ON the MORALITY of NEOLIBERAL EDUCATIONAL POLICIES Carlos
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ON THE MORALITY OF NEOLIBERAL EDUCATIONAL POLICIES Carlos Grima A thesis presented in the Faculty of Education at the University of Malta for the degree of PhD June 2020 University of Malta Library – Electronic Thesis & Dissertations (ETD) Repository The copyright of this thesis/dissertation belongs to the author. The author’s rights in respect of this work are as defined by the Copyright Act (Chapter 415) of the Laws of Malta or as modified by any successive legislation. Users may access this full-text thesis/dissertation and can make use of the information contained in accordance with the Copyright Act provided that the author must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the prior permission of the copyright holder. ii Abstract Carlos Grima On the Morality of Neoliberal Education Policies This thesis consists of a philosophical inquiry into the morality of neoliberal education policies. The first section comprises a definition of neoliberalism, both as an instance of political rationality, and as a specific form of governance. This is followed by an identification of the core principles that underpin neoliberalism as a political rationality, in an effort to construct a deep understanding of the priorities it sets and the trade-offs it endorses. Subsequently, I outline the aims of a neoliberal agenda for compulsory education, while claiming that this entails three priorities that I categorise as efficiency, consumer sovereignty, and employability. Once the neoliberal priorities for compulsory education are identified, I move on to classify the array of policies that need to be institutionalised in order to achieve the set aims. I argue that these can be divided into three categories, namely, policies for educational accountability, policies to enable parental choice, and policies for human capital development. In light of this, I engage with the effects of the neoliberalisation of compulsory education on teachers and students, especially in relation to the issues of impoverished education, segregation, inequality of educational provision, and other repercussions. I conclude that, for those who adhere to a conception of justice where individual negative freedom is prioritised over social equality and manifest the readiness to pay the high moral cost of increased inequality, neoliberal policies are the preferable option, despite their disadvantages. At the same time, I sustain that compensatory measures would need to be implemented concurrently to counteract such policies’ tendency to weaken social cohesion. Unless precautionary measures are put in place, neoliberal education policies may potentially become counterproductive and therefore, not only immoral from egalitarian perspectives, which would demand further distributional efforts, but also from a neoliberal standpoint, through their potential hindrance of economic growth. Keywords: Neoliberalism, Hyper-Accountability, Parental Choice, Entrepreneurial Self, Compulsory Education, Education Policy iii Declaration of Authenticity I, the undersigned, declare that this thesis is my original work, and has not been presented in fulfilment of other course requirements at the University of Malta or any other university. Signature _________________________ Date _______________________ iv Word Count 98, 442 (exclusive of references) v Acknowledgements Foremost thanks go to my Principal Supervisor Prof. Kenneth Wain and to my Co-Supervisor Prof. Judith Suissa, for their ongoing support, guidance, insights, and advice. I am grateful to my family and friends for their support throughout my PhD candidature. Without their encouragement, this work would not have been possible. The work disclosed in this publication is partly funded by the Malta Government Scholarship Scheme [MGSS]. vi Dedication To Saint Rita of Cascia vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ III DECLARATION OF AUTHENTICITY .......................................................................... IV WORD COUNT ................................................................................................................... V ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... VI DEDICATION .................................................................................................................. VII CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 1 1.1 Purpose of the Thesis ...................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Significance of the Inquiry ............................................................................................. 1 1.3 Clarifications on Positionality ........................................................................................ 2 1.4 Scope of the Inquiry ...................................................................................................... 10 1.5 Outline of the Thesis ..................................................................................................... 11 CHAPTER TWO: NEOLIBERALISM AS A POLITICAL RATIONALITY ............ 13 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Neoliberalism: A Political Rationality ........................................................................ 14 2.3 Neoliberalism: Neither Modern Liberalism, nor Libertarian nor Classical Liberal. .............................................................................................................................................. 16 2.4 The Principles of Neoliberalism ................................................................................... 21 2.4.1 Equality before the Law ........................................................................................... 21 2.4.2 Individual Negative Freedom .................................................................................. 22 2.4.3 Private Property ....................................................................................................... 24 2.4.4 The Rule of Law ...................................................................................................... 26 2.4.5 Individualism ........................................................................................................... 28 2.4.6 Individual Responsibility ......................................................................................... 30 2.4.7 The Principle of Humanitarian Assistance .............................................................. 32 2.4.8 Market Justice. ......................................................................................................... 34 2.5 Neoliberalism and Alternative Visions of the Good Society. .................................... 38 2.6 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER THREE – NEOLIBERAL GOVERNANCE ............................................... 44 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 44 3.2 Neoliberalism as a Form of Governance ..................................................................... 44 3.3 The Proliferation of Actually Existing Neoliberalisms .............................................. 45 3.4 The Anti-Neoliberal Movements ................................................................................. 49 3.5 The Flexibility of Neoliberal Governance ................................................................... 52 3.6 The Capacity of Neoliberalism to Coexist with other Political Rationalities .......... 55 viii 3.7 The Discernible Overarching Trends of Neoliberal Governance ............................. 59 3.7.1 Depoliticisation ........................................................................................................ 60 3.7.2 Responsibilisation of Individuals ............................................................................. 63 3.7.3 Supply-Side Economics ........................................................................................... 66 3.7.4 The Exploitation of Globalisation ............................................................................ 68 3.7.5 An Active Government ............................................................................................ 70 3.7.6 The Discernible Overarching Trends of Neoliberal Governance ............................ 71 3.8 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 72 CHAPTER FOUR: THE AIMS OF THE NEOLIBERAL AGENDA FOR COMPULSORY EDUCATION ........................................................................................ 75 4.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 75 4.2 Neoliberal Justification for State-funded Compulsory Education ........................... 75 4.3 The Neoliberal Aims for Compulsory Education ...................................................... 77 4.4 The Aim of Improving Efficiency and Effectiveness ................................................. 78 4.5 The Aim of Enhancing Customer Sovereignty through