviet educational ideology. Alongside other major reform initiatives, the ‘quality revolution,’ proclaimed by the Russian Government in the early 1990s, signified a rhetoric shift away from the Soviet-era quality control towards a neoliberal quality assurance paradigm. Through fine-grained textual analysis of policy documents and political statements by key educational stakeholders, the analysis unpacks the discursive underbelly of the new quality paradigm, in an attempt to determine whether a paradigmatic transformation has taken place. The paper argues that despite the nominally proclaimed shift towards a quality assurance model of educational governance, the representation of educational stakeholders and responsibilities within the new quality paradigm continues to correspond to the Soviet-era command-and-control authoritarian model. The study challenges the popular claim of a neoliberal turn in Russian education and suggests that a neoconservative authoritarian approach to education governance has been smuggled in under the disguise of ‘quality assurance.’     

The State,Privatisation and Educational Policy: A critique of neo-liberalism in Latin America and some ethical and political implications

This article discusses external assistance and aid in Latin America in neo-liberal times. A central component of external assistance in educational policy is the proposal for an ethos and model of privatisation in the context of a neo-liberal state though with a prominent role played by neo-liberal international organisations. The drastic changes from a liberal state to a neo-liberal state are analysed theoretically. Some of the key dilemmas and tensions of external aid are also analysed, touching on the roles of the World Bank and the key elements of its lending processes, particularly its research policies. The paper addresses in its last section key ethical and political dilemmas of educational research and planning in Latin America.