The Impact of Globalization on Education

Globalization has changed our world. It has affected many areas of human life, one of those being education. Some believe this is a priceless opportunity for developing countries to raise their skills, while others fear that this will ultimately lead to Western society. This blog will give an overview of globalization's economic, social, and political aspects and its impact on both the P-12 and higher education levels.

The Link Between Economy, Politics, and Education

Globalization is about interconnected people and businesses that eventually lead to global culture, politics, and economic integration. Globalization has unmeasurable effects and consequences on local politics, economics, and educational systems. Rizvi and Lingard (2011) suggested that globalization can destabilize local economies and create increased inequalities between the rich and people living in poverty on both a local and global scale. In much the same way that economies are positively and negatively affected, politics and policies can be too. Rizvi and Lingard may attest to the idea that globalization has led to policy changes that pander to multinational corporations and damage local identities by homogenizing communities. But it was globalization that led to the ‘open-door’ policy being introduced in China during the ’70s, leading to more transparency which has the knock-on effect is creating awareness and international pressure to improve the standard of living for Chinese workers.

Globalization has created an entirely new packet for education to be sold in international schools and a new economic sector to stimulate financial growth in international curriculum development and competition for education placements. International curriculum such as IB was initially created with people’s best interest at heart; they aimed to develop a curriculum that would prepare students from different cultures for the increasing demands of a more interconnected world.

The Role of International Education in the Process of Globalization in Education

In today’s world, globalization is an essential concept for students in higher education to understand and appreciate because of the demand in business and industry to hire people who can work with people of other nations and cultures and, in need, can travel independently internationally to promote their business. Cambridge and Thompson (2004) show that international education is influenced by globalization. They suggest that “not only is international education influenced by globalization but it also facilitates the spread of free-market values.” They go on to suggest that international education has led to, as Dore (1976) states, “a framework for existential, experiential learning whilst providing a framework for global certification of educational achievement, further extending the ‘diploma disease.’”

Cambridge and Thompson (2004) suggest that international education is a complex entity, “the ideological underpinning of international education as currently practiced constitutes the reconciliation of a dilemma between the contrary trends of cooperation through international relations and competition through economic globalization.”

Do global assessments such as PISA measure 21st-century skills?

International assessments have also been affected by globalization. Countries all around the world are increasingly being compared to each other. Hughes and Niyozov (2019) reported that PISA is a narrow assessment, “PISA measures math, science, and reading skills,” rather than holistic educational goals or understanding of literacy as defined by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Multiple-choice questions engage very limited 21st-century skills, and until recently, PISA didn’t include any critical thinking sections within their assessments.

In contrast, Gomes (2016) argues that PISA is undergoing significant changes. “No longer does the test, given every three years to 15-year-olds, ask about math, reading and science. In the latest alteration in 2015, questions covered collaborative problem solving, social skills, and even psychological well-being.” Andreas Schleicher, the director for the Directorate of Education and Skills at the OECD, further states that they look at the important skills for people’s success and make sure this is appropriate for the 80 countries that part in PISA. It is evident that international assessments have changed because of globalization; however, it is not clear whether they are helping to develop 21st-century skills.

The Challenges and Benefits of Internationalism and Globalization in Education

Maringe et al. (2013) stated that some people consider globalization and internationalism as interchangeable ideas. They, however, argue that internationalization is ‘a value creation process, driven by forces of globalization, through which universities seek to create greater global value to their various constituencies.

We have witnessed many Western teachers moving across the globe since English has become the dominant language within the globalization of education. Maringe et al. (2013) pointed out that the movement of people and reasons for this differ in different parts of the world. It was stated, “internationalism strategies in universities worldwide seem to be based on three emergent value-driven models. In western universities, a commercial imperative appears to underpin the internationalization processes and understanding. In Confucian and many Middle East nations, there is a deep-seated cultural imperative at the heart of the internationalization agenda. In poorer universities of the south, a curriculum-value driven process seems to characterize the internationalization priorities of universities there.” The increased movement of people has created several benefits and challenges.

Maringe et al. (2013) found that internationalization “is related to four broad areas of value creation in universities. These are: strategic and symbolic value, knowledge creation, cultural integrational value, and global market value. However, despite the value created, internationalization is also associated with the following unintended challenges: ‘brain drain’, the dominance of western hegemony, the commodification of higher education and the erosion of quality.” It has been shown again that the globalization of education differs in different parts of the world.

The Impact of Internationalism on Higher Education

Huang (2007) reported that “the internationalism of higher education has been affected by more diverse driving forces than previously and has combined worldwide trends with China and Japan’s domestic socio-economic backgrounds.”

The answer is two-fold. Huang (2007) found that internationalism did change the education systems in these two countries but not significantly. The reason internationalism did not have a dramatic effect on China and Japan’s education systems is because of their complex cultures and complicated political landscapes. However, they did keep the parts that worked for them and expelled the parts that didn’t. Huang (2007) looked at educational programs’ import/export ratio and found that Japan favored import over export.

On the other hand, when he looked at the import/export ratio of students, he found that more students got higher education in Western countries than the number of international students allowed to study within their borders.

Conclusion

Globalization isn’t a passing phenomenon; it is here to stay. The effect of it, however, differs in different countries. There are always two sides to the concept of globalization: a positive side that highlights its provenance as a force for good; and a negative side that focuses on the associated problems. Globalization of education must be a necessary part of higher education. From now on, universities and colleges worldwide need to recognize that every student needs to have global skills.

References

Nagahara, M. (2011). Fazal Rizvi and Bob Lingard: Globalizing education policy. Journal of Educational Change, 12(3), 377–383. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-011-9170-1

Cambridge *, J., & Thompson, J. (2004). Internationalism and globalization as contexts for International Education. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 34(2), 161–175. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305792042000213994

Gomes, P. (2018, December 27). ​How PISA Is Changing to Reflect 21st Century Workforce Needs and Skills - EdSurge News. EdSurge. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-04-26-how-pisa-is-changing-to-reflect-21st-century-workforce-needs-and-skills.

Maringe, F., Foskett, N., & Woodfield, S. (2013). Emerging internationalisation models in an uneven global terrain: Findings from a global survey. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 43(1), 9–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2013.746548

Fox, P., & Hundley, S. (2011, August 1). The importance of globalization in Higher Education. IntechOpen. Retrieved December 3, 2021, from https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/17523.

Huang, F. (2007). Internationalisation of higher education in the era of Globalisation. Higher Education Management and Policy, 19(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1787/hemp-v19-art3-en