In this paper, we connect with Martin Thrupp's calls for class-based analysis in education policy by problematising the absence of social class in the refreshed New Zealand curriculum, "Te Mataiaho" (2023). To contextualise this absence, we locate this curriculum policy in a historical perspective and interpret its 'identity turn' as an…

In this article, we show how Ofsted operates as institutional language police, and how the inspectorate's attitudes about language maintain race-class inequalities under a guise of social justice, equality and evidence-based practice. Our research has repeatedly demonstrated how Ofsted reproduces long-standing, deficit-based and colonial logics…

This paper advances Marxist Critical Policy Analysis (MCPA) -- a particular form of Critical Policy Analysis. I contrast it with 'Traditional Policy Analysis' (TPA) and with 'Critical Policy Analysis' (CPA), generally, and, with respect to Education, work by Michael W. Apple, Stephen J. Ball, and wider reformist, postmodern and…

In many countries, the contours of skills formation systems are traced back to early struggles over control of apprenticeship. This paper uses a curriculum lens to examine two distinctive policy moments in the history of formal apprenticeships in South Africa and to trace the legacy imprint of direct and indirect race-based exclusion as well as…

This conceptual study examines the neoliberal knowledge economy as a dimension of globalisation policy within East Asian higher education. In exploring the practice of linguistic instrumentalisation, this inquiry aims to demonstrate the influence of English on the hereditary reproduction of social class. Calling on the theories of Pierre Bourdieu…

Student social class identity development is a relatively unexamined aspect of student identity development throughout adolescents' educational experiences. Negative student social class identity development amongst low-social class adolescent students is increasing along with the growth of dual credit programs. This article will first discuss…

Acknowledging the reproductive function of schools, this paper explores three pivotal periods of Irish second-level education over the past century and considers how these periods were influenced by the political context at that time. The analysis shows that an insular nationalistic period that used schools as a vehicle for social and cultural…

This article analyses contradictions in the Thai engagement with UNESCO discourse by examining how concepts relating to Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship Education have been interpreted in key national policies. Thai education policy discourse signals convergence with certain aspects of the international sustainability…

The goal of this paper is to extend research on parental involvement in education and its relationship to social class and inequalities. We do so by developing a new theoretical framework that helps us to better understand and explain cross-national and cross-cultural differences in how parental involvement in education differs across…

This article is a reflective, research-informed, commentary on educational disadvantage from two lecturers in Education who have spent large proportions of their professional lives working in 'DEIS' school settings before transitioning into teacher education. This reflection intends to problematise the concept of educational disadvantage and will…

In this paper, I argue a new politics of ordinal differentiation and its instruments for governing education aims to make invisible a 'low intensity civil war' against the labouring classes. It does this through the elevation and ubiquity of actuarial and quantitative measures aimed at producing a new form of differentiated belonging: that of…

This article offers a critical discursive analysis of the Israeli Ministry of Education's renewed interest in vocational education. This analysis reveals three discursive practices for promoting vocational education among key participants in the field: the rhetorical transition from 'vocational education' to 'technological education'; the…

The year 2022, one hundred years since the foundation of the State, provides an opportunity to reflect on the development of policy in relation to educational equality over the course of the last century, including promises made and opportunities lost. This article looks back at one hundred years of education policy through an equality lens,…

Understanding inclusive education challenges in India involves acknowledging the complex linguistic, cultural, religious, and caste-based diversity affecting marginalized groups. Ambiguity surrounds implementing the "inclusion" concept, necessitating critical evaluation and adaptation to align with India's unique dynamics. Despite…

Recent headlines describing the national drop in public school enrollment suggest that this is a shocking crisis brought on or worsened by the pandemic. However, Abbie Cohen argues that the current enrollment decline should not be a surprise. The underlying causes have festered for decades. Among these causes is the tension between the different…