Education, globalization and sustainable development: Issues related to educational governance in India

After exploring the linkages between education, globalization and sustainable development theoretically, this paper discusses the issues and challenges before Indian policy makers in shaping an adequate governance framework for education sector keeping in mind the dynamics of globalization. Education is a service and without proper governance in this sector, the benefits of education cannot be realized and problems like low quality, less inclusion, wastage of resources and deterioration of moral values, all would continue to exist. As a solution to the problem of low efficiency in government sector, new public management (NPM) has been advocated to be introduced in educational institutes in order to deliver quality education with optimized use of resources. In view of globalization, the international comparative measures of performance have become a global aspect of corporate type governance. The new governance system emphasizes on performance, reconceptualizes education policy in terms of market and this performative policy is closely aligned to ‘audit culture’ with emphasis on efficiency and effectiveness. But how far is this system compatible with the broader role of education in achieving sustainable development in a globalized world? This paper seeks to address this question with special reference to Indian education policies and examine its efficacy in ensuring efficiency without compromising with the grater agenda of achieving sustainable development in the era of globalization.