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The Menace of Neoliberal Education Reforms: Where Capitalism, Behaviourism, and Positivism Meet

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Curriculum in International Contexts

Part of the book series: Curriculum Studies Worldwide ((CSWW))

Abstract

In this chapter, Kumar analyzes the ramifications of neoliberalism in various sectors with a particular focus on education. At the economic level, neoliberalism with its emphasis on privatization, free market, and a decreased state funding of public services has resulted in economic and social inequalities among individuals and nations. At the political level, neoliberal policies neutralized the active role of citizens in building participatory democracies and turned them into mere spectators devoid of any agency. At the educational level, neoliberalism introduced the capitalist corporate rationality into education resulting in neoliberal reforms that emphasized standardized testing, corporatization of public education, and scripted curricula. Viewing these reforms as antieducational practices that combine positivistic, behaviouristic, and capitalist notions of education, and that undermine teachers and students’ freedom and creativity, Kumar concludes this chapter with a discussion of three main theoretical concepts to challenge the neoliberal agenda in education, namely, critical pedagogy, autobiography, and meditative inquiry.

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  1. Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, NS, Canada

    Ashwani Kumar

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Kumar, A. (2019). The Menace of Neoliberal Education Reforms: Where Capitalism, Behaviourism, and Positivism Meet. In: Curriculum in International Contexts. Curriculum Studies Worldwide. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01983-9_8

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