Suchergebnisse

Examines a shift in World Bank educational policy from an emphasis on the productive purposes of education of the poor to policies aimed at poverty alleviation, and loosened loan policies.

This paper documents a shift in World Bank educational policies targeted at the world's poorest groups. By tracing existing policies and World Bank documents, a shift is discerned away from an emphasis on the productive purposes of education and towards educational policies aimed at maintaining economic, political, social, health and environmental stability. Such a shift reflects the emerging needs of a growing global economy for relatively stable environments. Evidence is cited that indicates a concomitant trend toward loosened loan policies. World Bank actions are viewed within a framework of global economic forces and the need to stabilise the living situations of the world's poorest residents. The linked and contradictory needs of a global market and those who live in dire poverty are examined within this policy framevvork. The article concludes by raising issues concerning long-term consequences of the shift in World Bank educational policy.