Power_2013_neoliberalism.pdf (1.02 MB)
Neoliberal capitalism and education in Ireland
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posted on 2014-01-23, 11:31 authored by Martin J. Power, Micheal O'Flynn, Aline Courtois, Margaret KennedyIn this paper we examine the impact that the ideological /
political / class project of neoliberalism has had on
education in Ireland. We discuss the effect of neoliberal
policies on Ireland and Irish society in order to provide a
context for what follows. We then examine the Primary
and Secondary sectors of the Irish education system –
with particular reference to elite fee paying schools -
critiquing the marketisation of education and the
emergence of an ideology of ‘consumer choice’. We
argue that this ideology serves those that can afford
desirable ‘choices’, and that the resultant inequality in
educational achievement is ‘justified’ through an
ideology of meritocracy / personal responsibility. Finally,
we examine how neoliberalism has impacted on Higher
education in Ireland. Following O’ Connor (2013) we
ultimately argue that it has resulted in a downgrading of
services, attacks on the idea of public education as a
right, and the pushing of the neoliberal model in its stead,
all of which serve to legitimise and promote a rigid
instrumental understanding of what education is for (Bok,
2003 cited in O’ Connor 2013, p.17).
History
Publication
University of Limerick Department of Sociology Working Paper Series;WP2013-03Publisher
Department of Sociology, University of LimerickNote
non-peer-reviewedLanguage
EnglishExternal identifier
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