Highlighted Session: International Organizations and their Conceptions of Educational Future

Group Submission Type: Highlighted Paper Session

Proposal

The concept of future has always been, and perhaps must inevitably be, a feature of educational thinking, even when it is not articulated explicitly. It involves a conception of how education might contribute to the making of futures not only of individuals but also of communities, nations and potentially the world, and planet. In times of rapid and wide-ranging changes, future-thinking potentially becomes more urgent and decisive.

The contemporary context is no different. It is characterized by major historical transformations, including the growing recognition of environmental crises and climate change; the changing forms of governance based on developments in datafication and artificial intelligence; the shifting modes of communication linked to the popular uses of the social media; the changing nature of work and labor relations; the growing awareness of geopolitical shifts; the increasing recognition of expanding social and economic inequalities; the revival of nationalism, populism and anti-globalization sentiments; and the growing levels of distrust in most of our key institutions, including education.

The uncertainty, complexity and volatility of these transformations have led governments around the world to think seriously about how they might consider these demands in reimagining the purposes and governance of education. To support and steer their thinking, numerous international organizations have in recent years carried out a great deal of policy work, focused, either explicitly or implicitly, on conceptions of educational future. International organizations derive their legitimacy partly from what Beckert (2020) calls promissory legitimacy, presenting themselves as being authoritative about the challenges of the future and its possible solutions. In this context, international organizations are developing analytic and policy tools based on futures-thinking to influence educational reforms around the world. At the same time, futures-thinking in education appears to have become a major area of study.

In this symposium, we will consider the work of four international organizations: OECD, UNESCO, the World Bank and ASEAN. We will explore the similarities and differences in the ways in which they conceptualize the idea of the future; how they think about the empirical, analytical, normative, and political challenges in defining it; what computational and discursive technologies they have developed to meet these challenges; and how they consider futures thinking to contribute to reforming educational systems. We will discuss and assess their ideas, in terms of their risks and potential for developing educational systems that are not only efficient and effective but also more just, fair, and democratic.

Sub Unit

• Globalization & Education SIG

Chair

• Jason Beech, Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne

Individual Presentations

• When Janus met Kronus”: Dance of the Guardians Over the Future of Teachers Work - Susan Lee Robertson, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge

• Exploiting and Embracing Uncertainty: UNESCO's Futures of Education Work - Noah W Sobe, Loyola University Chicago

• An analysis of the attempts by ASEAN to cultivate a Southeast Asian identity through higher education policy - Fazal A Rizvi, University of Melbourne

• Between possibilities and probabilities: a comparative analysis of education policy futures in the work of UNESCO and OECD - Robert L Lingard, Australian Catholic University; Jason Beech, Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne

Discussant

• D. Brent Edwards, University of Hawaii