The authors consider how globalisation has fundamentally reshaped education. The assumption that in a knowledge economy workers need to be better educated has led to the belief that education is a private good. What the authors define as "responsibilisation" frames a radically different vision of public life from that of the past. The pressures of globalisation, privatisation, and changes in communications technology have led to educational reforms consistent with the neoliberal suggestion that all individuals can succeed; if they do not, then it is their failure rather than that of the state. The authors suggest that ideas such as "grit" and a culture of assessment are by-products of globalisation and responsibilisation, and argue that the educator's role is to engage in an analysis of the overall cultural politics that defines the era and proffer ways for social engagement aimed at the elimination of injustice and the promotion of democracy.