Abstract
Over the course of the last few decades, education has increasingly been referred to as a public good in education development and human rights discourse. This concept aims to reaffirm the primary responsibility of the State in ensuring that all children have access to education, in line with the legal frameworks underpinning the right to education. The leading role of the State in educational policies and practices is however increasingly being questioned by the greater involvement of non-state actors in educational policy and provision, as well as by the growing scale of for-profit education at all levels. Moreover, the principle of education as a public good is further challenged by the progressive shift in the locus of decision-making, from a national to a global level. Since systems of governance for the delivery of education are becoming more complex, it is necessary to rethink the principles that should guide such governance.
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Notes
- 1.
United Nations. 2015. Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. New York, United Nations (UN General Assembly Resolution 70/1).
- 2.
The Incheon Declaration Education 2030: Towards inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all was adopted at the World Education Forum held in Incheon (Republic of Korea), 19–22 May 2015.
- 3.
UNESCO. 2015. Education 2030 Incheon Declaration and Framework for Action: Towards Inclusive and Equitable Quality Education and Lifelong Learning for All. Paris, UNESCO.
- 4.
- 5.
Throughout this book, the term “non-state actors” refers to all individuals or organizations that are wholly or partly independent from state governments. These include households, the private sector, civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations, teachers unions and regional, multilateral and international organizations.
- 6.
Target 4.1 of Sustainable Development Goal 4. United Nations. 2015. Transforming our World—The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- 7.
Verger, A., Lubienski, C. and Steiner-Khamsi, G. (Eds.) (2016). “The Emergence and Structuring of the Global Education Industry: Towards an Analytical Framework”. In Verger, Lubienski and Steiner-Khamsi (eds.) The Global Education Industry. World Yearbook of Education 2016. London: Routledge.
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Locatelli, R. (2019). Introduction. In: Reframing Education as a Public and Common Good. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24801-7_1
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