How the World of Work Transforms Educational Institutions

Abstract

Introduction au numéro spécial de la Revue Suisse de Sociologie: Wie die Arbeitswelt Bildungsinstitutionen verändert / Comment le monde du travail transforme les institutions éducatives / How the World of Work Transforms Educational Institutions

The world of work and the educational system are closely interrelated. The structural divisions that exist among workers in the labor market, for example, are produced within the educational system, through processes of selection, qualification and certification (Georg and Sattel 2006). This relationship developed in particular during the industrial age (Gonon et al. 2009) and is growing stronger today (Dubet et al. 2010) in more service and knowledge oriented economies. New labor require-ments and conditions, such as flexibility and life-long learning, that emerged out of a global market orientation (Mercure and Vultur 2010) have entered educational institutions and their programs (Tomlinson 2013). At the same time, under an economic perspective that views education as an investment in human capital, New Public Management (NPM) reforms have found their way into educational institu-tions and profoundly transformed pedagogical work.This special issue deals with how the world of work transforms educational institutions. It cannot provide an all-encompassing account of this issue, but it does shed light on the relationship between the worlds of work and education by focusing on two specific topics. First, this introduction and the contributions to this special issue examine how labor-market requirements and wider socioeconomic changes have entered the educational system and shaped educational programs, curricula and practices today. Second, this special issue explores how the current management of educational institutions, in Switzerland and elsewhere, has initiated reforms and affected work realities within them. Following from its investigation into these two topics, this special issue also addresses the implications for the individuals in educational institutions, whether pupils, teachers or principals. Each of the contributions to this special issue examines at least one of these topics and provides insights into how the world of work shapes the educational system, its programs and organizations and the lived experiences of individuals within them. All articles are empirical studies: five focus on Switzerland and three on educational institutions in Germany, France and Quebec; they cover a wide spectrum from obligatory to post-obligatory educational institutions.