Singapore's ‘global assemblage’: digging into the culture of education policy making

Abstract

As a meta-concept, ‘globalization’ has the tendency to create master categories such as an emergent global/izing education policy. This paper critiques the thinking and assumptions that underpin a global education policy. The paper proposes that ‘global assemblage’ is a more helpful conceptual thinking about the way education policy works in globalizing circumstances. Conceptually, the notion of an assemblage helps us to re-conceive global forms not as a totalizing external force but as an element that works in combination with other heterogeneous elements in local situations and contexts. Aspects of Singapore's education policy landscape are analyzed as part of Singapore's ‘global assemblage’ to reveal a culture of education policy making that is constituted by heterogeneous elements such as global techniques, situated politics and ethics.

Keywords:

• education policy
• global assemblage
• global education policy
• globalization
• Singapore

Acknowledgement

I thank Jane Kenway for drawing my attention to Aihwa Ong's work on global assemblage and a stimulating discussion prior to the writing of this paper.