An Analytical Understanding of How External Sources Inform and Impact Upon Somaliland’s National Education and Teacher Education Policy Making Processes A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Hassan Suleiman Ahmed School of Sport and Education Brunel University August 2009 1 Abstract This thesis investigates how external sources inform and impact Somaliland‟s national teacher education policy making processes. In this research, external factor is mainly constituted by INGOs that are helping Somaliland‟s education and teacher education re- construction which are considered to be part of wider global-national interactions. The conceptual frameworks of policy making processes, policy transfer, lesson drawing and policy learning are used to develop the theoretical perspectives that inform the research question. Constructivist‟s qualitative research approach which utilises critical discourse analysis as the principle methodology has been used to gain an understanding of the discursive construction of meaning about Somaliland‟s education reforms and analyse the discourses of teacher education and teacher professionalism that are evident in three contemporary education reform policy documents and interview data. This thesis considered policy making processes as a contested, dynamic and multidimensional phenomena and has acknowledged the centrality of power and resources in policy making processes. The analysis of the research data constructed Somaliland‟s education reforms as a discourse of human capital. This had implications for the strategies for managing change, quality and improvement perception, and reconceptualisations of teacher education and teacher professionalism. The thesis concludes with concerns about the contextual visibility to implement the new discourses of education and teacher education and calls for increased policy learning, capacity building, resource increase and modernisation of institutions as well as change of the culture of work. Keywords: policy making processes; policy transfer; lesson drawing; policy learning; globalisation of education policies; education reform, teacher education, teacher professionalism. 2 Table of Contents Abstract 2 Table of contents 3-6 Appendices 7 List of diagrams and tables 8 Abbreviations 9 Acknowledgements 10 1.0: CHAPTER: INTRODUCTION 11 1.2: The purpose of this study 12 1.2.1: Objectives of the thesis 12 1.3: Internationalisation of teacher education policies and practices 13 1.4: Educational policy and educational research 15 1.5: Background of the study 15 1.6: Research question 16 1.7: Definitions and understandings of the key words and concepts used 17 1.8: Methodology and methods 19 1.9: Organisations of the thesis 19 1.9.1: Summary 21 2.0: CHAPTER TWO: THE STUDY CONTEXT (SOMALILAND) 22 2.1: Introduction 22 2.1.2: Geographical location 22 2.1.3: Population 23 2.1.4: Culture and Religion 23 2.1.5: Economy 24 2.1.6: Politics 27 2.2: Historical events that shaped education in Somaliland 27 2.3.0: The window of opportunity 33 2.4.0: Somaliland education reforms 34 2.4.1: Beginning of the reform processes 35 2.5.0: The current education system 36 2.5.1: The management of education 37 2.6.0: The language of curriculum instruction 39 2.7.0: Teacher education 40 2.7.1: Teacher education reforms 43 2.8.0: The visible role of the INGOs 46 2.9.0: Teacher training institutions and their location 47 2.9:1: Amoud University 47 2.9.2: Burao University 49 2.9.3: Hargeisa University 49 2.9.4: Gollis University 50 2.9.5: Summary of the chapter 50 3.0: CHAPTER THREE: LITERATURE REVIEW 51 3.0: introduction 51 3.1: Section one: Process of education policy development 51 3 3.1.1: The nature of education policy making Process 54 3.1.2: Critical decision making 57 3.1.3: The concepts of habitus and social fields 60 3.1.4: Policies, policy networks/communities and power relationships 61 3.1.5: Power relationship in social practices 62 3.1.6: Summary 64 3.2: Section 2: Process of lesson drawing and policy transfer 65 3.2.1: The origin and processes of policy transfer 67 3.2.2: State policy transfer agencies 71 3.2.3: International agencies 73 3.2.4: None state- transfer agencies (NGOS and social movements 74 3.2.5: Globalising education policy 75 3.2.6: Higher education institutions as agents of globalisation 85 3.2.7: Diaspora communities as agents of globalisation 87 3.2.8: Summary 89 3.3: Section 3: Impacts of globalising educational policies 89 3.3.1: The re-professionalisation point 92 3.3.2: The de-professionalisation point 93 3.3.3: Re-conceptualising teacher education for a global future 96 3.3.4: Chapter summary 102 4.0: CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 105 4.0: Methodology: Researching national policymaking process and policy transfer, in the field of teacher education 105 4.1: Introduction 105 4.2: Research questions 107 4.3: The nature of the policy making process, and the role of research 107 4.4: Educational research and educational policy 112 4:4.1: The engineering model 115 4.4.2: The enlightenment model 118 4.5: My methodological stance: Constructionist position 119 4.5.1: Summary of the advantages of the constructionist research approach 126 4.5.2: But why is qualitative constructionist research ignored by most governments127 4.5.3: How can the question of quality criteria be addressed in qualitative constructionist research? 129 4.5.4: Summary of the limitations of the enlightenment model 130 4.6: My position in this research 130 4.7: Using critical discourse analyses to analyse policy texts 131 4.8: Researching contemporary teacher education, knowledge and power 139 4.9.0: Research methods of data collection 142 4.9.1: Documentary data using critical discourse analysis 142 4.9.2: Interviews 145 4.9.2.1: Interviews data analysis 147 4.9.3: Ethical issues 148 4.9.3.1: How I addressed the ethical issues in this research 149 4.9.3.2: Chapter summary 151 5.0: CHAPTER FIVE: POLICY TEXT DATA ANALYSIS 152 5.0: Introduction 152 4 5.1.0: Methodological difficulties 154 5.2.0: Introduction of the Somaliland‟s contemporary education policy texts 155 5.3.0: Typology 1:Corrective reforms: presentation of new political and educational ideologies 157 5.3.1: Government legitimating of enterprise oriented educational ideology 163 5.3.2: The rationale for enterprise oriented education in Somaliland context. 164 5.4.0: The promotion of progressive educational ideology 166 5.4.1: Implications for teacher education and teacher professionalism 168 5.5.0: The promotion of the traditionalism educational ideology in policy texts 169 5.5.1: The rationale for this discourse 171 5.5.2: Summary of typology one 172 5.6.0: Typology 2: systematic and structural policy reforms 173 5.6.1: Special role for the private sector 174 5.6.2: Collaboration and partnership practices 175 5.6.3: The decentralisation policy initiative 178 5.6.4: Structural reforms 179 5.6.5: Strengthening the capacity of MOE 180 5.6.6: summary 181 5.7.0: Typology three: The combined impacts of the new discourse of education and the systematic and structural changes on teacher education and teacher professionalism 181 5.8.0: Inter-discursive analysis of the cumulative themes across the three typologies 190 5.9.0: Summary of the chapter 199 CHAPTER SIX: INTERVIEW DATA ANALYSIS 200 6.0: Section one: introduction 200 6.1: Interviewee‟s construction and identification of the discourses 204 6.1.1: Constructing education as a discourse of human capital 204 6.1.1.1: Interviewees‟ perception of what ought to change in education system 208 6.1.1.2: International influences 213 6.1.1.3: Summary 214 6.1.2: The discourse of managing change 215 6.1.2.1: Summary 221 6.1.3: The discourse of the future desired teacher 221 6.1.3.1: MOE personnel and policy advisers‟ views 223 6.1.3.2: Teacher educators‟ views 224 6.1.3.3: International non-governmental organizations‟ views 227 6.1.3.4: Summary 228 6.1.4: The discourse of situating quality within a management discourse 229 6.1.4.1: Summary 234 6.1.5: The discourse of the external factor in the reforms 235 6.1.5.1: The INGOs as the external factor 236 6.1.5.2: MOE personnel, policy advisers and the external factor 239 6.1.5.3: Teacher educators and the external factor 243 6.1.5.4: Summary 245 6.1.6: The discourse of challenges and barriers in reforms implementation 245 6.1.6.1: Summary 250 6.2: Section two: Inter- discursive analysis of the six themes 251 6.2.1: The discourse of quality and its relationship with other discourses 251 6.2.2: The focus upon the problem 254 6.3: The covert discourses within the interview texts 260 6.4: The role of lesson drawing, policy transfer and policy learning 263 5 6.5: Chapter conclusion 266 7.0.0: CHAPTER SEVEN: DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSSION 269 7.0.0: introduction 269 7.1.0: Key findings 274 7.1.1: New discourses of education 275 7.1.2: Reconstructing teacher education and teacher professionalism under the new discourse of education 278 7.1.3: Process of policy making and policy learning 281 7.2.0: Visibilities of the new policies implementation 287 7.3: Research recommendations 288 7.3.1: Policy making process 288 7.3.4: Communication and coordination 289 7.3.5: Teacher education reforms 289 7.4: Research contributions 290 7.5: Conclusion 292 7.5: Suggestions for further research 294 References 295-311 6 Appendices 312-333 Interview questionnaire schedule for MOE personnel and NGOs representatives Interview questionnaires schedule for faculties of education lecturers Sample interview transcription 1: Ministry of Education personnel (S2) Sample