A growing voice of inclusion in the neoliberal context: the international policy-making level of the Bologna Process

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Kushnir, I ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-7208, 2023. A growing voice of inclusion in the neoliberal context: the international policy-making level of the Bologna Process. In: Kushnir, I ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0727-7208 and Eta, EA, eds., Towards social justice in the neoliberal Bologna Process. Emerald Publishing. ISBN 9781801178815

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Abstract

This chapter conceptualises inclusion and neoliberalism and theorises the relationship between these two phenomena in order to contextualise the debates presented in the rest of the chapters in this book. Additionally, this chapter investigates the evolution of the meaning of ‘inclusion’ in the key international Bologna Process policy documents. This chapter is informed by a thematic analysis of 26 documents, issued between 1998 and 2020. The chapter demonstrates that understanding ‘inclusion’ only with regard to lifelong learning, student-centred education and the social dimension has pitfalls – there are overlaps between these action lines and, consequently, the relationships among them are unclear. A better way of understanding inclusion in Bologna may be through considering a tight relationship between the inclusion and neoliberal discourses in the support of marginalised groups in higher education. The relationship has been evolving in relevant policy documents since 1998 which is the year that marks the preparatory Sorbonne meeting that gave life to Bologna in 1999. The inclusion discourse grew in strengths, while the neoliberal rhetoric firmly stood its ground since the beginning of the Bologna Process, while undergoing some transformations. In spite of such seemingly positive dynamic in the development of inclusion in the Bologna Process, its definition remained vague in the policy documents until 2020 as it was unclear which exact underprivileged groups were meant to be supported in the European Higher Education Area. The 2020 conference outcome documents made a significant step towards closing the gaps in our understanding of whom inclusion targets in Bologna and how to implement these inclusion ideas. The chapter highlights this achievement and also prepares the reader to problematise its reach in national contexts later in the book.

Item Type:	Chapter in book
Creators:	Kushnir, I.
Publisher:	Emerald Publishing
Date:	23 January 2023
ISBN:	9781801178815
Identifiers:	Number Type 1605442 Other
Rights:	This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact permissions@emerald.com
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Institute of Education
Record created by:	Laura Ward
Date Added:	07 Nov 2022 09:30
Last Modified:	27 Jan 2023 16:51
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/47336