Unit information: Education Policy in a Global Context in 2022/23

Unit name	Education Policy in a Global Context
Unit code	EDUCM5202
Credit points	20
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director	Professor. Shields
Open unit status	Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	None
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	None
Units you may not take alongside this one
School/department	School of Education
Faculty	Faculty of Social Sciences and Law

Unit Information

The making and analysis of education policy has become more complex in the 21^st Century as a result of political, economic and cultural changes to education. The rise of new levels (global and regional) from which the governing now takes place, the redistribution of the various activities that now constitute ‘education’ (including formal and informal provision), along with the rise of new tools and technologies for governing it, are now reshaping the education sector across the world. This unit examines these changes, and examines the theoretical and methodological approaches to be considered in studying education policy in a global context. We explore the role that critical policy analysis can play in opening up bigger social justice questions regarding the relation between education, power and the societal good.

Aims:

• To consider the changing relationship between education policies and practice and how these are shaped by global economic, political, social and cultural processes.
• To consider different theoretical and methodological approaches to explaining the relationship between global processes and education policy formulation and implementation;
• To consider the social justice implications of changing scales of governing of education; and
• To source a range of academic and other resources through the use of on-line databases and search engines.

Your learning on this unit

By end of unit students will demonstrate:

1. a secure foundational understanding of the relationship between education policies and practices and how these are shaped by economic, political, social and cultural processes at global, regional, national and sub-national levels;
2. engagement in critical reading of global education policies and studies of education policy processes and identify key explanatory concepts including policy networks, policy frames, policy entrepreneurs, competitive comparison and denationalisation
3. independently sourcing, managing and critically engaging with different sources of information on policy, including through the use of digital and web-based tools and search engines;
4. development of a distinctive personal voice in relation to the critical study of education policy; and
5. building and sustaining the development of a coherent and convincing argument regarding the relationship between global processes and players in shaping education policy in oral presentations and a written assignment.

How you will learn

The course will be delivered using a combination of teaching strategies, such as whole group lectures and seminars, case studies, critical analysis of key readings, group discussions and student presentations.

Contact hours

20 hours

How you will be assessed

Formative assessment:

Feedback will be provided via class discussion and group tutorials to each group in preparation for the essay.

Summative assessment:

Essay: 100%

Students will be asked to write a 4,000 word essay that presents an original analysis to answer one a series of questions set by the tutor. Questions will concern applied and and conceptual aspects of education policy and should be answered using a combination of course materials and further indepdent study (ILO,1,2,3,4,5)

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EDUCM5202).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.