Governments, markets, and instruction: considerations for cross-national research

• Published in: Journal of educational administration 2019-07, Vol.57 (4), p.393-410
• Main Authors: Peurach, Donald J, Cohen, David K, Spillane, James P
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Associations; Charter schools; Classrooms; Correlation; Cross Cultural Studies; Cultural Influences; Education; Educational Administration; Educational Change; Educational Environment; Educational Experience; Educational Facilities Improvement; Educational History; Educational Quality; Educational Resources; Elementary Secondary Education; Funding; Government; Government grants; Learning activities; Learning disabilities; Mercantilism; NGOs; No Child Left Behind Act 2001-US; Nongovernmental Organizations; Nonprofit organizations; Political Influences; Portfolio management; Public Agencies; Public Education; Public schools; Quality; Rural Schools; School Administration; School Districts; Secondary schools; Social Values; Special Needs Students; Students; Teaching Methods; Textbooks
• ISSN: 0957-8234; 1758-7395
• DOI: 10.1108/JEA-09-2018-0172

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine relationships among governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations and the organization and management of instruction in US public education, with the aim of raising issues for cross-national research among countries in which the involvement of non-governmental organizations is increasing. Design/methodology/approach The paper is structured in four parts: an historical analysis of the architecture and dynamics of US public education; an analysis of contemporary reform efforts seeking to improve quality and reduce inequities; an analysis of ways that legacy and reform dynamics manifest in two US public school districts; and a discussion of considerations for cross-national research. Findings In US public education, dependence on non-governmental organizations for instructional resources and services is anchored in deeply institutionalized social, political and economic values dating to the country’s founding and that continue to function as constraints on educational reform, such that new solutions always emerge in-and-from the same problematic conditions that they seek to redress. The consequence is that reform takes on an evolutionary (vs transformative) character. Research limitations/implications The US case provides a foundation for framing issues for cross-national research comparing among macro-level educational infrastructures, patterns of instructional organization and classroom instruction. Originality/value Such research would move beyond reductionist approaches to cross-national research toward new approaches that examine how histories, legacy architectures, contemporary reforms and patterns of instructional organization and management interact to shape students’ day-to-day lives in classrooms.