Privatization trends “of” and “in” argentine education

• In Event: The rise of education privatization across the globe: comparative perspectives of global and Latin American trends with emphasis in Argentina and Brazil

Proposal

Privatization in the educational field is not a new phenomenon. However, as part of the conservative wave now underway, it has gained new momentum at both the international and the regional levels. A new educational agenda, which returns to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) proposals, guides various forms of privatization in the field of education.
In Argentina, this agenda is driven by the current government -whose civil servants come mostly from the private sector- and by NGOs and foundations created and sustained, to a large extent, by business groups that seek to influence public policies with the objective of changing the course of education under the premise of achieving quality training for all. These organizations and foundations that bring together "successful entrepreneurs", large industrial, technology and service companies, banks, educational leaders and journalists, are engaging in increasingly expanding political networks with public officials. They seek to orient education towards the market, taking the measures obtained in standardized tests such as PISA as a reference for quality; install these issues in the public agenda, promote market values within the educational system, and expand business opportunities for private companies in the field of education.
The principles of New Public Management, which were already present in the reform of the '90s, are updated with some distinctive features, such as the idea of a professional management of the public sector, the application of business management styles and techniques, the presence of CEOs and officials from the business sector, trained in private institutions, in the management of public programs and projects, and a great emphasis on setting standards and performance measures as a solution to the problems of the educational system.
The educational policies, as well as the alliances with private actors, promote values such as leadership, change and innovation as synonyms for improvement, entrepreneurship, meritocracy, and accountability as measured and are evaluated through standardized tests.


[1] This presentation is based on the results of the research done by CTERA (2018) “Education Privatization in Argentina”.

Author

• Myriam Feldfeber, Universidad de Buenos Aires