EXC 2055 /1: Negotiating the future of education: The UNESCO’s Futures of Education-initiative and the OECD’s Future of Education and Skills 2030-initiative

The liberal script ascribes education a pivotal role in forming modern individuals and a liberal society. Education is often seen as an area where and a means through which challenges to the liberal script ought to be met. At the same time, contestations to the liberal script can manifest themselves in the field of education.

In this project, we analyse how visions of the future of liberal education are negotiated and contested, looking at how narratives about the future of education are constructed by UNESCO and OECD in two currently running projects, Futures of education (UNESCO) and Future of education and skills 2030 (OECD). Traditionally, UNESCO and OECD stand for quite different approaches to the field of education, which makes it interesting to compare the narratives concerning education’s role and future in (liberal) society produced by these two IOs. Our main focus is on understanding the micropolitical “backstage” processes involved in constructing these narratives. We are particularly interested in whether and how formerly marginalized voices and groups are integrated in the process and whether and in which ways these challenge reigning “orthodoxies” in the liberal education script.