Are educational governance reforms in a post-conflict society conforming to global standards? Examining the application of education convergence theory in an internationally supervised and politicized context

Abstract

This article examines whether and to what extent educational reforms in a post-conflict society conform to “global (regional) standards,” and explores the meaning of inconsistencies observed in the process of global reform transfer. Among the nations of the world, nowhere is the influence of external forces on educational reforms more evident than in post-conflict nations under close international supervision. A case study of post-conflict Bosnia and Herzegovina revealed that not only policies but also national legislation conformed to European democratic norms, while the externally-induced and somewhat contradictory reforms of centralization and decentralization did not materialize in practice. Ultimately, policy–practice gaps and changeability of global reform models may be expected since they leave room for strategic interactions between national and international actors based on the pragmatic considerations of both parties to achieve their own mandates and purposes.