1. Devaluing what cannot be counted: Why Commercialisation is problematic for Education Kathleen Lynch, UCD Equality Studies Centre, School of Social Justice www.ucd.ie/esc Kathleen.Lynch@ucd.ie Presentation Clare VEC Adult and Community Education Service Conference on Exploring the Benefits of Non-Formal Learning in Adult Education, November 30 th 2007

2. 2 Why is education for education’s sake being devalued? 1. Growing emphasis on Commercialisation and Privatisation and an underestimation of its medium and long-term implications for public goods such as education Those who are meant to uphold public interest values in Ireland have remained silent or collaborated with the commercialisation project 2. Strong anti-intellectualism in Irish public life so we lack the analytical and conceptual skills to assess the impact of these changes in the public sphere 3. Deep-rooted culture of consensualism in the education field which has not encouraged critical thinking There is a lack of a strong critical educational discourse a) in universities and colleges of education generally ; b) among the education journalists in the media; c) and the churches’ declining moral authority has weakened their voice 4. A Culture of consensualism was exacerbated under social partnership Controlling and Demonising of Dissent from the reigning economic orthodoxies 5. Market-led language has taken hold without a debate – It is redefining educational values by redefining language customers, clients, internal markets, choice, consumers, curriculum delivery, deliverables, work packages, performance indicators, performance managers- only what is measured is counted

3. 3 Understanding Educational Change in the Global Context- growing power of neo-liberal policies (see David Harvey, 2005, A Short History of Neo-Liberalism) Since the early 1990s – power of global capitalist interests have increased massively as they have attempted to reduce costs of state expenditures to capital Reducing expenditure on public services has been core to this project and Limiting the subvention to the development of civil society institutions – especially when critical of the State Rising influence of global commercial stakeholders– e.g. Roundtable of Industrialists in the EU Education is seen as the new target for investors –once privatised – first step is to privatise higher education, further, adult and community education will follow Sections of secondary education are privatised (for-profit grind schools); public private partnerships (PPS) in the building of schools –poor value for money Role of the (WTO) World Trade Organisation and the GATS (General Agreement on Trade and service) is central in moving all of education into marketable and measurable forms EU Services Directive is also pressing the privatisation-for-profit agenda Once services are defined as private they are not entitled to state subsidisation or state management/control – only the profitable sectors will survive ‘Education is the new target for investors once it is privatised’ (see Merrill-Lynch, 1999 The Book of Knowledge)

4. 4 The Neo-liberal model of the citizen guides educational policy Neo-liberal politics offer a market view of membership of society: It is premised on the assumption that the market can replace the State (the people) as the primary producer of cultural logic and cultural value Neo-liberal politics defines the citizen as a ‘consumer’, an economic maximiser, a ‘free chooser’ – It builds on the idealisation of choice in classical liberalism – which prioritises freedom over equality It is fundamentally Hobbesian in character; focus is on creating privatised citizens who care only for themselves A Market Citizen only needs education for market participation – non-market forms of education are trivialised, especially if they are not accredited Cutting back and limiting informal adult and community education that is not market relevant is inevitable within a marketised citizenship framework as Education of those who are not economically productive is not valued And neither is education for forms of work that are not marketable (e.g. for the social economy)

5. 5 How has the market ideology gained control? Neoliberalism has gained legitimacy in popular culture through the metaphor of ‘Choice’ - choice is promoted as a value even for those without choice; the concept of the citizen as ‘free chooser’ completely ignores the well-researched reality that those without resources have no choices about school, education, hospitals or other services It has gained credence by public relations campaigns – ‘spinning’ the truth The discipline of Economics has played a central role in granting it ideological legitimacy– new theologians of neo-liberalism are conservative economists Implications of neo-liberal policies: They create a culture in which individuals are held responsible for failure and success; this discredits collective belonging and solidarity There is a development of ‘the anxious classes’, those who feel there is no security for themselves or their children outside of that achieved by their own efforts. Anxiety is exacerbated through the intensification and glorification of competition– all groups have to compete for funding- time is devoted to ‘the competition’ (tendering for funding) instead of running the service

6. 6 What is Masking the move to commercialisation? Reorganisation of the public sector, including education, is presented as a simple Technical Solution to technical problems to improve ‘efficiencies’ There is an institutionalising of market values by technical processes e.g. the creation of ‘internal markets’ within organisations– focus on what can be measured ‘deliverables’/each NGO competes with the other for funding/ Hidden hand of the market is masquerading as neutral through the discourses of ‘restructuring education’ ‘re-organising the health services and ‘regenerating public housing’ The Operational Focus masks the way public sector services are being commercialized (albeit packaged in the development discourses of ‘centres of excellence’ ‘world class universities’ and modernising education generally) Pragmatic focus hides the growing elision of the differences between public interest values and commercial values in the operation of education

7. 7 What is the challenge to Adult and Community Education from Neo-liberal policies? Commercialisation is presented in a TINA form –(There is no Alternative) Deep-rooted Authoritarianism underlying the project- rule by experts Bodies such as the OECD –operating powerful political and financial influences –are presented as ‘objective’ and ‘independent’ yet they are not Much of adult and community education is not for the market – it is to educate the citizen as a member of civil society, as a whole person (with personal, cultural, social, emotional and care needs) Yet, education for the citizen as a cultural, political or social being or as a private and caring/loving citizen is not valued in a market- led society that equates citizenship with being an economic maximiser and consumer And the outcomes of informal community and adult education are not easily quantified and measured

8. 8 Why Commercialisation is problematic for Equality of Access, Participation and Outcomes in Education Education is a basic human right The State is an in-eliminable agent in matters of justice: only the state can guarantee to individual persons the right to be educated. If the state absolves itself of the responsibility to educate all members of society, rights become more contingent; in a commercial system the right to education will be contingent on the ability to pay. Informal Adult and Community Education often serves the most vulnerable in society – their rights to be educated cannot be contingent on market forces Democratic Accountability must be distinguished from Market Accountability In a democratically accountable system, each individual has an equal right engagement In a market-led system accountability will be contingent on market capacity or resources Access to education at all levels is no longer a matter of choice but an economic necessity

9. 9 Impact of Commercialisation on Teaching and What is Taught Markets are driven by concerns for profit maximisation so commercialisation undermines non-market forms of education, yet : a) education for work and activities that is not marketable is still vital (e.g. for public service, civil society, the arts, carers etc.) b) education of those who will never be major producers in market terms is still necessary – older and isolated people, people who have long-term mental health difficulties, people with intellectual disabilities Critical thought, especially critical discourses and dissent is disabled by commercialisation Disciplines and fields of education that have a strong tradition of critical discourse and debate are not expanding at the same rate as commercially-driven fields of knowledge There is Censorship of Dissent by the removal of funding from groups that are critical of government policies – e.g. Community Workers Co-operative

10. 10 Why Education Matters and why it needs to be publicly controlled 1. People have a right to education – Article 24 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 14 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social And Cultural Rights (ICESCR) 2. Education is indispensable for realising other rights 3. Education has an intrinsic value for the development of the individual – for the exercise of capabilities, choices and freedoms 4. Education has a care function as well as a development function: this cannot be guaranteed in a commercialised system 5. Education enables one to overcome other social disadvantages 6. Education is a Public Good as well as a Personal Good- it enriches cultural, social, political and economic life locally and globally 7. Education credentials play a crucial role in mediating access to other goods, notably employment, culture etc.

11. 11 Why is there a move towards commercialisation in education? To further reduce the cost of education to Capital The share of national wealth going to workers has been declining at a higher rate in Ireland since the early 1990s than in the EU generally; Only the poorer EU Eastern European states compensate employees at an equivalent rate: e.g. Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania The Welfare effort has been declining in Ireland Source European Commission Statistical Annex of European Economy, Autumn 2007 http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/publications/european_economy/200 7/statannex0207_en.pdf - accessed 17th Nov. 2007 http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/publications/european_economy/200 7/statannex0207_en.pdf

12. 12 Distribution of Wealth via Wages (see K. Allen, 2007, Corporate Takeover of Ireland)

13. 13 Are Social Expenditures a way of compensating for inequalities in wealth in Ireland? No Country Total Social Expenditure % on Education % on Health  as a % of GDP as a % of GDP as a % of GDP Sweden 49.47.79.2 France45.75.89.7 Netherlands27.65.19.1 UK26.45.37.7 Slovenia25.36.18.2 Czech Repub.20.24.47.1 Ireland 15.94.37.3 Lithuania14.15.95.7 Social Expenditures have decreased between 1994 (19.7% of GDP) and 2006 (15.9%); Source: Tables, 4.1 and 4,2, Central Statistics Office (CSO) Measuring Ireland’s Progress, 2006. accessed at www.cso.ie/ October 12 th 2007www.cso.ie/

14. 14 Are Social Expenditures a way of Compensating for inequalities in Wealth in Ireland?

15. 15 Rational Economic Actor (REA) Model of the Citizen- citizen valued for performance Competing Rational Economic Actors O = Self interested, Calculating, Competing Economic Actors. X = Competition Between Actors.

16. 16 Tertiary Care Relations: – Relations of Solidarity Solidarity work Secondary Care Relations – generalised care work Primary Care Relations – love labour Care-Full Model of the Citizen: Recognising Relational Realities