The impact of nation states in OECD knowledge development

• In Event: Roundtable Session (Wednesday IV)
  In Refereed Round-Table Session: Knowledge collaboration and global governance

Proposal

The impact of international education policy on national education policy has recently attracted a great deal of attention in education research. Studies have addressed questions concerning how international bodies, such as the OECD (Blossing, Imsen, & Moos, 2014; Lundahl & Waldow, 2009), the EU (Lawn, 2011; Ozga et al., 2011), and league leading countries (Steiner-Khamsi, 2014) influence and define national policies. In the majority of the literature, national developments towards stronger performativity orientation are interpreted as consequences of international influence. International influences are often considered to be a threat to national characteristics, traditions, autonomy, and/or integrity (Antikainen, 2006; Blossing et al., 2014; Møller & Skedsmo, 2013; Rinne, Kallo, & Hokka, 2004; Telhaug, Media˚s, & Aasen, 2006). Several studies have investigated how international policies are translated into variations of national policies depending on national historic heritage, culture, traditions, and constitutional mindsets (Hopmann, 2008; Karseth & Sivesind, 2010; Pettersson, Prøitz, & Forsberg 2017). However, there seem to be fewer studies addressing questions of how national education policies are reflected in international policies, and whether and how national policies contribute to the shaping of the international education policy agenda. Based on this, the focal point of this study is on knowledge development in international settings with the OECD as an example. The study highlights the issue of what knowledge is brought to the fore and what is set aside (Saarinen, 2006). Who brings valued knowledge to the table, how do they do so, and with what outcomes?

The study employs key concepts that emphasize a sequential perspective on policy development. The approach supplements the traditional concepts of bottom-up and top-down perspectives, which are well-known to inform analysis of policy development processes, by the use of the key concepts of uploading and downloading (Börzel & Panke, 2013; Prøitz 2015).

Methods employed include document studies and expert interviews. Qualitative expert interviews were the point of departure of the study, starting with country counsellors, members of the secretariat, and national representatives. Sampling of key informants was based on a snowballing strategy (Kvale & Brinkmann, 2009). The interviews were semi structured with a series of questions related to how country informants work within the OECD as well as the characteristics of the informants’ collaborative networks.

Outcomes of the study included in-depth analysis of processes of knowledge development practices among actors involved in OECD activities, focusing on the impact of nation states. Preliminary analysis of the interview material indicates that there are various elements linked to the member countries that form OECD knowledge development, such as certain characteristics and engagement of the individual country representatives, the prioritization of OECD matters in the member country at various times and with various governments, and the member country’s positioning within the larger international organization arena.

Author

• Tine Sophie Prøitz, University of South Eastern Norway