Governing Education Policy in a Globalising World

292 Pages·2009·1.19 MB·English

Governing Education Policy in a Globalising World –
The Sphere of Authority of the Pakistani State

Sajid Ali

PhD
The University of Edinburgh
2009
Contents
DECLARATION...................................................................................................................................I
ABBREVIATIONS.............................................................................................................................II
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...............................................................................................................IV
ABSTRACT........................................................................................................................................VI
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................1
1 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE........................................................................................................8
2 GUIDING RESEARCH QUESTIONS.....................................................................................9
2.1 MAJOR.................................................................................................................................9
2.2 SUBSIDIARY.........................................................................................................................9
2.3 THESIS STRUCTURE..............................................................................................................9
CHAPTER 2: CONTEXT – THE STATE OF PAKISTAN AND EDUCATION POLICY........13
1 THE POLITICAL AND IDEOLOGICAL CONTEXT........................................................14
2 THE CONTEXT OF HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES......................................18
3 THE COLONIAL EDUCATION SYSTEM..........................................................................22
4 POST INDEPENDENCE EDUCATION POLICY...............................................................26
5 CHALLENGES IN PLANNING FOR EDUCATION..........................................................31
6 CONCLUSION.........................................................................................................................34
CHAPTER 3: GLOBALISATION AND AUTHORITY IN NATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY
..............................................................................................................................................................37
1 GLOBALISATION..................................................................................................................38
2 DIMENSIONS OF GLOBALISATION.................................................................................42
2.1 ECONOMIC GLOBALISATION...............................................................................................42
2.2 POLITICAL GLOBALISATION...............................................................................................45
2.3 CULTURAL GLOBALISATION...............................................................................................48
2.4 STRATEGIC GLOBALISATION..............................................................................................51
3 CONCLUDING REMARKS CONCERNING GLOBALISATION....................................54
4 PAKISTAN IN A GLOBAL WORLD – THE RELEVANCE OF GLOBALISATION FOR
PAKISTAN.........................................................................................................................................58
5 THE GLOBAL EDUCATION POLICY FIELD...................................................................61
5.1 THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY.............................................................................................63
5.2 THE PURPOSE OF EDUCATION............................................................................................64
5.3 LIFELONG EDUCATION/LEARNING.....................................................................................67
5.4 MEASUREMENT, INDICATORS AND STANDARDISATION......................................................68
5.5 CURRICULUM.....................................................................................................................70
5.6 DECENTRALISATION, DEVOLUTION AND PRIVATISATION...................................................72
5.7 FINANCING OF EDUCATION................................................................................................74
6 EFFECTS OF GLOBALISATION ON NATIONAL SPHERE OF POLICY
AUTHORITY.....................................................................................................................................75
7 NATIONAL CAPITAL AND NATIONAL SPHERE OF AUTHORITY...........................80
8 CONCLUSION.........................................................................................................................81
CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY – UNDERSTANDING POLICY......................83
1 THE RESEARCH PARADIGM.............................................................................................85
2 THEORETICAL RESOURCES.............................................................................................89
3 METHODOLOGICAL RESOURCES...................................................................................94
4 CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS...................................................................................95
5 DATA RESOURCES..............................................................................................................102
5.1 POLICY TEXTS..................................................................................................................102
5.2 INTERVIEWS WITH POLICY ACTORS..................................................................................105
6 DATA ANALYSIS..................................................................................................................108
7 FIELD CHALLENGES AND ETHICAL CONCERNS.....................................................111
8 CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................112
CHAPTER 5: LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE WHITE PAPER.........................................113
1 STYLE.....................................................................................................................................114
1.1 PRELIMINARY PAGES.......................................................................................................114
1.2 CONTENT STRUCTURE......................................................................................................114
1.3 LAYOUT OF THE CONTENT................................................................................................115
1.4 APPENDICES.....................................................................................................................116
1.5 AUTHORSHIP AND OWNERSHIP.........................................................................................118
1.6 APPARENT OPENNESS......................................................................................................119
1.7 ENGLISH LANGUAGE A SLIPPERY ISSUE............................................................................119
1.8 INTENTION.......................................................................................................................120
2 GENRE....................................................................................................................................120
2.1 SOPHISTICATION OF LANGUAGE......................................................................................121
2.2 GRAMMATICAL MOOD.....................................................................................................128
3 ASSUMED READERSHIP....................................................................................................137
3.1 GOVERNMENT BODIES.....................................................................................................143
3.2 INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS...................................................................................143
3.3 RELIGIOUS ELEMENTS......................................................................................................144
3.4 OTHER ASSUMED READERSHIPS.......................................................................................145
3.5 CONCLUDING REMARKS...................................................................................................146
4 SOURCE OF LANGUAGE AUTHORITY..........................................................................147
5 CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................151
CHAPTER-6: DISCURSIVE ANALYSIS OF THE WHITE PAPER........................................152
1 PROCESS OF PRODUCTION OF THE WHITE PAPER................................................153
1.1 POLICY REVIEW TEAM......................................................................................................153
1.2 STAGES OF THE REVIEW PROCESS.....................................................................................159
1.3 THE CONSULTATION PROCESS..........................................................................................164
1.4 BACKGROUND RESEARCH AND WORKING PAPERS............................................................183
1.5 THE CURRENT POLICY REVIEW PROCESS IN RELATION TO THE PAST POLICY REVIEW
PROCESSES.....................................................................................................................................189
2 PRACTICES OF ACTORS DURING CONSULTATIVE PROCESS..............................193
2.1 THE PARTICIPANTS FOR CONSULTATION..........................................................................193
2.2 THE EXPERIENCE OF PARTICIPANTS VIS-À-VIS CONSULTATION FOR POLICY REVIEW........195
2.3 FEEDBACK BY THE PARTICIPANTS IN RESPONSE TO THE WHITE PAPER............................201
3 INTER-TEXTUALITY..........................................................................................................206
3.1 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO VERSIONS OF THE WHITE PAPER.................................206
3.2 THE WHITE PAPER IN RELATION TO NATIONAL CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTS/TEXTS.....210
3.3 WHITE PAPER IN RELATION TO INTERNATIONAL CONTEMPORARY DOCUMENTS..............215
4 CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................221
CHAPTER 7: THE NATIONAL SPHERE OF EDUCATION POLICY AUTHORITY IN
PAKISTAN.......................................................................................................................................222
1 EFFECTS AND MECHANISMS OF GLOBALIZATION VIS-À-VIS NATIONAL
EDUCATION POLICY AND ACCOMPANYING TENSIONS.................................................222
2 TENSIONS DUE TO INTERACTION OF GLOBAL AND NATIONAL EDUCATION
POLICY FIELDS.............................................................................................................................227
2.1 POLICY STYLE AND GENRE...............................................................................................227
2.2 PURSUIT OF GLOBAL POLICY PRESCRIPTIONS...................................................................230
2.3 PUBLIC AND PRIVATE EDUCATION....................................................................................231
2.4 LANGUAGE ISSUE.............................................................................................................234
2.5 IDEOLOGY........................................................................................................................236
3 MANAGEMENT OF TENSIONS BY NATIONAL GOVERNMENT – ‘SOFT’
GOVERNANCE...............................................................................................................................239
3.1 LANGUAGE OF POLICY.....................................................................................................242
3.2 THE PROCESS OF CONSULTATION.....................................................................................245
4 GLOBAL, NATIONAL OR VERNACULAR – DETERMINING THE NATIONAL SOA
OF PAKISTANI GOVERNMENT.................................................................................................248
5 SOA, CDA AND POLICY SOCIOLOGY............................................................................251
6 CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................254
BIBLIOGRAPHY............................................................................................................................256
APPENDIX A: INFORMATION SHEET.....................................................................................271
APPENDIX B: CONSENT FORM.................................................................................................272
APPENDIX C: INTERVIEW GUIDES.........................................................................................273
List of Tables

TABLE 1: FOREIGN ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE TO PAKISTAN ($ MILLION).................................................20
TABLE 2: POLICY SOCIOLOGY VERSUS POLICY SCIENCE........................................................................92
TABLE 3: DETAILS OF INTERVIEWS WITH VARIOUS POLICY ACTORS....................................................105
TABLE 4: ASSUMED READERSHIP OF THE WHITE PAPER AND DISCUSSED ISSUES................................138
TABLE 5: GLOBAL AND NATIONAL SOURCES OF AUTHORITY...............................................................148
TABLE 6: DETAILS OF EDUCATION CONFERENCES AND DISCUSSED THEMES........................................172
TABLE 7: EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION.............................................................................................232

List of Figures
FIGURE 1: CONSTELLATION OF SPHERES OF AUTHORITY AROUND NATION STATE.................................92
FIGURE 2: THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONCEPTION OF DISCOURSE (FROM FAIRCLOUGH, 1992, P. 73)..........98
FIGURE 3: ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK FOR POLICY ANALYSIS (ADAPTED FROM FAIRCLOUGH, 1992, P.
73)...............................................................................................................................................99
FIGURE 4: STAGES OF POLICY REVIEW................................................................................................161
Declaration

I, Sajid Ali, do hereby declare:

1. that the thesis has been composed by me, and
2. that the work is my own, and
3. that the work has not been submitted for any other degree or professional
qualification

______________________
Sajid Ali
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Abbreviations
AEPAM Academy of Education Planning and Management
AJK Azad Jammu Kashmir
AKU-IED Aga Khan University – Institute for Educational Development
AIOU Allama Iqbal Open University
ADB Asian Development Bank
AEDO Assistant Executive District Officer
APEC Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
ARF ASEAN Regional Forum
ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations
CDA Critical Discourse Analysis
CEF Commonwealth Education Fund
DEG Donor Education Group
DFID Department for International Development, UK
EC European Commission
ECE Early Childhood Education
EDO Executive District Officer
EFA Education for All
EIC East India Company
ESR Education Sector Reforms
ESRA Education Sector Reform Assistance
EU European Union
FATA Federally Administered Tribal Areas
FANA Federally Administered Northern Areas
FDI Foreign Direct Investments
FPCCI Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry
G8 Group of Eight
GATS General Agreement on Trade and Services
GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GTZ German Technical Cooperation
HE Higher Education
HEC Higher Education Commission
ICT Information and Communication Technology
IEA International Educational Assessment
ILO International Labour Organisation
IMF International Monetary Fund
INGOs International Non Governmental Organisations
IOs International Organisations
IPEMC Inter Provincial Education Ministers’ Committee
ITA Idara Taleem-o-Agahi
JEA Joint Education Advisor
JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency
KE Knowledge Economy
LEAPS Learning and Educational Achievements in Punjab Schools
MDGs Millennium Development Goals
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MNCs Multinational Corporations
MoE Ministry of Education
MTDF Medium Term Development Framework
NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
NAVTEC National Vocational and Technical Education Commission
NCES National Centre of Educational Statistics, America
NEC National Examination Council
NEMIS National Education Management Information System
NEPR National Education Policy Review
NGOs Non Governmental Organisations
NRB National Reconstruction Bureau
NWFP North West Frontier Province
OAS Organisation of American States
OAU Organisation of African Unity
ODA Official Development Assistance
OECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
OPEC Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
PCE Pakistan Coalition for Education
PIRLS Progress in International Reading Literacy Studies
PISA Programme for International Student Achievement
PPP Public Private Partnership
PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper
SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
SC-UK Save the Children, UK
SDPI Sustainable Development and Policy Institute
SoA Sphere of Authority
SWAP Sector Wide Approach
TIMSS Trends in Mathematics and Science Study
TRCs Teaching Resource Centres
UN United Nations
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
USAID United States Agency for International Development
WTO World Trade Organisation
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Acknowledgements
All praises to Allah who gave me strength to accomplish this great milestone of my
academic journey, I can not thank Him enough.

I would like to acknowledge the excellent support provided by my supervisors
throughout the thesis process. Prof Bob Lingard ensured a great start for my doctoral
studies with stimulating discussions to narrow down my research focus.
Unfortunately, he had to leave to Australia for family reasons. The transfer to Prof
Jenny Ozga was as smooth as one could wish for. She sharpened my focus and
helped me improve methodological and theoretical basis of the research. Her critical
remarks and continuous feedbacks over multiple drafts of thesis were immensely
useful. She really made me work hard to produce nothing less than the best. Dr Gari
Donn continued to provide excellent moral support and encouraging feedbacks on
thesis drafts throughout my research. Teaching opportunities with her on courses on
policy and international education were hugely beneficial for me to develop my
teaching skills further.

The colleagues at Simon Laurie House provided regular pleasant breaks from hectic
work of PhD. Sharing joys and sorrows of PhD process with Margaret, James, Fiona,
Linda, Marian, Erin and many others were a great source of support. Lesley and
Emily provided all possible administrative support whenever I needed, thanks to
both.

Above all I should thank the respondents of my research, who shared careful insights
on the policy review process. Some of them also shared confidential material, which
was very helpful for the arguments of this research. My friends Noman and Shahbaz
provided great support in connecting with interviewees through their contacts. They
also provided critical feedback on my field research work. Other friends in
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