Finland has traditionally had a universal early childhood education and care (ECEC) system like the other Nordic countries, but in the last 15 years this system has undergone considerable marketisation and privatisation suggested to enable parental choice of ECEC. Much of the existing research on parental ECEC decisions has been conducted in…

Across Canada, school districts have been confronting a backlash to their equity and social justice initiatives. Critics of public education have been arguing that the solution to these controversies is to increase school choice. Using several examples from the United States, this paper argues that the endgame of these strategies is to undermine…

In the past decade, the trend of "low-fee private schools" (LFPSs) for the poor has increasingly gained attention, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where governmental funding is insufficient to provide education for all. Up to now, research has tended to address this phenomenon in the context of primary and, to some…

This paper investigates and compares the policy trajectories of two halted privatisation reforms -- autonomous private high schools in South Korea (2002-2019) and converted schools in China (1992-2008). The two reforms, ambitiously announced, were put under scrutiny and ultimately halted, when the public discontent about education inequalities was…

In many nations around the globe, including Pakistan, education is losing ground as a public good to become another market-based commodity as the state shrinks its responsibility to schooling. This presents challenges to democratic futures, and particularly for young democratic states such as Pakistan. The government of Pakistan is pouring a…

Purpose: Over the past decades, there has been an intensifying movement to privatize education in Western nations, with equal concern about the quality of education for all. This article adds to a global understanding of school inspections as a governance mechanism to promote educational quality in an entirely open K-12 educational marketplace.…

Privatization of education has expanded dramatically worldwide in the last two decades, and Turkey is no exception. It is seen that the developments affecting the transformation of public services began with the implementation of neoliberal education policies, especially after the 1980s. These policies have led to a significant transformation in…

A provision of India's Right to Education Act requires private schools to enrol 25% of children from 'disadvantaged' and 'economically weaker' backgrounds. Described as a unique public-private partnership, this policy has been widely debated for its promotion of private actors in ensuring equity and access to education. Within this controversial…

This research reflects neoliberal economic policies by demonstrating the privatization of education in Turkey. The increase in the number of students of private schools and private schools in Turkey along with the relationship between public education investments and household income of education have been explained by using the document analysis…

This paper focused on public funding to private providers of compulsory education in the context of globalisations. It analyses the differences and the common points between Brazil and Portugal (from 2014 to 2017) regarding the type of private providers in education, the mechanics and the reasons linked to the public funding to compulsory…

Privatization has grown tremendously in the field of education in India to meet the growing demands for education in society. Privatization of education refers to the transfer of provision of education from the state to private providers with the overall policy goals- (i) Increasing access to and participation in basic education, (ii) Improving…

Global trends inspired by neo-liberal tendencies have influenced developments in the Swedish school system. A flurry of educational reforms over the last decades have rapidly transformed the municipal school arena into a market in which independent, for-profit schools have expanded and school segregation has increased. This article examines…

This study investigates the emergence and supply-demand dynamics of a market for low-fee private schools (LFPS) at the level of early childhood care and education (ECCE) in a slum of Lusaka, Zambia. Based on data collection over 1.5 years, the study reveals that, despite a government policy to support ECCE, over 90% of ECCE centers are private;…

Privatisation of public services education is a key feature of the Global Education Reform Movement (GERM), where policy convictions, ideas, and strategies are integral to the "spreading and mutating" of reforms. While there are important projects that seek to describe and explain major changes to restructuring, ownership and funding,…

Public education is a public good. It provides students with skills to take part in society and the economy. It gives students access to culture and traditions, as well as exposure beyond a narrow personal experience. But public education has broader social purposes and contributions as well. It is the basis for social benefits that are of value…