Neoliberalism In Australia

Introduction

Australia’s education system functions in a highly political context, as does the education systems of most other developed or developing nations throughout the world (Meadmore, 1999). Education is therefore a complex process that is both intertwined with and influenced by the society, culture and community in which it exists (Meadmore, 1999). As a result, it is expected to operate within certain perimeters and deliver specific outcomes (Meadmore, 1999). Consequently, over the last several decades, significant changes have occurred in education, “sometimes by forces well outside education, and all too often, it seems, according to principles that have little to do with education” (Welch, 2010, p.235) itself. The structure and

Over the last several decades, education has undergone significant changes within advanced liberal democracies such as Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada (Meadmore, 1999). Much of this is attributed to the adoption of neoliberal economic policies entrenched in educational systems since the 1990’s (Davies & Bansel, 2007). The rise of neoliberal policies and practices in recent decades have therefore not only set the paradigm for global market liberalism, but influenced the changes of corporate dominance within our society, culture and communities. This has gradually, allowed education systems within western societies, like Australia, to be invaded by the free market, thereby increasing its exposure to competition and accountability through performance goals aligned with neoliberalist principles (Meadmore, 2004; Davies & Bansel, 2007). Consequently, the civil service of education once used to provide knowledge and truth for the ‘public good’, to build moral citizens and develop skilled labourers within society, is now being reshaped as a corporate organisation aiming to produce “services and products like any other, to be traded in the marketplace” (Peters, 1999 as cited in Davies & Bansel, 2007, p. 254). Promoting control and maximising economic prosperity in the global market, through the replacement of public services with that of corporate managerialism (Yeatman, 1993). Although it is suggested that this is beneficial to economic development, it is proving to “promote private interest over the public good” (Ross & Gibson, 2006, p. 17) and as such is creating significant gaps between wealthy successful and poorer, less makeable schools throughout