ERIC Number: EJ1180474
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2202-493X
EISSN: N/A
Reading the "International" through Postcolonial Theory: A Case Study of the Adoption of the International Baccalaureate at a School in Lebanon
Azzi, Iman
International Education Journal: Comparative Perspectives, v17 n1 p51-65 2018
Considerable debate has revolved around the question of what constitutes an international school, focusing on attributes such as number of nations represented by the student body, stated curricular goals, and school culture or mission. Less attention has been paid to how "international" is lived within these schools. This article explores the notion of the "international" at an international school in Lebanon that has recently been authorized as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School. Joining the IB World Schools network comes with many benefits for a school, such as stronger name recognition from parents and universities and access to a global community of educators that promote lifelong learning through international education. It also signals a school's willingness to conform to the IB's concept of, and discourse around, the "international". This article is interested in the possibilities presented by postcolonial theory as an alternative to approaches to international education that presents the nation state as the natural unit of study. Qualitative data collected from the case study school highlights how understandings of the "international" have been shaped by the adoption of the IB, focusing on the central role that methodological nationalism plays within the IB's understanding of the "international". The data supports earlier findings that the IB's approach to international education reinforces the dominance of the nation state as the central unit of study. Further, it shows evidence that not all states are being presented equally and that a continued reliance on national perspectives risks promoting a hegemonic class of states, through formal instruction, which focuses on certain nations more than others. Findings suggests that postcolonial theory could offer an important corrective seeking to rebalance the way the "international" is understood and promoted within the IB.
Descriptors: Case Studies, Advanced Placement Programs, Qualitative Research, Foreign Countries, International Schools, Institutional Characteristics, Networks, Group Membership, International Education, Units of Study, Teaching Methods, Nationalism, School Culture, High School Students
Australian and New Zealand Comparative and International Education Society. ANZCIES Secretariat, Curtin University, Box U1987, Perth, WA Australia. Tel: +61-8-9266-7106; Fax: +61-8-9266-3222; e-mail: editor@iejcomparative.org; Web site: https://openjournals.library.sydney.edu.au/index.php/IEJ/index
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education; High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Lebanon
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A