INGOs, the global ideology of childhood and educational policy in Nepal
Open Access
- Author:
- Henck, Adrienne Blaine
- Graduate Program:
- Educational Theory and Policy
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- February 26, 2014
- Committee Members:
- David P Baker, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor
David P Baker, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Maryellen Schaub, Committee Member
Katerina Bodovski, Committee Member
Leif Jensen, Committee Member - Keywords:
- childhood
child-friendly schools
INGOs
education policy
quality education
and Nepal - Abstract:
- Over the last century, cultural ideas reflecting an ideal, normative childhood have become a major driving force shaping global policy related to children, particularly within the realm of education for development. A global consensus around these cultural ideas, referred to in this study as the global ideology of childhood, underscores the shared belief that all children are entitled to similar rights, protections, and childhood experiences. As societies around the world strive towards the realization of this ideal, a fundamental question remains: how is the global ideology of childhood reproduced in national contexts as transnational actors, and international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) in particular, develop and implement education practices and policies? Within the context of a global movement that emphasizes the needs and rights of individual children through the provision of quality education for all, this study utilizes a qualitative case study of Nepal’s National Framework of Child-friendly Schools for Quality Education to illustrate how INGOs and other policy actors reproduce and interpret global norms concerning children and childhood. The ultimate goal is to provide a richly descriptive account of how global culture is appropriated in one national context. Accordingly, three research questions ask: 1) how is the global ideology of childhood reflected in the policy?; 2) how do international, national, and local actors understand their roles in the development and implementation of the policy?; and 3) How do these actors envision the sustainability of the child-friendly school model in Nepal, and how might these global ideas be linked to broader social and cultural change? Drawing on interviews with multilevel actors, policy documents, and school observations, the findings provide evidence of the convergence between global and national conceptions of childhood; demonstrate that models of cultural reproduction must allow for the possibility of multi-directional patterns; and reveal the complexity of sustaining global ideas in local contexts while pointing to the rise in importance of the child in modern society. Ultimately, the research highlights how the child-friendly schools policy has created a space for education reform—and the realization of the rights of Nepali children—using language legitimated by a global consensus on childhood.