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Education in Transition: An Empirical Puzzle

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Soft Governance, International Organizations and Education Policy Convergence

Part of the book series: Transformations of the State ((TRST))

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Abstract

In this chapter, Tonia Bieber offers an introduction into the topic of policy convergence in the education sector, laying the foundation for the subsequent chapters. How far have international organizations with their soft governance-based initiatives contributed to recent reforms in education, and is convergence the logical consequence? After explaining the relevance of this topic, Bieber introduces the empirical examples of three international initiatives under study: the Programme for International Student Assessment study in secondary education, the European Bologna processes in higher education, and the European Union’s Copenhagen process in vocational education and training. Subsequently, the central literature pertinent to internationalization, Europeanization, convergence processes, and soft governance is made applicable to education policy-making. The chapter concludes by providing an overview of the book’s structure.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany

    Tonia Bieber (Senior Researcher)

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  1. Tonia Bieber
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Bieber, T. (2016). Education in Transition: An Empirical Puzzle. In: Soft Governance, International Organizations and Education Policy Convergence. Transformations of the State. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47695-1_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-47695-1_1

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-137-47694-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-137-47695-1

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