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Neoliberal Governmentality in the European Union:
Education, Training and Technologies of Citizenship
by
Katharyne itchelli
Forthcoming: Environment and Planning D: Society and Space
!ntroduction
As a political philosophy of governance neoliberalism is an
ongoing formation with different moments and sites in its
evolutionary trajectory. Although articulated and implemented in
different ways depending on context most scholarsacross
disciplinesconcur that it is a philosophy premised on a mantra
of market rationality and the active encouragement of laissez
faire economic systems worldwide. !see e.g. "teger# $%%&' (ickell
and )eck# $%%*' +omaroff and +omaroff# $%%,' -iroux# $%%&' -ill#
$%%*.
/uch of the scholarship on neoliberalism can be broken down
into three distinct analytical categories: as policy framework#
as ideology# or as viewed through the lens of governmentality
!0arner# $%%%.ii 1ith respect to the provision of empirical data
it is neoliberalism as seen through the lens of governmentality
that is most commonly underresearched. -overnmentality can be
understood as a way of explaining the establishment and exercise
of political power# one in which the concept of government is
broader than management by the state' it also involves the
regulation of populations through multiple institutions and
technologies in society. 2n Foucault3s conceptualization#
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governmentality refers to 4the conduct of conduct5 and ranges
from the governing of others in all aspects of life to the
governing of the self !Foucault# ,66,. (hese processes#
moreover# are mutually constitutive# indicating 4how the modern
sovereign state and the modern autonomous individual codetermine
each other3s emergence5 !0emke# $%%,: ,6$. -overnmentality also
takes many forms in society# from the guidance of families to the
ethics of care and the management of the soul !see# e.g. the work
of 7onzelot# ,686, 9loch et al# $%%*' +ruikshank# ,666' ose#
,66%.
+ritics of this literature point out that despite the
theoretical call for detailed# indepth analyses of the
circulation of power in multiple empirical sites and despite the
intellectual heritage of Foucault# most studies of
governmentality are generally abstracted from actuallyexisting
subjects and spaces !see 0arner# $%%%' ;3/alley# ,66technologies3 and >assemblages3 of state power so
brilliantly outlined by the theorists.
1e need to encourage moreexcavations of the extension of
neoliberal governmentality in multiple# evolving forms and sites
and from both >topdown3 perspectivesi.e. the formations of
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political rationalities: new state technologies and policy
initiatives# the definitions of new discursive fields# ideologies
of selfcontrol# etc.' andfrom socalled >bottomup3 realmsthe
processes and forms of subjectivity formation of the enterprising
individual over time: the general and particular responses to new
technologies and rationalities of state institutions and actors#
the evasions# resistances# enablements# exclusions and?or
motivations for individual behavior which occur alongside and in
relation to new forms of contemporary 4government.5
(his is obviously a daunting task and thus my caveat is
that these projectssuch as the one 2 outline hereshould be
considered experiments in putting together several pieces of an
ultimately incomplete puzzle. ather than splitting them apart# 2
believe we must theorize ideological coercion and direct
dominance alongside and in conjunction with various forms of
consent# persuasion and technologies of the self# thus
interrogating how these processes function conjointly in the
extension of neoliberalism worldwide !cf. "parke# $%%&. 2
attempt to do this here through an investigation of recent shifts
in the philosophy# practice and experience of educational reforms
promoted for high schools students by the @uropean nion !@
over the past decade.
@ducation is a critical site in which to do this kind of
analysis' not only is the link between the formation of schools
and the formation of society a vital one in terms of
understanding the shifting technologies of citizenship and state
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society relations through time !see# e.g. Ball# ,6C,# but also
students !i.e. children are particularly impressionable
>subjects3 whose formation in schools and families has
historically been of great interest to hegemonic powers worldwide
!9loch et al# $%%*' Franklin et al# $%%&.
(he @ is an important contemporary venue in this regard as
well# as it is now undergoing a number of critical changes. (he
increase in /ember "tates from ,D to $D in /ay# $%%& has already
had numerous ramifications for neoliberal economic policy !see#
e.g. "mith# $%%$. 9ut perhaps more importantly# new methods of
governance such as the ;/+ !;pen /ethod of +oordination reflect
the extension of neoliberal governmentality in all spheres of
social and civic life !1alters and Baahr# $%%D' "avio and )alola#
$%%&. ;verall these changes have great implications for
education and training# employment and social inclusion# and the
constitution of young 4@uropean5 subjects.
"pecifically in this paper 2 argue that increasingly
neoliberal forms of governmentality are evident in the @ducation
and +ulture directorate of the @uropean +ommission !@+.iii(his
isespecially the case visEvis the institutional philosophy of
how immigrants and second generation 4minorities5 should be best
integrated !through education into @uropean society. 9oth the
policies and the programs associated with education and training
are becoming more oriented towards the formation of mobile#
flexible and selfgoverning @uropean laborers and less oriented
towards an institutionalized affirmation of civic awareness or
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the importance of respect for and valuation of individual and
group difference. (his represents a fairly substantive
philosophical and practical transformation over the past five to
ten years.
2n educational affairs the @+3s explicit role is to
encourage cooperation between /ember "tates and to develop a
4@uropean5 dimension in the realm of education.iv (he inculcation
of a @uropean dimension was initially formulated# at least in
part# as involving the incorporation of minorities !mainly
immigrants who had not been effectively integrated within their
national societies. For example# @dith +resson# the education
commissioner from ,66D,666# wrote in ,66C:
Across the community# the proportion of denizens living in the/ember "tates is bound to rise in the decades to come as aconse=uence of mobility between /ember "tates as well asinflows into the +ommunity from the outside# and the assertionof the right to difference by minority groupsindigenous orotherwiseis now a wellestablished feature of @uropean socialand political life. (his means that learning to livepositively with difference and diversity is becoming a coredimension of the practice of citizenship in @urope.v
(his type of minority incorporation was projected to be
beneficial for the overall aim of increasing @uropean social
cohesion# and documents such as the above encouraged educational
programs and exchanges for the expresspurpose of promoting the
cultural awareness of difference as positive for @urope. (he
@+3s effort to create a democratic citizen of @urope was a clear
educational considerationat least in terms of a narrative of
effective governance. (he early concept of lifelong learning#
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for example# which was initially promulgated in the ,68%s by non
governmental organizations such as @"+;# concerned the holistic
formation of a wellrounded# civically aware# personally
fulfilled and criticallyminded citizen.vi (his emphasis lingered
for a time in @+ documents as well.vii
;ver the last several years however# one can discern a
shift to a different kind of emphasis particularly with respect
to the constitution and training of @uropean laborers. (he new
program priorities focus on individual pragmatism and on the
skills and mobility needed for economic success rather than on
the formation of a democratic person operating within the
framework of 4ethical liberalism5.viii (he most fre=uent
references in contemporary educationrelated documents and
programs are to global competitiveness# a shifting labor market#
and the necessity to constantly adapt to a changing knowledge
based economy. )erpetual mobilization and constant movement are
presented as the answers to the >inescapable3 ramifications of
globalization# as well as to the changing terms of employment and
the national >problems3 of integration for immigrants.
(his current rhetoric is accompanied by multiple @
treaties which promote the standardization# homogenization and
international certification of educational skills# allowing and
encouraging a greater mobility across international borders. And
instead of a concept emphasizing democratic tools# personal
development and critical thinking# lifelong learning has
transmogrified into a concept primarily affirming the constant
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formation and reformation of work skills !see 9agnall# $%%%'
/atheson and /atheson# ,66
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A social democratic impulse remains and is actively
struggled over within the internal framework of the @+# but as 2
discuss further in the following section of the paper# the
general trend is now towards a stronger neoliberal structure of
governance !-ough# $%%&' Agnew# $%%,' "tanding# ,668. Bowever#
recognizing the institutional policy apparatuses through which
neoliberalism is advanced is =uite different from suggesting that
social disciplining or the >production of the neoliberal self3 is
ever completely secured.
For example# in several centralcity /arseille high schools
@+ education and training programs for schoolage children !such
as +omenius# have not reached a singleteenager# a majority of
whom are the children of orth African immigrants.ix2n one sense
then these students have been effectively excluded from the
democratic possibilities of @ citizenship as it is envisioned
and implemented through current educational programs. 9ut at the
same time# many have been able to create a relatively secure
space of local# multicultural >citizenship3 at the scale of the
city. (hey have also been able to engage in multiple types of
international exchange networks with the countries of their
parents3 origin !often former French colonies. Although
fre=uently marginalized and excluded from French national and
@uropean opportunities they are at the same time relatively
cocooned from the accelerated rhythms and frenetic pace of the
marketoriented# @uropean >knowledge community.3 (hus# in the
case of these students# contemporary techni=ues of self
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production and regulation which encourage market disciplinesuch
as the @+ education and training programsremain largely
ineffective technologies of citizenship.x
"ocial #emocracy and Neoliberalism in the EU
2n the past two decades there has been an extension and
entrenchment of neoliberal reform policies# ideology and
technologies of production and control worldwide. (he ways that
this entrenchment is playing out# however# varies considerably as
a result of individual geographies of urban# regional and
national development# historical formations of liberalism and
social democracy and class relations# among other variables !)eck
and (ickell# $%%$' /itchell# $%%&a. As both state policy and
discourse neoliberalism often coexists with other accumulation
regimes in contradictory ways and its extension is fre=uently
contested by multiple actors. As a result its entrenchment is
always geographically and politically uneven and incomplete
!0arner# $%%%' -ough# $%%$.
Although neoliberalism has become the dominant paradigm in
the @ over the past decade it exists in an often uneasy tension
with other accumulation regimes# most notably the social
democratic project of the Heynesian era.xi7espite their
contrasting logics# for the last two decades these accumulation
regimes have existed in tandem# with internal divisions and
ongoing struggles particularly evident in the realms of social
policy and the politics of @uropean social cohesion !osamond#
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$%%$. 2n the sphere of educational policy# for example# the
battle over both philosophical mandates and practical issues such
as funding priorities is incessant.xii
As projects of capital both the social democratic project
and the neoliberal project are primarily concerned with
establishing stable frameworks in which capital accumulation can
continue. 9ut the means through which capitallabor relations are
managed and the productionreproduction nexus maintained are
=uite different between the two regimes. ;ne primary
consideration in the ways these differences play out occurs as a
result of class struggle. As -ough !$%%&: ,6* astutely
observes# both the neoliberal and social democratic regimes are
projects which 4reproduce relations of exploitation5 and are
4premised on labor as an active agent.5 +learly the historical
and geographical formation of classes and their mutually
constitutive relations affects the manner in which neoliberalism
becomes extended# entrenched and?or resisted in different
contexts.
(his said# it is imperative to note that the 4active
agency5 of labor is also premised on social relations other than
class alone. 2mmigrant laborers# /uslim laborers and female
laborers# for example# are often defined and?or selfdesignate
through multiple# crosscutting affiliations# all of which are
affected by existing power relations in society. (he management
of >labor3 then# as a contrasting logic within social democratic
and neoliberal regimes# must be analysed not just as a project of
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reflecting the varying agents and institutions involved in its
production !)eck and (ickell# $%%$.
+learly the >project3 of neoliberalism remains highly
contested in the @ and should be recognized as one that is
hybrid and contextual# often cohabiting and?or overlapping with
other regimes. Further# as characteristic of the general
features of neoliberalism it moves through different phases and
involves a specific assemblage of technologies and strategies
associated with each phase !0arner# $%%*. +urrently a social
democratic project in the @ remains and is given expression at
the regional scale through geographical redistribution programs
and social funds such as the @7F !@uropean egional 7evelopment
Fund and the @"F !@uropean "ocial Fund. 2t also has a
significant presence in specific sites and countries where
traditions of active labor politics and local democratic
governance have strong historical roots. As -ough !$%%&: ,6&
notes# these types of redistributive policies and programs are
actively solicited and protected through the agency of workers#
who have effectively 4impeded austerity offensives5 in certain
sectors and geographical sites.
;verall however# a broadbased social democratic project is
losing ground to a neoliberal one involving a complex mix of
4third way5 type claims to fairness# social justice# social
cohesion and 4open5 government# accompanied by a sharp
institutional transition to a more marketdriven logic$ (he third
way rhetoric seems to promote a gentler# fairer government
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through partnerships and various methods of decentralized
decisionmaking# but in effect these changes act to increase both
individual and regional competition# devolve responsibility to
specific >agents3 and to further undermine welfarist principles
of redistribution and responsibility !1alters and Baahr# $%%D.
(he most obvious subversion of the overarching principal of
regional evenness and social e=uity has occurred with the
incorporation of new countries with economic levels of growth and
standards of living well below the existing standards for the @
!(hese include -reece# )ortugal and "pain in the ,66%s and ten
central and eastern @uropean countries as of /ay ,# $%%&. As
numerous scholars have demonstrated# this vast augmentation of
regional unevenness increases the opportunities for both the
exploitation of labor and the disciplining of /ember "tates vis
Evis the flows of capital through foreign direct investment
!Agnew# $%%,' 7unford# ,66&' -ough# $%%&' Baynes# $%%,. 2t
effectively depresses wages and eventually will place huge and
increasingly impossible demands on the already strained welfare
systems of existing /ember "tates in areas as diverse as health#
housing and education.
1ith a concerted effort at targeted social and economic
development the admission of the new countries need not
necessarily entrench a neoliberal project. 9ut the move to a
single market# combined with the adaptation of the @uro in $%%$
!under the auspices of the @+9 the @uropean +entral 9ank
institutionalizes a type of abstract monetary policy based on
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price stability and an antiinflationary mandate rather than on
growth and development. (his makes statesponsored development
targeted at the eradication of specific internal ine=ualities or
the protection of particular sectors in society increasingly
difficult. Fiscal monitoring by the +ommission through the
"tability and -rowth )act !"-)# for example# limits the
capacities of /ember "tates to protect welfare benefits through
deficit spending# thus retarding the ability of individual
countries to set their own development course !"torey# $%%&.
+ontinual surveillance of /ember "tates both before and
after admission into the nion acts further to keep potentially
wayward !insufficiently neoliberal impulses in check. 1ith
respect to the recent enlargement process# for example# "mith
!$%%$ shows the instrumental role played by the @ in the
reconstruction of +entral and @ast @uropean economies along
laissezfaire market lines. (hrough a process of geoeconomic
monitoring and with the aid of the @uropean 9ank for
econstruction and 7evelopment# these entering nations were
disciplined to accept as both natural and necessarytheir
wholesale transformation from postcommunist regimes to market
based neoliberal societies. 1hen considered alongside recent
international agreements between the @ and the 1(; binding
/ember "tates into a globally liberal trade regime# the extent of
the @ marketization agenda becomes even clearer !see also
9onefeld# $%%$.
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ather than an >upward harmonization3 into a socially
democratic welfare regime# integration into the @ ends up
instead in institutionalizing 4disciplinary neoliberalism5 !-ill#
$%%,. "torey !$%%& documents# in particular# the multiple
attacks on the state provision of goods and services through the
@3s activist competition policy and through the limits it places
on state aid to publicly controlled >businesses3 such as banks
and airports. 9oth 9renner !,666 and "wyngedouw !,668 likewise#
have demonstrated the key role played by the @ in restructuring
space in a matter beneficial for capital. (his# combined with a
declining interest in social reproduction# manifested
particularly harshly in the recent tightening of asylum laws#
indicates a new direction for the @ as an interventionist actor
and partner with a distinctly neoliberal reform agenda.
Alongside these ideological and policy reforms there are
additional changes in the @ relating to the general decline of
democratic accountability. (he @+9# for example# functions
outside of and away from the messy sphere of individual state
politics. (hus popular democratic pressure !e.g. to protect
state subsidies or welfare policies has no effect on monetary
policy or on the developmental aspirations of cities and nations.
@ventually this disjuncture leads to political apathy# as
witnessed in recent years in declining voter turnout at both
national and @ parliamentary elections.xiii
2n the @ over the last decade there has thus been a strong
trend towards an increasing monetarism and a growing
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liberalization of the market. 2n terms of laissezfaire economic
reform a neoliberal project is clearly on the rise. 9ut what is
the evidence of neoliberal gains in other arenas# for example
those of civil society and the formation of subjectsJ 1hat is
the evidence of neoliberal advancement as seen through the lens
of governmentalityJ At this point 2 would like to turn to the
educational spherea key contemporary forum in the constitution
of both marketrational andstateoriented subjects. 2 begin by
looking at the recent @+ policy agenda in education and then
investigate some of its effects visEvis the production of
mobile# entrepreneurial workers and selfgoverning 4@uropean5
immigrantlaborers.
Education and Training in the EU: Formation Permanente
(he shift in the @3s educational emphasis over the past
several years is most evident in the policy orientation of the
(reaty of Amsterdam !,666 and the (reaty of ice !$%%, as well
as the educational proclamations disseminated from @uropean
+ouncil meetings at 0isbon !$%%%# and +openhagen !$%%$. 2t is
also evident in the new education and training programs and
international agreements that have arisen as a result of these
meetings. 1hile there remains a social democratic logic premised
on the notion of state intervention in various realms# including
creating cohesive communities out of difference# this is rapidly
losing ground to a more economistic emphasis.xiv/ost of the
contemporary international agreements and @ programs now focus
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on strategies of skillsbased training designed to forge all
students !both native born and immigrant into@uropean
citizenship via an increasingly crossborder intra@ labor
market. 2 will examine just three of these recent policy
initiatives and programs as they extend across time and space.
A: TheAmsterdam Treaty: Lifelong Learning
(he concept of lifelong learning was given its first major
boost in the @ in ,66action3 areas of the employment chapter 4represent a
major shift in social policy5 away from universal labor mandates
and standards and towards a vision of employment as the key to
maintaining the @uropean social model !see Addison# $%%$: *%C.
(he employment that is envisioned in this new scheme is flexible
employment# and the laborers who are to provide the workforce
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must be 4adaptable5 and 4entrepreneurial5 if they expect to be
4employable.5
0ifelong learning features prominently in the employment
chapter of the (reaty and is explicitly linked with the promotion
of a skilled and adaptable labor force for the new# socalled
4@urope of knowledge.5 2n @+ policy documents of this time the
necessity for constant personal mobilization or 4updating5 is a
fre=uent refrain with reference to lifelong learning and is
inevitably linked with the employment re=uirements of a rapidly
changing world. Further# successful employment is implicitly
associated with successful citizenship. (he following =uote# for
example# is taken from the ,668 @uropean +ommission document#
4(owards a @urope of Hnowledge.5 (his was one of the first full
length discussions of the new strategies for education and
training in general and lifelong learning in particular# that was
envisioned for the +ommission3s policy agenda of $%%%$%%
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(his extremely utilitarian vision of lifelong learning as
linked with wealth creation and employability was advanced even
further by @ducation +ommissioner Iiviane eding in several
speeches from $%%% and $%%,.xvi 2n the speeches and policy agenda
of this period there was a clear effort to tie together the
commission directorate of @ducation and +ulture# with the
directorate of @mployment and "ocial Affairs. (he skillsbased#
vocational focus of this cooperative strategy was made explicit
in related documents and speeches. For example# Anna
7iamantopoulou# the +ommissioner for @mployment and "ocial
Affairs# said:
"kill and competence enhancement in the new economy in@urope re=uires that the policy emphasis is shifted towardsincreasing investment in human capital and in raisingparticipation in education and training throughout workinglife. (o keep pace with developments in technology#globalisation# population ageing and new businesspractices# particular attention should be given toworkplace training an important dimension of our strategyfor 0ifelong 0earning...xvii
2n /arch $%%%# lifelong learning was confirmed by the
0isbon @uropean +ouncil as a foundational component of the
@uropean social model. @mployment was a key agenda item of the
0isbon meeting# as was the objective of 4shaping a new @urope5
and becoming 4the most competitive and dynamic knowledgebased
economy in the world.5xviii Following the 0isbon recommendations
lifelong learning was allocated significant funding for the
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period $%%%$%%< from the @uropean "ocial Fund !@"F and was
confirmed as a 4basic component of the @uropean "ocial /odel.5xix
2n the speeches and documents associated with the 0isbon
+ouncil formation permanenteor perpetual mobilization was
projected as constant# inevitable and ultimately beneficial for
society. (he goal of 4shaping a new @urope5 focused on the
importance of the transition to the knowledge economy and the
role of education and training in constituting a new dynamic and
competitive @uropean labor force !odrigues# $%%$' obertson and
7ale# $%%*. 2n this vision the challenge of reformation and
retraining is devolved from the responsibility of the state to
the agency of individuals# who must carefully choose personally
effective learning strategies. For example# the first =uote below
is from the pamphlet# 4A @uropean Area of 0ifelong 0earning#5
!@uropean +ommission# 0uxembourg# ;ffice for ;fficial
)ublications of the @uropean +ommunities# $%%$: ,%. (he second
is from the @uropean +ommission3s web page. !2talics mine.xx
(raditional systems must be transformed to become much moreopen and flexible# so the learners can have individuallearning pathways.
/oreover# as the blackboard gives way to the keyboard andthe concept of lifelong learning becomes a reality#ac=uiring skills and knowledge is increasingly a matter of
individualresponsibility.
1ith the rhetoric of globalization# competition and
lifelong learning there is a strong underlying message of the
necessity for constant personal mobilization and entrepreneurial
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behavior on the part of individuals while at the same time the
emphasis on structural and institutional constraints to these
goals is generally downplayed. Further# the inexorable emphasis
on the individualand on his or her learning choices
interpellates rational# atomized agents responsible for their own
life paths in lieu of groups or classes experiencing collective
dislocation as the result of widespread socioeconomic
restructuring under laissezfaire capitalism. (his accompanies a
more general abdication of welfarist responsibilities in
providing truly viable economic opportunities for workers !/edel
AMonuevo et al# $%%,' -riffin# ,666.
Further# the original personal and social development
emphasis of lifelong learning as found in the earlier ideology of
the ,68%s and of eras past has been relegated to a minor
rhetorical key. +ommunity funds for lifelong learning go
primarily into workplace retraining programs rather than into
curricula emphasizing social or civic education such as the study
of culture# comparative democracy or systems of government. (hus
it seems that with the transformation of lifelong learning over
the past several years @uropean social cohesion is now advanced
primarily through the formation of a flexible and mobile cross
border labor force rather than through the notion of personal
development and the constitution of democratic participants in
society. (his is similar in many ways to the evolution of
lifelong learning in the nited "tates# where an early emphasis
on lifelong learning as creating a wellsocialized#
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>cosmopolitan3 child invested in national narratives of
collective belonging# has morphed into the strategic global
cosmopolitan interested first and foremost in entrepreneurial
success. )opkewitz !$%%*:&8 writes of this new American
lifelong learner:
1hereas the cosmopolitanism of the child of the turn of thetwentieth century was to live as a socialiedindividualwho embodied the national exceptionalism# today there islittle talk of socialization. (he cosmopolitan child livesin networks of communicative norms that order the classroomand family through a problemsolving# active# flexible# andselfmanaged lifelong learner !italics in original.
!: The Bologna Process: "onvergence
(he 9ologna 7eclaration was a pledge signed by twentynine
@uropean countries 4to reform the structures of their higher
education systems in a convergent way.5 (he declaration initiated
a process !the 9ologna )rocess of policy coordination with the
goal of standardizing higher learning across @urope. (he
objectives included the adoption of a 4common framework of
readable and comparable5 degrees at the university level# the
introduction of undergraduate and postgraduate levels in all
countries# 4with first degrees no shorter than * years and
relevant to the labour market#5 the introduction of the @+("
!@uropean +redit (ransfer "ystem# an effort to make course
creditsincluding lifelong learningcomparable and compatible
across @urope' and the 4elimination of remaining obstacles to the
free mobility of students.5xxi
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As with the lifelong learning mandate# the 9ologna process
manifests a strong policy push towards obtaining a @uropean
competitive advantage in the global knowledge economy game !cf.
Hwiek and /ickiewicz# $%%&. As noted above# among the many
desired transformations promoted by the declaration are the
transferability of course and degree credits under the new @+("
program. (his is part of a more general strategy to increase the
flexibility of students with the ultimate goal of strengthening
their crossborder employability. According to the 7eclaration:
A clearly defined common goal is to create a @uropean spacefor higher education in order to enhance the employabilityand mobility of citizens and to increase the internationalcompetitiveness of @uropean higher education.xxii
Although the declaration functioned simply as a pledge
towards convergence# the process overall has already had a strong
impact on the education policies of many /ember "tates. 2n
France for example# it has influenced a push towards harmonizing
the time re=uired for postgraduate diplomas. ;ne proposed reform
called 40/75 !licence# mast#re# doctorat establishes a set
number of years !post9accalaureate for each degree# e.g. bacN*#
bacND and bacNC. (his form of standardization# along with many
other recently proposed reforms# was protested by numerous
students in the fall of $%%*. (he students explicitly linked the
French university reforms to the increasing 4nOolibOralisation5
and 4marchandisation5 !commodification of education resulting
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from the 9ologna process and other @uropean pressures to conform
to a single higher education system.xxiii
(he 9ologna )rocess also influenced the creation of @+
programs such as @rasmus mundus in $%%*. @rasmus mundus is an
offshoot of @rasmus# the universitylevel exchange program
positioned under the broad aegis of "ocrates.xxiv 1hile the
original 4@rasmus5 facilitated exchanges between /ember "tate
university students# the new program incorporates non@uropean or
4third country5 states in an explicitly global agenda. (he
program seeks to improve @urope3s competitive advantage in the
provision of higher education. Following the intent of the
9ologna )rocess to ensure the worldwide attractiveness of the
@uropean higher education system# @rasmus mundus emphasizes
international competitiveness# global preparedness and individual
mobility. (he following description of the program is from the
@uropean +ommission:
@rasmus /undus is a new global scheme# providing adistinctly 4@uropean5 offer in higher education. 2t seeks#primarily# to enhance the =uality and attractiveness of@uropean higher education worldwide. "econdly# @rasmus/undus /asters +ourses and scholarships will provide aframework to promote valuable exchange and dialogue betweencultures. 9y supporting the international mobility ofscholars and students# @rasmus /undus intends to prepareits @uropean and non@uropean participants for life in a
global# knowledgebased society.xxv
(he 9ologna )rocess has continued over the last four years
with meetings in )rague and 9erlin and with the agreement of all
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$D @ /ember "tates to create a @uropean Bigher @ducation Area
!@B@A by $%,%. 2n each of these meetings the @+ has promoted
convergence and comparable =ualifications in higher education.
(he overarching goal of these reforms is the creation of a
standardized crossborder plan with compatible systems for both
education and assessment. (his is intended to facilitate and
encourage a new level of international mobility and global
competitiveness for students as well as to provide the tools
necessary for the kinds of educational surveillance and
accountability envisioned by the @ for the future. For example#
in February $%%*# the +ommission presented a set of proposed
4benchmarks5 in education and training to the +ouncil of
/inisters and five were adopted by the +ouncil on D /ay.xxvi(he
term >benchmarking3 is fre=uently used in neoliberal discourse
and indicates a method of establishing standards of
accountability in a constantly evolving competitive context. !see
e.g. 7ean and Bindess# ,66C' 0arner and 0e Beron# $%%*: 1alters
and Baahr# $%%D.
": The Copenhagen Declaration: Transparency
2n the +openhagen 7eclaration it is possible to see how a
strategic approach to lifelong learning combined with the strong
push towards convergence leads to a new technology of control:
Europass. @uropass is the most recent +ommission initiative in
the realm of vocational training. 2t follows from the +openhagen
7eclaration of $%%$ which called for action to 4increase
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transparency in vocational education and training through the
implementation and rationalisation of information tools and
networks# including the integration of existing instruments into
one single framework.5xxvii
@uropass incorporates five existing documents into a
primary one that covers individual workers3 skills and
=ualifications in a 4lifelonglearning perspective.5 (hese
documents include a 4@uropean +I5 outlining personal and
vocational skills !including language skills# the 4/obili)ass#5
which indicates previous transnational mobility# and the
4+ertificate5 and 47iploma "upplements#5 which show vocational
=ualifications and higher education diplomas.xxviii
@uropass is essentially a compact document that vocational
laborers carry with them and which indicates at a glance their
work history and =ualifications. (he pass is a kind of universal
>passport of skills3 which enables them to cross @ borders
easily for workrelated affairs. For state officials and
employers in different /ember "tates @uropass encapsulates an
individual worker3s history in an easily digestible format and
reduces the time needed to evaluate the prospective employee
and?or intra@ migrant. 2n the perception of @uropean
commissioners it improves transparency and hence increases
mobility for workers# who are thus liberated to rationally
distribute themselves according to the dictates of market logic.
1ith @uropass the individual laborer bears the
responsibility for locating >efficient3 maximum employment# now
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extended across ,D !and soon to be $D countries. 9ut more than
this# the pass is part of a larger set of political rationalities
in which the concept of person is ultimately underpinned by the
category of laborer. 2t creates a cognitive shorthand e=uivalent
to the business slogan 4you are the office#5 now constituted
across employment categories as well as across @uropean nations
!cf. /itchell# /arston and Hatz# $%%&. ot only is work thus
e=uated with personhood# but through its links to lifelong
learning# workrelated skills must constantly evolve in a
>rational3 manner in order to ensure the development of the
optimal enterprising individual. Further# the new transparency
associated with @uropass ensures that this evolution can be
monitored and regulated through various instruments of cross
border control. (he following =uote is from the +ommission web
page announcing the new @uropass proposal:
(he @uropean +ommission has just adopted a proposal for adecision of the @uropean )arliament and of the +ouncil on asingle framework for the transparency of =ualifications andcompetences !@uropass. +onceived with an eye to lifelonglearning# the proposal integrates various transparencypromoting instruments into a coherent framework# identifiedby the single label 4@uropass5# which will be accessible onthe 2nternet and to which other instruments may also beadded in the future. +oordination# rationalisation andcomputerisation are the key concepts of the proposal...xxix
)rior conceptions of lifelong learning as primarily
concerned with personal development and the ongoing constitution
of ethical personhood and critical thinking have metamorphized
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into a measurable series of =ualifications attained with respect
to lifelong employability. (ransparency in this regard refers to
the ability of the neoliberal state to survey and monitor these
selfimproving moments. -reater or lesser status# i.e. faster or
slower levels of speed# mobility and employability can then be
indicated on the @uropass. As the worker3s >history3 of
transnational mobility is manifested on the !soon to be
electronic pass# his or her relative ac=uiescence and success in
the project of perpetual mobilization and selfimprovement will
remain as a permanent mark.
2n the A9+3s of the previous three examples 23ve indicated
some of the multiple sites and spaces of neoliberal ideology and
policy in the educational pronouncements and programs of the
@uropean +ommission. @xamining these types of sites is critical
in conceptualizing the various technologies of power through
which new political rationalities are formed and legitimized !see
e.g. Foucault# ,66,' 0emke# $%%,. Bowever# this type of
analysis does not lend much insight into the particular responses
to these techni=ues of power and to the general recoding of
social life and personhood under conditions of neoliberal
governmentality. 2n the next section 2 give one small example of
the ways in which the neoliberal project in @uropean education
fails in producing neoliberal @uropean subjectsprimarily as a
result of geography# history and the generally sticky
intransigence of existing structures and practices.
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associated with deviation from an inflexible and highly
centralized French educational system. ;ne principal said in a
Ganuary# $%%& interview in /arseille:
(hese programs P0eonardo and +omeniusQ are utilized verylittle# unfortunately. (he reasons are very verycomplicated. (hey are not adapted to the rigidities of oursystem... (he framework of +omenius is narrow and demands alot of involvement and a long time frame and we havedifficulties constructing programs over several years.Also the re=uirements and exams here are such that itbecomes very difficult to manage.xxx
A second principal noted however# that despite the lack of
participation in@sponsored exchanges a number of students had
traveled on school trips# especially to African countries. Be
showed me one informational pamphlet describing an exchange
program with 0omO in (ogo that was funded under the auspices of
the regional center for vocational and technical training for the
/aritime region in France !+@(F). (hese types of shorter
trips were planned by the school and nationally funded.
Fre=uently the sites of these exchanges were based on old
colonial ties rather than the newer economic links with @uropean
partners.
According to a principal at a lycOe professionnel
!vocational high school# the establishment of exchanges such as
this often relied on personal connections and on the voluntary
time and labor of the high school3s teachers and administrators.
9ecause his zone was designated a R@) !one d$%ducation
prioritaire or priority zone and an atrisk school !a special
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designation given for schools in zones of 4experimental
violence5# he was given more staff# supplemental national funds
and greater autonomy in spending the funds and was thus able to
reward dedicated teachers with extra salary. (hese state funds
were directed towards nationalgoals of minority integration and
the alleviation of poverty in atrisk schools and areas of the
country. (he forms of mobility and skills development that were
made possible by these funds were almost always constituted and
extended through previous networks and alliances and focused on
cultural and historical ties as well as economic connections.
1hen 2 asked students if they had traveled much in @urope
or had any personal sense of identity as 4@uropean5 or as
@uropean citizens the overwhelming response was one of
uninterested ambivalence# the e=uivalent of a verbal shrug. "ome
had traveled in @urope# but the majority of these travels were in
southern @urope around the /editerranean region# mainly in
southern "pain and 2taly. As mentioned earlier# none had
participated in a high school @ education or training program.
2n response to similar =uestions about French identity and
citizenship there was more of a slightly =uizzical affirmative#
but without much warmth. Bowever# when 2 asked more generally
about identity and citizenship# framing it as a =uestion of
allegiance# pride# security and feelings of connection# students
responded with fierce pride that they were first and foremost
citizens of /arseille' they were 4/arseillais.5 2n a group
interview at a lycOe in central /arseille# for example# one
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student responded to a =uestion about French identity with the
following remark: 4Kes 2 am French# but above all !surtout of
/arseille.5 1hen 2 asked if /arseille was >really3 French# all
the students laughed and said boisterously and with some
satisfaction# 4&on'5
For these students a sense of personhood and social
citizenship and belonging was un=uestionably associated with the
city of /arseille rather than with either France or @urope and
was based on cultural allegiances and historical ties rather than
with economic motivations or ambitions. (hey felt secure in
/arseille# a city full of immigrants like themselves# but were
afraid of experiencing discrimination and hatred in other regions
of France and in other countries of @urope. 2f they traveled at
all it was usually in southern 2taly or "pain or to the countries
of their parents3 origin# located primarily in orth Africa or
(urkey. (hey had little or no plans to travel for work or
pleasure in the rest of @urope.
For high school students in innercity /arseille thus the
neoliberal @+ educational policy reforms had little or no effect
visEvis the recent instigations towards permanent mobilization
as laborers and the importance of crossborder @uropean mobility
or sense of allegiance. 2n one sense then they are clearly being
left out of the increasingly fastpaced @uropean knowledge
economy and corresponding entitlements to @uropean >citizenship.3
9ut in another sense they have formed strong emotional and
cultural ties to /arseille and feel secure as social citizens at
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a different scale. Further# they have established or maintained
global linkages in others networksthose associated primarily
with the former French colonies.
Conclusion
eoliberal and social democratic policy regimes are both
operative in the @ and are currently contested in many sectors.
2n these struggles it is important to watch for shifting
practices within the institutional apparatuses of civil society#
especially in arenas like education. 2 believe that we are
currently in a transitional moment from a more social democratic
emphasis to a stronger regime of neoliberal governmentality in
the @ and that this is reflected in the contemporary education
and training policy and practices of the @uropean +ommission.
For example# there is a clear movement towards shaping
@urope as the premier 4knowledge economy5 in the world. (he
techni=ues of the self that are brought to bear in this process
include lifelong learning# mobility and adaptability' in a
mutually constitutive fashion these are juxtaposed with state
discourses of homogenization# convergence and transparency. 2n
the @ programs and discourses of the past several years one can
see the production of a fastpaced# mobile and interchangeable
laborer and the simultaneous exclusion of those considered slow#
particularist and?or otherwise >different#3 who cannot or will
not keep up with the recent changes. @arlier concerns of social
liberalism# including the multicultural emphasis on achieving
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diversity as beneficial for civic life and for the development of
ethical personhood have been replaced with a market logic which
underpins all educational policies and ideals.
(he @+3s stress on the necessity for constant mobilization
and selfempowerment through lifelong learning leads to the
growing exclusion of the poorer members in society# especially
immigrant minorities. ather than encouraging the types of social
and educational integration that are practical and attainable for
these groups there is an increasingly cynical narrative which
e=uates greater @uropean movement with greater @uropean social
belonging. (his kind of 4third way5 neoliberalism employs soft
cultural rhetoric alongside hard economic policies# whereby
4inclusion is understood as another means of enhancing
international competitiveness5 !0arner and +raig# $%%D. (hird
way rhetoric such as the 4;pen /ethod of +oordination#5
4partnering#5 or 4social inclusion#5 obfuscates the ultimate
neoliberal goal of extending >common sense3 market rationality
throughout the @. Further it is paralleled by the decline of
both @ and /ember "tate interest in or financial support for the
philosophical ideals of statesponsored multicultural
integration.
(he movement away from a stateled valuation of difference
as >positive3 for @urope is already having direct conse=uences
for immigrants of color. 2t has become the individual3s
responsibility to integrate effectively and if he or she does
not# it is projected as a =uestion of individual choice rather
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than the failure of liberalism3s universalist and egalitarian
claims.xxxi (hese transformations are broadly linked with macro
economic shifts relating to the promotion of flexible
accumulation as a new regime of capital accumulation. (he
economic changes moreover# occur alongside the discourse of
competition and individual entrepreneurialism connected with the
rise of neoliberalism as a political philosophy of governance.
2t remains important to acknowledge however# that
neoliberalism is a broad set of often contradictory programs#
techni=ues and practices and never completely secured. (he
extension of neoliberal reform policies in @ education and
training has un=uestionably had an exclusionary effect on high
school students in /arseille# who as a result of history#
geography and economic circumstances are unable to access
@uropean citizenship through the new initiatives and programs.
9ut neoliberalism as a project of disciplining and the abstract
organization of subjects at a distance remains partial and
fragmentary. For example when viewed with an eye towards the
constitution of neoliberal subjects it is evident that the
current policies have been unsuccessful in producing and
regulating the young >/arseille3 citizens.
(he evasion of various technologies of control manifests
the multiple systemic disjunctures and possibilities for a wider
politics of counterhegemony. 2t is always important to recognize
the many ways that the seemingly seamless assemblages of
neoliberal state power fails to actually connect. Bowever it is
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also politically responsible to note the often unconscious and
fragile nature of these disconnections. 2n the case of the young
students from /arseille# these practices are still very much
4weapons of the weak.5 At this time they do not form the basis of
a viable political formation and whether and to what extent they
may do so in the future remains an open =uestion.
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education and training under the (reaty of Amsterdam5 (ournal
of La)or *esearch$*!$ *%**,C
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Al"ayyad # +astells / $%%$# @ds. uslim Europe or Euro-.slam:
Politics, "ulture, and "itienship in the Age of
/lo)aliation!ew Kork: 0exington 9ooks
Asad (# $%%* 0ormations of the Secular: "hristianity, .slam,
odernity !"tanford: "tanford niversity )ress
9ack 0# Heith /# Hhan A# "hukra H# "olomos G# $%%$# 4ew
labour3s white heart: politics# multiculturalism and the
return of assimilation5 Political 1uarterly8$ &&D&D&
9agnall # $%%%# 40ifelong learning and the limitations of
economic determinism5 .nternational (ournal of Lifelong
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9loch /# Bolmlund H# /o=vist 2# )opkewitz ( $%%*# @ds. /overning
"hildren, 0amilies and Education: *estructuring the 2elfare
State!ew Kork: )algrave /ac/illan
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9onefeld 1# $%%$# 4@uropean integration# the market# the
political and class5 "apital and "lass88 ,,8,&$
9renner # ,666# 4-lobalisation as reterritorialisation: the re
scaling of urban governance in the @uropean nion5 +r)an
Studies*
9rubaker # $%%*# 4(he return of assimilationJ +hanging
perspectives on immigration and its se=uels in France#
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"itienship: .mmigrants in Li)eral &ation-States@ds. Goppke
+# /orawska @ !9asingstoke: )algrave /acmillan# *6DC
+omaroff G# +omaroff G $%%,# @ds. illennial "apitalism and the
"ulture of &eoli)eralism!7urham: 7uke niversity )ress
+ruikshank 9# ,666 The 2ill to Empower: Democratic "itiens and
3ther Su)4ects!2thaca: +ornell niversity )ress
7ean /# Bindess 9# ,66C /overning Australia: Studies in
"ontemporary *ationalities of /overnment !+ambridge:
+ambridge niversity )ress
7onzelot G# ,668 P,686Q The Policing of 0amilies trans. obert
Burley !ew Kork: )antheon 9ooks
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7unford /# ,66 41inners and losers: the new map of economic
ine=uality in the @uropean nion5 European +r)an and *egional
Studies , 6D,,&
@tzinger B# $%%*# 4(he rise and fall of multiculturalism: (he
case of the etherlands5 in Toward Assimilation and
"itienship: .mmigrants in Li)eral &ation-States @ds. Goppke
+# /orawska @ !9asingstoke: )algrave /acmillan pp. D6Cnew @urope3: geo
economic power and the new @uropean architecture of
integration5 Political /eography$,
/d.: owman and 0ittlefield )ublishers
"torey A# $%% 4(he @uropean )roject: 7ismantling social
democracy# globalising neoliberalism5The 0oundation for the
Economics of Sta)ility!F@A"(A. (his article can be found at
the following web site:
http:??www.feasta.org?documents?democracy?storey.htm.
!accessed Gune# % $%%&. +ited with permission of the
author.
45
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"tanding -# ,668# 4(he new insecurities5 in The 1uestion of
Europe@ds. -owan )# Anderson ) !0ondon: Ierso pp $%*$,6
"wyngedouw @# ,668# 4@xcluding the other: the production of
scale and scaled politics5 in /eographies of Economies@ds.
0ee # 1ills G !0ondon: Arnold pp ,
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1alters 1# Baahr G B# $%%D /overning Europe: Discourse,
/overnmentality and European .ntegration!0ondon: outledge.
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i(he research for this article was made possible by the support of a grant
for esearch and 1riting from the Gohn 7. and +atherine (. /acArthur
Foundation. /any thanks also go to 1alter )arker and three anonymous
reviewers who offered helpful comments on an earlier draft of the paper.
ii2n the first category neoliberalism is conceptualized as a policy reform
program 4initiated and rationalized through a relatively coherent
theoretical and ideological framework5 !0arner# $%%%: 8. 2n the second#
neoliberalism is seen as part of a struggle for dominance over the ideas
!and minds of the social formation. 2n the third category# neoliberalism
is perceived as discourse# a 4system of meaning that constitutes
institutions# practices and identities in contradictory and selfidentified
ways5 !0arner# $%%%: ,$. 2n this latter formulation neoliberalism leads
to the emergence of institutions and practices !technologies of governance
that facilitate and encourage individual and group conformity to market
norms.
iii1hen discussing policy proposals and reforms 2 will refer to the @uropean
+ommission rather than the @uropean nion.
iv(his 4@uropean5 dimension was promoted initially through university and
secondary school exchange programs. (he first educational exchange
programs under @+ auspices were launched in ,6CD with @rasmus for
university students and +ommett for vocational training. +ommett operated
until ,66& and was then replaced by the 0eonardo da Iinci vocational
program. @rasmus continues to operate.
v@dith +resson# Foreword: 40earning for active citizenship#5 @uropean
+ommission# @uropa: @ducation and (raining ,66C 7-TT22 publication of the
@. (his document can be found at:
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now as part of a long laundry list of policy reform >positives3 of which
the most privileged and numerous are those relating to skills# adaptability
and mobility. For a longer discussion of the terminology related to
4ethical liberalism5 and its associated meanings see /itchell# $%%*: *6*'
/anzer# ,66&.
ix@mpirical data on innercity high schools !lyc%es= in /arseille was
derived from interviews with five principals and with approximately $%%
students !interviewed in classsize groups ranging from 8 to $%.
Fieldwork was conducted in /arseille in $%%*$%%&.
x7ean and Bindess !,66C defined technologies of citizenship as those
improving self esteem and empowering people to further their own ends# but
always within the context of the market economy.
xi(he typologies for differing accumulation regimes varies between
disciplinary literatures and can often become confusing. Bere 2 refer to
the first as a social democratic political formation in concert with a
Heynesian welfare state economic project. (his is fre=uently labelled a
4Fordist5 regime. (he second is a neoliberal political formation in concert
with a flexible or laissezfaire economic project# labelled variously as
4postfordism#5 4disorganized capitalism#5 4flexible accumulation#5 and
4network capitalism.5 A neomercantilist regime was also promoted early on
in the @ as a 4fortress @urope5 protectionist strategy favoring @uropean
business interests. (his regime was to be aided and entrenched via the
single market and the @/ !@uropean /onetary nion. /any saw a united
@urope as an 4opportunity to protect the >@uropean model of society#35
including its social democratic traditions from the 4potentially
destructive forces of globalisation and neoliberalism5 !van Apeldoorn#
$%%,: 8
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,6C%s by a strong lobby of international businesses including the @(
!@uropean oundtable of 2ndustrialists# who favored a neoliberal version
of the single market !"ee "torey# $%%&.
xii Author3s interview with a member of the @ducation and +ulture directorate
of the @uropean +ommission# 9russels# /arch# $%%&.
xiii(he recent @ parliamentary elections of Gune ,*# $%%& are a good example
of declining voter turnout across the spectrum of old and new /ember
"tates. "ee# e.g. (homas Fuller and Hatrin 9ennhold# 4After voters revolt#
doubt on @ charter#5 .nternational 8erald Tri)une# Gune ,D# $%% p. ,.
xivFor example the former @ducation +ommissioner @dith +resson wrote
enthusiastically about democratic participation and the constitution of a
pluralist @urope. As a national politician she was a member of the
socialist party and a political appointee of FranVois /itterand. "he was
replaced in ,666 by the current commissioner# Iiviane eding# a
conservative +hristian 7emocrat from 0uxembourg. As one of her first major
policy actions eding pushed an economistic conception of lifelong learning
to the forefront of the @+ educational agenda. (he biographies of these two
+ommissioners manifest some of the continuing internal tensions between the
social democratic and neoliberal projects within the @ administration.
xv@uropean +ommission# @uropa @ducation and (raining# 4(owards a @urope of
knowledge5# published ,668. (his document can be found at:
http:??europa.eu.int?comm?education?doc?other?orient?orieUen.html!accessed
Ganuary $6# $%%&.
xvi"ee for example# Iiviane eding# 4A @uropean area of lifelong learning:
empowering @uropeans in the knowledgebased economy and society.5 "peech
given ovember $,# $%%,. 7: 2)?%,?,
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pUaction.gettxtWgtXdocW2)?%,?,
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exchanges in vocational training. +ombined @ annual funding for the two
programs is approximately @uro &%% million.
xxvhttp:??europa.eu.int?comm?education?programmes?mundus?indexUen.html
!accessed Guly 8# $%%&.
xxvi"ee: http:??europa.eu.int?comm?education?policies?introductionUen.html
!accessed Guly 8# $%%&.
xxvii4@uropass: a new instrument for better recognition of =ualifications and
skills in the enlarged @urope.5 9russels# Ganuary 8#$%%&. (his document can
be found at: http:??europa.eu.int?rapid?start?cgi?guestfr.kshJ
pUaction.gettxtWgtXdocW2)?%&?,&Y%YA)27XlgW@XdisplayW!accessed Ganuary
$8# $%%&.
xxviii2bid.
xxix2bid.
xxx(ranslated from the French by the author.
xxxi2 would argue that the recent legislation in France prohibiting the
/uslim headscarf and other >ostensible3 religious symbols in schools is an
example of a type of educational reform that ultimately places the
responsibility for assimilation on the individual immigrant or minority
student. 2f a /uslim girl 4chooses5 to wear a scarf regardless of the law
she can !must be excluded from the educational system because of her
unwillingness to assimilate to French secular norms. For further
discussion see -okariksel and /itchell# forthcoming.
http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/programmes/mundus/index_en.htmlhttp://europa.eu.int/comm/education/policies/introduction_en.htmlhttp://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guestfr.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/04/14%7C0%7CRAPID&lg=EN&display=http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guestfr.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/04/14%7C0%7CRAPID&lg=EN&display=http://europa.eu.int/comm/education/programmes/mundus/index_en.htmlhttp://europa.eu.int/comm/education/policies/introduction_en.htmlhttp://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guestfr.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/04/14%7C0%7CRAPID&lg=EN&display=http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guestfr.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/04/14%7C0%7CRAPID&lg=EN&display=