Globalization and Education the Modern Thesis

The modern public system instead pushes individuals into educational programs which benefit the larger global community over smaller individual ones. Therefore, "the political implications of education surpass the conditions of an individual to be educated, and constitute a strategic set of decisions that affect society at large -- hence the importance of education as public policy, and the role of the state," (Burbules & Torres 2000). However, funding such massive public systems is a huge challenge for many nations. In many cases, educational budgets are low on the totem poll in terms of other areas of funding concern within the pressure to implement a globalized economy. In this sense, "In the scenario of a rapidly developing market economy, governments have less access to resources; this is impinging on the scale as well as the quality of education," (Menon 2007:31). This paints the picture that going global does tend to place true commitment to education by the wayside.

Additionally, there has been a push to change the nature of education from a general acquisition of knowledge to a tool for training. Globalization is changing the nature of education to prepare for work. According to the research, "At the economic level, because globalization is affecting employment it touches upon one of the primary traditional goals of education, preparation for work," (Burbules & Torres 2000). Thus, vocational education has become a large part of educational institutions in general. This move towards vocational training shows how globalization commercializes education. Therefore, "Instead of education being an enjoyable process of learning, the children are pressured into a pattern of obtaining certificates, higher levels of marks and into choosing subject areas that would give them the best opportunities for the next higher levels of education and their employment," (Menon 2007:31). Vocational training is useful, both on the local and global context. So, its presence as a dominant educational system is received with both positive and negative results. Although it helps train individuals for work, it also takes away much of the individual community knowledge that has been praised for so many years. However, it is clear that "Vocational education nurtures skills that are necessary for agricultural, industrial, commercial and economic development and thus builds a self-reliant nation. In effect, vocational education is the education that is focused on building a self-reliant society," (Oni 2007:33). This shift towards vocational education has both benefits and downfalls in terms of an ever increasingly globalized world.

Lastly, globalization has tainted the institution of education through making it a commercial product to be bought and sold, with great profits to be made. Essentially, through the extended reach associated with globalization, companies and corporations are selling education to the masses. According to research, "This increasing commercialization of the school environment has become remarkably bold and explicit in its intentions (as in the case of Chris Whittle's project, Channel One, discussed previously, which admits quite openly that it offers schools free televisions so as to expose children to a force-fed diet of commercials in their classrooms every day)," (Burbules & Torres 2000). The commercialization of education is the most negative ramification of globalization. However, it is inevitable within this need for profits that it will continue to grow.

References

Burbules, Nicholas C. & Torres, Carlos Alberto. (2000). Globalization and education: an introduction. Globalization and Education: Critical Perspectives. Routledge Press. Retrieved January 28, 2010 from http://faculty.ed.uiuc.edu/burbules/papers/global.html

Epstein, Erwin H. (2010). Globalization of education -- globalization theory, the role of education. Education Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 28, 2010 from http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2010/Globalization-Education.html

Menon, Govind Kumar. (2007). Globalization and education: an overview. Globalization and Education. Walter de Gruyter Publications.

Oni, C.S. (2007). Globalization and its implications for vocational education in Nigeria. Essays in Education. Vol. 21:30-35. Retrieved January 28, 2009 from http://www.usca.edu/essays/vol212007/oni.pdf