Commodification of Education Preamble
ESIB – The National Unions of Students in Europe was founded in 1982 to promote the
educational, economic, cultural, social and political interests of students in Europe. ESIB,
through its 44 members from 34 countries, currently represents more than 10 million students
in Europe. 1. The Concept of Commodification of Education
Education is a means for social development, democratic empowerment and advancing of the
general well-being and economic development of societies. It ensures the accumulation and
sharing of knowledge and cultural capital.
ESIB believes that open access to all levels of education is the cornerstone of a socially,
culturally and democratically inclusive society and a pre-requisite for individual development and
well-being. However in the economic debate, which emphasises the importance of a knowledgebased
economy, this definition of education is evermore contested and education has come to
be understood solely as an economic factor rather than a tool for social development. In this context, Higher Education (HE) is perceived as a knowledge industry and Higher
Education Institutions (HEIS) as service providers. Students are looked upon primarily as
consumers of education and human capital for the labour market. They tend to focus less on
active participation in higher education institutions. Many are choosing to focus only on
preparation for the labour market and possibilities for maximising personal financial returns
upon graduation, which is a negative and one-sided approach. This has also led to a decrease in
cooperation and solidarity between individual students and an increase in unhealthy competition
for the purpose of the fulfilment of personal aims. It is thus the increasingly commercialised way in which higher education is being dealt with that
is referred to as ‘commodification’ of education. 2. Different Levels of Impact of Commodification on Education
2.1. Cooperation or Competition in Internationalisation of Higher Education
ESIB recognises the positive impacts of internationalisation, yet stresses that students aim for
an international education area which is characterised by cooperation, solidarity, high quality
and freely accessible education, which also promotes global mobility in order to enable the
development of responsible citizens. ESIB supports the work of student organisations in the global south and reiterates the demand
to recreate state-financed and publicly-run HE in Africa, Latin America and Asia and to stop the
increasing trend of commodification of public higher education systems.
Furthermore, increased commodification of education in these regions also negatively affects
higher education in Europe. 2.2. The Regulation of Education
ESIB is greatly concerned that globalisation often proves to be a process which surpasses
national and local legislative and regulatory mechanisms, and presents new challenges in the
regulation and provision of education. The specific aspects and needs of national HE systems
need to be constantly kept in mind in the process of international cooperation in higher
education, whether in the form of international law or otherwise. Societies and states, as the
main stakeholders of education, need to preserve a major role in regulation and provision of
education. 2.3 Academic Freedom and Autonomy
ESIB stresses that classifying education primarily as a tradable product jeopardizes academic
freedom and autonomy of universities. With the increasing pressure to meet market standards
set in international fora, HEIs have become restricted in the scope and extent of their activity. Furthermore, market failure and the compromising of academic values by privatisation of
education is very likely to lead to a decreasing diversity of disciplines and act as an impediment
to academic freedom in HEIs throughout Europe. 2.4. Governance and Democracy
In the context of commodification of education, democracy within HEIs is becoming increasingly
replaced by the concept of service provision, with the consequence that it is market mechanisms
that characterise the steering of HEIs, rather than democratic structures. This fails to reflect the
complex role of education, both in societal and individual terms. HE as a means of developing
active citizenship and solidarity within a democratic and tolerant community must base itself on
democratic decision making with inclusion of all stakeholders in HEIs. ESIB strongly condemns efforts which exclude students from the process of creating and
sharing knowledge, and which further highlight the trend to treat students as customers, rather
than partners in the higher education process. 3. The Different Areas of Impact of Commodification of Education
3.1. Financing of Higher Education and Access
The understanding of education as a public good and a public responsibility is a pre-requisite for
equal access to education. Public responsibility in financing of HE and social services for
students is a means of ensuring that access does not depend on the socio-economic background
of learners or their families. The right to education has been recognised in national constitutions and in international
treaties. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights identifies free access to education as a
human right, and the UN Covenant on Social, Cultural and Economic Rights calls for a
progressive elimination of tuition fees. ESIB remains categorically opposed to the charging of tuition fees and reaffirms that education
is a human right and therefore must be accessible to all. (1) 3.2. Quality and Quality Assurance
There is an increasing lobby by quality assurances agencies and governments to liberalise
markets for evaluation agencies. This development endangers the quality assurance process.
ESIB stresses that it is of central importance that criteria for evaluation are transparent and
agreed upon among all stakeholders of HEIs in order to increase ownership and acceptance of
the process, the results and the necessary changes resulting from the evaluation. National and
local issues are also relevant in this case, coupled with the necessity to ensure the participation
of students, in order to enable the constructive impact of students on quality assurance
processes. ESIB is concerned that many criteria used in quality assurance mechanisms are based on a
commodified view of HE, related, among others, to output of study programmes, the setting of
standards of excellence in research and teaching and acquisition of private funding. Quality
assurance criteria should focus primarily on the education process rather than outcomes. The assumption that a higher degree of quality will be achieved through market-type
mechanisms that stimulate competition between HEIs forms the basis for an increasing trend to
privatise state universities and offer HE programmes on a for-profit basis. It is furthermore
based on the assumption that competition will inevitably lead to better adjustment of supply to
demand and more efficiency in HE provision. This trend is one that can be witnessed globally. ESIB strongly believes that market-type mechanisms often prove to be a deterrence to the
provision of quality. Since competition between different providers on the market exists both on
the basis of quality and costs, saving money on the quality of education could also be a result of
competition between HEIs. ESIB again stresses that equal access to education includes equal
access to education of high quality. 3.3. Recognition
Different standards and procedures in quality assurance or the lack thereof lead to a high level
of uncertainty at the global level about qualifications and degrees provided by HEIs and the
programmes offered by them. This negatively affects international recognition of qualifications
and degrees by public authorities, HEIs or the labour market, leaving the individual in a situation
of uncertainty. ESIB stresses the importance of international cooperation in the development of
transparent standards and guidelines for quality assurance on international level as well
as of transparent criteria for the recognition of qualifications and degrees. This is a
prerequisite to ensure that adequate information is available to individuals, HEIs, public
authorities responsible for the recognition of foreign qualifications and degrees, and the
labour market on the quality and qualifications of different HE programmes. 4. The Need for Public Debate on Commodification of Higher
Education
ESIB stresses that commodification of HE does not result from the internationalisation thereof.
Rather, the different processes of internationalisation reflect and result from a political tendency
to perceive the self-regulation of the market as a universal instrument to reach the triad of
innovation, economic progress and competitiveness of societies. Social cohesion, democratic and
cultural progress of societies are not at the heart of this political concept or its aims, but are
merely seen as result of economic competitiveness of societies. Critical reflection of local, national and regional policy-making and the privatisation of public
goods are therefore prerequisites for a comprehensive public debate on internationalisation and
its affects on commodification of HE. Responsibility for commodification of education does not
only arise on international or regional levels, but also at national and local level. ESIB strongly welcomes international cooperation in HE, but stresses the need for a
comprehensive and inclusive debate on the underlying principles of internationalisation of
education, in a transparent and inclusive manner, with all stakeholders in HE, on institutional,
national and regional level. ESIB stresses that internationalisation and commodification are
separate issues, and recognises the importance of open discussion based on respect for national
interests, global solidarity, human rights and non-discrimination. ESIB clearly distances itself
from any efforts to misuse arguments against commodification to promote a nationalistic
ideology. 1 For ESIB’s position on tuition fees, refer to ESIB’s policy paper on Financing of Higher Education (Adopted at BM48, Bergen)
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