The Complexity of Context in Legitimating National School Reforms: The Case of Sweden

Abstract

This chapter examines the use of evidence in legitimating national school reforms in a globalized context. Although international policy knowledge is becoming increasingly important in legitimating national school reforms, the national context still seems to affect whether and how it is used. This chapter draws attention to the selective use of international policy knowledge in domestic policy agendas and the increasingly important role of people and institutions acting as intermediaries in selecting, interpreting, and presenting useful policy knowledge to politicians. By taking the complexity of context seriously, this chapter provides valuable insights into the multidirectional policy process that filters the expert knowledge that is ultimately used by politicians as evidence in legitimating school reforms.

The “boy problem” in public policy

“…Still, both in Sweden (2009/2010) and in Norway (2019) a starting point was a situation where the gender gap in school performance was considerable and above the OECD average. In Sweden, Gender Equality in Schools Commission was one in a row of commissions set down under the educational ministry to reform Swedish educational policy from the 2000s onward (Nordin & Wahlström, 2022). This specific commission was also a response to a growing concern in Swedish public debate and among policy makers about poor PISA scores, including boys' particularly worrisome achievements (Zimmerman, 2018).…”