Education Reform in Asia-Pacific (EDUC90780)

This subject assesses the impact of globalisation on the education systems over the past two decades of a number of countries in the Asia-Pacific Region, including China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea. It examines how increasingly interdependent economic systems in the region have driven policy change and education reform. It discusses how policy makers in these countries have responded to changes required in educational outcomes in order to equip their societies for new global conditions, exploring the impact of new approaches and ideologies related to globalisation, and making comparisons across the region.

The subject uses a case study approach. Each week it will introduce students to a particular policy specific to one of these countries, such as the policy of privatisation of higher education in Vietnam, governance policy in South Korea, decentralisation policy in China, language policy in Malaysia, policy driving pedagogic reform in Singapore, policy focusing on creativity and criticality in Japan, education develop policy in Timor Leste, and gender equity policy in Indonesia. Each student will then be required to focus on one of these policies for a detailed investigation.