INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION

he pace at which geopolitical changes have occurred in the 21st century is undoubtedly vertiginous, and the framework behind those changes is progressively getting more complicated than ever before. This can be explained by the rise and development of two cultural and social phenomena that have been determining the development of the western world since the 20th century: globalization and postmodernism. In addition, the rise and intensification of social and ideological polarization in several different parts of the world reinforces the urgency of supporting education that encourages students to develop critical thinking, global empathy, civic engagement and global citizenship. This is the main goal that the authors of this book pursue: to encourage students to be analytical, to be reflective, to be (self)critical, to be decisive, to be able to learn from the past and develop skills that allow them to both understand the world and be an active part of it. Along the same lines, education professionals –teachers, pedagogues, social educators, social workers, educational inspectors, education policymakers…– must play an active and decisive role in this world from an educational perspective. In summary, this subject focuses on the study and critical analysis of key elements of international education that have suffered and experienced the impact of many of the aforementioned transformations in the last decades.

Educational policies and politics together constitute a broad field of expertise that encompasses both great intellectual endeavour and complexities. The terms «policy»and «politic»have sometimes been erroneously used as synonyms (i.e., in Spanish there is only one term to refer to both: política). There are, in fact, essential differences between them. In the case of policy, it can be defined as «a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed to officially by a group of people, a business organization, a government, or a political party»(Cambridge Dictionary, n.d., definition 1); whereas politic can be defined as «wise and showing the ability to make the right decisions»(Cambridge Dictionary, n.d., definition 1). That is to say that, while policy is an abstract concept related to theories, documents, reports, etc., politic describes focused decision-making processes and actions.