Page 13 - Šolsko polje, XXIX, 2018, no. 1-2: The Language of Neoliberal Education, ed. Mitja Sardoč
P. 13
Concealment and Advertising:
Unraveling OECD’s Educational Rhetoric
Vasco d’Agnese
Introduction
In their 2009 article “Neoliberalism: From New Liberal Philosophy to
Anti-Liberal Slogan”, Boas and Gans-Morse write that “Neoliberalism
has rapidly become an academic catchphrase. From only a handful
of mentions in the 1980s, use of the term has exploded during the past
two decades, appearing in nearly 1,000 academic articles annually be-
tween 2002 and 2005.” (Boas and Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 138) Interestingly
enough, when tracing the history of the term, Boas and Gans-Morse note
that when the term first appeared it did not have the negative normative
connotation it has nowadays:
[T]he term neoliberalism was first coined by the Freiberg School of Ger-
man economists to denote a philosophy that was explicitly moderate in
comparison to classical liberalism, both in its rejection of laissez-faire
policies and its emphasis on humanistic values. [...] Only once the term
had migrated to Latin America, and Chilean intellectuals starting using
it to refer to radical economic reforms under the Pinochet dictatorship,
did neoliberalism acquire negative normative connotations and cease to
be used by market proponents. (Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 139)
Therefore, at present, “no one self-identifies as a neoliberal even
though scholars frequently associate others [...] with this term”. (Boas and
Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 140). While Boas and Gans-Morse’s analysis pri-
marily referred to political and economic fields, their claims are also apt to
describe educational studies. Starting in the 1990s, in fact, a large number
11
Unraveling OECD’s Educational Rhetoric
Vasco d’Agnese
Introduction
In their 2009 article “Neoliberalism: From New Liberal Philosophy to
Anti-Liberal Slogan”, Boas and Gans-Morse write that “Neoliberalism
has rapidly become an academic catchphrase. From only a handful
of mentions in the 1980s, use of the term has exploded during the past
two decades, appearing in nearly 1,000 academic articles annually be-
tween 2002 and 2005.” (Boas and Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 138) Interestingly
enough, when tracing the history of the term, Boas and Gans-Morse note
that when the term first appeared it did not have the negative normative
connotation it has nowadays:
[T]he term neoliberalism was first coined by the Freiberg School of Ger-
man economists to denote a philosophy that was explicitly moderate in
comparison to classical liberalism, both in its rejection of laissez-faire
policies and its emphasis on humanistic values. [...] Only once the term
had migrated to Latin America, and Chilean intellectuals starting using
it to refer to radical economic reforms under the Pinochet dictatorship,
did neoliberalism acquire negative normative connotations and cease to
be used by market proponents. (Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 139)
Therefore, at present, “no one self-identifies as a neoliberal even
though scholars frequently associate others [...] with this term”. (Boas and
Gans-Morse, 2009: p. 140). While Boas and Gans-Morse’s analysis pri-
marily referred to political and economic fields, their claims are also apt to
describe educational studies. Starting in the 1990s, in fact, a large number
11
