Post-basic Education and Developmental Leadership: case studies from the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Papua New Guinea

Post-basic education and leadership in Papua New Guinea This paper will explore the relationship between post-basic education and leadership in the complex context of Papua New Guinea looking specifically at the potential for... [ view full abstract ]

Post-basic education and leadership in Papua New Guinea

This paper will explore the relationship between post-basic education and leadership in the complex context of Papua New Guinea looking specifically at the potential for education to develop leadership, whether through skills, values, or networks/coalitions which are drawn on in later actions and governance.
Firstly, this paper will explore local understandings of leadership. We will question the role of the culturally embedded wantok system, where the 'Big Men' of parliament are expected to return to their villages each year with gifts, and ask how this understanding of social capital might clash with some of the notions of leadership and governance in the 'Western' models, embodied by both the continuing close relationship with previously Colonial powers but also by the education system. Some key exceptions to this binary distinction between 'local' and 'Western' will problematise these terms, and start to explore how the disjunctures between the two might be broken down in relationship to an informed notion of 'leadership'.
Secondly, this paper will explore the evolution of the education system, mapping this against the Colonial and post-Colonial period, and reflecting on the impact of key education reforms in the mid-90s. We will particularly probe the 'failure' narrative prevalent in PNG in questioning how, why and indeed whether the education system has so rapidly deteriorated.
The heart of the research will bring together these two historical analyses of leadership and education, drawing on semi-structured interviews with key informants and Papua New Guinean leaders.

Developmental Leadership in the Philippines: Educational Experiences, Institutions and Networks This paper reports a national case study of The Philippines which examines the relationship between education and political... [ view full abstract ]

Developmental Leadership in the Philippines: Educational Experiences, Institutions and Networks

This paper reports a national case study of The Philippines which examines the relationship between education and political development. The study explores the importance of particular institutions, networks and educational experiences to individuals, and how, through the agency of these individuals and networks, education and higher education in particular may impact on national movements and development. The analysis is set within two political reforms which promote equity and good governance, and one social movement working in poorer communities. The empirical work includes interviews with key individuals involved in those reforms, and so their perspectives on how education shaped their personal development and helped them to develop influential networks are central to the research.

The Philippines is a complex case, sometimes characterised as an ‘oligarchic democracy’. The highly stratified education system, which intersects with religion, socio-economic status and political affiliation, has a role in reproducing economic, political and dynastic elites while also having the potential to develop people who might disrupt these cycles. Among the key themes being explored are the impact of pedagogy, the curriculum, institutional selectivity, school ethos, values and the hidden curriculum, mobility, and extracurricular activities. The underlying question is how individuals’ educational development and the various forms of capital accrued during study are translated – or not - into national development.

Public goods, political settlements and state (de-)legitimation: The case of higher education in Sri Lanka State-building scholars have argued that the provision of highly desired public goods is a significant source of any... [ view full abstract ]

Public goods, political settlements and state (de-)legitimation: The case of higher education in Sri Lanka

State-building scholars have argued that the provision of highly desired public goods is a significant source of any state’s legitimacy, yet few studies have examined why this relationship exists, or what factors influence it. Using original fieldwork and archival analysis, this paper explores why and under what conditions higher education provision – a politically salient area of public policy - has improved or weakened the legitimacy of the Sri Lankan state. It argues that before, during and after the country’s 30-year civil war, the nature of the political settlement and the state’s consequent legitimation needs had direct effects on access to, distribution and governance of the higher education sector. Alongside this politicisation, higher education has periodically provoked or exacerbated a questioning of the state’s right to rule. In particular, universities have become sites of contestation when the rules of entry are perceived to violate the common interest, or when promised rewards underlying the vertical settlement between the state and social groups are not delivered. These findings add a corrective to the uni-directional and positive view of the relationship between public goods and state legitimacy, highlighting it as political, historically contingent, and hinged on local norms.

Documents emerging from the post-2015 discussions emphasise the importance of good governance in ensuring sustainable development, including the sustainable development of education systems. Good governance in turn depends... [ view full abstract ]

Documents emerging from the post-2015 discussions emphasise the importance of good governance in ensuring sustainable development, including the sustainable development of education systems. Good governance in turn depends upon the education of developmental leaders, and for this, basic education is not enough. What is the relationship between post-basic education and state building? What kinds of education have leaders from middle- and lower-income countries experienced, and how have these shaped the individuals and coalitions who have the power to facilitate sustainable development?

Research funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the Developmental Leadership Programme (DLP) has already illuminated links between quality secondary and higher education and successful developmental leadership. Selection, funding, pedagogy, and extra-curricular activities all play roles. How then should state authorities and other actors grow and shape post-basic education to maximise this potential?

The case studies presented in this symposium consider these issues in context, based on recent and ongoing DLP-funded empirical research in Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka. In doing so, they highlight the real and potential roles of higher levels of education in sustainable development, interrogate how development is understood and facilitated in relation to leadership in different political and cultural contexts, and problematise the relationship between higher education and the state.