Knowledge networks in the construction of the Chilean Curricular Bases: Between national evidence and the global education policy field

Abstract

We conducted a knowledge network analysis applied to the National Curriculum Bases to understand the morphology of the evidence used by policymakers in educational globalization. We ask: What evidence was valued for the construction of the Chilean school curriculum, and how did policymakers use the evidence provided by the emblematic actors of the Global Policy Field (GPC)? The results show significant patterns in international and scientific evidence use. Furthermore, our analyses reveal that the OECD, UNESCO, and emerging groupings such as ATC21 and P21 are positioned as predominant sources of authority to inform broad categories of schooling, such as general curriculum principles and the content of school disciplines. We argue that the externalization of knowledge in curriculum prescription has negative implications for the deliberation and democratization of curriculum policy, as well as for the possibilities of a pedagogical practice that is sensitive to cultural diversity and recognizes learning as a subjective experience.