The effects of global capitalism in the electronic age (1980--2009) on education reform initiatives in the District of Columbia: A political economic approach

This study is a qualitative and critical exploratory analysis of the ways in which the relationships of Global capitalism to neo-liberalism in the electronic age, have informed educational reform initiatives in the District of Columbia. The analysis is grounded in the philosophical assumptions and methodological principles of Historical Materialism, a perspective which utilizes a dialectical approach to demonstrate how social institutions evolve over time and also seeks to identify the cause(s) that underlie changes in social institutions. A theoretically-driven, holistic, and historical analysis of select changes in the political economy with significant impact on the public school system in the District of Columbia from 1980 to 2009 was undertaken.;Six education reform initiatives: Nation At Risk, The District of Columbia Public Schools Response to America 2000, BESST: DC Education Reform Agenda, Public Charter School Act-1996, DC School Choice Initiative Act-2003, and The District of Columbia Public Education Reform Amendment Act-2007 are analyzed in the specific aim of identifying the extent to which these documents support the "creative destruction" of the District of Columbia Public Schools. The data used support the study's claim that a qualitative shift in political economy from industrial- to electronic-based production promoted the development of a neo-liberal educational reform agenda which resulted in the "creative destruction" of the District of Columbia's public school system as evidence by privatization and re-structuring.