Recent theoretical developments in multiscalar studies of education policies

Abstract

In a scenario of intensification of globalization, the field of comparative education has been challenged to review its epistemological, theoretical and methodological schemes, particularly for the study of educational policies. This requires taking into account the participation of a multiplicity of state and non-state agencies at different scales (supranational, national, subnational) that constitute and dispute a global agenda of educational policies and reforms. The objective of this work is to discuss a series of recent theoretical developments from the field of comparative and international education that address multiscalar interactions in the formation of educational policies. We seek to identify what conceptual tools are proposed in these approaches and their similarities and differences with respect to the predominant approaches (world culture; international political economy; and variations of contextualist approaches). To do this, we resorted to a review of the literature published in specialized academic journals in the period 2015-2023. Eight articles were analized that, together, propose approaches characterized by adhering to the “mobility turn” in policy analysis, questioning the hierarchical or binary relationship between the global and the national/local, and emphasizing processes of continuous becoming and recontextualization of policies.

Keywords: Theoretical approaches. Globalization. Education policies. Multiscalarity. Policy mobility.